Bluffing · Negotiation

Lifeboats: Plank of Carneades

Is it possible to escape by boat when a shipwreck occurs? The difference between sinking, swimming, and safely making it to an island may be just a vote away!

3–7 players45 minages 8

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About the game

What is Lifeboats: Plank of Carneades

Is it possible to escape by boat when a shipwreck occurs? The difference between sinking, swimming, and safely making it to an island may be just a vote away!

Gameplay in Lifeboats: Plank of Carneades is all about voting, which takes the form of both co-operation and betrayal over the course of play as circumstances change and you find your sailors on the brink of death. During a vote, each player chooses a card from their hand, then everyone reveals their choices at the same time. You have one card of each boat color — which also correspond to the player colors — as well as three captain cards. If you're the only person to play a captain card during a vote, you get to decide the result...but if more than one captain card is played, they're ignored. In either case, each captain card can be played only once.

To set up, take turns placing your officers and sailors in empty spaces on several lifeboats, each of which is heading toward a particular island. The game then proceeds in multiple rounds, with the lead player position rotating each round. Whenever a vote is tied, the lead player breaks the tie.

First, players vote on which ship springs a leak. Whichever color boat receives the most votes has an empty space filled with a water token — and if the boat has no empty spaces, the players on this boat vote to determine which occupant will be thrown overboard to the sharks to keep the boat from sinking. In this type of vote, officers are worth two votes, sailors only one. However, if a ship has more leaks than occupants, it sinks and everyone on board turns into shark chum.

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