Dice Rolling

Players in turn roll the 21 word cubes, set the timer and form sentences with the words appearing on the tops of the cubes in a crossword puzzle-like fashion (one word may be part of two sentences - one running vertically and one running horizontally). Turns end when the egg timer runs out. Players score 50 points for each sentence of 7 words or more. All other sentences score the square of the number of words in the sentence (i.e. a 4-word sentence scores 4 X 4, or 16 points). A bonus of 50 points is awarded if all 21 cubes are used. Two points are deducted for each unused cube.

The 1983 version of the game seems to differ in the number of cubes. The rules on the inside of the box lid still have a 1971 copyright date, but among other differences, they state that the game contains 27 cubes. Two of the new cubes are marked with stars on all six sides, making them wild. From the 1983 rules: "When playing a wild cube, a player must state what word it represents, after which it cannot be changed during that turn."

The 1988 version has 24 cubes - two of which are the starred wild dice. The box states that this is the 2nd edition of the game from Coleco Games. Selchow & Righter is credited in the directions as a subsidiary of Coleco Industries, Inc. The majority of the outer box is blue.

From BoardgameNews.com:

Fréderic Moyersoen presents a new take on the us-versus-them genre with Nuns on the Run, published by Mayfair Games. Most of the players are novices who are eager to secretly explore the grand abbey at night in order to fulfill their “secret wish.” They sneak through corridors searching for keys and treasures. (What treasures could a novice be searching for? Forbidden cookies? A soft mattress? Or narcotics? Or a book of witchcraft?)

While sneaking through the abbey, they must remain watchful for the abbess or prioress who are on patrol to ensure that pure novices remain that way. These characters are controlled by other players who want to nab the novices before they can make it back into bed.

Nuns on the Run is a like a reverse of Scotland Yard. Players play either as a novice, or as the Abbess or Prioress. The Novices move in secret and avoid being seen or heard by the Abbess or Prioress. The goal is to make it to the location on the board where the novice can get her "secret wish" and return to their room without being detected. All of the novices move in secret by marking their movement and locations on hidden sheets. The Abbess and Prioress move on regulated paths around the board, but can diverge and chase down novices that they see or hear. The player or players who complete their secret wishes and return to their rooms win, or the Abbess and Prioress win if they catch a certain number of novices.

Your casino empire is expanding, but new players want a piece of your action. There's only one direction to go to stay ahead of your competition — up! Lords of Vegas: UP! allows for up to six players to compete in Lords of Vegas.

What's more, you'll now be able to increase the size of your casinos not just by building out, but also by building up. These new, taller hotels are more prestigious, and as a result earn you more victory points.

Age of War is a quick-playing game of conquest. Fourteen cards are laid out at the start of the game, each showing one castle and the symbols required to conquer this castle, with the symbols separated into battle lines. Each castle belongs to a clan, with some clans having only a single castle and some having up to four castles.

A player starts his turn by rolling seven dice, the six sides of which show archery, cavalry, daimyo, and 1-3 infantry. He then selects a card and uses the symbols rolled to conquer exactly one of the battle lines on this card (by placing the appropriate dice on that line). If he can do this, he then rolls the remaining dice, ideally conquering another line; if he can't conquer a line, he removes one die from play, then rolls again. His turn ends when either he conquers every line on the card (in which case he claims it) or he no longer has dice available to roll.

Each card is worth a number of victory points. You can conquer cards owned by other players, but you need to conquer an additional daimyo line in the process. If a player owns all the castles of one clan, however, those castles are secure and cannot be stolen. What's more, these castles are now worth more points because you've united the clan under one ruler (you) and strengthened your hold over Japan.

When the last card is claimed, players tally their points, and whoever has the highest score wins.

Jitters is a timed word game where players draw cards with pre-arranged crossword puzzles on them. A player starts the timer and then rolls "lettered" dice and must use the face up letters to fill in the crossword with qualifying words before time runs out. Each crossword puzzle card has a point value that increases with the card's difficulty. This game is somewhat stressful as you must think quickly, making words to fit the blanks on the card...of course when the timer runs out making a loud smacking noise as you were about to finish your last word - you jump every time...