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Hungry Monkey FAQ
ABOUT PLAYING A CARD FROM YOUR FACE DOWN ROW
Q: May I play a face-down card any time it’s my turn after the Bad Kitty is revealed and I’ve cleared my hand once?
A: You can only play a card from your face-down row if BOTH of the following conditions are true at the same time:
1. The deck is empty (i.e., the Black Cat is revealed).
AND
2. Your hand is empty. If you had to take the Animal pile, you must first clear your hand again before you can play one of your face-down cards.
1. The deck is empty (i.e., the Black Cat is revealed).
AND
2. Your hand is empty. If you had to take the Animal pile, you must first clear your hand again before you can play one of your face-down cards.
ABOUT THE MONKEY (No number but a “?” instead)
Q: Does the Monkey stay as the copied Animal as long as the Animal pile is not taken by a player?
A: It depends. The copying effect is always active, even when the monkey is not the topmost card of the Animal pile:
- A Monkey is always valid and can be played on any animal.
- A Monkey can be played alone or together with other valid cards.
- If another animal is on top of the Monkey, the Monkey copies this card.
- If no other animal is on top of the Monkey, the Monkey copies the animal below and triggers its effect.
Some special cases may occur:
- If there are 2 or more monkeys on top of the Animal pile, all of them copy the card below them, but only the topmost may trigger the effect of the other animal below.
- If you play a card on a Monkey, the Monkey immediately becomes the same as the played card.
- If you play a Monkey with other cards, the Monkey immediately becomes the same as the other played cards. You can choose where to place the Monkey in relation to the other played cards.
The trickiest cases are created together with Ants:
- If you play an Ant on a Monkey, this Monkey immediately becomes an Ant. Take all cards below the Monkey unless there are only ants underneath.
- Four Ants (including Monkeys) on top of the Animal pile trigger a Gang of 4 and cancel the Ant effect.
ABOUT THE ANT (Numbered “1”)
Q: Is the Ant just a bad card like the Old Maid?
A: No, as an Ant is always valid, it can be played on any Animal.Thus, in the phase before the Bad Kitty is revealed, you can take any strong cards on the Animal pile to your hand by playing an Ant. But you should try to get rid of Ants when it comes to the end.
Q: Do all Ants stay in the pile after I play an Ant onto the pile?
A: No, if you play an Ant on any animal other than Ant or Monkey, take all cards below the Ant. Thus, you have to take an Ant that is at the bottom of the pile under other Animals.There are more tricky Ant situations:
- If you play your Ant on another (real) Ant, nothing happens.
- If you play your Ant on another animal (no Ant, no monkey), take all cards below except the Ants you played this turn.
- If you play an Ant on a Monkey, this Monkey immediately becomes an Ant. Take all cards below the Monkey unless there are only ants underneath.
- Four Ants (including Monkeys) on top of the Animal pile trigger a Gang of 4 and cancel the Ant effect.
- If you play an Ant as your last card, you must immediately resolve the Ant’s effect.
ABOUT THE SPARROW (Numbered “2”)
Q: Can I just use the Sparrow to look at a card but not swap a card?
A: No, if you play a Sparrow:
- Pick a face-down card and look at it.
- Then swap it with a card from your hand.
Houserule for softer gameplay: If you all agree, you can take the card to your hand first and then put down a card – that way you can put down the same card you just took.
If either your hand or your face-down row is empty, ignore the Sparrow’s effect.
ABOUT THE BUFFALO (Numbered “8”)
Q: Does the effect of the buffalo go on until the animal pile is taken?
A: No, if you play a Buffalo (8), it means that cards of 8 or lower are valid cards for the next player and only the next player. Only the Monkey’s copy effect is active when another card is on top of it.
ABOUT AN INFINITE LOOP WITH 2 PLAYERS
Q: Is it possible to have an infinite loop of cards in the endgame with just 2 players?
A: Yes, by voluntary bad gameplay, two players can easily force an infinite loop of cards played, as in many other shedding games. But theoretically, this can also happen by optimal play in some rare cases of card distribution. Players should go for a tie after they discover this situation. They may discuss the correct gameplay with open cards. In most cases, a win can be provoked by a single player. Example from BGG: I have the cards 5, 6, and 10, you have the cards 5 and 6, and it is your turn. If you play the 6, I can play a 6; you take the stack, I play a 10; you take the stack, I play a 5 and win. So playing the 6 is bad, and only 5 is the better play. You play the 5, and I have to play the 10 to not lose. You take the stack. Now you have the cards 5, 6, and 10; I have the cards 5 and 6, and it is my turn. Same situation as in the start, but the roles are reversed. If nobody makes a suboptimal turn, the game doesn’t end.
ABOUT THE ANIMAL NAMES
Q: What are the names of all Animals?
A: Our used attributes during the development are listed below. But of course, you may call them as you like:
1. Tiny Ant | 2. Swift Sparrow | 3. Sneaky Snake | 4. Vain Antelope | 5. Striped Hyena | 6. Grumpy Crocodile | 7. Slender Mongoose | 8. Strong Buffalo | 9. Stubborn Rhino | 10. Wise Elephant | 11. King Tiger | ?= Hungry Monkey | Bad Kitty
ABOUT SLEEVES
Q: Are there fitting sleeves?
A: Yes, the cards fit 56mm x 86mm sized sleeves. If sleeved, the cards still fit into the box.
ABOUT THE FOIL
Q: Why are the cards of Hungry Monkey not foil like the other games in the Radiant Culture series?
A: When we initially printed the foiled metallic cards, we did something that was not very common and only a few manufacturers were able to handle. During the pandemic, the prices of the foiled cards exploded to a degree that it became impossible to do that anymore. Obviously, this kind of printing is not simple, and we want to guarantee a certain quality with our games. For reprints of Spicy or Coyote e.a., we have to gather huge print runs to still keep doing them in that quality. And we are lucky enough with these games to still be able to do that. The reprint of Blaze in Germany (it was sold out for some months) does not have the metallic cards anymore. So the first edition with its really outstanding multicolor metallic effect will be one-of-a-kind. The actual English version still has it though. But for new projects, it simply became clear that we had to find an alternative, as we did not want to raise the price beyond reason. As the foiling was making it impossible to print the games a bit more environmentally friendly, it sort of felt like the right thing to do. No more foil, so instead, we wanted to be more responsible. We are still checking options to be able to do more foiled games, but it is tricky. We have another game in this line being announced soon, which also will not have metallic foil. At least we now enjoy the pressure to create even more gorgeous art to let the games stand out.
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