Tutanchamun

Game by ?.

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

In 1922 archaeologists Howard Carter and Lord Carnarvon discovered the tomb of the boy-Pharaoh Tutankhamun in the Valley of the Kings. This proved to be one of the most valuable finds of historical importance, uncovering a veritable treasure-trove of relics and artifacts from ancient Egypt. In the game Tutanchamun you aim to gather as many valuable artifacts as possible.

Preparation

Place the large score board with the mask of Tutankhamun to one side of the table. Assemble the pyramid and place it alongside the score-board. Each player takes a pair of colored markers, one large movement piece, and one small scorer. The 70 artifact tiles are taken and randomly placed in a long line, face up, snaking across the table. One end should be by the pyramid, and is the finish. Players place their movement markers at the other end of the line.

Score markers should be placed on a number around Tutankhamun's mask:

The aim of the game is to be the first person to move your score marker to zero.

Game Play

Nominate one player to start and then play passes clockwise. Each turn a player may move his marker forward along the path of artifacts towards the end. Place the marker on the artifact of your choice, and pick up the artifact, placing it face-up in front of you. Play then passes to the next player. You may move as far along the path as you desire, and pick up any artifact you wish, but you may never move backwards. So if you leap too far forward in one turn, you may find that you have jumped over desirable artifacts which you may now never obtain. Artifact tiles which have been bypassed by all players, are immediately removed from the game.

Artifacts

Almost all artifacts have a number at the top. This number is a measure of how many tiles there are of that type, and also their worth. Thus there are 4 red candleabra, and the set is worth 4 points. A set of artifacts score their value immediately when the last piece of a set is picked up (or removed from the game). When this happens, players should check to see who has the most tiles of that type. The player with the most scores the value of that artifact and moves his score marker toward zero by that ammount. The player with the second largest number of pieces scores half value. Nothing else scores. If there is a tie (and it is not broken) then the players score the next level of value. (Players who tie for first get half value, and players who tie for second recieve nothing). The normal time for an artifact to score is when the last piece of that type is picked up by a player. However, the last piece could be picked up when the last player moves his marker past the artifact, and it is discarded from the game. The order of scoring artifacts can become important if several are scored on one player's turn. The piece taken by the player is scored first, and then the artifacts in the order of being discarded. When an artifact has been scored, discard the tiles into the game box along with any bypassed tiles.

Special Tiles

Pharaoh Tile

The pharaoh tile (normal sized tile w/ mask of Tutankhamun) has no intrinsic value, but may be used to break a tie with another player. Example: the last sarcphagus tile is picked up, and two players each have four of these. One player includes the pharaoh tile, and scores 8 points, while the other player scores 4 points.

Coin Tiles

The coin tiles are used to steal other player's artifacts. When you pick up a coin tile, you may take one artifact from another player of a type you already hold. The victim scores one point. discard the coin tile.

Gold Mask

The Gold Mask (large triangular tile) acts as a joker. The first player to exit the line, may stand his piece on the side of the pyramid and take the gold mask. This may be used as any artifact at the player's discretion.

Game End

The game normally ends when one player scores enough points to reach zero. It is possible, though, that all players reach the end of the tiles without someone scoring enough points. In this case, the player who has scored the most points is the winner.

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