Penny Breadful
PROLOGUE
Penny Breadful is a reverse bluffing game of wheats where players survive by overcoming the mistrust baked into every batch.
DIRECTIONS
RECIPE
Willing Players: 3-6
Slices of Bread: 18 (Now 66.6% Poison Free!)
Bake time: 10-15 Minutes
Antidote: Not Included.
PREPARATION
Spread all 18 slices of bread face-down around the center of the table. Pick a brave player to begin and try the first slice…
CHAPTER 1: Loaf & DEATH
On your turn: Lift one slice of bread and show its underside to all other players without peeking at it yourself. Ask if the slice is safe to eat. All players must respond with “Yes, it’s Safe” or “No, it’s Poisoned.” Players may bluff however they wish, so consider their answers carefully!
Based on their answers, determine whether you believe your slice is Safe or Poisoned. If you believe it is Safe, place the slice face-down in front of you. If you believe it is Poisoned, give it to a player of your choice by placing it face-down in front of them. Once you have placed the slice, your turn is over and play continues clockwise.
On an opponent’s turn: You and all other remaining players must do your best to trick your opponents into keeping Poisoned slices and giving up Safe slices. Feed them lies or they may feed you your last meal!
Play continues until every player has two slices in front of them. Once a player has two slices, they are full and can’t receive more.
Chapter 2: Yeast or Famine
If you are full: On your turn, you may now look at a slice in secret, rather than showing it to your opponents. Give the slice to a player of your choice who is not full. Let them know whether its safe or poisoned, if you lie, we won’t tell!
If another player is full: They cannot be given another slice of bread, but they may still answer the active player’s question.
Chapter 3: You’rE Toast
Once everyone is full: The table is set, and all players choose 1 slice in front of them to “eat”. Countdown together, and simultaneously reveal the undersides of all chosen slices.
If you reveal a Safe slice, hurray! You survive, and move to the next next round.
If you reveal a Poisoned slice, oops! You perish, and are eliminated from the game. Anytime one or more players are eliminated, return all 18 slices of bread back into the center pile and reset. Begin again at Chapter 1 with only the remaining surviving players.
If nobody reveals a Poisoned slice, discard all revealed slices by setting them aside and put the all remaining slices back to prepare for another round. Resume the game following the order of turns from Chapter 1 until at least one player reveals a Poisoned slice and perishes.
The game ends when only one player is left standing, or If only two players remain, move to the epilogue: ‘The Princess Bread.’
Epilogue: The Princess Bread
PREPARATION:
Remove two slices from the pile, one Poisoned and one Safe, for the final round. Determine the first player by flipping a Poisoned slice and calling “Safe” or “Poisoned.”
Player One’s Turn: Look at both slices in secret and place them both face-down in front of you. Push one slice toward your opponent, keeping one for yourself.
Player Two’s Decision: Choose to either keep the slice given to you or swap the two.
Ask Yourself: “Are they the sort of player who would put the Poison in front of themselves or their enemy? Now, a clever player would put the Poison in front of themselves because they would know that only a great fool would reach for what he was given. But they must know you aren’t a great fool; so you can clearly not choose the slice in front of you. Or did they expect that?”
The Reveal: Both players reveal their slices simultaneously. The player with the Safe slice survives, and wins the game!
ODDITIES
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To add an additional layer of tension, remove 1 Safe slice of bread from play any time a player reveals a Poisoned slice and is eliminated from the game.
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Replace the rules of Chapter 2:
Instead, If you are full (2 slices of bread face-down in front of you): On your turn, you may choose one slice in front of you and blindly swap it with one from the center pile. You may not show this new slice to any other player, or peek at it yourself.
The opportunity to swap ends immediately once all players are full.
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*Requires 3, 4, or 6 total remaining players.
Penny Breadful is proudly 66.6% Poison free! Because of this consistent benchmark, it is entirely possible for all players to collectively escape the kitchen safely.
If all remaining players survive the events of Chapter 3: You’re Toast multiple times, you win as a group.
Group win conditions:
• 3 Players: Survive 4 rounds of play
• 4 Players: Survive 3 rounds of play
• 6 Players: Survive 2 rounds of playThe strategy to succeed is simple, just always tell the truth! Easy, right? It would be a shame if someone soured that strategy and took the win for themselves…
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Spectators (Potential players or Eliminated Players) may cross over into the game by correctly predicting the player who will be eliminated next. All potential or previously eliminated players must state their guess at the beginning of a round before the first slice is lifted.
For 3 or more Spectators: if the Spectators unanimously predict that NO player will be eliminated this round and are CORRECT, They replace the current players, stealing their seats (and maybe their souls!?) in the process.
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Play all chapters of the game as usual. Players are now considered full once they have ONE slice of bread face-down in front of them.
This is sudden death, folks!
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Play all chapters of the game as usual. Players are now considered full once they have THREE slices of bread face-down in front of them.
Original Batch is a suitable rule-change for young bakers-in-training.
Alternates
Meet Your Baker
PROLOGUE
Meet Your Baker is a collaborative game where players take turn inhabiting the role of the Baker. Defeat the Baker as its spirit jumps from player to player until no one remains. Win the game by either tricking all players as the Baker, or surviving player elimination and being the last one remaining in the kitchen.
DIRECTIONS
RECIPE
Willing Players: 4-6
Slices of Bread: 12 (6 Safe, 6 Poison)
Bake time: 10-15 Minutes
PREPARATION
Deal 1 Poison and 1 Safe slice to each player. Pick a particularly devious player to take on the role of the Baker first.
THE BAKER
At the start of each round, a different player will find themselves possessed by the malevolent baker.
On your turn as the Baker: Choose one of your two slices and place it face-down in front of you. Tell the group of remaining players whether the slice you’ve chosen is "“Safe” or “Poison”.
All other players: Work together to decide whether the Baker is telling the truth or lying. The group of remaining players now attempt to make the Baker’s choice the “odd one out” amongst the collective slices. Discuss as long as you wish, but the decision MUST be unanimous in order to successfully defeat the Baker.
If the group agrees the Baker chose Poison: All players should play a Safe slice.
If the group agrees the Baker chose Safe: All players should play a Poison slice.
Once all players have chosen a slice, everyone including the Baker reveals their choice simultaneously.
If all player’s chosen slices match, and they are the OPPOSITE of the Baker’s choice, the Baker is defeated immediately and the possessed player is eliminated from the game. Play proceeds clockwise with the player to the left as the next Baker.
However, if all player’s chosen slices match, and they are the SAME of the Baker’s choice, the group has failed to correctly predict the Baker’s choice, the group is defeated immediately and the Baker is the sole winner of the game.
If at any time during the group discussion you have doubts as to the unanimous choice of the group, you may choose to play opposite your fellow players. If the vote is not unanimous, no one wins, and the Baker chooses any player who has matched with their slice to be the next Baker. A new round begins.
Continue gameplay until either the Baker wins, the group wins collectively, or all players possessed by the Baker have been eliminated one-by-one.
Penny Breadful is our first handmade game.
Each batch is very limited, but we have big plans for this little loaf. Join our mailing list to stay up to date on new editions, new handmade games, and what comes next.