DotsCardsBoxes

Dots and boxes is an old established game: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dots_and_boxes

Dots, Cards and Boxes is intended to extend it by addition of cards, providing elements of chance, and additional strategy.

The game area is the same - as dotgrid upon which players claim area to win. The winning condition is the same.

What is added are cards which allows each player to impose restrictions on their opponent.

Proposed restrictions are

• Line must be placed within a certain side of the board (let's denote them by the cardinal directions for easy reference.
• Line must be aligned a certain way (horizontal or vertical)
• Line must attach to a virgin dot (a dot with no other lines attached)
• Line must surrender a box (obviously only useful to play after boxes are possible, and before boxes are inevitable)

Restrictions which would cause the surrender of a box (which could be any of the above, depending on board and strategy), must be backed up with a "must surrender a box" card (meaning the 'must surrender a box' card needs to be doubled if it's to be played outright)

Proposed gameplay

Players are dealt 10 cards. They then choose three to reveal on the table. It is only from these revealed cards that they may place restrictions, though the second card to force a box surrender may come from the hand. In this way, the revealed cards may be played as a bluff, or played true.

The three table cards per player are chosen without knowledge of the other players intended reveal, and all table cards are revealed simultaneously. Then players play lines in turn (flip a coin or something to determine who goes first). The first line from each player has no restrictions (the last player is the first to nominate restrictions)

After the first round of lines, turns are as follows: each player draws a line (in accordance with any restrictions placed on them) and then if they so choose, plays one, two or three card from the table to act as a restriction on their opponent. If one of the cards requires the surrender of a box, or the only line available would surrender a box, then the restriction must be backed up with a 'must surrender' card from the players hand.

Once the restriction card(s) are nominated, the player then reveals one (and only one) card from their hand to the table. (in this way there is a limit to playing two or three cards to enhance restriction strength). Restriction cards that have been used are set aside into a discard pile once used.

The other player then draws their line, and plays their restrictions...

Winner is the player with the most boxes at the end.

Game board

A five-by-five dotgrid (4x4 boxes). This should give approx 20 lines before boxes begin to be unavoidably surrendered. This matches nicely the 20 cards dealt between two players. (a larger game board for more than 2 players however)

Cards

not-yet-playtested idea is to have a deck of 42 cards:

• Five each of North, South, East, West, Horizontal, Vertical, Virgin dot.
• Seven of "must surrender"

Ideas for thought

• Track ownership of each line, allowing this to become a factor in restrictions (eg, card which states "line must join to opponent line")
• Allow sacrifice strategy (see wikipedia page), or set a rule that once a chain of boxes begins, they MUST be claimed.
  • My preference is that there is no sacrifice strategy, and that the game strategy instead is in clever board building, and then restrictions on opponents ability to surrender squares
• More than 2 players? Perhaps 4 players as two teams sitting opposite each other, where teammates cannot communicate strategy, but have to infer it from the cards the other plays. Each player uses their opposite numbers cards to set restrictions. (this type of team without communication is similar to Bridge? Or 500?)

Final notes =

As written, this has not been playtested. My estimation is that the proportion of cards may be the thing needing most tuning. Of most concern to me is that the 'must surrender' cards will prove to be too powerful an imbalance, especially if (as is entirely possible), one player is dealt none whilst the other has some.