PLAYERS & PLAYWRIGHTS
INTRODUCTION
Board game for 2-4+ players.
Each player is a Theatre Troupe during the English Renaissance.
VICTORY
The player with the most Gold at the end of the game wins.
The game ends when the players have gone through the deck twice.
(The start of the English Civil War)
DICE
Six sided dice are needed.
GOLD
Use Coins to represent Gold
PAWNS
Each player has a unique pawn to represent his Troupe.
(Use Chess pieces)
THE DECK
Players share a common deck.
There are 7 Suites (card types):
Playwrights (Dramatists: The Men who wrote the plays)
Actors (Players: The men who acted the plays)
Troupes (Companies of Actors)
Theatres (Playhouses: Where plays were performed)
Dramatic Devices (How the plays were written)
Stage Props (Special effects used to enhance the plays)
Plays (Comedies, Histories, and Tragedies)
THE BOARD
The board is a circular track of 32 spaces.
The spaces are entitled thusly:
# Title: Type Notes:
1 Playwright A Score Playwright cards
2 Performance P Score Meld
3 Rehearsal R Draw 1 Card
4 Actors A Score Actor cards
5 Morality Play M Gain 1 Gold
6 Performance P Score Meld
7 History A Score History Play cards
8 Performance P Score Meld
9 Profit Sharing E Lose 1D6 Gold
10 Performance P Score Meld
11 Comedy A Score Comedy Play cards
12 University Play M Gain 1 Gold
13 Pageant M Gain 1 Gold
14 Court Performance P Double Score Meld
15 Rehearsal R Draw 1 Card
16 Tour Countryside P Half Score Meld
17 Troupe A Score Troupe cards
18 Mummers Plays M Gain 1 Gold
19 Performance P Score Meld
20 Cycle Play M Gain 1 Gold
21 Trouble T Roll on Trouble Table
22 Stage Props A Score Stage Props cards
23 Rehearsal R Draw 1 Card
24 Mystery Play M Gain 1 Gold
25 Theatre A Score Theatre cards
26 Dramatic Devices A Score Dramatic Device cards
27 Rehearsal R Draw 1 Card
28 Performance P Score Meld
29 Trouble T Roll on Trouble Table
30 Masque M Gain 1 Gold
31 Tragedy A Score Tragedy Play cards
32 Patronage E Gain 1D6 Gold
BOARD SPACE TYPE NOTATION
P = Performance
T = Trouble
M = Minor Performance
A = Attribute
E = Event
R = Rehearsal
BOARD DOWNLOAD
Click Here
SETUP
Players roll high on 1D6 to see who goes first.
Each player is dealt a hand of 7 cards.
Each player starts with 10 Gold.
Pawns start on the Profit Sharing Space.
TURN SEQUENCE
Players take turns.
Each turn has 3 Phases:
Rehearsal Phase
Performance Phase
Exit Phase
REHEARSAL PHASE
Draw 2 cards.
If the deck runs out, shuffle the discard and draw from it.
PERFORMANCE PHASE
Roll 1D6 and move that many spaces clockwise along the Track.
If you land on an opponents Pawn steal one of his cards and
Then roll and move again.
If you land on an empty space, follow the instructions on that space.
MINOR PERFORMANCE SPACES
These were older types of plays:
Cycle Plays: Religious Plays that used non-professionals as actors.
Morality Plays: Allegorical Lessons
Mummers Plays: Medieval Plays like St George & the Dragon
University Plays: Classical Greek/Roman Philosophical Plays
Mystery Plays: Miracle Plays: Religious/Biblical Plays like the Nativity
Pageant: Parades & Processions: Royal & Local
Masque: Fancy Dress Dance: Entertainment of the Nobility
EVENT SPACES
Profit Sharing = The company was owned by the actors.
Patronage = A patron provided only minor financial support but was very
Useful for protection from legal troubles.
PERFORMANCE SPACES
Performance: These were usually held at the Troupes own Theatre.
Royal Performance: Troupes would get invited to palaces to perform there.
Tour Countryside: When evicted by plague or Protestants, Troupes would hit the road
To Score a Meld, play (discard) cards from your hand:
You may play up to 1 card from each of the Seven Suites.
Gain Gold equal to the number of Suites played.
Note: for the Royal Performance and the Tour Countryside spaces you
Cannot include a Theatre card in the Meld.
A Meld must contain at least 4 cards or it cannot be played.
A 5 card Meld earns 1 extra Gold.
A 6 card Meld earns 2 extra Gold.
A 7 card Meld earns 3 extra Gold.
ATTRIBUTE SPACES
There is one for each of the card suites except for plays.
(Play spaces are divided into 3 types: Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies)
To score an attribute space, play (discard) 1 or more cards of the indicated type.
Gain 1 Gold for each card so played.
REHEARSAL SPACES
Draw 1 card and put it in your hand
TROUBLE SPACES
Roll 1D6:
# Result: Notes:
1 Death Discard all your cards
2 Fire Lose 2D6 Gold
3 Plague Skip your next turn
4 Protestants Skip your next turn
5 Prison Discard 3 random cards
6 Legal Problems Lose 1D6 Gold
EXTRA SCORING
When scoring a Play card in a Performance or if played solo on the
Attribute space, you may quote a line from the play or some interesting
Tidbit from the play or about it. If all the other players agree that your
Contribution was worthwhile, you may earn 1 additional Gold.
EXIT PHASE
Max hand size is 8 cards.
Discard excess cards.
COMMON DECK CARD LIST NOTATION
W = Playwrights
A = Actors
T = Troupes
P = Theatres
D = Dramatic Devices
S = Stage Props
C = Comedies
H = Histories
X = Tragedies
COMMON DECK CARD LIST
Card Name: Type Notes:
Musicians S
Costumes S
Masks S
Fireworks S
Special Effects S
Hoists & Pulleys S
Simple Stage S
Open to the Sky S Theatre in the Round
Trap Doors S
Balconies S
The Globe P
The Rose P
The Curtain P
The Swan P
The Fortune P
The Red Bull P
The Hope P
Blackfriars P
Boars Head P
Tabard Inn P
Contrasts D
Poetry D
Powerful Emotions D
Sub-Plots D
Soliloquy D & Confidants
Pictorial Language D
Character Foils D
Audience Knowledge D
Conflict D
Irony D
The Lord Chamberlains Men T
The Kings Men T
Oxfords Men T
The Admirals Men T
Worcesters Men T
Leicesters Men T
Lady Elizabeths Men T
Prince Charles Men T
Queen Annes Men T
The Queens Revels T
William Shakespeare W
Shakespeare the Bard W
Shakespeare the Dramatist W
Christopher Marlowe W Dr Faustus
Ben Johnson W The Alchemist
George Peele W King Edward I
Thomas Kyd W The Spanish Tragedy
John Webster W The Duchess of Malfi
Thomas Middleton W A Chaste Maid in Cheapside
Thomas Heywood W A Woman Killed with Kindness
The Fool A
The Clown A
Brooding Figure A
Boy Player A
Famous Thespian A
Leading Man A
Master Orator A
Veteran Actor A
Star Performer A
Loves Labor’s Lost C
Comedy of Errors C
Two Gentleman of Verona C
Midsummer Night’s Dream C
Merchant of Venice C Dark Comedy
Taming of the Shrew C Farce
Merry Wives of Windsor C
Much Ado About Nothing C
As You Like It C Pastoral
Twelfth Night C
All’s Well that Ends Well C Dark Comedy
Measure for Measure C Dark Comedy
Troilus and Cressida C Dark Comedy
Pericles C Late Romance
Cymbeline C Late Romance
Winter’s Tale C Late Romance
Tempest C Late Romance
Henry VI Part I H
Henry VI Part II H
Henry VI Part III H
Richard III H
King John H
Richard II H Tragic
Henry IV Part I H
Henry IV Part II H
Henry V H Epic
Henry VIII H
Titus Andronicus X Roman
Romeo and Juliet X
Julius Caesar X Roman
Hamlet X
Othello X
King Lear X
Macbeth X
Antony and Cleopatra X Roman
Timon of Athens X
Coriolanus X Roman
LINKS
English Renaissance Theatre
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