forex
FOR-EX is the game of currency trading. An opaque, nerdy, butterfly-effect game, players take on the roles of international financiers who trade and manipulate currency values. Each of the game's several currencies only has value relative to one another, and these fluctuate according to player investments and divestments.
Players primarily make money by making long-term contracts to trade an amount of currency X for its equivalent in currency Y. Those contracts will be resolved several turns hence, during which time the exchange rate may have changed. But the contract is resolved according to the original, agreed-upon rate, enabling players to make profit. Players can (and should) make contracts promising money they don't yet have, and may use the resultant loans to give them a temporary leg-up (provided that they think they can make up the difference before the loan comes due).
Once the game begins, there is zero randomness; every subtle, lovely tweak to the game state is the net result of the decisions each player makes. The game concludes when a player goes bankrupt, or when the last dividend has been paid. At that point, all monies are converted to the single strongest currency, and the player with the most money of that type wins.
LB_NUMBER_OF_PLAYERS: 2 - 6
Game duration: 18 mn
Complexity: 4 / 5
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Play forex and 839 other games online.
No download, directly from your web browser.
With your friends and thousands of players from the whole world.
Free.
Rules summary
FOR-EX GAME SUMMARY
SPOT TRANSACTION
Before taking your action for your turn, you may, but are not required to, perform one Spot Transaction with another player, trading 1 buck of any currency for its equivalent in another, or vice-versa.
MAKE A CONTRACT
Take the next available set of Contract cards, placing one in front of yourself, one at the back of the Contract Queue, and leaving the last in the Contract Display. To the left of this last card, place the amount (taken from the Bank) that you wish to pay. To its right, place the equivalent amount in the other currency. The amount of the Stronger Currency must be a whole number, and cannot be in excess of ten bucks.
INVEST
Buy one or two certificates for 2 bucks each of the relevant currencies. You cannot buy two certificates for the same currency in a single action, nor can you have more than four certificates in a single currency at one time. Any currencies that are invested in are strengthened.
DIVEST
Sell one or more certificates of a single type, removing those certificates from the game and receiving 2 bucks of that currency for each certificate divested. As part of your turn, clockwise around the table, each other player has the opportunity to divest certificates of the same type, likewise receiving 2 bucks of that currency and removing the certificate from the game. The divested currency is weakened once for each certificate that is divested.
RESOLVE
Resolve the front item in the Contract Queue:
- If the front item is a Contract, the player who created it must pay the amount to the left of the Contract, and receive the amount to its right. If they cannot pay, they still receive the amount to its right, and the Contract converts to a Loan, with the amount owed increased by +1. The Loan moves to the back of the Contract Queue, with the player who created the Contract now responsible for the Loan. If the player already has a Loan in the Contract Queue, the new Loan is combined with the previous Loan; all combined Loans must be paid off at the same time.
- If the front item is a Loan, the player who is responsible for the Loan must pay the amount owed. If the Loan cannot be repaid, the player is Bankrupt and the game immediately ends.
- If the front item is a Dividend, players earn 0, 2, or 3 bucks of a given currency for each Certificate they hold in that currency, as shown on the Dividend card. If a Currency has any counters on the "8" space, Certificates for that Currency pay nothing. After making payouts, determine which Currency has the most Certificates currently in player hands: that Currency is Strengthened. If multiple Currencies qualify, the acting player chooses one Currency from among the tied Currencies. When the final Dividend is Resolved, there are no more player turns; instead, the remaining items in the Contract Queue are Resolved in order.
If either a Contract or a Loan is paid off, all associated Contract cards return to the contract display and can be used again.
STRENGTHENING/WEAKENING
Currencies are Strengthened:
- each time it is Invested in.
- when, after Resolving a Dividend, it has the most Certificates in player hands.
Currencies are Weakened:
- each time it is Divested in.
GAME END
The game ends when one of the following occurs:
- Any player goes Bankrupt.
- There are no items left in the Contract Queue.
Determine which Currency is Strongest (the stronger half of the most Currency Pairs); if there is a tie, the tied Currency with the most Certificates in player hands is the Strongest; if a tie persists, the player who last took a turn decides which of those tied Currencies is Strongest. All players convert all monies to that Currency, rounding any fractions down. The player with the most money wins.
