Conspiracy Theory Pontoon
A card game for 2-4 players
Developed from an idea by Nick Lowe in Interzone 135
Pieces
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Pencil and paper.
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A largish (3') squarish table top (the Conspiracy Board) that the four players can sit around.
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A pack of cards, optionally including one or both jokers. Note that the cards will be defaced.
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A 30 second timer.
Preparation
- Write the following on the cards, leaving the court cards and jokers blank:
| |
Hearts |
Clubs |
Diamonds |
Spades |
| A |
Tantric Sex Magic |
The Roswell Incident |
Genetic Engineering |
Great Cthulhu |
| 2 |
The FBI |
Death Rays |
Time Travel |
Adolf Hitler |
| 3 |
The Rosicrucians |
A Pop Star |
Androids |
New Labour |
| 4 |
The Banks |
Princess Diana |
Spy Satellites |
Deadly Viruses |
| 5 |
Zombies |
The Greys |
Nuclear Warheads |
Submarines |
| 6 |
Clones |
The Prime Minister |
The Conservatives |
The President |
| 7 |
The Armed Forces |
Gold Bullion |
The Templars |
A Fatal Car Crash |
| 8 |
The UN |
A Media Celebrity |
A Film Star |
The Church of England |
| 9 |
Eco-Warriors |
Abduction by Aliens |
The Royal Family |
The BBC |
| 10 |
Smoking |
Mind-Altering Drugs |
The Shooting of JFK |
A Mysterious Fire |
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If it is not clear which way up the cards are when laid out, put on an arrow on each one pointing to the top of the card. This includes court cards and jokers.
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Everyone sits round the Conspiracy Board, one person to each side.
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Each player chooses a suit and names three things, persons or events that could conceivably be involved in a conspiracy theory. These are written next to the court cards for that suit on the piece of paper.
e.g.
| Jack of Diamonds: | Saddam Houssein |
| Queen of Diamonds: | The Crown Jewels |
| King of Diamonds: | The Oscars. |
If there are fewer than four players, leave out the court cards of one or two suits.
The Play
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Play a normal hand of Pontoon to determine whose conspiracy theory gets heard. Losing cards and undealt cards go into the discard pile.
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The winner has control of the Conspiracy Board. She has 30 seconds to come up with a conspiracy theory involving the subjects on her winning cards, plus at least one card on the Conspiracy Board (if there are any). As she names each card, she places it onto the board next to the previous one, with the arrow on the card facing away from her. The cards must be placed in a straight line (allowing enough space for them to be turned 90 degrees), and any cards to which they are adjacent must also be included in the conspiracy. It is not permitted just to extend an existing conspiracy (line of cards). If she fails to name and place all the cards within the allotted time, the announcement of the conspiracy fails and the cards are returned to the discard pile. If the announcement of the conspiracy succeeds, all the cards which are adjacent to the newly added cards (and which should have been mentioned in the conspiracy) are turned so that their arrows point away from the player.
Note: The 30 second rule for announcing the conspiracy can be waived if, after 30 seconds, the other players agree that the conspiracy is entertaining enough.
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The discard pile is shuffled and dealt again. The game continues until there are no cards left to deal or everyone is bored.
Winning
The winner is the person with the most cards facing them (ie arrows pointing away from them) at the end of the game. They get to submit their grand theory to Chris Carter for the next X Files series.
Optional Rule
When the Joker turns up, everyone must simultaneously create a conspiracy and place all the face-up cards in front of them onto the Conspiracy Board following the rules above, with the exception that adjacent cards are immediately turned to face the speaker when included in the conspiracy. It is perfectly permissible for cards already on the board to be turned twice or more by different players. At least one person must include the Joker, which (of course) represents the Spanish Inquisition. If all the cards are not disposed of within 30 seconds, everyone loses.
Mark Tolley
29th November 1998