Robo rally

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Robo rally
Game board with cards and self-painted figures
Game board with cards and self-painted figures
Game data
author Richard Garfield
graphic Phil Foglio ,
Franz Vohwinkel (Amigo)
publishing company Wizards of the Coast (1994),
Amigo (1999),
Avalon Hill / Hasbro (2005),
999 Games ,
etc. a.
Publishing year 1994, 1999, 2005, 2016
Art Board game
Teammates 2 to 8
Duration 2 hours
Age from 10 years on

Awards

Origins Award 1994: science fiction or fantasy board game
Origins Award 1994: board game
graphics Origins Award 1995: board game graphics ( Armed and Dangerous )

Robo Rally or RoboRally is a board game for two to eight people by Richard Garfield , inventor of the trading card game Magic: The Gathering . It was published by Wizards of the Coast in 1994 and distributed by Amigo in German-speaking countries from 1999 . Since July 2005, the game has been sold under the game brand Avalon Hill , which, like Wizards of the Coasts, now belongs to Hasbro . The new edition contains four new and four known plans. Another new edition appeared in 2016.

Phil Foglio developed the game pieces and designed the pictures for the original game.

The game

Each player controls any number of robots (usually one or two) that move around a factory building and try to travel a series of waypoints. The last waypoint is the destination; whoever reaches this first wins the game immediately.

In order to control the robots, they must first be programmed. Each player receives a number (initially nine) cards with values ​​such as “2 forward”, “1 back”, “turn to the left” etc. Five of these cards are placed face down before the robots move at the same time. Then nothing can be changed in the order. The players now reveal the first card at the same time. The player with the highest priority (a number at the top right of the program card) makes his move first. This is followed by the players with the lower priorities. After each program step, the factory elements (conveyor belts, turntables, presses, etc.) move and may cause further movements. This is repeated five times until all program steps have been processed.

The robots can move or hinder each other. As a result of a collision between two robots, the entire sequence of movements of the remaining program cards can therefore proceed differently from what was planned, since the programming is already fixed. In this way, robots end up in the abyss here and there, or are shot at by lasers. The robots themselves also have lasers that fire forward and hit the next enemy in a straight line. If the robots are damaged, they are given fewer program cards to choose from in the next turn to determine their movement sequences, and therefore lose flexibility. If the robot has already accumulated five or more damage counters, cards that have been programmed will remain in place for several rounds of the game. The robot is completely out of control until it is switched off again. Damage can be repaired on special service fields and "backups" can be stored. A complete shutdown must be announced one round in advance and allows a complete repair, but the shutdown robot becomes the opponent's plaything for one round.

Playability

The best way to get started is to look for beginners, because it takes a few laps to get used to the movement sequences of conveyor belts, express belts and turntables. The fun increases with the number of players (robots) involved. Different scenarios ensure long-term fun. For professionals there are scenarios with special rules, for example rotating the entire game board when reaching a checkpoint, starting with damage counters or option cards. There are also team scenarios ( capture the flag and the like).

Extensions

The expansions of the original game at a glance:

  • German:
    • Crash and Burn: Introduces four new robots, four new game boards, and option cards (robots can be modified). Much of this expansion was included in the English base game and is what makes the game so appealing. With this expansion you have the English base game and the English expansion Crash and Burn.
  • English:
    • Armed and Dangerous : More weapons, more chaos and six new game boards
    • Crash and Burn : Traps and two new boards
    • Grand Prix : Three new game boards and a new game mode
    • Radioactive : Three new schedules with radioactivity and mutation.
    • King of the Hill : Limited special edition of a game board

Web links

Commons : RoboRally  - collection of pictures, videos and audio files