That filled up fast!
Looks like Our Dear Friend will be sitting this one out. Next time, perhaps!
Meanwhile,
Game I is now underway!
The first order of business is to go over some of the rules. For the most part, the rules are identical to the standard game of Monopoly.
Here's a handy reference guide on the official rules, and I hope to King Jesus that you have at least played one game of Monopoly at some point in your life or so help me god there's gunna be a whuppin'
BUT, just like with any real game, there's always house rules! I'm going to float some ideas for some adapted rules for this game, and invite the players to suggest any of their own, and then we'll have a vote.
House Rules suggestions:1. Any and all fines and taxes go into a Free Parking ('Free Gas' in Update-opoly) fund. Whoever lands on Free Gas wins the accumulated pool of cash. If the pool is empty, they win nothing.
2. The last unsold property goes into the Free Gas pool as well. If somebody lands on that property after it has gone into Free Gas, they may still purchase it at regular price. But if they land on Free Gas, they win it for free instead.
3. If you land on Go, you collect $400 instead of $200. This includes instructions given by Trust Jesus or Papa's Retirement Fund cards to 'Advance to Go'.
4. All players must each move around the board once before they can purchase any properties. (Alternatively, all players must wait until just one player has moved around the entire board once.) A trip to jail ('Sleep') does not count as traveling around the board, so that player will still need to pass Go after leaving jail to qualify as having fully moved around the board.
5. If a player chooses not to (or cannot afford to) purchase a property, then rather than have it go to auction, it remains unsold for the next player to land on. (Note: the plan for property auctions in this game is to have a 'silent auction' in which bids are sent privately to me, and the highest bidder wins.)
6. When landing on a Trust Jesus space, the player has the choice to either draw the card, or sit freely on the space and do nothing. (An alternative choice would be that instead of a choice to do nothing, the player automatically pays a fine of, say, $50.)
7. If a player is in jail (asleep), they may not collect rent on any of their properties.
8. If one player accumulates a certain proportion of the overall money in the game (e.g. 80% of the combined total of cash and assets currently in play), they automatically win the game.
9. Trading properties between players has to wait until all properties are owned.
10. The availability of houses ('Credit Cards') and hotels ('Loans') remains limited, just as in the real board game.
11. Three property cards are dealt to each player at the beginning of the game (just to speed things up).
Any players have any other suggestions? After a day or so I'll call a vote on all suggestions... and then we can get started!