Robbers and gendarmes

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Robbers and Gendarmes , also: Catching hide and seek , is a very common terrain game , in which the rules can differ depending on the region. It is preferably played by children and adolescents.

Robber and gendarme is a mixture of hiding and catching and is to be regarded as demanding in terms of sport as well as tactics. A lap can often last up to an hour and beyond. Playground almost always represents the great outdoors. The tradition of this terrain game goes back to the 18th century.

regulate

For the game, a number of at least four people is recommended; beyond that, it is only limited and restricted by the space available. Then two groups are formed, the gendarmes and the robbers , which do not necessarily have to have the same number of players. Often only a few gendarmes and many robbers are identified (here and there by choice or by counting rhymes ). As a playing field, you need a varied terrain made up of large open spaces and many corners and hiding spots. Everyone has to adhere to the agreed limits, as control is often difficult. However, if there is a game leader (youth leader, teacher, etc.), a minimum of compliance with the rules of the game is guaranteed. Most of the time, a prison is chosen in the middle of this area , to which the robbers can approach from all sides and also have the possibility of remaining undetected. The prison itself is a small, often round, demarcated area that must be precisely defined because the gendarmes are not allowed to enter it. If there are large numbers of participants, the gendarmes are clearly marked, be it with sashes or headbands, etc., so that the robbers can always see who they are looking at.

After the start of the game, the robbers have a time advantage to spread out in all directions and hide. Then the gendarmes have to look for them and catch them. This usually happens with a simple knocking off. If a gendarme catches a robber, he has to take him to prison. The robber can, however, be freed again by simply knocking off another free robber. It is hardly possible for a single gendarme to guard the prison sufficiently. The robber can run through it, the gendarme always has to take detours around the prison.

Playing

It's game over when all the robbers have been captured. Sometimes a time is agreed when the gendarmes must win, otherwise the robbers are victorious.

variants

  • Most of the time, many participants prefer to play the role of robbers. It is therefore advisable to swap roles after the first game is over. A capture on sight speeds up the game and makes it easier to police their job, especially if they are in the minority.
  • A variant of Gotcha , which goes by the name of “robbers and gendarmes”, has been played in a modified form for more than 10 years by a steadily growing number of participants in Berlin-Spandau every year . A game cycle lasts 10 days of 24 hours (only interrupted by a game-free day), usually begins at the end of July and is played by around 50 to 80 people. The game idea was modified in such a way that there are not only two opposing parties, but three or more that compete against each other. The teams of 15 people each “fight” with water pistols and under the supervision of a game management who creates and monitors a precise set of rules.
  • In order to simulate an “unambiguous capture”, the robbers are tied small woolen ribbons around the wrists. The gendarmes then have to tear them down to document the transport to prison . The tearing off of the woolen ribbons is usually associated with direct physical contact and sporting brawls.
  • Playing the game by bike requires a lot of skill and clear paths. It's more like a scavenger hunt .
  • The prisoners can only be freed if a robber breaks into the prison and knocks over the three sticks, which are set up to form a pyramid. In doing so, he frees all prisoners in prison. The gendarmes are only allowed to go on hunting after they have rebuilt the sticks in the prison and all the gendarmes have left the prison.
  • There is also a lighter and a heavier variant. For example, you can prevent playful brawls by stipulating that a captured person goes to jail immediately and without resistance. There is also the gameplay in which the robber can defend himself if he is captured until he has actually been sent to prison

Number game

Fabric number

In the number game , two or more equal groups fight against each other. Both groups have a task to perform, for example to transport "gold nuggets" (marked stones) from one place A to another place B and thereby gain points. Self-invented rules determine how the lumps in A are handed over (solve tasks), transported and stored and guarded in B and how they can be stolen on the way or in B. Each player has a multi-digit number on the back and chest. If this number is recognized by an opponent and called correctly, the affected player is "dead". So that the game does not get boring for the “dead”, they can get a “new life” for example by solving tasks, after a set break or by exchanging gold nuggets. The game is usually integrated into a story in which the players take on different roles and transport goods.

See also

literature

  • Michael Giese, Gisela Winnig: Residence games. Verlag Student für Europa, Student für Berlin, Bad Soden 1978, ISBN 3-921852-04-8 (Chapter: Catching games, search games, brawling games. Pp. 11-25)

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Ulrich Baader: Children's games and play songs. Studies by the Ludwig-Uhland-Institute of the University of Tübingen, Verlag Tübinger Vereinigung für Volkskunde, 1979, p. 197.
  2. ↑ Peter Bozek: Terrain games in theory and practice. 2009, ISBN 978-3-8391-4029-1 , p. 27 ( Google book ).
  3. ↑ Robbers and gendarmes in a game database [1]
  4. ↑ http://www.familie.de/kinderspiele/spiel/raeuber-und-gendarm-7-14-jahre/detail/
  5. ↑ http://www.labbe.de/zzzebra/index.asp?themaid=647&titelid=3703