In Death Over the Kingdom you have two games in one:
- For groups of 3 to 7 players;
- For groups of 3 to 16 players, although we recommend starting with
8 players.
The rules explained below are for a game of 3 to 7 players.
The game consists of as many turns as the number of players. Each turn has 3 Rounds where victory condition varies.
- Round 1: The highest card wins.
- Round 2: The lowest card wins.
- Round 3: The intermediate cards win.
Each Round can be won by more than one player, if they match the score or victory condition. For example, in a 5-player game, up to 3 of them could have the intermediate card that gives the victory in Round 3.
When all 3 Rounds have been played, the starting player becomes Dealer. Thereby, all players will be Dealer once throughout the game. In each Round -in order, beginning with the starting player- players secretly choose a card from their hand and place it in their playing area face down
They must choose between:
- Exchange your card with the player on the left (they cannot refuse). The Dealer player has no players on their left. If you’re Dealer and want to exchange your card, you can do it with the deck, first declaring it aloud. To do this, you must lift one or more cards at a time without looking. The card revealed after this cut is your new card.
- To fold, that is, to keep the card that you’ve chosen or that’s been given to you after a previous exchange.
- Use the ability of the card, if possible (Merchant, Thief, Juggler and Dragon).
- If you have cards in hand, change the card with one of your hand. Once all the players have played, reveal players´cards to activate the abilities “At the end of the Round...” of the cards that have this ability (Innkeeper, Jester, Monk, Sorceress, Knight, Princess and Queen).
The winners of each Round score a point. To indicate that they take the score markers and place them in their playing area according to their points value. Once the 3 Rounds have been played, the deck is formed and shuffled again, and a new turn begins. When the last Dealer player’s turn is finished, the points are counted. The SECOND player with the most victory points is declared an absolute winner of Death Over The Kingdom until the next game! In case all players are tied in highest and lowest points, no player wins this game. You will have to play again!
