How to Play Pharaoh
Designed by Andy Looney
Introduction: In this game, the struggle for control of the middle square has a “King of the Hill” feeling to it, so we named it after the “King of the Pyramid” as you might say, i.e. the Pharaoh.
Equipment: 1 Rainbow Stash, a 6-sided die, a 5x5 Grid with the corners blocked
Number of players: 2-4 (best with 3 or 4)
Setup: Assign a color to each player and set aside the unused colors. Place each player's pieces on a diff erent edge of the board.
Who Starts? Players roll to see who’s first.
How to Play: Begin by rolling the die. The result is the number of movement points you get. You need as many movement
points as the number of pips on a piece to move that piece one space. Pieces begin off the board. Players can only bring their pieces onto the board from their edge. However, they can bring each piece in any of their 3 squares.
Pieces may move forwards or backwards or sideways. Diagonal moves also are allowed; however, moving diagonally requires double the number of movement points. Hopping is not allowed.
Only one piece may ever occupy a single space. (No stacking allowed.) You can never move into a space occupied by one of your own pieces, nor can a smaller piece move into a space occupied by a larger enemy piece. When you move a piece into the same space as an equal or smaller sized enemy piece, that piece is removed from the board. You may divide your points between as many di fferent legal moves as you wish. You are not required to use all of your movement points.
Goal: To win, you must occupy the 3 spaces of a goal-line with your 3 pieces (in any order). A goal-line is a 3 space line whose center is the center of the board. The number of goal- lines increases with the number of players:
- 2 players = 1 goal-line: With 2, you must occupy the center line between the 2 players.
- 3 players = 2 goal-lines: With 3, you can win with a goal-line on either axis.
- 4 players = 4 goal-lines: When 4 are playing, you can also win on a diagonal goal-line.