Would You Rather...? Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Equipment
• Object of the Game
• Quick Steps
  • Start of Play (Quick Steps)
  • Game Play (Quick Steps)
  • The Quagmire (Quick Steps)
• Rules of Play
  • Start of Play
  • Game Play
  • The Quagmire and Winning the Game
• Zobmondo!! Notes (Optional!)
• Zobmondo!! Terms (Optional!)

Equipment

Zobmondo!! contains one playing board, one die, 300 "Would You Rather" question cards, one card box, 8 glass player pieces, one three-minute sand timer, ballot tickets, and pencils.

Object of the Game

Entertaining, ridiculous conversation AND to advance to the middle of the game board by predicting how friends will answer ridiculous, gross, thought provoking, and/or shocking Zobmondo!! "Would You Rather" questions.

Quick Steps

Start of Play (Quick Steps)

a. Choose a game piece.

b. Determine who goes first by rolling the die.

c. Choose "Start Points" in a clockwise direction.

Game Play (Quick Steps)

a. Take a question card and silently read the question.

b. Predict how the group will answer the same question and write your prediction on a ballot ticket.

c. Read the question aloud to the group.

d. The group should take 3 minutes to discuss the question and come to a consensus.

e. The group announces their choice.

f. If you have correctly guessed the group's answer, roll the die and move forward the appropriate number of spaces. Play then shifts to the next player.

g. If you are incorrect, you do not advance and must wait until your next turn to try again.

The Quagmire (Quick Steps)

a. Invent your own "Would You Rather" question.

b. Read it to the group.

c. No discussion is permitted. Each player writes his individual choice on a ballot ticket.

d. Reveal the individual votes.

e. If the vote is unanimous, you have failed and must wait until your next turn.

f. If the vote is not unanimous, you may decide whether to move another player backward or to advance your own piece. Roll the die to determine the appropriate number of spaces.

g. Play moves in a clockwise direction whether you succeed or fail.

Rules of Play

Start of Play

1. Each Player Must Choose Piece

Each player should begin by selecting a game piece.

2. Determine First Turn and Where to Start

Each player rolls the die to determine who will go first. Do not use this roll to move your game piece. The player rolling the highest number goes first and selects which of the eight start spaces he will take to begin his/her (hereafter "his") journey to the center Quagmire space. If two or more players tie, they roll again. In a clockwise direction, the other players should choose their start points. No two players may begin at the same start point. All paths to the center have the same number of spaces.

Categories with their respective color codes follow:

• Pain / Discomfort / Fear – Red
• Appearance / Embarrassment – Blue
• Food / Ingestion – Brown
• Ethics / Intellect – Green
• Random – Yellow

Game Play

3. Zobber Selects Question and Guesses the Outcome

Please note that, during game play, the roll of the die occurs at the end of the player's turn. The first player, the Zobber, starts the game by choosing the first card from the card box and then silently reads the "Would You Rather" question corresponding to the category color on which his piece rests. He/she (hereafter "he") then tries to predict how the remaining players, as a group, will answer the difficult question. He notes his guess on one of the ballot tickets and places it face down in the center of the board.

4. Zobber Asks Question to Group and Group Comes to a Decision

Now the craziness begins. The Zobber reads the question aloud to the other players. They then have three minutes (use the timer) to debate, reason, argue, and laugh until they are able to reach a consensus choice. (OPTIONAL PLAY: Players may decide not to limit the time for discussion since this type of dialogue is often truly hilarious.) The Zobber may listen to the loud, entertaining decision making process but he should not give the other players any idea what his prediction is. Trying to influence the process generally only reduces the Zobber's hopes of a correct prediction.

If the process of building consensus seems confusing, please review the definition of "Consensus" on the Zobmondo!! Terms section on the right side fold of this instruction card.

5. Zobber's Guess is Revealed and Zobber Moves Forward if Correct

When the timer stops, or earlier if a consensus is reached, the group reveals their choice and the Zobber turns over the ballot ticket. If the Zobber has correctly predicted the outcome, he rolls the die and moves forward the appropriate number of spaces. If he is incorrect he does not advance. Please note that the Zobber must wait until his next turn to draw another card, whether he succeeds or fails.

6. The Next Player Repeats Steps 3 – 5

Play continues in a clockwise direction as the next player becomes the Zobber and begins his turn by drawing the next card and proceeding as before.

The Quagmire and Winning the Game

(Consider reading this section when someone lands on a Quagmire space.)

Each player will experience the dreaded Quagmire sooner or later. You will visit the Quagmire in two scenarios:

The Quagmire (kwăg' mīr) — the swirl icon printed on the board.

1. Scenario One: During Standard Play

Landing on a space which contains the Quagmire icon (show the icon here) gives the Zobber the option to "dip his toe" into the Quagmire. Players may decide to decline the option and play as usual. However, while this little optional "dip" sounds risky, it can be a useful and necessary tactic.

A player who takes the Quagmire option has a different objective and, during his turn, a different procedure is required. He must invent, concoct, derive, or author his own original Zobmondo!! "Would You Rather" question, and this question must result in a non-unanimous response from the other players. A skilled and imaginative player can capitalize on the Quagmire option quite easily. Hopefully, he has been dreaming up such a question in anticipation of his turn... no subject matter is off-limits.

• When his turn arrives he must pose his question to the other players.
• Unlike normal play, Quagmire play does not permit discussion, but instead requires that each player record their individual choice on a ballot ticket. These tickets are placed, one by one, in the middle of the board.
• After all the votes are in, they are revealed. A non-unanimous result of any kind releases the Zobber from the Quagmire and the Zobber is rewarded with a tremendous choice. He may choose to Zob any one player by rolling the die and moving that player backward the appropriate number of spaces or he may move forward himself, as usual, by rolling the die and moving ahead. A unanimous vote, however, means that the Zobber may not advance and instead must wait until his next turn.
• The logic is simple. Since there is no obvious choice to a good Zobmondo!! Question, a unanimous response should not go rewarded.

2. Scenario Two: As the Final Act to Win the Game

A player's last act, upon reaching the center of the board, is to wade into the Quagmire. In this scenario, there is no option. However, a player need not roll an exact number to enter the Quagmire in the center and, once there, cannot be moved backward by another player. To win the game, a player must successfully exit the Quagmire. To exit, the contending player must follow the same Quagmire procedure previously mentioned and invent his own Zobmondo!! "Would You Rather" question.

While it is possible for a player to remain stuck in the Quagmire for several turns, a creative Zobber can escape and win quite quickly.

A Special Note on All Quagmire Play: Intentionally using a Zobmondo!! question which exists in the Zobmondo!! card deck is a major violation. Let's call it cheating. In addition, players using questions heard in previous games of Zobmondo!! will be declared "on probation" and placed at the mercy of the remaining players. Players should police themselves and use the handy consensus theory to determine the guilt or innocence of a suspicious player. Think of a new question!! You can do it.

Zobmondo!! Notes (Optional!)

• Abstinence is strictly against the rules of Zobmondo!!. The phrases "I won't choose either," "Neither one," "Who cares?" and or "I would rather die" should never be heard while playing Zobmondo!!. Furthermore, no condiments, plastic surgery, or actions which change the spirit of the question may be added to a Zobmondo!! scenario.

• Players creating their own questions when in the Quagmire should always be true to the spirit of Zobmondo!!. Merely asking others whether they would rather drive a white car -OR- a red car, so as to elicit the desired non-unanimous response, is yet another blatant violation. Don't let them get away with it. Make them stay in the Quagmire until they come up with a proper question which goes deeper then simply personal preference.

• Short games resulting from fast play or smaller numbers of players may be extended by requiring the winner to travel into the center Quagmire space, and then back out to one of the start spaces. In this scenario, succeeding in the center Quagmire space allows the Zobber to roll the die and proceed outward.

• Zobmondo!! lends itself well to team play and requires players to develop that age-old skill of building consensus. The Zobbing team must note their prediction quickly since all other teams are idle as they decide. Please do not exceed eight players or teams, however, as this arrangement will likely result in another age-old situation... bureaucracy, red tape, and slow play.

• It is not uncommon for players to tote Zobmondo!! cards around with them as handy conversation pieces. This is also legal — so long as you avoid using these questions when you are in the Quagmire.

• Please consider submitting your Zobmondo!! "Would You Rather" question creations for future editions. Please do not mail or phone in your submission. Questions dreamed up in the Quagmire can only be submitted by visiting the Zobmondo!! Web Site at http://www.zobmondo.com and following the instructions. Thank you very much for your input.

• Finally, while some of these questions may paint a violent, risqué, shocking, nauseating, perplexing, sickening, or downright disturbing picture... Feel free to skip questions which are too vivid for your particular audience or even destroy the card that contains such a question. But regardless of your choice, please place yourself in the proper fun, social state of mind before playing Zobmondo!!.

Zobmondo!! Terms (Optional!)

Consensus: A group decision. In Zobmondo!!, consensus is reached after a lively, uninhibited discussion about which of the two bad options of a Zobmondo!! question is better. Consensus in Zobmondo!! can be reached by voting, discussing or debating. Use whatever process you choose but do not get hung up on it. After three minutes of discussion, if you are unable to reach consensus, just pick one of the options by flipping a coin or rolling the die and move on to avoid delaying play. Players which prevent the group from reaching a consensus are hereby declared "difficult" and should be banished from Zobmondo!! game play. The goal of Zobmondo!! is entertaining social interaction. A competitive strategy game is not our vision.

Quagmire: A quaking bog, marsh, mire, swamp or hole... basically, not where you want to get stuck.

Unenjoyment: A term synonymous with discomfort, distress, unhappiness, or uneasiness. We are talking about displeasure of any kind. Zobmondo!! question cards are called "Cards of Unenjoyment" because the questions are downright disturbing and should bring about a temporary feeling of displeasure or uneasiness.

Zobmondo!!: The name Zobmondo!! is a slang term. It developed from the root term "Zob" which is a negative exclamation. For instance, if a person stubs his or her toe, he or she might yell "Zob!" as a result of the pain. Further, if a person were to break his or her foot, he or she might yell, with even greater emphasis, "Zobmondo!" proclaiming greater pain and frustration. Within the context of our board game, it represents the exclamation a person might utter when presented with the difficult and often horrific options from which he or she must choose.

Zobbed: Again from the root term "Zob." Using this term in a couple of sentences may be the best way to effectively communicate its meaning and use. Example: "Jenny really zobbed Brian by putting hot sauce in his underwear. Oh yes, he got zobbed all right."

Zobber: The one who does the zobbing. In the context of the game, it is the player that attempts to predict the consensus or invent a new Zobmondo!! question.

The International Symbol for Chaos (chaos symbol printed on the sheet)