DOC COLOUR’S ZOP ZOO CARD GAME
This card game has been 10 years in the making… a truly incredible labor of love. It’s a wonderfully imaginative card matching game that's fun and exciting to play for both kids & adults! A collection of 126 playing cards designed & illustrated by Doc Colour. There are 10 different animal categories and 66 different animal illustrations.
I’m very proud & excited about this new card game of mine, and I can’t wait for you to play it with you friends and family! -Doc Colour
CARD RULES & PLAY GUIDE
Number of players: 2-4
*It is possible for more players to play,
but 2-4 players is the most optimum for game play.
For ages 7 and up
Equally fun for kids & adults.
Total number of cards: 126
52 cards in the White Deck / 74 cards in the Black Deck.
Playing time varies depending on number of players
Approximately 15-20 minutes per round.
There are 10 different animal categories.
Their point values ascend from 10 Points (MAMMAL) to 60 Points (MYTHICAL).
Each animal has a different background color, which represents their category.
MAMMAL________10 Points (Browns)
OCEAN________15 Points (Blues)
BIRD___________20 Points (Pinks)
INSECT____________25 Points (Yellows)
SEMI-AQUATIC____30 Points (Aquas)
HORNS______________35 Points (Oranges)
REPTILE____________40 Points (Greens)
MARSUPIAL_________45 Points (Mauves)
ARACHNID________55 Points (Reds)
MYTHICAL____________60 Points (Purples)
USE THE LINKS BELOW TO DIRECTLY GO TO A SPECIFIC GAME RULE OR TYPE OF CARD
Each round, match your animal cards (from the white deck) with their matching animal cards (in the black deck) to make them worth POINTS. Be the first player to have POINTS for all of your cards. The first player to reach 800 POINTS wins the game!
*If only 2 people are playing, you can play to 1000 POINTS if you like.
I suggest this because the game plays much faster with just 2 players.
• Separate the white deck from the black deck.
• Shuffle each deck thoroughly.
• Place the black deck face down in the middle of the play area to be the draw pile.
• Choose a designated player to be the dealer of the white deck for the whole game.
WHITE DECK
(DEAL TO PLAYERS)
BLACK DECK
(DRAW PILE)
The cards in the white deck are always dealt face up for all the players to see.
In the first round, the dealer is dealt the first card. After that, the player who wins the
round is dealt the first card, with the option of giving the deck a "lucky cut" first.
• Going clockwise, the dealer places one card at a time face up in front of each player
until everyone has a straight row of six evenly spaced animal cards in front of them.
These 6 cards are called your STARTING CARDS.
• The remaining cards in the white deck are no longer needed for this round
(put them aside - out of the play area).
NOTE: After each round, all the playing cards will need to be turned face down and sorted back into their 2 separate white and black decks… then shuffled thoroughly again.
THERE ARE 3 DIFFERENT STARTING CARDS THAT YOU CAN BE DEALT:
CATEGORY CARDS
These cards have all-white borders around them. They display an animal and list a specific animal category at the top of each card. Also, there is a small number in upper left or right corner of each card. This number indicates what the point value of the card will be worth when matched.
Currently, these cards aren’t worth POINTS... yet!
LOWER HALF CONNECT CARDS
These cards have white-to-gray borders around them. They display only the LOWER HALF of an animal and say CONNECT at the top of each card. All Lower Half Connect Cards have an indicated point value of 80 points listed in upper left or right corner of the card.
These cards will be worth POINTS when connected to their matching UPPER HALF Connect Cards.
MINUS CARDS
These cards have red-shaded borders around them. They display an animal and say MINUS on the top of each card. They also show minus POINTS in the upper right corner of the card.
Minus Cards are already worth POINTS… Minus POINTS, that is!
REMEMBER: Only Category Cards and Lower Half Connect Cards are showing indicated point values on them. So, they aren’t showing actual POINTS yet… not until they are covered with their matching animal cards. Minus Cards, however, are always showing actual POINTS (albeit minus points).
The player who was dealt the first card starts each round by picking a card from the draw pile. Every card will show a different animal on it. Your goal is to match all of the animals you see on all 6 of your starting cards with the very same identical looking animals (found within the black deck). Connect Cards, however, are not identical looking. They have a lower half part of the animal and an upper half part of the animal. So, these animal illustration will not look the same… but they still match together!
When matching a Category Card or a Minus Card, place your picked card directly over its matching card to completely cover it (face up).
If you’re matching Connect Cards, you connect the UPPER HALF of the animal directly above the LOWER HALF of the animal… card edge to card edge. You will now see the full completed animal.
Each time one of your starting cards gets covered or connected, it is now worth POINTS!
When you pick a card from the draw pile and you match it,
your turn always continues—draw again.
If you can’t match the card, place it face up next to the draw pile...this forms the discard pile.
When a card is discarded, it is available to the next player. If the next player can match that card, they MUST take it, as well as any other matching cards that become revealed underneath it.
After matching any card(s) picked from the top of the discard pile, your turn ends…
you don’t get to pick from the draw pile—next player!
REMEMBER: You will either pick a card from the draw pile OR pick/use a card from the discard pile… (it’s one pile or the other, never both).
KEEP IN MIND: You are to match the animal names together, not the category names together. For example, you don’t match a BIRD card with any other BIRD card, but rather you match an OWL card with the other OWL card. *It will help to pay attention to the written name of the animal on the bottom of each card.
The first player to have all of their cards be worth POINTS wins the round. Simply look for the word “POINTS” on your cards... that’s how you know they’re worth POINTS!
Only the winner of the round gets to add up ALL of their card’s total POINTS and score them. This includes: minus POINTS, 0 POINTS and side bonus POINTS!
*You will learn about Side Bonus Cards (bonus POINTS) further down.
REMEMBER: When you see the word “POINTS” on all of your cards, you win the round!!
NOTE: Even if you win the round, it’s possible to end up with a negative tally if you have MINUS Cards.
All the other players ONLY add up their minus POINTS and bonus POINTS
(if they have any) and score just those POINTS.
REGARDING CARDS THAT YOU MISS
During your turn, if you pick an animal card that
you can match to one of your starting cards, you MUST take it!
Also, regardless of your card coming from the draw pile
or the discard pile, you cannot intentionally
decide NOT to take a card that you can match.
HOWEVER,
there will be times when you will honestly overlook being able to
match a card, and will simply miss it. If this happens, not to worry…
you will have a chance to “dig for” any missed (or passed up) cards
that you can match during the round.
*You will learn more about this in the
DIG IN PILE cards section below
OK... time to get acquainted with the cards you’ll see in the black deck :)
First, here’s a brief and simplified explanation of every type of card in the black deck:
Category POINTS Cards:
They cover matching Category Cards.
Upper Half Connect Cards:
They connect above Lower Half Connect Cards.
ANTI-Minus Cards:
They cover matching Minus Cards turning them into positive!
Wild Cards:
BEAST cards cover any of your starting cards of your choosing.
Side Bonus Cards:
They give you side bonus POINTS that you automatically
get to score at the end of each round.
Dig In Pile Cards:
MOLE cards let you search through the discard pile for
any matching cards that got missed or passed up.
Specialty Cards:
HYENA cards have you give a card to another player.
RACCOON cards have you take a card from another player.
EARTHWORM cards have you switch cards with another player.
*Full explanation of each type of card below
Category POINTS cards are the most common cards in the black deck. They match with category cards (in the white deck) making them worth POINTS. There are 36 of these cards in both decks and they display the exact same animal illustration on them.
REMEMBER: Category Cards (from the white deck) only show an indicated point value on them. But Category POINTS Cards (in the black deck) prominently show actual POINTS!
NOTE: When any of your starting cards get covered with a card from the black deck, that starting card will now have a black border (it’s no longer white or red). SO, this is a good visual indicator of knowing how your round is going: the more cards you see that have black borders in your starting cards… the closer you are getting to matching all your cards and winning the round!
Upper Half Connect Cards have blended gray-to-black borders around them.
There are 10 different animals you can connect together.
When Connect Cards are matched, they will always be worth 80 POINTS.
If you pick the UPPER HALF of an animal, look to see if you have the LOWER HALF of the same animal in your starting cards. If so, connect both halves flush together (card edge to card edge) to form the entire animal.
Only the UPPER HALF Connect Cards list an animal category at the top of each card (the LOWER HALF Connect Cards do not list an animal category).
REMEMBER: Connect Cards DO NOT cover each other, they connect with each other!
KEEP IN MIND: Only Category Cards, Category POINTS Cards and Connect Cards list an animal category on the top of each card. All the other types of cards in the black deck do not. (Cards listing an animal category will be a factor when you learn about Side Bonus Cards - explained further down.)
ANTI-Minus Cards have red colored borders around them.
There are 6 different animals on Minus Cards/Anti-Minus Cards.
POINTS on these cards range from -75/75, -90/90, and -100/100.
If you have a Minus Card, it’s already worth POINTS... minus POINTS, that is! Minus Cards don’t need to be matched in order for you to win the round. In other words, this is one less starting card that you need to cover to get POINTS for it - since it’s already showing POINTS.
HOWEVER,you will most surely want to cover your Minus Card with its matching ANTI-Minus Cards to turn it into positive POINTS!
At the end of each round, all players stuck with any Minus Card(s) that didn’t get covered have to subtract that card’s minus POINTS from their scores – sorry!
REMEMBER: In order to score POINTS from your ANTI-Minus Cards… you MUST win the round.
NOTE: Minus Cards and Anti-Minus Cards do not have an animal category on top of their cards.
DURING THE ROUND IF YOU HAVE A MINUS CARD IN YOUR HAND…
there are a 7 possible outcomes that can happen:
You will cover it with its matching ANTI-Minus Card, turning it into positive POINTS.
You will cover it with a BEAST Wild Card, thus turning it into 0 POINTS.
You will cover it with a BEST BEAST Wild Card, thus turning it into 50 POINTS.
You will use a HYENA Specialty Card and give it to another player.
A RACCOON Specialty card will be used by another player to take it from you.
An EARTHWORM Specialty Card will be used to switch it with another player’s card.
Or you will get stuck with it at the end of the round and score yourself minus POINTS.
So, now you know Minus Cards can be covered by any Wild Card.
AND
they can also be given, taken and switched by using a Specialty Card.
*You will learn more about Wild Cards and Specialty Cards below.
Wild Cards have black borders around them.
There are 2 kinds of Wild Cards:
BEAST cards that are worth 0 POINTS (there are 4 BEAST cards), and a
BEST BEAST card that is worth 50 POINTS (there is only 1 BEST BEAST card)
When either Wild Card is picked, you must place it over one of your starting cards. Typically, the best choice is to cover a Category Card listing the lowest indicated point value on it. Or you could decide to cover a Minus Card if you don’t want to risk getting stuck with it at the end of the game.
Once you decide which card to cover, it cannot be removed and it is now worth the POINTS listed on the Wild Card (0 or 50). Your turn continues – draw again.
NOTE: You will always draw again after picking a Wild Card from the draw pile… unless you just won the round ;)
REMEMBER: Once a starting card is covered with a Wild Card, it cannot be removed and it can no longer be paired with it’s matching animal card for POINTS.
When deciding which starting card you should cover with a Wild Card there are a few things to consider:
Typically, your best choice is to select a Category Card listing the lowest indicated point value on it. MAMMAL cards are the lowest possible Category Card to cover with an indicated point value of 10... then OCEAN cards (15), then BIRD cards (20), etc...
Minus Cards do seem like an obvious card choice to cover, BUT they have the potential of becoming worth big points when matched with their ANTI-Minus Card. At the same time, a player doesn’t want to risk getting stuck with a Minus Card at the end of the round.
This tricky decision can also be influenced by the stage of the round...
Is it still early in the round or is it late in the round?
Is another player getting really close to winning the round?
Lower Half Connect Cards are always worth a potential 80 POINTS, so there really isn’t any good reason to cover one... unless it happens to be your only remaining card choice. In which case, you must cover it with your Wild Card.
ALSO...
if one of your matching animal cards is (currently) buried in the discard pile,
this may influence which one of your starting cards you wish to cover as well.
REMEMBER: If your starting card is already covered with their matching animal card (thus showing a black border), then you can’t (or even want to) cover it with a Wild Card.
NOTE: BEAST cards are ultimately good cards to pick because even though they turn potential points to zero, they also help a player get that much closer to winning the round!
Side Bonus Cards have black & white striped borders around them.
There are 8 unique Side Bonus Cards.
They are all worth POINTS… bonus POINTS!
Each Side Bonus Card highlights a specified animal category on them:
OCEAN / BIRD / INSECT / SEMI-AQUATIC / HORNS / REPTILE / ARACHNID / MYTHICAL
When you pick a Side Bonus card from the draw pile, check the top of your cards to see if any of them match (list) that same specified animal category. If any do, TAKE the Side Bonus Card and place it to the side of your starting cards to be added to your score at the end of the round - draw again. If you can’t match it, discard it. If you take a Side Bonus Card from the discard pile, your turn automatically ends after you place it to the side of your starting cards.
EVEN IF YOU LOSE THE ROUND…
each Side Bonus Card you collect is always worth guaranteed bonus POINTS - Yay!
REMEMBER: Just check for the animal CATEGORY (not the animal name or anything else).
NOTE: You only need one of your cards to match the category in order to TAKE a Side Bonus Card. If you happen to have more than one of your cards matching the category, it makes no difference – it just takes one matching card to be able to TAKE a Side Bonus Card (if no cards match… discard the Side Bonus Card).
KEEP IN MIND: Only Category Cards, Category POINTS Cards, and Upper Half Connect Cards have categories listed on the top of them.
(Lower Half Connect Cards, Minus Cards, ANTI-Minus Cards, and Wild Cards DO NOT have a category listed on the top of them. So, these cards do not apply to Side Bonus Cards.)
REMEMBER: Side Bonus Cards can be switched, taken, or given using a Specialty Card.
The Dig In Pile Cards (also called MOLE cards)
have brown-layered borders around them.
There are 6 MOLE cards.
These cards are EXTREMELY useful towards helping you win the round.
MOLE cards aren’t worth any POINTS, they are ONLY USED to perform a task.
MOLE cards are used to "dig" for your missed cards that get passed up and buried in the discard pile. They allow you to pick up the entire discard pile and scan through the deck to find and take out any matching cards that can cover or connect to any of your starting cards. You can also dig for Side Bonus Cards.
There are 4 types of cards you’re allowed to dig for:
Category POINTS Cards…….. (they cover Category cards)
Upper Half Connect Cards… (They connect to Lower Half Connect Cards)
ANTI-Minus Cards………………. (they cover Minus Cards)
Side Bonus Cards……………..... (they get collected to the side of starting cards)
There is no limit as to how many cards you can dig for.
Don’t forget, MOLE cards DO NOT allow you to retrieve any Specialty Cards in the discard pile.
*PRO TIP: It’s a good idea to keep a “mental note” of all of your missed (or passed up) cards that become buried in the discard pile.
If a MOLE card is picked from the draw pile and is successfully used to retrieve at least one card, your turn continues – discard your MOLE card and pick again from the draw pile.
If you see a MOLE Card on top the DISCARD PILE and choose to use it, there is no need to remove it… just leave it on top of the discard pile and pick up the entire deck. After you are finished digging for cards… your turn is automatically over. The MOLE card now remains on top of the discard pile available for the next player. The next player can then re-use your MOLE card if they also decide to dig. Yes… MOLE cards can be RE-USED by players.
This will repeat, until a player opts to pick a new card from the draw pile…
in which case, the MOLE card will then be covered by their discard.
Specialty Cards have gray borders around them
There are 3 different Specialty Cards that you MUST use when possible:
The EARTHWORM card, the RACCOON card & the HYENA card.
Specialty Cards aren’t worth any POINTS,
they are ONLY USED to perform a task that is different on each card.
The HYENA card – Has you give one of your POINTS cards to any one player (if you have one).
Here’s an Example of Giving:
GIVE a player
one of you Minus Cards
and not have to worry about
getting stuck with it.
*Ideally, give a player your lowest POINTS card.
The RACCOON card – Has you take a POINTS card from any one player (if they have one).
Here’s an Example of Taking:
TAKE a player’s
Side Bonus Card
which will be worth bonus POINTS|
no matter if you win of lose.
*Ideally, take a player’s highest POINTS card.
The EARTHWORM card – Has you switch one of your POINTS cards with another player’s POINTS cards
Here’s an Example of Switching:
SWITCH your BEAST card
worth 0 POINTS
with a player’s Upper&Lower Connect Cards
worth 80 POINTS.
*Ideally, switch your lowest POINTS card with a player’s highest POINTS card.
KEEP IN MIND: Minus POINTS, 0 POINTS, and Bonus POINTS… are ALL considered POINTS and can be given, taken and switched by a player using a Specialty Card.
If a POINTS card is covering or connected to another card... you transfer both cards. Otherwise, you will be transferring just a single Minus Card.
All transferred cards get placed in the player’s row of starting cards. So, during the round, it is possible to get newly acquired cards added to your starting cards… and it is also possible to “lose” one of your original starting cards to another player.
Once a player uses a Specialty Card, it cannot be used again by another player.
They are one-time use only.
NOTE: Once a Specialty Card gets buried in the discard pile, you can’t use a MOLE card to dig it out, even if that Specialty Card hasn’t been used yet by any player.
Whether you pick a Specialty Card from the draw pile or see one face up on the discard pile, you MUST always use them if it is possible for you to do s
If you pick a Specialty Card from the draw pile and you’re able to use it successfully, your turn continues- pick again from the draw pile.
If you see a Specialty Card on top of the discard pile and you’re able to use it successfully, after using it, your turn is automatically over - next player.
If you CAN’T use a Specialty Card successfully, then you discard it on top of the discard pile. It is now there for the next player to use if it is possible for them to do so (in other words, the next player is able to switch, give or take POINTS). If they can’t, they will simply pick a new card from the drawing pile instead.
NOTE: There will be times when it’s not possible to use a Specialty Card. This usually happens early on in the round when players don’t typically have POINTS showing for any of their starting cards yet (unless they have a Minus Card, which is always showing POINTS).
REMEMBER:You don’t keep Specialty Cards – they always get placed on the discard pile. And once they get buried, they can no longer be used… they become “void”!
FINAL NOTE:
In the RARE circumstance that none of the players are able to finish getting
POINTS for all of their starting cards before the black deck runs out of cards…
then every player gets to tally up ALL their POINTS and score them down
(this also includes Minus POINTS and Side Bonus POINTS).
EVERYONE GETS TO SCORE! – Yippy!!
The player with the highest tally for that round will be
dealt the first card in the next round:)
ALL RIGHT!
I think I covered every possible Situation you can encounter while playing my ZOP ZOO card game.
You now know the rules!
That said, as with some games newly learned, feel free to alter any rules if you wish to personalized your experience whILE playing with friends and family.
After all, the whole POINT of my game is to HAVE FUN PLAYING!!!
I must say,
Creating this card game with my zop animal illustrationsvhas been a true labor of love of mine for the past 10 years... and I’m proud and thrilled to be finally sharing it with you now.
Thank you & hope you enjoy playing!
Love, Doc