Components

  • 20 unicorn cards
  • 4 starting unicorn cards
  • 4 black market cards
  • 4 character power cards
  • 8 hunt cards per player
  • 8 scheme cards per player
  • 1 scoring card
  • 16 black market tokens
  • Instructions

Object of the Game

The hunt lasts 4 days (rounds); after the fourth day, all players count their gold (victory points), depending on the unicorns they captured.

The richest player wins the game.


Setup

Each player chooses a character, and takes their corresponding hunt and scheme cards. The players shuffle all their scheme cards and lay them on a pile facing down in front of them and then take their hunt cards in hands.

Shuffle the unicorn cards; place 4 unicorns in line on the table. Put the black market cards above the unicorns and place the tokens on them.

Randomly distribute a starting unicorn to each player, then place the remaining starting unicorns cards in the box.

The player who last saw a real unicorn is the first player (and should consult a psychiatrist as quickly as possible).


Game Play



1. It's a Trap

All players draw 2 scheme cards from their deck. Starting with the first player, choose one scheme card and start a discard pile with the other face up next to your other scheme cards.

The scheme card is slid face down beneath any unicorn card of your choice.



There can be more than two scheme cards per unicorn (one above and one below the unicorn card). Once the scheme card has been placed, you can no longer look at it and the next player places his scheme card.



2. Eyes on the Prize

To catch a unicorn, you have to win a hunt using your Hunt cards. A hunt corresponds to exactly 1 unicorn. The 4 hunts are resolved, one by one, starting from the unicorn deck and ending at the Black Market.

To Hunt, the first player places either 1, 2, or 3 Hunt cards facedown in front of him. Then clockwise, the other players must place the same number of Hunt cards than the first player to be part of this hunt.



These Hunt cards represent how motivated that Hunter is to capture these vile yet magnificent creatures: the higher the score, the more likely they will catch the unicorn.

Note 1: You can decide not to take part in the hunt and pass. In this case, do not play any Hunt card. Also, if you do not have enough Hunt card to play, you must pass.

Note 2: A player who passes on a Unicorn will never catch it.

Note 3: If you pass as the first player, then you have to give the First Player token to the player on your left.

Example:



3. Definitely Maybe

Once everyone has played or skipped their turn, the players reveal the hunt cards played, the player with the highest value of hunt cards is the winner of this hunt.


Note : If two players are tied, the second-highest bidder wins the unicorn. If all players are tied, the unicorn escapes, and the unicorn and scheme card are discarded.

Then the winner choose which scheme card is revealed (if he has the choice between one or two cards), only one card could be revealed for one unicorn card. The scheme card effect is immediately applied.

Important : The winner of the hunt can change depending on the scheme card. The winner of the hunt then takes the Unicorn and the scheme card associated and put it in front of him.

At the end of the hunt, the hunt cards played are discarded face-up in front of each respective player. If the first player won the hunt, he remains first player; otherwise the winner of the hunt becomes the new First Player.

Then the players hunt the next unicorn in line.


4. The Black Market

Once all the Unicorns are hunted, the round ends. Starting with the first player, each player may make 1 and only 1 purchase from the gnomes' Black Market per round.

Each item has a cost printed on the card, which you must pay using any remaining Hunt cards in hand (the will and energy you have left to bargain with the gnomes).



Starting with the First Player, all can make one (and only one) purchase each. You immediately attach the token to a unicorn card (except for the Pate).


  • $2 Unicorn Butcher: Discard a Unicorn card and its scheme card (if there is one) and take a Pate.



  • $3 Fake Horn : This unicorn is worth +2 points.



  • $3 Cotton Candy : Change the color of this unicorn.



  • $6 Fairy Dust : Change the color of this unicorn and its worth by +2 points.



Once everyone is done shopping, gather your hunt cards and get ready for the next day! New unicorn cards are placed on the table (one per player) as you enter the next round of the game.


Scoring

At the end of the 4th round, each player must sell their captured unicorns to the Gnomes! What the Gnomes do next is a well-kept secret...



First, count the points on the Unicorns (the number of coins in the topleft corner of the card). Then, count the bonuses/penalties associated with any Scheme cards and/or Black Market tokens you've collected.

Finally, count the additional Victory Points for each of your Unicorn color collections:

  • 2 Unicorns of the same color: +2 points
  • 3 Unicorns of the same color: +5 points
  • 4 Unicorns of the same color: +8 points
  • 5 Unicorns of the same color: +12 points

With more than 5 unicorns of the same color, players must start a new collection. The player may also create a "Rainbow", but the cards used can not be reused to complete another collection.

  • Rainbow (1 unicorn card of each color): +8 points
  • Double Rainbow (2 unicorn cards of each color): Instant Victory


End of the Game

After 4 rounds, the game ends and the richest player is the winner.

Additional Notes

Legendary unicorns : The legendary unicorns are neutral, which means you have to give them a color using the black market objects.

Character Powers: Using the character powers is optional, but can only be used once per day.

Starting Unicorns : Even though they are not proper unicorns, they count as regular unicorn cards.

Trojan Unicorn : The exchange is made even though one of the players has nothing to trade. If the owner of this card win the hunt and reveal this card nothing happens.

Smelly Unicorn : The point of this unicorn can be negative.

Variants

Expert

Recommended for experienced players who have already played multiple games, are getting to know all the cards of the game by heart and like to count cards.

Discard your Hunt and Scheme cards facedown, other players are not allowed to look into your discard pile.


Initiation

Advised for the younger player or the one who want to play fast without worrying about the rules.

You can play without the scheme cards and the character powers but depending on your configuration you cannot pick all the characters.

  • Play without the scheme cards and without the character powers: Use all characters.

  • Play without the scheme cards: Use all characters except the Princess and the Shaman.




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