The Rules of
Multiplayer
Kabetopo
Version: 3.0
Last revised: 2/25/24
First publication: 7/24/23
Legalese: This is an original work. This document and ruleset are protected by pertinent copyright laws. All rights reserved.
Visual Guide: A video guide to this official rulebook can be found here (Part12).
TABLE OF CONTENTS
- Overview
- Game Play
- The Three Player Game
- Expansion Rules
Overview
This is a version of the original Kabetopo adapted for four players. This overview assumes that you’re already familiar with the standard 1 vs. 1 ruleset.
GAME PLAY
OBJECTIVE
The objective is the same as in the two-player game:
- Maneuver your spy to the mountain. Get a stone.
- Get your spy to any other corner home square other than your own starting square.
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Score points by:
- Getting the first or second stone from the mountain.
- Getting to a home square (other than your starting square) first, second, or third.
- Preserving the most resources.
SETUP
- Take out all 4 spies. Place the dark spy on East, light spy on West, a third spy on North, and the fourth on South.
- (Optional) Place The Mountain piece on the square with the mountain icon on it.
- Place four stones on top of The Mountain, from top-down: dark stone w/ hole, dark stone w/o hole, both light stones in any order.
- Place the 3 monoliths w/ holes randomized as described in the Setup section (step 4) in the original instructions.
- Place the 4 portals w/ holes randomized as described in the Setup section (step 5) in the original instructions.
Everyone’s resource pool starts with: 3 walls, 2 monoliths, 1 portal, and 1 lock. No speed tokens.
PLAYING THE GAME (Differences from the two-player game)
- East (dark spy) goes first. Play goes clockwise.
- The first spy to reach The Mountain receives the dark stone w/ hole. The second, the dark stone w/o hole. The third and fourth, any light stone.
- Same rules and restrictions for moving and dropping apply.
- There still must be an open path to all home squares.
- Walls and monoliths still may not be dropped on spots where it results in another spy being surrounded and trapped on all four sides.
- Same rules for doors.
- Same rules for locks.
- You can still leapfrog, including over multiple spies along the same direction. However, leapfrogging onto a home square, including through a portal, is still not allowed.
- You can still break through walls.
- No declaring Koi Koi (described under the Sacred Stones section in the original instructions).
- The game ends when a third person declares Tadaima. In other words, there’s a first, second, and third place. Two or more players may declare Tadaima on the same home square, granted it’s neither spies’ starting square.
SCORING POINTS
- Points are scored as follows:
- “First Stone”: The player who obtained the first stone (dark stone w/ hole) receives 2 points.
- “Second Stone”: The player who obtained the second stone (dark stone w/o hole) receives 1 point.
- “Tadaima”:
- First to declare Tadaima receives 3 points. Getting to your natural opposite square, 4 points.
- Second to declare Tadaima receives 2 points. Getting to your natural opposite square, 3 points.
- Third to declare Tadaima receives 1 point. Getting to your natural opposite square, 2 points.
- “Preservation”: Whichever player has the most resources remaining receives 1 point. If two or more players are tied in resource count, they all receive a bonus point.
- No points for “Unseen Path” are awarded.
CONTINUING THE MATCH
- To set up the next game:
- Remove only the resources dropped by each player and return them to their respective resource pools. Do not remove the 4 permanent portals, nor the 3 permanent monoliths i.e. the ones with the identifying holes that were set up before game 1.
- Replace the stones on The Mountain.
- Replace the spies on their starting squares.
- Turn the board 90 degrees clockwise to rotate the spies. Each player now control a new spy.
- Continue until everyone has controlled each spy once, i.e. 4 games.
- The player with the highest total number of points after four games wins the match.
- Tiebreakers: Ties are broken in the following order:
- Single game scores. Compare highest single game scores. If tied, compare 2nd highest scores. If necessary, compare 3rd, and 4th highest scores.
- Highest total Tadaima points
- Most 1st place Tadaimas declared. If tied, compare 2nd places then 3rd.
- Most Natural Tadaimas declared
- Highest total Stone points
- Most First Stones
- Most Second Stones
- Highest total Preservation points
- Resource count after the final game
- If two or more players are still tied at this point, the match is drawn.
The Three Player Game
THE THREE PLAYER GAME
And there’s a 3-player game too?! Yes. Same rules as the 4-player game, just use 3 spies – East, South, and West. No North. East gets the first turn.
- There are only 3 games in the match. Highest point total wins.
- No points for third place Tadaima are awarded.
Expansion Rules
The following rules aren’t part of the main ruleset. They’re optional and are experimental for the time being. You might want to add them to your game to spice things up.
MISCHIEF
After a player declares Tadaima, and they still have walls, monoliths, portals, or other resources remaining in their resource pool, they may continue to take their turn, dropping a single resource to hinder other players until there is nothing left in their resource pool. Or, they may pass on dropping a resource until their next turn. Or, they may stop playing until the game is over.
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