Zendo: Degenerate mode
As I write this, Zendo is one of
my favorite games. It's a conceptual rule-guessing game from Looney
Labs, playable with a box set, with their classic plastic pyramids, or
really with any kinds of objects you like. You can use the box set's
generic language or stick with the original Zen Buddhist theme. It's
mind-bending and trains players on logic, and can humble people with
how hard even simple rules are to suss out. But I like challenging,
creative, elegant rules myself, such as: "A koan has the Buddha nature
if...
- ...one piece extends higher than all the others."
- ...all pieces are directly touching each other."
- ...every piece is oriented in a different direction."
For those rounds that prove to be stumpers, or for when you want to
play the game with just two players, I invented a house rule called
Degenerate Mode (similar to 2-player Puzzle Mode from the box set).
Here's how it works:
- If there's only one guesser, you begin in Degenerate Mode.
Otherwise, the Master can suggest it to the players and the players can
agree it's time to enter it.
- Each player gets three (additional) guessing stones.
- There are no more Mondos ("Quiz" in the box set). Every turn is a Master ("Tell") turn.
- Each player can make a guess after every turn without spending a stone.
- Instead of guessing stones, the stones are now question stones.
Any player on their turn, before or after making their koan, may spend
any number of question stones in order to ask the Master yes-or-no
questions. For example:
- Does color make any difference to this rule?
- Is it possible for a koan with more than two pieces to have the Buddha nature?
- Would turning a block on its side ever affect the status of a koan?
- * In response to questions, in addition to answering yes or no,
the Master may create an example or a counterexample as
appropriate. "Yes, and here is a koan for which that is true,"
for example.
In fact, I like to use this optional "yes-or-no" function of the guessing stones even when not playing in Degenerate Mode!
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