Instructions

 
 

Objective

The aim of the game is to fill your dining table board with eight guests. The first player to do so wins. 

Components

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  • 60 guest cards

  • 50 action cards

  • 96 asset cards

  • 10 social mission cards

  • 2 dice

  • rules booklet

  • 7 dining table boards

  • 8 indisposed tokens

Setup the board

Each player places an empty dining table board in front of them. 

Sort the asset cards into each asset type and place in four piles face-up. This is the asset bank. 

Shuffle the action cards and place in a pile face-down.

Shuffle the guest cards and place in a pile face-down.

Optional: Each player picks a random social mission card, not revealing it to other players (see additional rules).

Asset Cards

There are four types of asset cards: wealth, heart, beauty and wit. Think of these as different social currency. Guest cards cost a certain combination of asset cards to purchase and place at your dining table. Once at your table, guests can also generate asset cards that you collect from the asset bank.

Guest cards

Each guest card is based o a character from one of Jane Austen’s works (Emma, Mans eld Park, Northanger Abbey, Persuasion, Pride and Prejudice, Lady Susan and Sense and Sensibility). There is a unique quote from or about the character on each card.

Cost

Each guest costs a certain combination of asset cards, based o their characterisation. If a player wishes to purchase a guest, they must pay this cost to the asset bank during their turn.

Placing guests at your table

Once a player has purchased a guest from the guest invite list during their turn, they need to place the guest at their dining table board. Each of the eight seats at the table have a correlating number(s): [2 or 3], 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, 10, [11 or 12]. Players can place their purchased guests at any blank seat available of their choice.

Once placed, guests cannot be rearranged on a player’s table (unless specially allowed by an action card).

On the seats [2 or 3] and [11 or 12], if there is a guest placed there, rewards can be collected whenever either of the numbers shown are rolled.

Reward

Each guest also has asset rewards. This reward can be collected from the asset bank when the number(s) corresponding to the guest’s seat is rolled.

Some guests have no reward. Whenever the number corresponding to the guest’s seat is rolled, no reward is collected.

Some guests have negative rewards. If a guest has a negative reward, when the number corresponding to the guest’s seat is rolled, the player must forfeit the asset(s) listed to the asset bank. If the player does not have any of the asset(s) in their hand, no action is required.

It does not matter which player rolls the dice. Every player receives the asset rewards (if any) corresponding to the number rolled each turn, regardless of whose turn it is.

Action Cards

After rolling the dice, the active player draws two action cards and immediately discards one of their choice. The other action card can be played any time that turn (after which it is also added to the discard pile unless it is a table improvement card). When the pile of action cards is empty, shuffle the discards to refill the pile.

Types of Action Cards

  • Pick up two specific asset cards: Draw two asset cards from the asset bank of the type specified on the action card.

  • Wild asset card: Add one asset card of your choice from the asset bank to your hand.

  • Add a guest: Roll the dice and if the number correlates to an empty seat at your table, add the top guest from the guest pile to that place. If the seat is not empty, do not add a guest.

  • Remove a guest: Pick a player who must remove a guest of their choice from their table. The active player can remove a guest at their own table if they wish.

  • Steal an asset: Steal one random asset card from the opposing player of your choice.

  • Hand limit: All players (including the active player) must reduce their asset card hand to five cards. All discarded cards must return to the asset bank. The active player can choose to spend or trade as many asset cards as they wish in their turn before they play this action card.

  • Indisposed: Move an indisposed token onto any guest at any table. See the additional rules section for more details.

  • Table improvement - pick up one specific asset card: This card is placed near the player’s table for the rest of the game (i.e. the card is not placed in the action discard pile). Every time a 7 is rolled, the player then picks up the asset card specified on the action card.

  • Table improvement - trade three for one: This card is placed near the player’s table for the rest of the game (i.e. the card is not placed in the action discard pile). Anytime during any of their turns, the player with this card can trade three assets of any one type from their hand for one asset card of their choice with the asset bank. The player can use this card as many times as they wish during their turns.

  • Rearrange guests: This card allows the active player to rearrange the guests already seated at their own table to any seating arrangement they wish.

  • Steal a table improvement: Steal one table improvement card from any player. The stolen table improvement becomes the active player’s card.

Setup Initial Guests

  • Place face-up two times as many guest cards as there are players;

    i.e. if two players, then four cards;
    if three players, then six cards;
    if four players, then eight cards, etc.

  • All players roll the two dice. The player with the highest roll goes first to choose one guest from those face-up to add to their dining table board at the seat of their choice.

  • The player with the second highest roll chooses one guest from the remaining guests face-up to add to their dining table board at the seat of their choice. This continues in order of dice roll until all players have chosen their first guest.

  • The player who last chose their first guest (i.e. who rolled the lowest number), now choses their second guest from the remaining guests available. This continues backwards until all players have collected their second guest, finishing with the final guest being collected by the player who rolled highest.

  • Each player collects from the asset bank one of each asset card to add to their hand, i.e. one beauty, one wit, one heart and one wealth asset card.

  • Setup the initial guest invite list by placing the top four guest cards from the pile face-up.

Each Turn

  • From the top of the guest card pile, replenish the guest invite list to have four guests. If no guests were purchased in the previous turn, no action is required. When the pile of guest cards is empty, shuffle the discards to refill the pile.

  • The active player rolls the dice.

    If the number rolled is a seven:

    The guest invite list is discarded and replenished with 4 new guests from the top of the guest card pile.
    Each player gets the asset card for each table improvement action card they have (if any). See action card rules for more details.

    If the number rolled is any number other than seven:

    Each player collects the asset card reward listed on the guest card (if any) at their table game board that corresponds to the seat number rolled.

  • The active player picks up two action cards, plays one of their choice and discards the other.

  • The active player can also, in any order they wish, do the following in their turn:

    • Purchase any available guests from the guest invite list

    • Trade asset cards with any willing player

    • Trade four cards of any one asset type for one asset card of their choice with asset bank (see additional rules)

WINNING THE GAME

  • The first player to complete their table with eight guests wins. The remaining players can continue to see who comes second, third, etc., or the game can end immediately.

    If social mission cards are in play (optional), then players also need to fulfil the requirements of their social mission to win (see additional rules).

ADDITIONAL RULES

Trading Asset Cards with the Bank

During any point of their turn after rolling, the active player may trade four of any one type of asset to the asset bank in return for one asset card of their choice. There is no limit for how many times this can be done in a player’s turn.

For example, the active player can trade four wit asset cards from their hand for one beauty card with the asset bank.

With the table improvement - trade three for one action card, a player can trade with a 3:1 ratio.

Trading Asset Cards Between Players

During any point of their turn after rolling, the active player may trade asset cards with one or more other player(s). The number and type of asset cards must be agreed upon by both players trading. In a trade, at least one card must be traded from each player (i.e. no donations allowed) and there is no limit to how many cards can be traded.

For example, player 1 (the active player) can trade two beauty asset cards for one heart asset card with player 3 if mutually agreed to.

Two non-active players may not trade, and have to wait until it is their turn(s).

Indisposed

Some action cards allow an indisposed token to be moved onto any guest at any player’s dining table. When an indisposed token is on a guest, no reward is generated from that guest. This also holds for negative rewards. Players can place an indisposed token onto their own guest if they wish.

When an indisposed action card is played, the active player must move an indisposed token onto a guest of their choice. This can either be by moving an indisposed token already in play from one guest to another, or by placing an indisposed token not yet included in play onto a guest of their choice. Once an indisposed token has been introduced into play by being placed on a guest, it cannot be removed from the game, only moved from one guest to another.

The only exception to this is when a player uses a ‘Remove a Guest’ action card - if this is used on an indisposed guest then the indisposed token is removed from the game (into the available tokens pile that can be introduced included in the game).

You can still win the game even if your guests are indisposed.

Social Mission Cards

Players can chose to play the game with the optional social mission cards. On each of the social mission cards, there are specifications on which guests are required to be on a player’s dining table in order for the player to win.

There are two levels of social missions: Social Butterfly (requires no knowledge of Austen’s works) and Janeite (requires knowledge of Austen’s works). Prior to the beginning of the game, all players should agree on which level they would play.

Before the game starts and prior to the setup of initial guests, players shuffle the deck of social mission cards and chose a card at random, not revealing their card to the other players for the duration of the game.

Players must fulfil their social mission in order to win. A player cannot win the game even if they have a full table of guests, if they do not also fulfil the specifications of their social mission.

Extra rules when playing with social mission cards:

  • At any point during their turn, the active player can remove one of their guests to the guest discard pile and add the asset reward of the guest from the asset bank to their hand.

  • The active player can choose instead of playing an action card to refresh the guest invite list with new guests from the top of the guest card pile. If this is done after drawing two action cards, both of the action cards are to be discarded.