Gamehelpbigmonster

Game presentation

Big Monster is a smart-draft and tile-laying game where each player is a space explorer. The goal is to earn more points than your opponents by selecting the right tile, and placing them to combine effect with other tiles. Several variants of the game exists :

• Individual, 4 to 6 players : Using all the drafting and tile laying mechanisms
• Individual, 2 or 3 players : there is no drafting but strategic decision on tile selection need to be taken. The tile laying remains the same
• Team, 4 or 6 players (not yet implemented) : the same as 4 to 6 players but by teams of 2. There, you can draft your tile to hinder your opponent, or help your team mate. The final score of the team is the lowest score of team members. (Example, Josh and Bart are in the same team, Josh gets 74 points and Bart 68. The team score is Bart's score : 68)

How the game is played

Game setup (common for all variants)

At the start of the game, each player receive secretly two explorer cards. Those explorer give extra habilites or point rewards given specific conditions. Each player has to choose one explorer and discard the other.

4 to 6 players

The game is divided in two phases where each player receive 10 monster tiles in their hand.

The turn is composed of two part : Tile selection + drafting and tile placement.

All players choose one tile in their hand at the same time and put the rest of the tiles to the ship of another player (draft their tiles to another player). Those tiles will be the next hand of this player.

Once every players have selected a tile and drafted the remaining of their hand, all players place the selected tile on their board following the tile placement rules (described below)

When all players have placed its tile, a new turn began. The new hand is composed of the tiles that the player received from another player in the drafting action.

A player cannot put the rest of its hand to its own ship (except for specific explorer capacity), unless there is no other ship available.

When there is two tiles remaining in hand, each player have to select one tile and discard the other one.

The second phase is equivalent to the first phase and starts when all players have placed its last tile. 10 new tiles are then provided to each players.

2 and 3 players

On the first turn, the first player reveals the tiles and put them on one row. (4 tiles at 2 players, 6 tiles at 3 players). He chooses one and discards another. The next players then chooses one of the remaining and discards another. The player that discarded the last tile will be the first player for the next turn. The rules for placing the tiles are the same as for the other modes.

At two players, 2 series of tiles are revealed on the second turn. At 3 players, 2 series of tiles are revealed on the third turn.

The first player selects one of the series, then picks one of its tiles and discards another. The next players then chooses one of the remaining tiles in that same series and discards the another.

The first player changes each turn, and a new series of tiles is revealed, so that there will always be 2 series of tiles available to choose from – except on the last turn, where there will only be one series left.

Tile placement

The following rules needs to be respected on tile placement :

• It must be placed adjacent to a previously placed tile, or to the explorer tile.
• It must be placed the right way up (with the monsters standing on their legs).
• A tile can be placed next to another even if that doesn’t complete a crystal.
• All tiles can be placed next to another, no matter what type of monster they show.
• Once placed, a tile cannot be moved for the rest of the game.
• If a mutant tile (ice monster) is properly connected to the purple rays of a mutagenic monster, it mutates immediately. The player takes the corresponding mutation tile and puts it over the original tile. Some monsters can mutate twice.

Monsters

the following monsters can be seen during a game of Big Monster :

Ice monster

Those monster have a starting amount of points but can evolve to their muted form but placing mutagenic monster at the right place. (see mutagenic monster description below)

Blue ice monster

• can be muted only once (prefer to place them on the left side of another ice monster, so that double downward mutagenic mute that monster and a single upward mutagenic make the other monster mute and second time)
• non-muted points : 1
• muted points : 10

Orange ice monster

• non-muted points : 2
• muted points : 7 on first mutation, 20 on second mutation

Green ice monster

• non-muted points : 3
• muted points : 8 on first mutation, 18 on second mutation

Red ice monster

• non-muted points : 4
• muted points : 9 on first mutation, 15 on second mutation

Mutagenic monster

Those monsters can make the ice monster evolved to their muted form. This is the only type of monster that are placed horizontally on the board.

Two forms of mutagenic monsters exists, identifiable by the number of monsters on the tile and the direction of the mutagenic waves:

• Downward mutagenic : There is 2 downward mutagenic monsters per tile. As their name expressed, the mutation are triggered downward. This means that the tile need to be placed above ice monsters
• Upward mutagenic : There is 1 upward mutagenic monster per tile. As their name expressed, the mutation are triggered upward. This means that the tile need to be placed below ice monsters. The monster is always on the right side of the tile. It means that an ice monster placed above the left-side of the tile will not be affected by the mutagenic waves

Big Monster

Big Monsters are splitted in two parts. Each part worth 1 points, but put together, you get 11 points !

Lava Monsters

Lava monsters are dragons that does not fear the heat ! Also, they have diamonds that are just waiting to be completed. (see more on Medal section below)

Blue and green dragons worth 3 points and purple worth 1 points, but have much more diamonds

Swamp Monsters

The more swamp monsters you have, the more points per swamp monster they earn. Each swamp monster gives you 2 points per swamp monster.

The points pattern is the following :

• If you have 1 swamp monster, you get 2 points in total (2 points per swamp monster)
• If you have 2 swamp monster, you get 8 points in total (4 points per swamp monster)
• If you have 3 swamp monster, you get 18 points in total (6 points per swamp monster)
• If you have 4 swamp monster, you get 32 points in total (8 points per swamp monster)
• If you have 5 swamp monster, you get 50 points in total (10 points per swamp monster)

There is exactly 5 swamp monster on each game, whatever the mode played

Grassland Monsters

Grassland monster will give you points on specific condition described on the tile. It is associated to other tile, type of tile or diamonds that you have placed on your board

Desert Monsters

Desert monsters does not worth anything as such. But they still remains important as they can give you bonus or malus.

The bonus is a medal (as described below) earned if you are the first player that placed 3 desert tile on its board

The malus is accounted at the end of the game, the player with the lowest number of desert and rune monster gets a malus

Rune Monsters

As desert monsters, they does not provide direct points, but the same indirect points principles described for desert tiles applies.

Additionally, rune monster also have diamonds that can be combined with lava monsters.

Note that a tile of rune monster have two monster on the tile. Those two monsters are counted on the malus medal (see details on medal section below)

Diamonds

Lava monsters, Rune monster and some explorer tiles have diamonds that can be combined together to get additional points when completed.

There is three types of diamonds :

• green diamonds : those diamonds are combined horizontally. There is a left and right side of the diamond. Monsters with those diamonds need to be placed side by side horizontally. Once completed, this diamonds worth 2 points.
• red diamonds : those diamonds are combined horizontally. There is a top and bottom part of the diamond. Monsters with those diamonds need to be placed side by side vertically. Once completed, this diamonds worth 5 points.
• blue diamonds : those diamonds are splited in 4 parts. The four corners needs to be combined to complete the diamonds. Once completed, this diamonds worth 10 points.

The diamonds on the explorer tile acts like other diamonds on monster tiles

Medals

There are 7 medals available at the start of the game. Six medals provides additional points to the player that meet the conditions to earn it. The last medal is a malus awarded at the end of the game

The malus medal is awarded after all players have placed their very last tile (end of the second round for 4-6 players or when last row of tiles is empty for 2-3 players). The player with the lowest number of desert and rune monster get the malus (-10 points). Note that one rune monster tile have two monster on the tile, those two monsters counts as two.