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Official Sleeping Queens Rules
Sleeping Queens is a fun and whimsical card game where you try to wake up the most queens. Here's how to play:
Objective
1. Number of Players: 2-5 players
2. Objective: Be the player with the most points at the end of the game, either by collecting the most Queens or having the most points from woken Queens.
3. Components:
Deck of Sleeping Queens cards: Includes Queen cards (each with a point value), King cards, Knight cards, Dragon cards, Potion cards, Jester cards, and numbered cards.
Setup
1. Shuffle the deck and deal a set number of cards face down to each player (usually 5 cards). These are your hands.
2. Place the remaining deck face down in the center of the table. This is the draw pile.
3. Shuffle the green-backed cards (Sleeping Queens) and place them face down in four rows (forming a rectangle) in the center of the table. This is the Sleeping Queens area. Leave some space between the rows for discarding cards.
Gameplay
1. The youngest player starts the game and turns proceed clockwise.
2. On your turn, you must play one card from your hand face up in front of you to the discard pile.
3. Playing Cards: The effects of the cards you play depend on the type of card:
Numbered Cards: Do nothing special when played.
King Cards: Allow you to choose and take any Queen card from the Sleeping Queens area, placing it face down in front of you.
Knight Cards: Allow you to "steal" a Queen card from another player by placing the Knight card face down on top of their chosen Queen. You take that Queen card and place it face down in front of you.
Dragon Cards: Increase the point value of a Queen you control (yours or stolen from another player) by 5 points. You can play a Dragon card on a Queen either in your hand (before waking her up) or face down in front of you (after waking her up). You can play multiple Dragon cards on the same Queen to further increase her value.
Potion Cards: Return a Queen card (yours or stolen from another player) back to the Sleeping Queens area, face down in any empty space. You cannot target the Strawberry Queen with a Potion card.
Optional Rule: Some variations allow players to counter a Potion card with a Wand card (see below) to keep the Queen awake.
Jester Cards: Turn the top card of the draw pile face up. If the revealed card is a King, Knight, Dragon, Wand, or Jester card, you add it to your hand and take another turn (basically a free draw). If it's a numbered card, nothing special happens and the next player takes their turn.
Wand Cards (Optional Rule): If your game includes Wand cards, you can play one to counter a Sleeping Potion played on one of your Queens.
Waking Up Queens: After playing a card from your hand, you can choose to "wake up" a Queen you control (either from your hand or one you stole and have face down in front of you) by discarding it face up to the discard pile. You score the points listed on the Queen card.
Drawing Cards: After playing a card (or waking up a Queen) and resolving any effects, draw a new card from the draw pile to replenish your hand back to 5 cards.
Winning the Game
The game ends when there are no more Sleeping Queens left in the center area, or when the draw pile is empty and all players have discarded their hands.
Points Scoring: Players reveal any Queens they haven't woken up yet and score their points.
The player with the most points (either from woken Queens or those still in hand) wins the game!
Notes/Variations
You can't play multiple cards at a time except in the case of using multiple Dragon cards on the same Queen.
Some variations allow discarding the top card of your draw pile if you cannot play a card from your hand.
Remember the point value and position of Queens you steal from other players, as you can target them with Dragon cards later.
Enjoy playing Sleeping Queens!
