EP 1 Game Rules: Rank Rigger | GAMEBREAKER

WHAT IS THIS?

This post explains the rules of the game featured Episode 1 of Gamebreaker.

These posts will be split into two sections:

Section 1 is the rules of the game as presented in the episode. This is for viewers who find reading rules helpful for game comprehension, or wanted to check a specific rule.

Section 2 is for people who want to try and play the game themselves with friends. It will include extra information on top of the rules explained in section 1, and suggestions to adapt the game outside of the competition format. Section 2 may contain spoilers for the episode.

SECTION 1: RULES FOR EPISODE

Game 1 of the competition is... Rank Rigger!

AIM: In Rank Rigger, players delegate points to each other to try and influence each others positions, so they can complete their secret mission.

There are four rounds of the game, with the points available to delegate increasing each round:

Round	Delegation points
1	3
2	5
3	7
4	10

PREGAME:

In private, players take turns to randomly draw a Secret Mission, a Player, and a Special Ability.

• The “Secret Mission” is the goal a player needs to complete to win. All secret missions are different.

• The “Player” is who the secret mission related to. The player cannot be themselves (their name is removed by the Games Master before they draw).

• The "Special Ability" is a unique ability which will help the player in the game.

GAME:

A round of the game is split into three phases: Discussion, Delegation and Rank Reveal.

Discussion phase: players have 10 minutes to strategize with each other.

Delegation phase: in private, players take turns to delegate the available points for that round.

Players can delegate their points as they see fit, adding or subtract points from any player (including themselves).

Here is an example of a valid delegation:

In Round 1, players each have 3 points to delegate (see table above).

Player A’s delegation is they give themselves + 2 points, and subtract - 1 point from player B, for a total of 3 delegated points.

The delegation phase is also when a player can opt to use their Special Ability.

Rank Reveal phase: 

The Games Master calculates each players updated point totals based on the results of the delegation phase.

The Games Master then displays the updated player rankings to everyone, with the point totals omitted. (The player in 1^st position has the highest point total, last place has the lowest point total. Point totals can go negative.)

After this, the Games Master tells each player their current point total in private, as well as any information from their "Special Ability".

GAME END:

The game continues like this for 4 rounds, with the number of points available to delegate increasing every round (see table above, aim section).

After the round 4 Rank Reveal phase, the game is over, and the results of the game are revealed!

COMPETITION REWARD:

If a player has succeeded in their Secret Mission, they earn a complete Gamebreaker token.

If a player fails their secret mission, they get a strike.

The player who ranks first at the end of the game will earn a bonus half a Gamebreaker token.

SECTION 2: RULES FOR PLAYING YOURSELVES.

Rank Rigger is a game that requires one Games Master to run the game, and 3 to 9 other players (4 to 8 is ideal).

The Games Master should have a system of keeping track and calculating the changes in players scores after delegation, and of displaying the updated ranks to players.

The game plays as explained in section 1 above, with each player aiming to complete their Secret Mission. This means Rank Rigger can have multiple winners. If you want there to be only one winner, the player who completes their secret mission AND has the highest rank at the end of the game, is the winner.

I have attached a print out of enough Secret Missions and Special Abilities for 9 players below (including the ones featured in the episode, so spoilers).

Rank Rigger PRINT OUT Secret Mission and Special Abilities.docx

Download DOCX • 36KB

The Games Master should select the ones they feel most comfortable about. Also, feel free to tweak the missions and abilities to keep the secret to the players, or create your own!