Zoomaka
Zoomaka Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Components
Zoomaka contains this rulebook and 110 playing cards divided in the following way.
Animals [51]
- 2 x Butterflies
- 2 x Marsupials
- 4 x Reptiles
- 4 x Ocean animals
- 4 x Predators
- 4 x Forest animals
- 4 x Farm animals
- 4 x Hoofed animals
- 4 x Birds
- 5 x Monkeys
- 5 x Big five animals
- 3 x Multicolored animals
- 5 x Two-color animals
- 1 x Unicorn
Direct [22]
- 2 x Robber
- 2 x Master Thief
- 2 x Pickpocket
- 2 x Release
- 2 x Coffee
- 2 x Stray Animals
- 2 x Tombola Win
- 4 x Capture
- 4 x Delivery
Response [13]
- 2 x Quick Delivery
- 2 x Pay with Peanuts
- 4 x Direct Capture
- 5 x No Way!
Entrance [14]
- 8 x Two-color Entrance
- 6 x Multicolor Entrance
Add-ons [4]
- 1 x Fortune Teller's Hut
- 1 x Video Camera
- 1 x Roller Coaster
- 1 x Ice Cream Stand
Settings [6]
- 1 x Monkeys 4 Nothin'
- 1 x Payday
- 1 x Extra Hours
- 1 x Carnival
- 1 x Quarantine
- 1 x Roar!
Game Setup
Shuffle the cards and deal each player six cards, for their eyes only. Place the remainder of cards, face down, in a pile on the table, the Draw pile. As the game progresses there will be two face up piles, the Discard pile and the Setting pile.
As a suggestion, the player who visited a zoo most recently starts.
Winning
In Zoomaka, players compete to be the first to complete their zoo. To do so, a player needs four different types of completed Park sections (three for five player games). The first player to complete their zoo wins.
Game Overview
The illustrated overview shows, from a player's perspective: the Setting pile, the Draw pile and the Discard pile in the centre of the table; your zoo, which contains your Bank, your Sections, any Add-ons, and any Completed sections; and your hand.
Park Sections
All animal cards belong to one or more types, as indicated by the border color and the symbol in the card's top right corner.
When a new type of animal is placed in your zoo, a new Park section is created. The section is completed once it has as many animals as there are symbols on the cards of that type.
Your Turn
On your turn, you may do up to three actions:
- Place an animal in your zoo.
- Sell a card from your hand.
- Move animals and add-ons in your zoo.
- Play a Direct, Add-on or Entrance card.
You may take the same action several times. At any time during your turn you may play Setting and Response cards without an action cost.
Draw new cards to end your turn. Draw two cards unless your hand is empty in that case draw six cards.
If the Draw pile is empty and you should draw a card, shuffle the Settings and Discard piles to form a new Draw pile.
Placing Animals
When you play an animal card, spend an action and place it face up on the table in your zoo. If you already have animals of that type, you must place the new animal together with those.
Multicolored Animals
Multicolored animals can be played as any of their types. Multicolored animals without type, e.g. Chameleon, can only be played with animals that have a type. If a section ever loses all its typed animals, it is discarded along with any add-ons in that section.
Selling a Card
Spend an action and place a card from your hand face down on the table in your bank.
Moving Assets
During your turn you may spend an action to move around animals and add-ons freely in your zoo. When reordering animals you must adhere to the placement rules.
Action Cards
There are five types of action cards: Direct, Response, Add-on, Setting and Entrance cards.
The symbol in the top right corner or the border layout help you differentiate them.
The rulebook shows these sample cards:
- Capture (Direct): Take any animal from an opponent's zoo. Place it in your zoo.
- No Way! (Response): Prevent the effect of a direct, entrance or response card for one player.
- Roller Coaster (Add-on): Draw a card each time a fee is charged for this section.
- Monkeys 4 Nothin' (Setting): All animals with this symbol can be played at no action cost.
- Entrance (Entrance): Force a fee on ALL opponents for one of your sections with one of these TYPES.
The Payday setting card, as shown in the examples, reads: "Spend one action; choose a player, then take a card from their bank."
Direct Cards
To play a Direct card, spend an action during your turn. Then place the card in the Discard pile. The card takes effect unless a Response card is played.
Response Cards
You can play a Response card at no action cost during your turn or as a response to an action performed by another player. The Response card takes effect and is then discarded.
Add-on Cards
You may spend an action during your turn to attach an Add-on card to one of your Park sections. The Add-on card adds to the total value of that Park section and its effect will remain in play until the card is discarded. If all animals are removed from a section, add-ons attached to that section are discarded.
Setting Cards
You may play a Setting card at no cost during your turn. The card is placed on the top of the Setting pile. The card affects all players and is in effect as long as it is the top card of the Settings pile.
Entrance Cards
To play an Entrance card, one of its types must match a section in the player's zoo. Spend an action and place the Entrance card in the Discard pile. Then name the section, in your zoo, you want to charge someone for.
When an Entrance card is played, the players affected must pay a fee. The fee equals the total value of all animals and add-ons in the section entrance is charged for. The value of each card is shown in its top left corner.
Example: an entrance fee is charged for the butterfly section. The section value is two plus one, so all players have to pay three.
Paying a Fee
When paying a fee, you have to pay with money from your bank or assets from your zoo, such as animals or add-ons. Each card's value is shown in its top left corner. You are not allowed to pay with cards from your hand. Since no change is returned, make sure to pay the exact amount.
If you are unable to pay the entire fee, you need to pay as much as you can. After that you are excused from paying the remainder.
Cards received as payment from a player's bank, must be put in your bank. Payment with other assets ends up directly in your zoo. You may choose how to place these assets.
Examples
- Alma plays an Entrance for her bird section. All opponents have to pay the section sum of 6 (2+2+2) to her.
- Isabel plays a multicolored Entrance for her bird with an add-on. One opponent has to pay the section sum of 6 (2+2+2) to her.
- Jack plays an Entrance and his opponents have to pay five. Alvar (1): plays a Pay with Peanuts Response card and is excused from paying. Esther (2): partially pays with a card from her bank and an animal from her zoo. The animal goes to Jack's zoo and the other card goes to his bank. Since Esther has nothing left she is excused from paying the remainder. Lilja (3): pays with two cards from her bank. The cards end up in Jack's bank. Even though she paid in excess she receives no change.
FAQ
Can I pay fees with cards from my hand? No. However, you can avoid paying with the Response cards "Pay with peanuts" or "No way!".
Do I have to pay with cards from the bank first? No, you may choose to pay with other assets, such as animals or add-ons.
What if the Discard pile is empty when you need to form a new Draw pile? Shuffle all Setting cards and cards in all banks to form a new Draw pile.
Can I play a Response card during my turn if it has no effect? Yes.
Can I discard any two cards when playing Quick delivery? Yes, first draw five cards to your hand, and then discard two cards from your hand.
Is the unicorn a complete section on its own? Yes.