Components
- 13 V.I.L.E. Henchmen Cards
- 13 Location Cards
- 13 Loot Cards
- 4 Top Secret Evidence Journals
- 4 Dry-erase Pens
- 1 Die
- Instructions
Object of the Game
To apprehend Carmen Sandiego, track the location of her hideout, and determine which loot she stole.
Setup
To set up the game, separate the cards into three decks: V.I.L.E. Henchmen Cards, Loot Cards and Location Cards.
Shuffle each deck of cards and, without looking at the cards, place one V.I.L.E. Henchmen Card, one Loot Card, and one Location Card face down in the center of the table.
If three or four gumshoes are playing, deal two of each type of card to each gumshoe. If only two gumshoes are playing, deal three of each type of card to each gumshoe.
Gumshoes should arrange their cards in front of them, face down, in three columns-one column for V.I.L.E. Henchmen, one column for Loot and one column for Location. Gumshoes do not look at their cards.
Place the remaining decks of cards face down on the table, within reach of all gumshoes. Each gumshoe takes one Top Secret Evidence Journal and a dry-erase pen.
Game Play
On each turn, you will have an opportunity to look at one card. Every time you look at a card (including your own cards), make a note in your Top Secret Evidence Journal.
Be sure to take good notes-later in the game you may need to know which gumshoe has a certain card, and whether it's in the top, center, or bottom position in their card columns.
For example, if you discover that Mark's top Location Card is New Delhi you should write "Mark/Top" next to New Delhi in your Top Secret Evidence Journal.
If you spy All the Tea in China in the bottom location of Amberley's Loot Card column, you should write "Amberley/Bottom" next to All the Tea in China in your Top Secret Evidence Journal.
Clue: Cards may move during the game, so be sure to keep track of every movement in your Top Secret Evidence Journal.
It's Getting Dicey
The youngest gumshoe goes first. On each turn, roll the die and secretly look at one card, based on the icon shown on the die.
Chasing Leads
On your first turn, you must look at one of your own cards. For example, when you roll Loot, look at one of your Loot Cards without showing any other gumshoes.
After you look at your card, put it back, face down, in the same spot from which you picked it up and make a note in your Top Secret Evidence Journal.
You must repeat this action on each of your turns until you have seen all of your own Loot Cards. After you've seen all of your own Loot Cards, you can start to look at other gumshoes' Loot Cards.
The same rule applies to Location Cards and Henchmen Cards (you must look at yours first). This rule applies throughout the entire game. As the game goes on, you may receive new Loot, Location, and Henchmen Cards.
After receiving a new card, you may not look at another gumshoe's card of that type until you have had an opportunity to look at your new card.
Connecting the Dots
Your goal is to eliminate as many Loot, Location, and Henchmen Cards as possible by finding matching Loot and Location Cards. This will ultimately lead you to Carmen Sandiego and one Loot-Location Card set. Here's how:
Each Loot Card corresponds to a specific Location Card; refer to your Top Secret Evidence Journal to see how loot and locations match up. For example, the Grand Canyon matches Arizona and Gandhi's glasses match New Delhi.
Since you have been taking great notes in your Journal each time you look at a card, you know where some matching Loot and Location Cards are.
If you DO NOT yet know where Carmen is, but you think you know where matching Loot and Location Cards are (regardless of which gumshoe has the cards), call out,
This is an additional play that you can make at the BEGINNING or END or your NORMAL turn.
Flip over the Loot and Location Cards that you think match. If you are correct, place the Loot Card and the Location Card face up out of play, then flip over the Henchmen Card of your choice and place it out of play. Any Henchmen Card (except for Carmen) can be matched with any Loot-Location Card set.
Each time you successfully make a match you may switch one of your own Loot, Location, or Henchmen Cards for one of the Loot, Location, or Henchmen Cards in the center of the table, without peeking. You may NOT look at either card at this time. See "Closing In" below.
If you mistakenly flip over cards that don't match, the gumshoe on your left swaps one of their Loot or Location Cards (face down) for one of the cards in the center of the table instead.
If you mistakenly flip over Carmen at this point, your cover is blown; Carmen steals the loot and escapes. Game over. See "Catching Carmen" below.
Picking More Cards
At the end of each turn, gumshoes should replenish their cards. Any gumshoe who does not have the same number of cards face down in front of them that they started the game with should pick a card (or cards) from the decks of cards on the table.
They place the card face down in front of them without looking at it. If there aren't enough cards left in the decks for all gumshoes in need of cards, start with the gumshoe who made the last match and continue to that gumshoe's left.
Closing in
There will only ever be one Loot Card, one Location Card and one Henchmen Card in the center of the table.
Your goal, in addition to finding Carmen, is to get a matching Loot-Location Card set into the center of the table, and to know what that matching set is so you can later pin it on Carmen.
The best way to accomplish this is to control the cards that are in the center of the table.
Clue: The smartest gumshoes will refer to their Top Secret Evidence Journals and move only cards they already know into the center of the table.
When you successfully make a match, you may switch one of your own cards for one of the cards in the center of the table. You cannot switch one type of card for another.
For example, if you move your Loot Card to the center of the table, you must take the current Loot Card from the center of the table and place it in front of you where your Loot Card was. Switching cards is optional.
Clue: Gumshoes may opt not to switch cards if they already know which cards are in the center of the table.
If you are completely out of cards, you can choose to switch another gumshoe's card with a card in the center of the table (without looking at either card at this time).
Place the card you took from the center of the table face down in front of you (not in front of the gumshoe whose card you used).
If, at any time during the game, you mistakenly flip over cards that do not match, the gumshoe to your left gets to switch one of the center cards with one of their own cards instead. Your turn is then over and play moves to the gumshoe on your left.
Catching Carmen
As you match Loot, Location and Henchmen Cards (eliminating them from the game), you will eventually be able to zero in on Carmen's location, and you will eventually be able to figure out which Loot- Location Card set is in the center of the table.
Clue: Carmen can only be matched with the Loot and Location Cards in the center of the table, and those Loot and Location Cards must match, so even if you know where Carmen is you should not issue a warrant until you know which Loot-Location Card set is in the center of the table, and you are certain they match.
End of the Game
When you think you know which Loot-Location Card set is in the center of the table, and where Carmen is, call out
Then declare which Loot and Location cards are in the center of the table as you turn them over. If they match, you can then flip over the Henchmen Card you think is Carmen (even if it's face down in front of another gumshoe). If it's Carmen, you win the game.
If the Loot and Location Cards do not match, or if the Henchmen Card you flip over is not Carmen, then the gumshoe on your left switches one of their Loot or Location Cards for one of the cards in the center of the table, without peeking.
Moving to the left, this continues until all cards that were exposed (from the center of the table) have been replaced. After all cards in the center of the table have been switched out by other players, play continues, starting with the gumshoe on your left.
If the Loot and Location Cards didn't match you remain in the game. If the Henchmen you revealed wasn't Carmen, you are out of the game.
Tough break! If all gumshoes are eliminated from the game except for one, that gumshoe automatically wins the game.
The first gumshoe to make a Loot- Location match and successfully reveal Carmen wins the game.
Example of Gameplay
Julie is playing with Amberley and Mark. Since she is the youngest, she goes first. She rolls the die and lands Loot. She looks at her own top Loot Card and notes what she saw in her Journal.
After a few turns, Julie still has not seen all of her cards, but here's what she knows so far:
She rolls Location on her next turn and, because she has already looked at all of her own Location cards, she decides to look at Mark's top Location Card and finds New Delhi, and notes in her Journal.
She now knows that Mark has the Location Card that matches her own top Loot Card (Gandhi's Glasses), but she waits to issue a warrant since she has not yet looked at any Villain cards and she does not want to accidentally turn over Carmen.
On her next turn, Julie rolls Henchmen on the die and looks at her top Henchmen card to reveal Yu I B. Sorry. So she now knows she has:
Now she is ready to make a match. She calls out "I have a warrant!" and flips over her own top Loot Card (Gandhi's Glasses), her own top Henchmen card (Yul B. Sorry), and Mark's top Location card (New Delhi).
She has made an arrest and caught Yul B. Sorry in New Delhi with Gandhi's Glasses - nice work! She sets all three of those cards to the side, out of the game.
Since she successfully made a match, Julie gets to switch one of the cards in the center of the table with one of her own cards.
She chooses to put her New York Location Card in the center of the table and takes the Location Card that was in the center of the table and places it face down on the table in front of her, without looking at it.
She draws one new Henchmen Card and one new Loot Card from the draw piles and places them face down in front of her. Mark draws one new Location Card from the draw pile and places itface down in front of him. Now Julie knows she has:
On her next turn, she rolls Loot. Since she has not already looked at all of her own Loot Cards she looks at her top Loot Card. She has The Statue of Liberty's Torch. Nice! That matches the New York Location Card that she moved to the center of the table. Julie's known cards:
On her next turn, she rolls Location. Since she has not already looked at all of her own Location Cards, she looks at her own top Location Card, which is Oslo. Julie's known cards:
On her next turn, she rolls Loot. Since she has not already looked at all of her own Loot Cards, she looks at her own bottom Loot Card, which is Hudson Bay. Julie's known cards:
Over her next two turns she rolls Henchmen twice and discovers that she has Robin Banks and Bessie May Mucho. Julie's known cards:
On her next turn she rolls Loot. Since she has already looked at her own Loot Cards, she chooses to look at Amberley's top Loot Card and finds Pizarro's Sword. She consults her Journal and sees that she can make a match.
She calls out "I have a warrant!" and flips over Amberley's top Loot Card (Pizarro's Sword), her own bottom Location Card (Lima), and her own bottom Henchmen card (Bessie May Mucho).
Another villain is off the streets - she caught Bessie May Mucho in Lima with Pizarro's Sword. She sets all three of those cards aside, out of the game.
Since she successfully made a match, she gets to switch one of the cards in the center of the table with one of her own cards. She chooses to put her The Statue of Liberty's Torch Loot Card in the center of the table and takes the Loot Card that was in the center of the table and places it face down on the table in front of her, without looking at it.
She now knows that the Loot and Location Cards in the center of the table match (The Statue of Liberty's Torch and New York).
She then draws one new Henchmen Card and one new Location Card from the draw piles. Amberley draws one new Loot Card from the draw pile. Julie's known cards:
On her next turn, she rolls Henchmen. Since she has not already looked at all of her own Henchmen Cards, she looks at her own bottom Henchmen Card, which is Fast Eddie B.
On her next turn, she rolls Henchmen again. Since she has already looked at her own Henchmen Cards, she chooses to look at Amberley's bottom Henchmen Card. Ooo! She sees that Amberley has Carmen Sandiego as her bottom Henchmen card! Amberley side-eyes her.
Julie now knows where Carmen Sandiego is hiding. She also knows which Loot and Location Card set is in the center of the table because she is the one who put them there.
She calls out "I have a warrant for Carmen's arrest! -1 have located Carmen in New York with The Statue of Liberty's Torch". She turnsoverthe Lootand Location cards in the center of the table, along with Amberley's bottom Henchmen Card to reveal Carmen Sandiego. She has won the game!
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