"It is of the highest importance in the art of detection to be able to recognize, out of a number of facts, which are incidental and which are vital."
-SHERLOCK HOLMES
EQUIPMENT
1 die
20 Cases
1 playing board
Rules
6 tokens
Clue Booklet
8 Scotland Yard cards
Answer Booklet
8 Skeleton Key cards
Solution Checklist pad
ELEMENTARY RULES
BEFORE STARTING
Before starting, each player should do the following:(1) Pick a token and place it on the playing board at 221 B Baker Street.
(2) Take a Skeleton Key card
(3) Take a Scotland Yard card
(4) Take a sheet from the Solution Checklist pad, and get a pen or pencil to take notes
The remaining Skeleton Key Cards should be placed at the Locksmith shop, as indicated on the playing board And the remaining Scotland Yard cards should be placed at Scotland Yard.
Now one of the players should take a Case card and read the adventure on that card out loud to the other players. He should read it once rather quickly; and then again a bit slower. This will be the adventure that all players attempt to solve during the game.
Any time during the game, a player may pick up the Case card being played and read over the adventure again.
SOME NOTES ON CASE CARDS
There are twenty Case cards in the game, listing twenty different adventures. The Case cards are numbered 1 through 20, and it is suggested that you play the Cases in order. Of course, you may choose to play the Cases in any sequence you wish An average game with four players will last around 1 hour and 20 minutes.You’ll notice that at the end of each adventure, the items to be solved are listed, preceded by letters-a). b). etc These are the items that you must solve in order to win the game.
BASIC PLAY
All players start at 221 B Baker Street Roll the die to determine who goes first, and the turn moves clockwise from there The basic procedure of play is to roll the die on your turn and move to the various locations on the board (e g Museum, Park, Hotel) picking up clues which will help you in solving the Case you are playing.When you think you have solved the Case, you must return to 221 B Baker Street (via your regular turns and roll of the die) and announce your solution You may not announce a solution or win the game unless your token is inside 221 B Baker Street.
You may move your token in any direction on the board, except diagonally.
CLUES
There are fourteen locations on the board where you can pick up clues Each of these locations is listed on each Case card, followed by a number These numbers correspond to the clue numbers listed in the Clue Booklet.When you move into a location, you are entitled to look at the clue which corresponds to that location.
For example, let’s say you are playing Case #1, "The Adventure of the Unholy Man," and you move into the Bank. You then checkthe Bank clue number on the Case card and see that it is 11. So you pick up the Clue Booklet and read (to yourself) clue number 11.
You may study a clue for up to 30 seconds. And you are on your honor to look at only the clue you are entitled to see. Once you put the Clue Booklet down, you may not pick it up again to re-check the clue.
TYPES OF CLUES
There are two basic types of clues: 1) the general statement clue, and 2) the puzzle clue.The general statement clue simply gives a statement of fact about the Case being played. Such a clue may say: Stanley Harris has a bad case of asthma Or:Alice Gloth was seen outside the Pub the night of the murder.
The puzzle clue is usually a syllable clue to a specific item-killer, weapon, motive, hiding place, or whatever-and is labeled as such. For example, a puzzle clue might read:
KILLER CLUE (Four Parts)
I A wise bird that hoots.
Note that there are "Four Parts" to this clue, and you have the first part (I) listed here. This means that there are three more parts to the KILLER CLUE, listed either separately or together, at some other location or locations on the board.
When you find the other KILLER CLUES they might read as follows:
KILLER CLUES (Four Parts)
II The alphabet letter after W.
Ill The opposite of east.
KILLER CLUE (Four Parts)
IV The season after summer.
If there is a character named Alex Westfall mentioned somewhere in the story, you now know that he is the killer.
NOTE You will find that some general statement clues are more pertinent than others to the solution
of a particular Case,
It’s up to you to determine which facts are incidental and which are vital. There are also some
locations that say "No clue."
SCOTLAND YARD CARDS
Each player starts the game with one Scotland Yard card; and you may never hold more than one Scotland Yard card at a time.A Scotland Yard card may be used to seal off a location you have entered, in order to keep other players from entering that location and discovering the clue there. To do this, you simply place the Scotland Yard card over the location entrance on the board as you leave that location.
NOTE. You may seal off any location on the board except 221 B Baker Street, Scotland Yard. or the Locksmith shop. And you may not seal off a location if another player is still inside.
SKELETON KEY CARDS
Each player starts the game with one Skeleton Key card, and you may never hold more than one Skeleton Key card at a time.A Skeleton Key card may be used to open any location that has been sealed off by another player. To do this, you simply place your Skeleton Key card on top of the Scotland Yard card which is blocking the entrance to the location where you have arrived. Then remove both cards from the board and place them back in their respective piles at Scotland Yard and the Locksmith shop.
SCOTLAND YARD
If you enter Scotland Yard and you do not have a Scotland Yard card in your possession, you may take one from the pile. You do this in addition to looking at the clue there.LOCKSMITH
If you enter the Locksmith shop and you do not have a Skeleton Key Card in your possession, you may take one from the pile You do this in addition to looking at the clue there.CARRIAGE DEPOT
From the Carriage Depot you may, without rolling the die, take a cab to any location on the board.Ordinarily, after moving into the Carriage Depot, you will want to check out the clue there. Then, on your next turn, without rolling the die, you may move your token directly to any location you wish.
If, however, you move into the Carriage Depot and you do not wish to check out the Carriage Depot clue, you may immediately move your token to any other location on the board and check out the clue there, all in the same turn.
KEEPING NOTES
Use your Solution Checklist sheet, front and back, for keeping notes. It is advisable to check off a location after you have entered it, and keep track of all clues, however insignificant they may seem at the time.WINNING THE GAME
When you think you have solved all the lettered items listed at the end of the Case you are playing, return to 221 B Baker Street (via your regular turns and roll of the die) and announce your solution.To win, you must give the correct answer to all lettered items in the Case-for example, a) killer, b) weapon, and c) motive-but you do not have to explain or understand all the intricacies of the Case.
After announcing your solution, take the Answer Booklet and look up the answers to the Case you are playing. (When doing this, be careful not to expose the answers to any other Case.) If your answers are correct, declare yourself the winner and let all the Watsons read the solution in the Answer Booklet. If your answers are not correct, however, close the Answer Booklet and you are out of the game. The other players continue playing without you until someone figures out the correct solution.
When announcing your answers, you do not have to give the exact answers listed in the Answer Booklet, as long as you can show that you thoroughly understand the proper solution. For example, if the motive listed in the Answer Booklet is "Inheritance," and you say "She killed him because she knew all his money would go to her"-that’s acceptable. But if you say the motive was "Blackmail," of course, you’re wrong.
Also, if a player misreads puzzle clues-for instance, if he says the motive was "Brown man," when it should be "Blackmail,"-he is dead wrong, showing that he does not comprehend the proper solution to the Case.
LOCATION ENTRANCES
Each location entrance is marked by an arrow. You may enter and/or exit at any arrow.You’ll notice that three locations-Park, Museum and Hotel-each have two entrances. When using a Scotland Yard card to seal off the Park, Museum or Hotel, you may seal off only one entrance per card. In other words, if you seal off one entrance, players may still enter and exit at the other entrance.
FINAL NOTE
When deciding where to look for clues, pay close attention to the information supplied on the Case card and in other clues. For example, if you know that a bent pipe cleaner was found at the scene of the crime, you might figure that the Tobacconist would be a good place to go for a clue. Or if the crime occurred at the Hotel, it’s a good bet you’ll find a substantial clue at the Hotel.