Maximise

Overview

Maximise is a game for four players, the aim is to end up with the highest score after 6 turns.

Setup

Each player starts the game with cards 1 to 6.
The GM creates a discard pile containing cards 1 to 6.

The Play

1. First Turn:
   1. On the first turn each player discards one card and passes one to an opponent.
2. Later Turns:
   1. On subsequent turns, each player passes one card and may, if they wish, swap one or two cards with chosen cards from the discard pile.
3. Passing:
   1. In turn 1 each player passes to the player on their left.
   2. In turn 2 they pass to the player opposite.
   3. In turn 3 they pass to the player on their right.
   4. This sequence is repeated for turn 4 to 6.
4. Discard Pile:
   1. At the start of rounds 2-6 there will always be 10 cards available in the discard pile.
5. Using The Discard Pile:
   1. Single card replacement requests will be processed before two card requests.
   2. In each case requests from the player with the lowest score will be processed first.
   3. In the event the players scores are equal and there are not enough cards in the discard pile to process the requests, the player using the highest card will swap. If still equal no swap will occur.
6. Scoring:
   1. After each turn the player will have a revised hand of 5 cards.
   2. The GM will assess each hand and allocate a score according to a secret formula, set by the GM at the start of the game.
   3. The GM will print each player's holding and score for the turn.
   4. The cards in the discard pile will also be printed.

Game End

7. The winner will be the player with the highest cumulative score after turn 6.

Notes

8. The secret formula will not be anything too complex, particularly in the first game.
9. The GM will not reveal what it is under any circumstances, but may give hints if it is proving too complicated.
10. The game can also be played with only the scores in turns 4-6 counting to the final score.

by John Walker 2021