Kimberly,
Chrononauts is definitely a more complicated game then Fluxx,
Aquarius, and Cosmic Coasters, but after you understand it you will see
that it is not overly complicated. However it does contain a unique and patented
gameplay mechanic for handling the timeline. So please don't feel stupid that
you don't immediately understand it. It's one of those things that are much
easier for someone to describe/teach face-to-face then via typed
words.
By the
way, you can find an online description of how to play here:
But I
will try to explain the timeline and patching mechanics a
bit...
There
are two types of cards in the Timeline:
Linchpins (purple) & Ripplepoints
(blue)
Linchpins have a box on them labeled "Ripples" which lists the
years/cards which can be affected by this Linchpin. All of these affected
years/cards will be Ripplepoint cards. The Linchpin also shows
a black Icon used to indicate this normal state of this year/card.
The reverse of the Linchpin also has the "Ripples" box, but shows the
Icon in Red with an additional Prime mark (apostrophe) to indicate that it is
the non-standard history/version of this year.
Ripplepoints have a section on their front which reads "Paradoxed if"
which shows one or more alternate/red Icons from Linchpins connected with either
"and" or "or" statements. These will show you how to know when to flip this
card. It only flips (becomes paradoxed) if the truth statement of
Icons evaluates to True. The back of the Ripplepoint cards shows the
Paradox image and reads "Restored if" and shows the negation/opposite of the
Truth statement which was on the front of the card.
There
are also two types of cards that you can draw and play which can directly effect
the timeline:
Inverters (yellow) & Patches
(orange)
Inverters are used to directly flip **Linchpins**. Inverters can NOT be
used to flip Ripplepoints directly. However, as described above, when a Linchpin
is flipped it can affect Ripplepoint cards which may then cause some or all of
those Ripplepoints to then become flipped as well. Some Inverters can only be
used on specific Linchpins, others only on already Primed/flipped Linchpins, and
others can be used on any Linchpin.
Patches will indicate which year/timeline card they apply to, and will
read "Nullified if" and will show the same Truth statement as the "Restored if"
statement on the Paradoxed side of the associated Ripplepoint card. Patches
are played onto (on top of) the timeline cards to fix that Paradoxed
year. They can only be played on the indicated Ripplepoint card if the
conditions are such that the Ripplepoint has been flipped over/paradoxed (and
therefore that the patch will not be nullified). The year 1945 also has an
additional stipulation as there are 3 different patches, each of which can only
be played under specific circumstances. This is a special case
situation.
So to
sum it all up with an example...
If you
start with the initial time line setup, and you want to play a patch on 1868.
Here are the steps you must take (assuming no-one interferes with your
plays):
Play
an Inverter to flip 1865 (Saving Lincoln from assassination)
1865
says that it Ripples 1868 & 1974
Looking at the years rippled by 1865 you
see:
1868 says: Paradoxed if 1865'(prime/red)
so it flips immediately to the Paradoxed side
1974 says: Paradoxed if
1865'(prime/red) and 1963'(prime/red)
stays normal since 1963 is still
black/normal/not flipped
On
your next turn, you can then play your 1868 Patch card onto the 1868
Paradox
assuming that no one else has reverted
1865 to the normal history since your last turn
By the
way, you can also find another example on the online rules page
at:
Also,
assuming that you have played your 1868 patch as above, if someone then plays an
Inverter to Restore 1865 to the normal history (Lincoln Assassinated) then your
patch which reads "Nullified if 1865(black)" is then moved off of the timeline
and into the discard pile, and then the Paradoxed 1868 which reads "Restored if
1865(black)" is then flipped back to it's normal history (Andrew Johnson
Impeached). 1974 will also be set back to the true/black history if it has been
paradoxed by this time.
Hopefully this has helped to illustrate some of the main mechanics of
playing this game which I am sure you will grow to love once you have a better
understanding of how it works. :^)
Also,
I hope that I got all of my details correct as I don't have my deck in front of
me, but have been using the Looney's website as my guide to some of the card
specifics & wordings. But the images are a little hard for me to read
exactly.
- Dan
I finally purchased Choronauts. It looks confusing...... Some timeline
events say that if the previous card isn't turned over the paradox reverts (It
says RESTORES IF-and has the symbol for the unfliped card- so if the card it
shows in the corner hasn't been flipped to red then the card I need to paradox
can't be flipped yet?). So does that mean if we want to flip over the card we
have to flip over the one before it first?
did that make sense?
I am so confused on this game. It makes me feel stupid.
~kimberly