FOR 2, 3 or 4 PLAYERS
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The game is set in the newly-created, international city of Espiona. Sixteen embassies are grouped in the quarter of Bludt, built on the site of an earlier town, that was honeycombed with underground tunnels. There are no roads — only footpaths separated by trees. Players operate as Spies in this area; each controls a Spy and a Contact Man — Spies carry wireless transmitters in their hats. Players set out to gather as many “Secrets” as they can — the one who collects the most valuable set of Secrets is the winner. |
EQUIPMENT
Playing Board, 4 Spies, 4 Contact Men, 4 Wireless Aerials, 16 Secret tokens
(4 red, 4 blue, 4 green, 4 yellow), 40 Secret cards, One Die.
THE BOARD
There are 16 Embassies — each one has a Safe, for a Secret token. In front of
each Embassy is a Prohibited Area — Spies found standing on any such area are
vulnerable, and are liable to be “spotted”.
Every street has a line of trees down the centre — these can never be crossed. Just inside and just outside each Embassy is a blue cross — these are the only places on which Con. Men may stand.
There are 8 yellow “Manhole Covers” leading to the underground
tunnels.
PREPARATION
Turn all the Secret tokens over, so that the colours are hidden. Shuffle
them, and place one on each of the Embassy Safes. Make sure that no one sees
the coloured sides during this operation.
Shuffle the Secret cards, and deal two to each player — they must be kept face upwards. Place the remainder, face upwards, in a pile at the side of the board. Secret cards must always lie face upwards, so that all players can see what their rivals have collected.
Players select their Spies, and take Con. Men and Aerials of the same colour. Spies are placed in their respective Start positions, and Con. Men on any blue cross.
SECRET CARDS
The Secret cards represent “secrets”, to be obtained from Embassies and rival
spies. Each card has a value, and the letters on the right-hand side are used
to make Code Words. Throughout the game, players will try to get from their
rivals the Secret cards that will enable them to make the most valuable Code
Words.
SPIES
A Spy’s aim is to collect Secrets. He does this in four ways:
(1) by entering Embassies;
(2) by radioing his Con. Man;
(3) by getting alongside another Spy;
(4) by “spotting” other Spies, when they are vulnerable.
MOVEMENT AROUND THE BOARD
The die is used to move the Spies around the board. They may move in any direction
except diagonally.
They may not:
(1) double back on their tracks in one turn;
(2) land on a space already occupied;
(3) pass over each other.
A Spy must always move the full extent of the die throw, except:
(a) when entering an Embassy — an exact throw is not necessary;
(b) when he is “trapped” by his rivals, in which case he must remain where he
is, until released;
(c) when a 1 is thrown. (See Throwing 1.)
MANHOLE COVERS
By using the tunnels it is possible for Spies to disappear from one part of
the area, and suddenly appear in another. A Spy who lands on a Manhole Cover,
if he has not used up all of the die throw he is entitled to, moves immediately
to any other Manhole Cover he wishes — the move from one Manhole Cover to the
other counts as a single space move, and the Spy may continue his movement,
if the die throw still allows him.
He may only use one tunnel in any one turn — i.e., down one Manhole, and up at another.
A Spy may not enter a tunnel with his aerial in position, but he may stand on a Manhole Cover.
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| If a Spy a throws a 4, he can move down a Manhole Cover at 2, up again at 3, move alongside Spy b, and claim one Secret card. If he had thrown a 6, he could still have gained a Secret card by coming up at the other Manhole Cover (marked c), and turning back towards Spy b. |
OBTAINING SECRETS FROM EMBASSIES
As soon as a Spy is able to enter an Embassy (it must be one where no other
Spy or rival Con. Man is standing), the player takes the Secret token, and,
without letting anyone else see it, examines the underside. If it is his colour,
he shows it, retains it, and claims 2 Secret cards from the pile. If it is not
his colour, he replaces the Secret token in any Embassy where the Safe is empty.
Spies may also learn Secrets from their Con. Men (by radio), provided that the Con. Man is inside an Embassy where there is a Secret token.
OBTAINING SECRETS FROM OTHER SPIES
A Spy may claim one Secret card — of his own choice — from a rival if:
(a) he can move on to a space (other than a Prohibited Area)’next to another
Spy;
(b) he, or his Con. Man “spots” him using his radio (see Throwing 1);
(c) he or his Con. Man “spots” him on a Prohibited Area.
If two or more rivals can be “spotted” in one move, Secret cards are claimed from each.
A trapped Spy can not claim Secrets.
If a Con. Man can “spot” a Spy without being moved, the die throw must still be used to move the master Spy.
There is, of course, no point in “spotting” Spies, who do not possess any Secret cards.
THROWING 1
When a player throws a 1, this indicates that he has received a message from
H.Q., saying that he must radio his Con. Man. In each turn, therefore, a first
throw of 1 is not used to move a Spy; it is only a “signal”. The Spy must now
fit his aerial in his hat, and he must “hide”, if he can. He therefore takes
another throw, and, no matter what figure is thrown, from 1-6, he moves to whatever
position he thinks may be safe from his being “spotted” by his rival Spies or
their Con. Men, when each moves in his next turn.
Having “hidden”, the Spy may use his radio to do one of the following:
(a) examine the Secret token his Con. Man is guarding (if he is inside an Embassy).
If it is his colour, he removes the token from the board, claims 2 Secret cards,
and his turn ends. If it is not his colour, he places the token in any Embassy
Safe that is empty.
(b) move his Con. Man to a new position (it must not be to an Embassy where
a rival Spy or Con. Man is standing).
(c) move any one of his rival’s Con. Men to a new position.
His rivals in turn can now, if they wish and are able, move their Spies into positions where they can “spot” the Spy with his aerial in the street. Any Spy who, at the end of his move, can get a view uninterrupted by trees or buildings (Spies can see past each other), claims 1 Secret card from the Spy with the aerial.
The aerial remains in position for one complete round of turns, and is then removed.
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The Spy hiding between the trees, can be spotted only by another Spy or a Con. Man standing (at any point) in this row. |
A Spy who is himself “vulnerable” (i.e., has his aerial in position, or is standing in a Prohibited Area), cannot “spot” another Spy, but, if his own aerial is in position, he can try to use his Con. Man to “spot” for him by ordering him to move to a suitable blue-cross-marked position in the street.
HIDING IN EMBASSIES
If a player throws a 1 when he is very close to an Embassy, he may be able to
hide inside it. If he does so, he may not examine the Secret token there, but
he may radio his Con. Man in the usual way.
If, at his next turn, he again throws a 1, he must refit his aerial, and then, as usual, throw again to “hide”; this means he must move out of the Embassy (unless he is “trapped”).
PROHIBITED AREAS
A Spy is vulnerable, if he stands in a Prohibited Area. If a Spy is standing
on any part of a Prohibited Area, and a rival can move his Spy or Con. Man on
to an adjoining blue space at either end, the Spy is “spotted”, and must surrender
a Secret card. He can, of course, be “spotted” from both ends by different opponents.
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A rival Con. Man here would “spot” him, and claim 1 Secret card for his master Spy. |
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A rival Con. Man here would prevent the Spy from entering. |
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A rival Spy here would “spot” him and claim 1 Secret
card.
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CON. MEN
These shady characters hang about the Embassies, either in the street or inside
the gate (on a blue cross). They are not allowed anywhere else in the town.
A Con. Man inside an Embassy prevents any rival’ Spy or Con. Man from entering. (His own Spy, of the same colour, may always join him.)
A Con. Man in the street can “spot” rival Spies.
As soon as any Spy has found all his own 4 Secret tokens, his Con. Man is removed from the board, but he continues in the game, trying to gain as many extra Secret cards as possible. He must still fit his aerial on throwing a 1.
ENDING THE GAME
The game can be ended in two ways:
(1) when the last Secret token is taken from the board;
(2) when a player, who has found all his four Secret tokens, is able to make
any two Code Words. (The Chinese and Japanese, of course, count one each.) He
must first lay out the cards, so that the other players can read his Code Words.
At his next turn (or later), if he has not lost any of the necessary cards,
he must enter (if he is not prevented) one of the two Embassies, whose Code
Word he has made — and the game is ended.
WINNING THE GAME
The winner is the Spy with the highest total score — Secret cards plus Code
Word bonuses. Players must count the number of Secret cards they hold, and then
try to make one or more of the Code Words given below.
Each Secret card has 2 letters (or characters) on it. Only one letter on each card may be used in each Code Word.
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Secret cards may be overlapped, so that either of the 2 letters can be used to make Code Words. Each letter or character can be used only once. In this example, the Japanese character, which on its own scores a bonus of 2, has been sacrificed to produce the higher-scoring Italian Code Word, "PESCE". |
Each Secret card has a value of 1, but Secret cards that can be built up to form a Code Word, bring a bonus. Each Embassy has its own Code Word, but, unknown to one another, all of them chose the word “Fish”. (The Japanese and Chinese use the same sign, but their pronunciations are quite different.)
| Embassy | Code Word | Pronunciation | Bonus |
|---|---|---|---|
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THE GAME FOR 2 PLAYERS
All 16 Secret tokens are used. Each player directs 2 Spies, the two pairs playing
as teams. Spies in the same team may not “spot” each other. They may not exchange
Secret cards at any time.
Scoring: Each Spy totals his own score, but the scores are added together, to find the winning team.
THE GAME FOR 3 PLAYERS
Each player directs 1 Spy. All 16 tokens are used. All 3 players search for
their own Secret tokens, and also tokens of the fourth colour.
© John Waddington Ltd 1965.