Plotters, Inc.

About this board game

Plotters, Inc. is a trick-taking game for 4–6 players, with rounds lasting part of its approximately 60-minute playing time. First released as Mit List und Tücke, it combines flexible card play with a distinctive color-based scoring system.

The deck uses four colors and is adjusted to the player count so everyone begins each round with 14 cards. The lead player plays any card, making its color trump for that trick. Everyone else may play any card they choose—until three colors have appeared, at which point the fourth color cannot be played.

The highest trump card wins the trick and collects two of the played cards, or three cards in a five- or six-player game. The player who plays the lowest non-trump card collects the remaining cards and leads the next trick, creating an unusual tug-of-war over both valuable cards and turn order.

• Choose any lead card to set the trick’s trump color.
• Watch the colors already played, since the fourth color becomes unavailable.
• Collect cards while shaping the colors that will score face up.

Once a player has cards of all four colors in front of them, they choose two colors to keep face up. Cards in those colors remain face up, while cards of the other colors are placed face down as more tricks are collected.

A round ends after 14 tricks or immediately when a player would have to play the fourth color. Each player multiplies the quantities of their two face-up colors, then divides by the number of face-down cards, rounding down. Collecting cards in only one color scores 0.

Play as many rounds as there are players. In Plotters, Inc., the highest total score wins, rewarding careful collection, timing, and clever manipulation of the trick.