Official Sheriff of Nottingham Rules

Last Updated on August 18, 2025 by The Official Game Rules Team

Sheriff of Nottingham is a bluffing and strategy game where players take turns as the Sheriff, who decides whether to inspect other players’ goods as they attempt to smuggle illegal items into Nottingham. The game combines elements of deception, negotiation, and risk management. Here’s how to play:

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How to Play Sheriff of Nottingham

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Components

• 216 Goods Cards
• 110 Gold Coins (four denominations)
• 1 Sheriff Marker
• 5 Merchant Stands
• 5 Merchant Bags
• Rulebook

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Setup

1. Each player takes a Merchant Stand and the matching Merchant Bag, placing them in front of themselves.
2. Choose a banker who gives each player (including themselves) 50 Gold coins. The banker keeps the remaining coins to make change but must keep personal funds separate from the bank.
3. For the basic game, remove the 12 Royal Goods cards. Shuffle the remaining Goods cards and deal six cards to each player face down.
4. Place the rest of the cards in a draw pile. Turn over five cards to form the first discard pile, and five more for the second discard pile. Both discard piles are visible to all players.
5. The player with the highest cash total becomes the first Sheriff and receives the Sheriff Marker. If tied or no money is held, select randomly.

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Game Overview

The game is played over multiple rounds. In each round:

• One player acts as the Sheriff.
• Other players are Merchants.
• Each round has five phases, in order:
  1. Market
  2. Load Merchant Bag
  3. Declaration
  4. Inspection (Sheriff only)
  5. End of Round

After each round, the Sheriff Marker passes left, and a new player becomes Sheriff. Each player serves as Sheriff twice (or three times in a three-player game).

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I. Market Phase

• Starting with the player left of the Sheriff, each merchant may:
  1. Set aside up to five cards from their hand face down.
  2. Draw back up to six cards, taking from the discard piles first (top cards only), then from the draw pile if needed.
• After drawing, place the cards set aside on one of the discard piles face up, in any order.

Example: Little John discards three cards, draws two Chickens from the left discard pile, and one card from the draw pile, then places his three discarded cards on the right discard pile.

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II. Load Merchant Bag Phase

• All merchants simultaneously place 1–5 Goods cards in their Merchant Bags.
• Bags cannot be empty, nor can they exceed five cards.
• Snap the bag closed and place it in front of you. Once closed, contents cannot be changed.

Example: Alan-a-Dale places four Apples and one Crossbow in his bag, then closes it.

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III. Declaration Phase

• Each merchant declares to the Sheriff what goods are in their bag.
• Must follow three rules:
  1. Declare only Legal Goods.
  2. Declare only one type of Good.
  3. Declare the exact number of cards in the bag.
• Hand your Merchant Bag to the Sheriff.

Example: Will Scarlet has four cards: two Chickens, one Cheese, and one Silk. He must declare: “Four Chickens.”

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IV. Inspection Phase

• The Sheriff decides which bags to inspect, in any order, and may inspect any number or none.
• Merchants may offer bribes to avoid inspection:
  • Gold coins
  • Legal or Contraband Goods from their Merchant Stand
  • Goods in their bag
  • Promises of future favors
• Sheriff may accept or refuse a bribe.

If the Sheriff allows the bag to pass:

• Reveal all Legal Goods to place on your Merchant Stand.
• Contraband remains hidden, but you must declare the number of contraband cards.

If the Sheriff inspects the bag:

• Honest merchants: receive Gold equal to the Penalty on each Legal Good. Place Legal Goods on the Merchant Stand.
• Dishonest merchants:
  1. Legal Goods declared correctly go to the Merchant Stand.
  2. Undeclared Goods (Contraband or undeclared Legal Goods) are confiscated to a discard pile.
  3. Merchant pays a fine equal to the Penalty of confiscated Goods.

Bribes and promises:

• Promises of future favors are not binding.
• Merchants offering goods in a bag as bribe must only pay what exists if allowed to pass.

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V. End of Round

• If all players have served as Sheriff twice (three times in a three-player game), the game ends.
• Otherwise, pass the Sheriff Marker left, refill hands to six cards, and begin the next round.

Running out of Gold:

• If you cannot pay a fine with Gold, use Legal Goods from your Merchant Stand.
• If insufficient, reveal Contraband to cover the debt.
• Any remaining debt is forgiven once all assets are exhausted.

Reshuffling cards:

• If the draw pile is empty, shuffle all but the top five cards of each discard pile to recreate the draw pile.

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End of Game

• After the final round, discard any cards in hand (they are worth 0 points).
• Count your points:
  1. Total value of all Goods in your Merchant Stand (Legal + Contraband).
  2. Gold coins.
  3. Bonuses for being King or Queen of a Good type.

King/Queen Bonuses:

Good Type	King Bonus	Queen Bonus
Apples	20	10
Cheese	15	10
Bread	15	10
Chickens	10	5

Ties:

• Tie in points → player with more Legal Goods wins.
• Tie in Legal Goods → player with more Contraband wins.
• If multiple players tie for King, combine King + Queen bonuses and divide equally (round down).
• Queen ties are divided equally as well.

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Sheriff of Nottingham FAQ

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Tips for Playing:

• Bluffing: Sometimes it’s better to lie about what’s in your bag, but be aware of the risk of being caught.
• Bribery: Use bribes strategically to sway the Sheriff or misdirect their attention.
• Reading Players: Pay attention to other players’ behavior and try to determine when they are bluffing.

Note: For detailed rules and gameplay instructions, please refer to the official rulebook PDF at the top of the page. We hope you enjoy playing Sheriff of Nottingham!