Objective of the Game

In SOLVER, players take on the roles of Investigators trying to discover a secret rule created by the Master. The goal is to deduce the rule by playing cards to the main track or error track and formulating hypotheses. Guessing an equivalent rule that works the same way also counts as a correct solution. The game ends when an Investigator successfully guesses the rule or when the 25th card is played.

Preparation (Setup)

Follow these steps to set up the game:

1. Decide whether you will play Casual, Competitive, or Cooperative mode.
2. One player becomes the Master, while the others are Investigators.
3. The Master receives the 4 feedback cards and places them face up in front of them.
4. Each Investigator receives 8 game cards as their starting hand.
5. The Master creates a rule or chooses one from the suggestion guide. They may write it down to avoid forgetting it.
6. The Master reveals the top card of the deck and places it on the main track or error track, depending on whether it follows the rule.

Flow of the Game

Players take turns clockwise. On your turn, each Investigator

1. Play a card to the track: Choose one card from your hand and play it to the table. The Master evaluates whether it follows the secret rule and places it on the main track or error track.
2. Choose one action: Guess the rule, Draw a card, or Swap your hand.

The game ends when an Investigator guesses the rule correctly or when the 25th card is played.

Actions and How to Play

During their turn, Investigators can perform the following actions:

• Play a card to the track: Play a card from your hand. The Master evaluates it and places it on the main track (if it follows the rule) or error track (if it doesn’t).
• Guess the rule: Announce your hypothesis. The Master responds using one of the feedback cards:
  • 0: The guess does not match the rule in any aspect.
  • 1: Only one part of the guess matches the rule.
  • 2+: Two or more parts of the guess correspond to the rule.
  Solver!: Victory! The player successfully formulated the rule (or an equivalent version).
• Draw a card: Draw the top card of the deck and add it to your hand.
• Swap your entire hand: Discard all cards from your hand to the bottom of the deck and draw the same number of new cards. This action can only be performed once per game.

End of the Game and Scoring

The game ends in one of two ways:

• An Investigator guesses the rule correctly, resulting in victory for that Investigator and the Master.
• The 25th card is played. Each Investigator gets one final chance to guess the rule. If no one guesses correctly, the rule is revealed, and no one wins.

In Competitive Mode, players take turns as Master, and points are awarded based on how quickly the rule is solved and how many cards were played. The player with the most points wins.

Tips for Winning

Here are some strategies to improve your chances of winning:

• Manage your guesses carefully: Each guess costs one card, so use them wisely.
• Pay attention to the track: The order of cards may provide clues about the rule.
• Swap your hand strategically: Use the Swap your hand action to refresh your cards when needed, but remember it can only be used once per game.