Objective of the Game

Welcome to the Scottish Highlands, where a gentle spring breeze quickly turns into a fierce border dispute! In Schotten Totten, you and your neighbor are vying for control of the precious stones that mark your territory. Your goal is to be the first to claim enough of these stones to secure your clan's dominance.

To win, you must be the first player to control either:

• Five Stones scattered along the border, or
• Three adjacent Stones.

It's a struggle where anything goes, so send your clan members, play your best card combinations, and take back control!

Preparation (Setup)

Getting ready for a skirmish in Schotten Totten is quick and easy. Here’s how to set up your battlefield:

1. Place the 9 Stone tiles in a line between you and your opponent. This line forms the contested border.
2. Shuffle all the Clan cards (numbered 1 to 9 in 6 colors) and place them face-down to form the deck.
3. Each player draws 6 Clan cards to form their starting hand.
4. The player who has most recently traveled near Scotland is the First Player. If that's not easily determined, a friendly roll of a die or a quick "rock, paper, scissors" will do!

You're now ready to defend your village!

The Turn of Play

A game of Schotten Totten unfolds in a series of turns, starting with the First Player. On your turn, you will perform two main actions:

1. Play a Card:
   • Choose one Clan card from your hand.
   • Place it face-up next to a Stone tile, on your side of the border.
   • A Stone cannot have more than three cards on each side.
   • Once placed, a card cannot be moved. If you're placing a card next to one already there, shift it carefully so both are visible.
2. Claim a Stone (Optional, but highly recommended!):
   • After playing your card and before drawing, you can claim one or several Stones.
   • You can only claim a Stone after each player has played three cards on their side of that specific Stone.
   • Exception: You can claim a Stone even if your opponent hasn't played three cards there yet, but only if you can definitively prove they cannot beat your combination, regardless of what cards they might play. This proof must rely only on cards already played (cards in hand don't count).
   • To claim a Stone, you must have a stronger combination of cards than your opponent's formation on that Stone.
   • If you claim a Stone, take the Stone tile and place it on your side of the border, below your winning combination. You can no longer play cards on this Stone.
3. Draw a Card:
   • Draw one card from the deck to refill your hand.
   • If the deck is empty, continue playing without drawing cards.

Play then moves to your opponent.

Battle Formations (Strongest to Weakest)

The strength of your formation is key to claiming Stones. Here are the combinations, from strongest to weakest:

1. Color-Run: Three cards of the same color and of three successive strengths (e.g., Green 5, Green 6, Green 7).
2. Three of a Kind: Three cards of the same strength (e.g., Red 8, Blue 8, Green 8).
3. Run: Three cards of successive strength and of any color (e.g., Red 1, Blue 2, Green 3). The order you play them doesn't matter for this combination.
4. Color: Three cards of the same color (e.g., Purple 2, Purple 5, Purple 9).
5. Sum: Any three cards (e.g., Red 1, Blue 5, Green 9). The strength of the cards is simply added up.

Tie-breaking: If combinations are tied (e.g., two "Runs"), the one with the highest total strength wins. If there's still a tie, the player who played their third card on the Stone first claims it.

End of Game and Scoring

The game of Schotten Totten can end in one of two ways, as soon as either condition is met:

• A player controls three adjacent Stones.
• A player controls five Stones scattered along the border.

The player who achieves either of these conditions is immediately declared the winner!

If you wish to play multiple rounds, the winner of a round gains 5 victory points, and their opponent gains victory points equal to the number of Stones they control. The player with the most victory points at the end of the agreed-upon number of rounds wins the overall game.

Tips for Winning

To help you on your quest for Scottish domination, here are a couple of tactical pointers:

• Focus on Flexibility: Don't commit all your strong cards to one Stone too early. Keep your options open, especially for "Run" combinations where the order of cards doesn't matter. This allows you to adapt to your opponent's plays.
• Watch Your Opponent's Hand: While you can't see their cards, pay attention to what they're playing. If they're discarding low-value cards or holding onto cards for a long time, it might give you clues about what combinations they're trying to build or what they're lacking.
• Strategic Stone Claiming: Remember the exception for claiming Stones! If you can prove your opponent cannot beat your formation (based only on played cards), claim that Stone early. This denies them the chance to complete their formation and can be a powerful move to secure adjacent Stones for an early win.