Parade Day--I Love a Parade Redux

I revisited the earlier game idea about a parade card game and I solved my problems. I was playing with a game group and discussed the idea and developed this new version: Parade Day.

The game is a card game in which the deck contains action cards and unit cards. The unit cards are divided into sets of 7 of different types like floats, bands, athletic groups, grand marshals, VIPs, etc.

All the cards in the deck have a cost/value that identifies how much the card costs or its value. It's the same number so to play a card with a CV of 5 you would discard cards from your hand that total 5 in their CV.

Here's the gist:

The town of Warwick loves parades so much that it holds several a year for each holiday. The Parade committee is fiercely competitive when it comes to organizing the parade and competes to create the best division which is determined by the celebrity/influence of the divisions in their unit. The best set of units recruited by a committee person go in the first division and the worst end up in the end. Points are awarded to the division organizers based on the quality of their work.

In addition the Parade chairperson secretly picks three townspeople for each parade as judges. The judges award points as well based on the division that manages to recruit the most units to match the theme of the parade. Furthermore, each judge has their own bonus award for their own specific criteria. Jock Stropp for example gives points to the division with the most athletic units in it while Millie Terry likes to look at boys in uniform and awards her points to the most military units in a division. The problem though is no one except the chairperson knows which judges will be making awards when the parade starts.

The goal is to collect the most points during the year for the parade divisions you design and therefore be crowned "King or Queen of Parades".

FOR TWO TO FOUR PLAYERS

The base game has five parades and ten judge cards. Each parade awards VPs based on a different criteria. For example, the Veteran's Day parade awards 4VPs to the division with the most military units and 2VPs for the most influential Grand Marshal that is a military person.

Three judge cards are chosen and placed face down. No one knows when the round starts what their scoring criteria is, however actions during the game may give a player insight into one or more of them (by peeking a card).

The units and actions are shuffled into a deck and five cars are dealt to each player. Approximately two thirds of the deck are cut off and the Parade day card that ends the round is inserted. The top is then replaced.

A draft row is turned up one for each player next to the deck.

Each turn the following occurs:

1. Draw a card
2. Perform up to 2 actions (or none).
An action is:
a. Swap a card on the table for one or more cards in your hand. The cost of the card on the table must be less than or equal to the card(s) you lay down to replace them
b. Play an action card.
c. Spend CV of 5 (discard card(s) worth at least 5) to sweep the row and replace it with one new card for each player.
3. Play a unit if you are able by discarding cards with a CV equal to or greater than the unit you put into play.
4. Draw back to five cards.

Play continues until Parade Day is drawn. At that point,e ach player gets one last turn ending with the player who drew the card.
'The influence on each card played is added together and divisions are awarded to each player from most influence to least. The most influence gets Division 1 and so on down to Division 4

Each division has VPs in decreasing amounts.

Next the parade criteria is judged on each division and the player who meets the condition gets the VPs for the parade. The player with the most influential Grand Marshal specified by the parade card also gets points (may not be awarded). All ties are broken first by the influence points and then by the person who has the most influence with the least cards of a type.

Finally the last sets of VPs for the parade are awarded for each of the three judges' unique criteria.

The scores are totaled for the round and the player with the highest total chooses who gets to go first in the next round.

Three new judges are chosen. The next parade is shown and the round begins. A total of three parades are played.

At the end of the game, the player with the most victory points is the winner and named "King or Queen of the Warwick Parade Committee" and given bragging rights until the next game.