Nizza

Game by Wolfgang Kramer.

Translation by Peter Wotruba (pete@chem.UCSD.EDU), October 25, 1994.

Are you prepared for adventure? Good! Then join us in the following story: The English crown jewels have been stolen by an organized international gang. The trail leads to Nice. A large reward is offered for their return. Will you earn this?

We find ourselves on the roofs of Nice (aka Nizza). It does not matter how we got there, because that is where the fun begins. In the manner of James Bond, we swing from house to house on the end of a rope, climb up ladders, or throw your rivals from the roof into the water.

Along with climbing, swinging, and throwing your competitors into the water, do not forget the crown jewels!

Object of the Game

The winner is the first person who brings the Crown Jewels to the Helicopter.

Setup

The black plastic chimneys must be put in the holes in the gameboard from the back side. They can then always remain there, because the way the board folds and fits into the box. The six suitcases and ladder should be carefully punched out.

Every player takes a figure (climber), and places it on the green roof terrace next to the helicopter.

The six ropes are placed on any six chimneys. We suggest using chimney's number one, four, five, eight, nine, and eleven.

The six suitcases are placed next to the board.

The Game Plan

Before one swings through the air, you should have a gameplan. If you look ahead at the shoreline, there is not much ground. That is because predominantly you will be on rooftops and palm trees, and only occasionally on the ground.

The Dice

Pay attention to the six symbols on the dice, because these tell you when you can swing, climb, or throw opponents into the water.

Rope

When this symbol shows on the dice, you can take one of the ropes and place it onto an adjacent chimney. (a chimney next to the one that currently holds the rope).

Swinging

When this symbol is showing, you can swing at the end of a rope. You must have a rope within range of your playing piece. You attach the end of the rope to your piece, and place it somewhere within the range of the rope. You then take the other end of the rope off of the chimney it is on, and put it on a new one. You can cover a short stretch, or the full length of the rope. You may also swing over other pieces in this way, so you may not be blocked from swinging by other players.

Ladder

This symbol allows you to climb. To climb the ladder, place the ladder down in the direction you want to go, and move your piece to the other end of the ladder. You may go either direction on the ladder, and do not have to go the full distance of the ladder. However you may only do this on houses or on trees - you may not nove along the ladder on the ground. (But you may climb the ladder from the street to a rooftop, or vise versa).

From the water you may climb out onto the ground without using the ladder. How you get out of the water is described in the section: "Thrown into the Water"

Walking

This symbol allows you to walk one space on the ground. More than one figure may be in each space on the ground.

From the ground, you may move further up on the houses by swinging or climbing. You may only swing, however, if you are within the radius of a rope.

In the Water

At the start, and when in the water, you are at peace with everybody, but as soon as this parachute symbol appears, a foreign climber gets thrown into the water.

On the ground a rival must be in the same square as you for you to throw him into the water. (He lands in the water next to the space he occupied earlier).

When you are in the air you can throw a colleage into the water as long as he is not further than a ladder's length from you. (Hold the ladder between the two figures, and if the piece is close enough, he goes into the water). The rival falls vertically into the water. And so there will be no arguments, follow this rule:

Orient yourself on a neighboring house, or on a window, and place the other piece parallel to you. Move the other piece in a line from you to the ground, and then into the water. (The boat has no special significance).

One of two special things may happen when you fall into the water:

  1. you come down between two spaces. (then the person who threw you off choses what space you came from, and places your piece in the water next to that space).
  2. the place in the water is occupied. (Then your piece is simply placed into an adjoining space).

How You Get Out of the Water

Anyone who is in the water must roll a climbing symbol on the dice in order to get out. Then they are placed onto an adjoining piece of land.

Suitcase

This symbol means take a suitcase or move a suitcase depending on where your piece is on the board. On the two red roof terraces it means you can take a suitcase, and everywhere else it means that you can move that turn if you are carrying a suitcase.

When you arrive at the first red roof terrace, you must roll a suitcase symbol in order to grab a suitcase.

Anyone with a suitcase must roll one of these symbols on one of the five dice before continuing.

Beginning of the Game

The first objective is the red roof with the suitcases. There is a suitcase for each player. These suitcases hold the tools needed to open the safe. After obtaining a suitcase, you need to go the quickest way to the second red roof. There is where the crown jewels are. When the safe is broken into, you must take the jewels with you to the yacht, and from there climb the ladder into the helicopter.

To find out who starts everybody rolls a die. (If there are six people someone will be stuck without one). The first player to roll a falls in water symbol, and then cries "Stop" starts the game.

The first player rolls all five dice. Next he can correct his die-result through two further rolls. This happens as follows: After the first roll, you decide how many of the five dice you want to keep, rerolling the others. you may repeat this proceedure one more time. You do not of course have to roll the dice a second or third time.

After the third roll, the player must use the die-results that are showing. He then takes one of the dice, and does the action that the die shows. That die will then be immediatly passed to the next player to the left. Then the first player takes a second die and performs that action, and passes the die. This occurs for all 5 dice. If the dice show actions which you can not do, or that do not apply, they get passed on with no resulting action being taken. As soon as the next player has all five of the dice, it is his turn.

Hints

You personally decide about the sequence in which dice are used.

Every player is permitted, when he starts, to place his piece as close to the edge of the green terrace as they like.

You are not permitted to try out your planned strategy. (Except when you have an explicit question - which should be rare.)

The First Red Terrace (with the suitcases)

When a player comes to the first red terrace, he must take a suitcase of tools before he goes further. The suitcase is obtainable only if: 1) Your playing piece is on the red terrace, or next to it; and 2) you have a die roll with a suitcase symbol in it.

When you get a suitcase, place it so the green side showing the tools is face-up. You have all the tools now, and now you can crack the safe on the second red terrace. A player with a suitcase must always have at least one suitcase symbol among the five dice he is using that turn. This symbol means "Suitcase Dragging". If a player does not have this symbol when he is trying to move while carrying a suitcase, he must remain where he is and is not permitted to move farther.

Once you have a suitcase, it can only be lost by falling into the water.

Example

The Second Red Terrace

On the second red terrace the safe must be cracked. This occurs in the following manner: 1) Your piece must be on the red terrace, or at least be touching it; and 2) you must have rolled a suitcase on two of the dice. (The first one is needed to drag the suitcase to the safe, the second to do the safecracking).

When a player cracks the safe he turns over his suitcase. It now is on the red, or crown jewel, side. On the way to the helicopter, you must have at least one suitcase symbol out of the five dice. It now signifies: "Dragging the suitcase with the jewels". If a player does not roll a suitcase symbol they must remain where they are and may not proceed further.

At The Yacht to the Helicopter

The player with the Crown Jewels is on his way to the end of the game. He goes to the last house, and fron there can "climb" or "swing" onto the yacht.

Once you reach the yacht, there is still the rope ladder. To climb the rope ladder you need to have two climbing symbols on the dice (and naturally a suitcase symbol).

Players thrown into the water from the yacht are placed in the water next to the last space on the sidewalk. From there they must get a climb symbol to get back onto land and must try to leap onto the yacht again.

Game End

The winner is the first person who gets into the helicopter with the Crown Jewels.

The Game Cabinet - editor@gamecabinet.com - Ken Tidwell