Contents
Above and Below Game Rules
Hey there! I’m excited to tell you all about the game rules for Above and Below. It’s a super cool game that you’re gonna love! So let’s dive right in.
Above and Below is all about exploration and making choices. You’ll be exploring a beautiful world filled with caves, forests, and even floating islands. But be careful, because danger lurks in the shadows!
Okay, let’s talk about how the game works. You and your friends will take turns being the leader of your own village. As the leader, you’ll need to make important decisions that will shape the future of your village. It’s a big responsibility, but I know you can handle it!
Each round, you’ll have a choice to make. Will you explore the caves in search of valuable resources? Or maybe you’ll venture into the forests to discover new creatures and plants. The choice is yours!
But remember, every choice has consequences. You might find a hidden treasure in the caves or encounter a dangerous monster. You’ll need to carefully consider each decision and weigh the risks and rewards.
Once you’ve made your choice, it’s time to roll the dice. The dice will determine the outcome of your action. You might roll a high number and succeed with flying colors, or you might roll a low number and face some difficulties. Either way, the game is full of surprises!
As you explore and make choices, your village will start to grow. You can build new structures, recruit more villagers, and even attract famous heroes to your village. It’s exciting to see your village thrive!
But watch out for your opponents. They’ll be exploring and making choices too, so you’ll need to stay one step ahead. Keep an eye on what they’re doing and adjust your strategy accordingly. It’s a game of wits and strategy!
And that’s pretty much it! Above and Below is a fun and challenging game that will keep you coming back for more. So gather your friends, set up the game board, and let the adventure begin. Get ready for an epic journey above and below!
- First off, everyone gets a player board, seven coins, 1 starting house card, and 1 of each type of starting villager (that’s 3 villagers total for each of us). These starting villagers have a house on the back of their token. The 3 villagers should look like the symbols shown at “1A” and they start in the big grass area on the left side of our player board, which we call the “ready area”.
Now, if there are four of us playing, we’ll need to put the two starting villagers that don’t have a hammer symbol in the grass area with a moon symbol. We call that area the “exhausted area”. It’s important to note that in the first round, we can only use one villager each. After that round, though, the two villagers in the exhausted area will move to the ready area. Keep an eye out for the symbol by the round track on the reputation board, it’s there to remind us about this rule.
First, let’s rewrite the provided text without the HTML markup, so we have a better understanding of the content:
“Place the 6 star house cards face up on the table in a row. Shuffle the 9 key house cards and draw 4 at random, placing them in a row, face up, below the star house cards. The remaining key house cards are placed in the box and are not used for this game.
Put the reputation board in the center of the table. Put any unused starting villagers in the box. Place the special villagers aside (special villagers have a triangle symbol on the back of the token). Place the remaining villagers face down in a pile and draw five, putting them along the top of the reputation board in a row.
Place the round marker on the top chamber in the string of seven caves on the reputation board.”
Now, let’s proceed to rewrite this content, infused with a unique voice and creative interpretation, while maintaining its fundamental meaning, sentence structure, and HTML markup:
“Alright, let’s set up the game! First, take the 6 star house cards and lay them out neatly in a row on the table. These cards are special and important.
Now, it’s time to make things interesting! Grab the 9 key house cards and give them a good shuffle. Randomly draw 4 of these cards and place them in a row, face up, just below the star house cards. These key house cards are crucial for gameplay.
Don’t worry about the leftover key house cards. We’ll keep them safe in the box; they won’t be used this time.
Next, let’s get the reputation board ready. Put it right in the middle of the table where everyone can see it. Any starting villagers that you’re not using can be stored away in the box for now.
Oh, and don’t forget about the special villagers! These ones have a cool triangle symbol on the back of their tokens. Put them aside for now; we’ll come back to them later.
The rest of the villagers should be placed facedown in a neat pile. Draw five of them and place them in a row along the top of the reputation board. These villagers are eager to help you on your journey.
Lastly, take the round marker and place it in the top chamber of the string of seven caves on the reputation board. It’ll keep track of the rounds as you play.
Now that everything is set up, you’re ready to dive into the world of this exciting game!”
Place the coin tokens, good tokens, cider tokens, and potion tokens near the side. This is our supply. Let’s put one cider token on the reputation board where we see the cider symbol.
Now, shuffle the cave cards and put them in a pile face up next to the reputation board.
Each of us will need a wooden cube that matches the color of the banner in the top left corner of our player board. We’ll place this cube on the torch space on the reputation board.
Now, let’s decide who will be the first player. We’ll take turns in a clockwise direction. The first player will get the first-player card. If it’s just the two of us playing, the second player will get an extra coin.
Game Play
Hey there! So, in this game called Above and Below, we’re going to have a bunch of rounds. In each round, we’ll be taking turns to assign our villagers to do cool stuff. Now, if you feel like you’re done taking actions for the round, you can say you want to pass. And when everyone has passed, that round is over. Sometimes, some players might get more turns than others – it’s all part of the fun!
By the way, we’re going to do these steps in every round:
1. Player Actions
Alright, let’s get started! The first player (the one with the cool first-player card) goes first, and then we’ll keep going clockwise. Each player gets one action per turn until everyone has passed. Here are the actions you can choose from:
Explore
When we, the villagers, venture into the depths of the cavern, we’re on a quest to uncover a suitable spot underground for our outpost. It’s an exciting and daring endeavor!
First, I pick a cave card from the deck and place it towards the left of my player board, near those towering rocks in the corner. This card holds secrets and treasures that await our exploration. Then, from the ready area on my player board, I send at least two villagers to join me on this thrilling expedition. Of course, I can send more if I want to!
Next, it’s time to roll the die. This roll determines our fate as we navigate the unknown. The number I roll corresponds to the grid of numbers on the lower half of the new cave card. The chosen number guides us to a specific paragraph in the encounter book. Now it’s the player to my left who turns to the indicated paragraph and reads the passage aloud, immersing us in the unfolding tale.
Hey there! Let me explain how this works. We have a cool adventure game where you get to make choices and see what happens next. It’s called an “encounter paragraph.” First, I’ll describe what’s going on, and then you’ll decide what to do, okay? Great!
Here’s an example of what an encounter paragraph might look like:
I’m in this deep, dark cave, right? And it’s super gross. There’s this yucky water all over the floor, and suddenly I see these creepy red eyes staring at me from every direction. It turns out I’m surrounded by big rats, and they look hungry! Yikes!
So now, it’s decision time. Do I try to run away and hide from these rats, or do I stand my ground and fight?
If I wanna run and hide, I can choose Explore 3 for a coin or Explore 4 for a mushroom. But if I’m feeling brave and wanna stand and fight, I can pick Explore 7 for five coins and some ore.
When I read the description, I think about the two options I have: “I can either run and hide, and explore options 3 or 4. Or, I can stand and fight, and explore option 7.”
So, now it’s time for me to make a decision. I have to choose one of the available choices and say it out loud. Let’s say I decide to “run and hide”. Okay, I’ve made my choice.
Now comes the fun part. I get to roll a die for each villager that went into the cavern with me. I have to say which villager the roll is for each time I roll. Then, I place the die on that villager. How many lanterns that villager gets depends on the roll. Here’s how it works:
When I finish rolling all the dice, I count up the number of lanterns my villagers have collected. If the total is the same or more than one of the numbers I picked earlier, I succeed. But if I don’t have enough lanterns, I can choose to use some of my villagers’ energy to get more lanterns.
When you want to use a villager’s abilities in the game, you take them out of the cave card and put them in the injured area on your player board. Each exerted villager gives you an extra lantern, which can be really helpful.
To succeed in an exploration, you need to have enough lanterns to meet or exceed one of the explore numbers tied to your choice. If you do, you get rewards based on the highest explore number you reached.
For example, if you chose “run and hide” as your exploration option and you rolled a total of 5 lanterns, you would get a mushroom as a reward from “Explore 4”.
After you get your reward, any remaining villagers on the cave card are moved to the exhausted area on your player board. The cave card itself is placed to the right of your player board, below your houses, in the same row as any other cave cards or outposts you already have.
If I don’t have enough lanterns to meet or exceed any of the explore numbers associated with my choice, I’ll fail and won’t gain the cave card or any rewards. I’ll have to move any remaining villagers on the cave card to the exhausted area of my player board and place the cave card at the bottom of the deck. There are some paragraphs that describe what happens when I fail a specific choice. If there’s a penalty mentioned in the failure description, I have to apply it to myself.
Remember: If you want more details, make sure to read the first page of the encounter book.
Build
When I want to build a house in this game, I have a few options to consider. I can choose between a regular house, a star house, a key house, or an outpost.
To start the process, I need to take one of my villagers and move them from the ready area of my player board to the exhausted area. It’s important that the villager I choose has a hammer symbol.
Once I’ve exhausted a villager, I can decide which type of house card I want to purchase. I have the choice between regular houses, star houses, key houses, or outposts. Of course, to get one of these cards, I have to pay the supply an amount of coins that matches the cost of the card I want.
If you want to buy an outpost, you need a cave card. You can get a cave card from exploring. Once you have a cave card, you can place your outpost on top of it.
The houses, key houses, and star houses are put in a line next to the starting house. The outposts are put in a line below the row of houses.
When you play the game, there are different types of buildings that you can use to your advantage. These include houses, key houses, and star houses, as well as outposts. Each type of building offers special abilities, extra income, or other benefits that can help you during the game.
Once you have placed your new card on the board, if you have built a house or an outpost, it’s time to draw a new card. This will ensure that there are four options available for the next player to choose from.
Harvest
When I’m playing the game, I start by having my villagers harvest goods from houses or outposts.
Here’s how it works: I slide some of my villagers from the ready area on my player board to the exhausted area.
For each villager I exhaust, I get to take a goods token from one of my houses or outposts. I then place that token next to my coins and have a few options. I can keep it there for later use, put it up for sale in the top left corner of my player board, or place it in my advancement track.
All Aboard the Train!
When I’m playing this game, I get to train my own villagers. It’s a really exciting part of the game because it gives me a sense of growth and progress.
So here’s how it works: first, I move one of my villagers from the ready area to the exhausted area on my player board. This villager needs to have a quill symbol, which indicates that they’re ready to be trained.
Once I’ve done that, I can then purchase a new villager from the reputation board. I have the freedom to choose any of the available villagers. Of course, there’s a cost to consider. I need to pay the required number of coins to the supply, and this cost is clearly listed on the reputation board underneath each villager.
After I’ve paid the cost and made my selection, I place the new villager in the exhausted area of my player board. It’s important to remember that I don’t get to draw a new villager for the reputation board just yet – that part comes later, at the end of the round.
The Value of Hard Work
When I play the game, I work hard to earn more coins. It starts by moving my villagers from the ready area to the exhausted area on my player board. For every villager I exhaust, I gain a coin. Plus, if I’m the first player to labor in a round, I get the cider token on the reputation board. But if there’s no cider, I’ll only get coins.
Free Actions
During my turn, I can also take free actions without having to exhaust my villagers. I can perform as many free actions as I want before I do a normal action. Once I do a normal action, I can no longer take any free actions.
Buy From Another Player
So, here’s the deal – you can buy stuff from other players in this game. They might have some cool things like goods, cider, or potions up for grabs. Now, pay attention because there are some rules to this. First off, the items for sale are placed in the top left corner of the seller’s board. To seal the deal, you can try haggling and making offers, but there’s a catch – you can only pay with coins. Oh, and you gotta cough up at least 3 coins. No loose change allowed! But hey, the seller can still turn you down if they’re not feeling it. If they do agree to sell, you pay the agreed amount in coins and voila, the good is yours!
Time to Sell
Now, the tables have turned – it’s your chance to put something up for sale. You can take one of your goods, ciders, or potions and place it in the circle at the top left of your player board. The other players can try to buy it during their turns.
But wait, there are still some rules to keep in mind. You can only remove or replace the item that’s up for sale on your own turn. So don’t get too trigger-happy, alright?
Give it a Refresh
If you want more house or outpost options to buy, you can pay one coin to replace all four cards in one of the rows. Take the current four houses or outposts in the row and put them at the bottom of the deck. Then, draw four new cards from the top of the deck and place them face up in the row.
You can only do this once per turn. Note that you cannot refresh the key houses or star houses.
Pass
When you’re finished taking actions, say “I pass”. You can’t take any more actions or free actions in this round.
If you don’t have any villagers in the ready area of your player board at the start of your turn, you must choose to pass. You can still take free actions before you pass.
2. End The Round
Once all players have passed, the round is over. Follow these steps before the next round begins:
Round Marker
Hey there! Let’s move the round marker to the next cave on the reputation board. Just slide it down one chamber along the string of seven caves. Oh, and if it can’t move anymore, that means the game is over.
Cider
How about some cider? Place a cider on the cider icon on the reputation board if there isn’t one there already. It’s a refreshing addition!
New Villagers
Time to introduce some new faces! Let’s slide any remaining villagers on the reputation board to the left. This way, they’ll take up the lower cost slots. And don’t worry, we’ll fill in any empty slots on the right by drawing new villagers from the villager pile. It’s like getting a breath of fresh air!
Rest Villagers
Now it’s time for a well-deserved break. All players can refresh the villagers on their player boards. It’s important to give them a chance to recharge and get ready for the next round.
First, I can spend any potions or ciders I have. If I spend a potion, I can move one villager from the injured area to the exhausted area. If I spend a cider, I can move one villager from the exhausted area to the ready area. I can even use both a potion and cider on the same villager!
Next, I can move one villager from the injured area to the exhausted area, or from the exhausted area to the ready area for each bed I have on my house and outpost cards. But remember, a villager can’t sleep in two beds – they wouldn’t be able to move from injured to ready by using two beds.
Now it’s time to collect my income.
I collect coins based on my income level. I start with 4 income, but my income level can increase depending on the number of different goods I have in my advancement track at the bottom of my player board.
If you look at the advancement track shown above, you’ll see that I would get 6 income instead of 4.
But that’s not all – I can also earn income from special house or outpost cards.
Keep Building Goods Fresh
If you have a house or outpost with this symbol and there are no goods on the card, you need to refresh it by placing the right goods there.
Pass the First-Player Card to Your Left
Now, I need to pass the first-player card to you, the player sitting on my left. You should put the card face up in front of you.
Let’s Move on to the Next Round
If we haven’t played seven rounds yet, we should start the next round.
Your Advancement Track
Your advancement track is the row of circles at the bottom of your player board. You can put goods on this track whenever you want. Remember, you have to place the goods from left to right and can’t leave any empty slots.
After you’ve placed a good, if you want to place another good of the same type, it has to go in the same slot. Don’t worry, though, because a slot can hold multiple goods of the same type. And you can put the goods in any order you like.
So here’s the deal: if you want to get ahead in this fruit game, pay attention to where you put your goods. Let me break it down for you. In the example below, see that there’s an advancement track? You gotta place your future fruit goods on the third slot from the left. Easy enough, right? But here’s the catch – if you want to slide in a mushroom good, you’ll have to put it in the fourth slot from the left. Got it?
Now, take a look at those numbers at the top of each slot. They tell you how many village points your goods are worth at the end of the game. In the example below, let’s say you’ve got two fruit goods by the time the game’s over. Guess how many points each of those babies is worth? Two! So yeah, that’s a total of 4 village points. Pretty sweet, huh?
If you look above each slot, you’ll see a number. This number tells you how much money you’ll earn each round. For example, if the number is 6, you’ll collect 6 coins at the end of each round. But remember, you only collect the coins from the slot furthest to the right, not from any other slots.
Once you place a good on the advancement track, it can’t be taken off.
Special Villagers
In the base game, there are six special villagers. They are the Liquid Woman, Glogo, Cave Cat (two of them), and Metal Man (two of them). At the beginning of the game, put these villagers face up near the playing area. You can only get them by having specific encounters in the explore book. Each of these villagers has its own special rules.
I’m going to tell you about a fascinating character in our village: the liquid woman. She brings a mix of curiosity and unease.
Here’s the remarkable thing: when the liquid woman becomes part of our community, a strange thing happens – we lose a bit of our reputation.
It’s hard to wrap your head around, isn’t it? How does someone’s presence make us lose something as valuable as reputation? Let me explain…
When I first saw the liquid woman, I couldn’t help but be curious. She was unlike anyone I had ever seen before. Her body seemed to ripple and flow, as if made of water. It was mesmerizing and perplexing.
You might think that such an extraordinary individual would elevate our village’s reputation, but it’s the opposite. People become cautious and wary when she’s around. Perhaps it’s because they don’t understand her, or maybe it’s simply fear of the unknown.
As humans, we often find ourselves uncomfortable with things we don’t comprehend. We prefer to stick with what’s familiar and predictable. But sometimes, it’s essential to embrace the unknown and seek understanding.
So, what can we do when faced with a situation like this, where someone unique enters our lives? It’s essential not to let fear cloud our judgment. Remember that diversity and inclusion are crucial for any community to thrive.
Instead of shunning or stigmatizing the liquid woman, we can try to get to know her. By understanding her story and background, we can bridge the gap between us and learn to appreciate our differences.
It’s natural to be hesitant at first – change always comes with uncertainty. But if we give ourselves a chance to open our hearts and minds, we might realize that the liquid woman has much to offer our village. Her presence can provoke fascinating conversations and broaden our perspectives.
So, the next time you encounter someone who might seem strange or different, remember the liquid woman. Give them a chance, and you might discover a whole new world of possibilities. Our reputation might take a slight hit, but the rewards of understanding and acceptance are worth it.
Glogo: The glogo is a skilled builder. When you use him for building, you’ll save one coin compared to the usual cost.
Cave Cat: I’m a bit of a rebel. I don’t always follow orders. When you use me, you’ll need to roll a die. If you roll a 3-6, I’ll do what you ask. But if you roll a 1-2, I won’t budge and I’ll just move to the exhausted area.
If I don’t do what you want, don’t worry. You won’t be out of luck. You can use another villager instead to take an action. It’s like having a backup plan. Pretty cool, huh?
Metal Man: Each day, I use my own bed. I can’t sleep on the beds in your buildings. Unfortunately, I also can’t enjoy your cider or potions.
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Reputation
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Your village’s reputation is a measurement of how well-known and respected it is. When we start, our reputation is represented by a cube on the torch symbol. If we gain reputation, we move the cube down the track, deeper into the cave. If we lose reputation, we move the cube up, closer to the surface.
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End of the Game
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Once seven rounds have passed, the game comes to an end. That’s when we count up our village points. We earn points for the following:
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Advancement Track
When I play the game, I count up my village points by looking at the goods tokens on the advancement track. The board shows me how much each token is worth right above the slot. Let me show you an example: if I have four fruit on the third slot, I earn 2 village points for each fruit, giving me a total of 8 village points.
Buildings
Every building you have is worth 1 village point. This includes houses, key houses, star houses, and outposts. But remember, empty cave cards don’t count towards your points.
Reputation
When the game ends, having the most reputation gives you an extra 5 village points. If you have the second-most reputation, you get 3 extra village points. And if you have the third-most reputation, you get 2 extra village points. But if you’re playing with just two players, only the player with the highest reputation gets a bonus of 3 points. That’s why there’s a person symbol with the number “2” in the village point symbol.
You can also gain or lose village points based on the smaller village point symbol that shows up next to your position on the track.
Let’s say you’re playing a game and you end up with your cube on the highest spot on the track. That’s near the surface, by the way. Well, in that case, you’d lose 2 village points. Not ideal, right?
Getting Bonus Points from Cards
Now, here’s something cool. Some buildings in the game actually give you extra village points. It’s like a nice little bonus thrown your way. When you get a card with bonus points, you can find them listed right at the bottom of the card. Let me give you an example – this card here would grant you 2 extra village points.
Hey there! Let’s talk about some cool cards in this game. You know, some cards give you extra points if you have certain things. Check out the card on the left. It gives you 4 bonus village points, and you also get an extra 2 points for each potion or ore you have. Pretty neat, right? Oh, by the way, you can have the ore on the advancement track or just in your supply, it doesn’t have to be on a building.
Now, take a look at the card on the right. It gives you 3 bonus village points, and you’ll get 2 points for each house, key house, or star house you own. So, the more stuff you have, the more points you’ll get. Cool, huh?
Don’t forget that each of these cards is also a building, so you get an extra 1 village point just for having them. It’s like a little bonus on top of the bonus!
Let’s Compare
Now, let’s see how the points add up. Each player adds up all their village points. The player with the most village points is the winner! But what if there’s a tie? Well, in that case, we look at who has the most coins. If there’s still a tie, we check who has the most villagers. And if there’s still a tie, we look at who has the most buildings. It’s all about being the best in different ways!