An educational game about the one to ten times tables.

Instructions

Copyright Haba Spiele Bad Rodach 2008

Knights of theRound Numbers

A chivalrous educational game for 2 - 4 players ages 6 - 99.
Includes a magic sum-checker.
Author: Tanja Engel, Illustrations: Guido Hoffmann
Length of the game: approx. 15 – 25 minutes.
Queen Kasimira challenges all the knights in her land to a contest. The First Knight to reach her castle will be accepted into the illustrious circle of the “Knights of the Round Numbers”. But on their way, the knights have to get past the queen’s stern guards. They set the knights complicated sums to do and the all-knowing wizard Mathiculus oversees the answers. Do you want to become a Knight of the Round Numbers? Then take up this challenge!

Contents:
1 twelve-piece puzzle game board, 1 Wizard Mathiculus (with red filter), 4 Knights, 2 Dice, 4 Crowns, 16 Number cards, 50 Sum cards (with 200 sums), 1 set of game instructions.

Dear Knights of the Round Numbers,
Before playing for the first time take a good look at a sum card:
the game has sums with plus, minus, times and divide. There are also number sequences (a) and greater than/less than sums (b). On each card there are four symbols, whose sums are categorized into different degrees of difficulty:
• Squire = Numbers up to twenty
• Dragon = Numbers up to one hundred
• Knight = Numbers up to one thousand
• Queen = Numbers up to one million
The different degrees of difficulty mean that younger and older children have the same chances in the game. Agree before the game which one of you has which symbol as a sum. Any player who realises that his sums are too hard can play the next time with an easier symbol – or vice versa. So, in time you’ll certainly become Queen Kasimira’s best number knights.

Self-checking:

You can make the answers to the sums visible with wizard Mathiculus and his “red filter”. Put the wizard on the place marked in red and he shows the right answer straight away.
Have a lot of fun!
Your inventor team

Aim of the game:

Who is clever at sums and can reach the queen’s castle first with logical thinking and a little luck of the dice?

Preparation of the game:

Fit the twelve pieces of the game board together and take a look at it:
On the game board you see the way from the village (= start square) to the queen’s castle (= destination square). During your journey you will come across the queen’s stern guards (= squares nos. 18, 37, 63, 82 and 100). The guards will stop you and ask you to solve one of their tricky sums.Each player takes a knight and the matching color crown. Place your knight on the start square. Place your crown in front of you. Shuffle the 16 number cards and place them in a pile face down. Then shuffle the 50 sum cards and put them face down in a pile next to the number cards.
Keep wizard Mathiculus and the two dice ready and at hand.

How to play:

Play in a clockwise direction. Whoever greeted his fellow players most regally begins. If you cannot agree, the youngest player begins. In this
round he is the “First Knight”.The “First Knight” takes wizard Mathiculus and places him in front of himself. Then he turns over the top card and puts it down in such a way that everyone can see it.
Note: each player throws both dice at the same time. But before you throw the dice you have to guess whether your dice score will be higher or lower than the number on the number card placed face up.In turn everyone places his crown in front of himself, showing either the plus sign side or the minus sign side: If you place your crown down with the plus side showing, you are guessing that your dice score is higher than or the same as the number on the number card. If you place your crown down with the minus side showing, you are guessing that your dice score is lower than or the same as the number on the number card.
Everyone should take a turn to throw both dice. The “First Knight” begins: add the numbers showing on the two dice. Then compare your result with the number card facing up and your crown guess:

• Guessed wrong?
Place the crown with the wrong side in front of you; unfortunately your knight has to stay put. Example: the number card that was turned over shows the number 10. You put your crown down with the plus sign showing. You throw a 3 and a 4, so your dice score is 7. You guessed wrong!

• Guessed right?
Place the crown with the right side in front of you; you may move your knight forward on the board. Move him on as many squares as the combined total of the two dice. Example: the number card that was turned over shows the number 10. You put your crown down with the plus
sign showing. You throw a 3 and a 10, so your dice score is 13. You guessed right! You may move your knight forward 13 squares.

The guard squares

The guard squares (= squares nos. 18, 37, 63, 82 and 100) are special squares. You cannot move over the guard squares, since the strict queen’s guards stand in the way. Even if you were to move with your knight over a guards square, you would have to stay put there. Surplus points are
forfeited. The guards set the player a sum. The rules of setting sums are
the same as those for the sum squares.
The sum squares
The sum squares (e.g. squares nos. 5, 9, 13, etc.) are the ones framed with pebbles. If your knight lands on a sum square, you are immediately
set a sum. Take the top card from the sum cards pile and place it down in front of you. See which of the sums matches your personal degree of
difficulty (esquire, dragon, knight or queen) and read the sum out loud.Try to work the sum out in your head and say the answer out loud.
The “First Knight” checks the answer and places the wizard with the red filter over the red answer part of the sum card. The right answer becomes
visible!
• Did you work the sum out correctly?
That’s too bad! Move your knight back one square.Your move is over.
Example: your knight is on sum square 30 and you didnot work the sum out correctly. Too bad, you must move your knight back to sum square 24.
• Did you work the sum out correctly?
Well done! Move your square onto the next sum square. Your move is over.
Example: your knight is on sum square 30 and you worked the sum out correctly. As a reward you may move your knight onto sum square 34.
Exception: if the next sum square is a guards square, you are set another sum immediately.
Example: your knight is on sum square 34 and you worked the sum out correctly. Now move your knight onto guards square 37 and you are set another sum immediately. Then put the sum card back at the bottom of the sum cards pile.

New round

Once everyone has finished their move the round ends. The “First Knight” passes wizard Mathiculus on to the next player. He is now the “First
Knight” and begins a new round. Turn over the next number card from the face down pile of cards and place it on the card turned over in the
last round. If there are no cards left in the face down pile, shuffle all the number cards in the face up pile and make a new face down pile.

End of the game:

The game ends as soon as a knight has reached the queen’s castle (= destination square) and worked the last guard’s sum out correctly.
This player wins and is accepted by Queen Kasimira into her famous “Round Numbers”.

Variations in setting sums:

You can vary the degree of difficulty of the game with the following variations. Agree amongst you how you have to work out your sums:
• Written variation:
younger children may work the sum out on paper. For this you will need a pen and paper.
• Time variation:
In this variation you have to do quick mental arithmetic. Place the sum card in front of the player and count slowly from 101 to 105. When you reach 105 turn the sum card over. The player now has to say the answer.
• Reading out variation:
This is even more difficult! Read the sum out to the player no more than three times. He must not see the sum card and must do the sum in his head.