Homegrown playing through planting Author: Karan Vohra Age: 10+ Players: 3-5 Duration: 8 months and more
Game Setup 1. Every player is allotted a coleus plant in a 12cm(diameter) pot. 2. Every player is assigned 5 Green thumbs in the beginning of the game. The green thumbs are the currency used in the game to buy resources as well as bid on plants. 3. One of the players takes up the role of the marketplace. The marketplace has resources such as pots, earth, watering privilege, propagation vials, fertilisers, artificial plant lights and bonus cards. The transaction with the marketplace is handled by this player. 4. In the course of the game the following resources are required and must be organised. • Minimum 40, 12cm diameter pots. • 30kg earth for indoor green plants • 1 Artificial light • Substrata Fertiliser sticks for Green Plants 60 St. • An established Pothos, Monstera Deliciosa and Calathea Marantha specimen each • 30 proration vials
Game Play 1. The game setup is followed by the buying phase. Players choose the resources they would like to buy to propagate plants. They may choose to not buy immediately. Buying and selling of resources is allowed throughout the course of the game. 2. Propagation phase begins. Players may propagate their plants using any method they see fit so long as they have the resources required to do so. 3. The first round lasts up to a month unless players choose to extend this period through consensus. After this period scoring takes place. A plant is counted as one with established roots inside a pot for the sake of scoring and selling.. A sapling is considered a plant with roots 4. The game consists of four rounds, one round per plant. The duration of the rounds and the plants associated is as follows. Coleus plant in the first round for a month. Pothos in the second round for two months. Calathea in the third round for two month and Monstera Deliciosa in the fourth and final round for three months. The round durations are suggested by the game master but can be changed by the players if they find it better. The start of spring is suggested as the time to start the game but is also up to the players. The plants suggested allow players to explore different behaviours within plants but are in no way essential to the game. They may replace these species so long as the time duration of the rounds is taken into consideration. 5. The player with the maximum plants wins game points as well as green thumbs. In the first round only the player with the maximum plants stands to win, in following rounds second and third place are also allotted winnings (see table 1.1 Scoring for further details). After the scoring, bidding takes place. Players bid for the next plant introduced in the game with their green thumbs. The player who wins the bid must pay the green thumbs and gets the plant.
Costs 1. A pot of 12cm diameter with earth costs 1 Green thumb from the marketplace. 2. The privilege to water a pot costs 1 Green thumb from the marketplace. This privilege means that the player can put water into one specific pot. It doesn’t limit how much water and is not connected to a specific plant. The mother plants introduced in the game can we watered for free, 3. Two propagation vials cost 1 Green thumb from the marketplace 4. A bonus card costs 1 Green thumb from the marketplace, bonus cards are bought hidden, that is, the player doesn’t know which card they are buying. Bonus cards allow privileges such as fertilisation, an artificial light among others (see table 1.2 Bonus Cards for further instructions). Only one bonus card of each type exists, therefore two players cannot have the same power. Bonus cards may also be sold by one player to another, either as a privilege forever or a fixed period. 5. Players may exchange or sell resources with each other at any point and any cost in the course of the game. 6. Players may sell an established plant for 3 Green thumbs to the marketplace. The plant sold is no longer part of the game, what the player does with it is upto their discretion. Furthermore they are allowed to hold on to the pot with the earth. 7. Players may sell a sapling to the marketplace at any time for 2 Green thumbs. 8. Players who win in the scoring are not allowed to sell the plants through which they won up until the next round. 9. Fertilisers are made available for purchase at the rate of one green thumb per plant after the third round. 10. Earth and pots maybe bought separately for the cost of one half of a Green Thumb. The quantity of earth is limited to the amount that fits in one 12cm diameter pot.
Scoring at the end of the game 1. Players accumulate game points through scoring done in every round. Game points are non-transferable. 2. There is a penalty of -1 point per plant that a player does not have. That is, a player with at least one specimen of each plant won’t receive this penalty, 3. Players get +1 point for every plant specimen that is not grown through soil or water propagation. These methods may include but are not limited to air propagation through root division, propagation through seeds, flower and so on. 4. Players get +3 points for every mutation seen in their plants. The player unanimously decide what may be considered a mutation.
Table 1.1 Scoring
Table 1.2 Bonus Cards 1.2 Bonus Card