Shut the box
Shut the Box , flaps game , folding board or folding is a dice game , which is preferably performed in a group of two to four people.
The origin of the flap game is not known, but there are references from the 19th century in Normandy , where the game was very popular, especially among seafarers (cf. David Parlett : The Oxford History of Board Games ). From there it later made its way to England, where it lives on as popular entertainment in the pubs .
Usually a box with nine numbered flaps is used, but there are also boxes with ten or twelve flaps. Instead of using a folding box, you can also write the numbers 1 - 9 on a piece of paper and cross them off.
The game
The basic rules
A game consists of several rounds . Each player has one turn in each round. When it is a player's turn, all flaps are opened first. Then he starts his game with two dice and closes the corresponding flaps.
When closing the flaps, the rule applies that each decomposition of the sum of the eyes may be used. I.e. show the two cubes z. For example, a 6 and a 3, he can split the sum 9 as desired, i.e. 9, 1 + 8, 2 + 7, 3 + 6, 4 + 5, 1 + 2 + 6, 1 + 3 + 5,. .. select and close the flaps with the corresponding numbers.
As soon as the sum of the still open flaps is six or less, the player continues his move with only one instead of two dice. The train ends as soon as no more flaps can be closed.
Now his (minus) number of points, his penalty score , is determined, to this the numbers of the not closed flaps are added, i. H. if the flaps with the numbers 1, 5 and 9 remain open, this counts as 1 + 5 + 9 = 15 points. Then the next player is to throw.
The goal of every player is to close all hatches ( shut the box ) and not to write minus points.
Rounds are played until all but one player has achieved a penalty score of 45 or more points (45 is the sum of all flaps, because 1 + 2 + ... + 9 = 45).
The minus points are continuously added so that the individual players are eliminated one after the other and the last survivor wins.
variants
End of game
Sometimes the game is played in such a way that a player who manages to close all the hatches is immediately declared the winner of the game.
Penalty score
The numbers of the not closed flaps are read from left to right as a number, i.e. H. if the flaps with the numbers 1, 5 and 9 remain open, this is worth 159 points.
Rules for closing the flaps
Only those flaps may be closed that correspond either to the sum or the individual values on the two dice, i.e. H. if a player throws a 6 and a 3, he can either close the hatch numbered 9 or the hatch numbers 3 and 6.