Robin Hood
a card game for 3-6 players by Klaus Palesch
published by Amigo 1999
 
 
Contents
108 Treasure cards in three colors (four each of the values 1-9)
11 Money cards (nine cards with 3 coins and two cards with 6 coins)
1 Maid Marian card
 
 
Background
Robin Hood and his merry men are trying to grab as much treasure as possible from the clutches of the Sheriff of Nothingham. Each player wants to be the most succesful masterthief and therefor have absolutely no scruples and will even steal the treasures which their fellow players thought they had safely tucked away. The player with the most valuable treasures will win when the game ends.
 
 
Preparations
Shuffle the Treasure cards and deal 9 cards to each player. Place the rest of the deck as a draw pile in the center of table. Turn over the top three cards and place them openly side by side to the left of the deck. The Money cards forms a separate stack to the right of the deck, and the Maid Marian card is placed to right of the money. The illustration shows that a discard pile is formed to the right of the Maid Marian card.

[The two 6-coin Money cards are not needed in a 3-player game]

 
Game Order

[During his turn a player may do as many actions as he wants]

1. In the beginning of his turn a player must take at least one card, but he may take two cards:
    
   - If he takes only one of the three open Treasure cards, he may then perform one or more actions if he wants to.
   - If he takes two of the open Treasure cards, then he must perform at least one action.
    
   
2. At the end of his turn the player must discard any cards in excess of his 9 card hand limit to the open discard pile.
    
   
3. After his turn the player replaces the empty Treasure card slots with new cards from the deck.
    
   
4. The next player in clockwise order takes his turn.

Each player has his own hide-out in the Sherwood Forest. Looted Treasure cards are placed on the table in front of him.
 
 
The Three Different Actions

[The type and number on the Treasure cards are important factors]

• Stealing Treasures From The Sheriff
  The player may steal a Treasure card from the Sheriff by playing a meld of three cards open on the table. The meld must consist of 3 cards of the same type of treasure (color) and have consecutive numbers (illustration: 5,6,7 Regalia or 7,8,9 Chest).
   
  The highest valued card of the meld is placed openly in the players hide-out where it will count toward his victory at the end of the game - if it is still there. The two other cards of the meld are discarded.
  [The value of the Treasure cards are totalled as Victory Points at the end of the game]
  
  This action gives the player a bonus in form of a 3-coin Money card if there is any left in stock. The Money card is also placed openly in the players hide-out.
  [Example: A players plays a yellow meld with a 2, 3 and a 4 card.
  He keeps the 4-card, discards the other two cards
  and takes a 3-coin Money card from the stack]
   
  [One Treasure cards may be taken from a fellow player's hide-out per action]

With the following two actions the players may take treasures from the other players' hide-outs. In both actions the symbols (hat, stick & arrow), which are found between the numbers on the cards, are very important.

• Treasure-Looting with Counteraction
  The player plays a meld of 3 cards with the same number and one or two types of symbols in front of the card he wish to steal from another player. (Example: Three 2's with hat-symbols or three 7's with 2 stick and 1 bow symbols are both valid melds). The other player may counter this by playing a single card with the same number as the meld.
  [The symbol has no importance during a counter, only the number]
  
  - If the action is countered the player must discard one of the cards in his meld (of his own choice) and return the other two cards to his hand. Likewise the counteracting player will return his played counter card to his hand.
   
  - If the action was not countered the player will take the desired card from his opponent and place it in his own hide-out. The succesful meld is discarded.
   
   
  
• Treasure-Looting without Counteraction
  The player plays a meld of 3 cards with the same number and all three different symbols (hat, stick, bow) in front of the card he wants to steal from another player. No counteraction is allowed. The player takes the desired card and discards the meld.
  
  [A meld with all 3 different symbols cannot be countered]

 
The Maid Marian Card
This card will go from player to player during the game. Whenever a player has been looted Maid Marian will run to him. As long as she stays, that player player is protected from further looting. (The difficulty level can be increased by the removing this card from the game).

[Maid Marian protects a hide-out]

 
Securing the Treasure Cards
As soon as a player has 3 cards of the same type in his hide-out these are secured and cannot be looted. To make this clear the cards are stacked half on top of each other, while unsecured cards are kept separate or stacked sideways. (see illustration).
 
Important: When a player steals a Treasure from the Sheriff that secures that type (color) for him, he will not receive a Money card that turn.

[A player may secure his Treasures at any time during his turn and during any actions]

 
The Money Cards
The Money cards cannot be looted from the other players. They remain safe in the hide-outs. The two 6-coin Money cards are used as change. When the stock of Money cards runs out, there are no more rewards for stealing from the Sheriff.
 
[Mik: The rules doesn't state this, but I suggest that the players must exchange two 3-coin cards for a 6-coin card when apropriate]
 
 
The Game End
When the deck has been exhausted the discard pile is shuffled into a new deck. The game will end after the deck has been depleated a second time, but the game will continue until a player takes the last open Treasure card on display (he will finish his turn).
 
Any Treasure cards in the players hands has no value. The players totals the value of his Treasure and Money cards in his hide-out. Each Treasure card has a value equal to its number and each Money card has a value equal to the number of coins. The player with the highest wealth wins the game.

[Example: Treasures: 7+7+7+9 plus a 3-coin Money card = 19 points]

Translation: Mik Svellov with help from K-ban 1999 version 1.1