Real MC

Contents

1.1 - Introduction

Mornington Crescent (MC) is a game played on a map of the London Underground.

1.2 - For Real?

For those who come from !York/MCiOS/OrangeMC/Pants or have heard MC played on I'm Sorry I Haven't A Clue this game is serious and does have rules.

1.3 - Spivak Terms

The Spivak terms "e", "em", "eir", "eirs", and "emself" should be interpreted as gender-neutral third person pronouns which are the singular variants of their plural counterparts "they", "them", "their", "theirs", and "themselves" respectively.

1.4 - Aim

The winner of a game of Mornington Crescent is the first player to put eir piece on the station of Mornington Crescent. Initially MC is closed, so players may not move there until [Open MC] is played.

1.5 - The Game in 60sec

2.1 - Turns

The Game of Mornington Crescent is divided into turns, each taken by different player, in sequence. During each turn, a player may make a move and perform actions.

The order in which players play is decided by some mutually acceptable means before the game is started.

Each turn must include a move action, even if it is empty.

2.2 - Turn Phases

A turn is divided into 3 parts:

• Pre-move actions - Actions made before the move.
• Move - The player may move eir piece using the move action.
• Post-move actions - Actions made after the move action.

Multiple actions are permitted, provided that there is only one example of a particular action type made that turn.

2.3 - The Richard Whiteley Experience

Each turn is allowed 60mins of turn time. Each action (including the move action) takes a certain amount of time. The sum of the time taken by all the actions in the turn must be less than or equal to 60mins.

Most actions have a fixed duration, but some (eg move) vary according what it does (eg the route taken).

3.1 - Moving

• A player's piece is moved using the move action.
• A move consists of a series of steps.
• Each step must be between adjacent stations.
• A player may not step to a Blocked station. Nor may a player may eir last step to a closed station.
• All steps (excluding the first station) must be listed in the GSD.
• The same station may not be stepped to twice in the same turn, nor may a player step the station the turn was started at.

Each step takes time. This time is added on the the total for the Turn.

Event	Duration
Step to station in Zone 1 or 2.	10mins
Step to station not in Zone 1 or 2.	5mins
Line change.	10mins

Stations on the Zone 2/3 border are counted as Zone 1/2 stations.

3.2 - Token Bonuses

Players can get a token bonus for moves if they land (finish their move) on special stations:

Green station	+1Gr
Interchange	+1Re
BR Station	+1Br
Termini (zone 3/4/5)	+1Bu

Players cannot claim a token bonus for a station landed on if the player has claimed a token bonus for that station within eir last 3 turns. You can still land on the station, just not get the bonus. You can also get more than 1 bonus per turn (Green Park is +Gr, +Re, +Bk).

3.3 - Mornington Crescent

The station of Mornington Crescent is, by default, closed. This means no player occupy Mornington Crescent unless e plays [Open MC].

3.4 - Pieces

Each player has 1 piece. The piece represents eir position on the Board. A piece may only occupy one location at a time.

3.5 - Passing

A player may make a move of "Pass" rather than make a normal move. In doing so eir piece remains where it is.

4.1 - Tokens

The unit of currency in MC is the token. There are several different types of token, each type is used for different types of actions. A player may not have less than 0 tokens of any type.

• Green (Gr): Turn or movement actions.
• Red (Re): For actions that directly affect other players (i.e. attacks)
• Blue (Bu): For actions that indirectly affect other players or affect the game as a whole (i.e. changes to game state)
• Bronze (Br): : Used for minor actions, to add extra cost to more powerful actions, and possibly as upkeep to actions with duration
• Silver (Si): For extra-powerful actions, and to cash in for Gold.
• Gold (Go): For extremely powerful actions, and for winning.

Blue, green, red and black tokens are plastic; gold, silver and bronze tokens are metallic.

A player may not hold more than 10 Black tokens at the end of eir turn.

4.2 - Conservation of Tokens

A player may not at any time have a negative number of tokens for any token type. When an action is paid for the tokens used as payment are destroyed. A token can only exist in one place at once and cannot become more than one token or change from one type to another without playing an action that permits it.

4.3 - Stacks

A token stack is an orderd pile of tokens on a station. Any station can hold a stack, there is no limit to the number of tokens a stack can hold or the number of stations that can have a stack, but a station is only allowed one stack.

The main purpose of stacks is for gambits.

4.4 - Gambits

A gambit is a special type of action used when a specific set of token stacks are on the board. After a gambit is played all tokens used by the gambit are destroyed.

Tokens used by the gambit include all tokens that must exist for the gambit to take place, plus the cost of the gambit (if any). They do not include tokens on the same stack as tokens used in the gambit or tokens on any other stack. The effect of the gambit takes precedence over any token destruction/preservation (eg if the gambit says a token stack not involved in the gambit will be destroyed then it will be destroyed).

5.1 - Actions

A player's turn is made up of actions. The number of actions a player can make is limited by the amount of time allowed. Each action may only be played once per Turn.

Actions can be pre-move, post-move or neutral. Pre-move actions can only be played before the move action; post-move actions can only be played after the move action; neutral actions may be played at any time.

The effect of an action takes place immediately after the action is played.

5.2 - Action Table

This is a list of all the Actions available. Gambits are highlighted in red.

Name	Cost	Duration	Phase	Details
Block	-Re	10	post	[Block <adjacent station>] A station can be blocked using the block action, provided the blocking player is at a station adjacent to the station to be blocked. Once a station is blocked a piece may not move to or through it for one round. MC may not be blocked.
Create Token	?free?	30	post	[Create <token> on <station>] A player may create a non-metallic token on the top of the stack at any station e has passed though this turn.
Drop	-<token>	10	post	[Drop <token> on <station>] A player may play the drop action to place a token on the top of the Stack of any station passed through this turn.
Exchange	-x, +y	0	post	[Exchange <x> to <y>] The Exchange action allows a player to change tokens of one type for tokens of another. It may only be played when the player is on Bank station. Allowable exchanges are: 4Br -> 1Si 1Si -> 4Br Eg. [Exchange 4Br to 1Si]
Move	0	varies	neu	<station>(<line>) via <route> Allows the player to move eir piece.
Open MC	-3Go	30	pre	[Open MC] If the Open MC action is played Mornington Crescent becomes open for the rest of the turn.
Pick Up	-Gr, +<token>	20	post	[Pick up <token>] A player may pick up the top token from the stack of any station e currently occupies or has passed through this turn.
Teleport	-Bk	10	post	2 interchanges on a line have a black token on. Allows a player to reposition eir piece onto any station on that line.
Token Running	-2Si, +Go	10	post	[Token Running] The Token Running action can only be played on a terminus station. It gives a player a Go token.

6.1 - Timing is Everything

Players have 36 hours to submit eir turn, starting from the time the previous turn was submitted. Saturdays and Sundays are ignored for the purposes of this rule, so that if a player submits a turn at 10am on Friday, the next player has until 10pm on Monday to submit eir turn. A player may still submit eir turn at the weekend, in which case the 36 hours start at 0000GMT Monday.

If a player does not submit eir turn within this time, any player from that game may submit a turn containing the move of "Timeout" (with no actions) for that player, and advance the game time by one hour.

If the forcing player is able to take eir turn directly after the forced player, e may submit eir turn on the same GSD.

7.1 - Hurry Up

If a player is taking too long to make a turn a limit of 3mins may be set.

8.1 - Glossary

action: An action is event caused by a player to have some effect on the game.
adjacent: One station is said to be adjacent to another if there is a line segment going between the two stations.
blocked: When a station is blocked a piece may not step to or occupy it.
board: Another name for map.
BR station: A BR station is one that has a connection to the national railways network.
closed: A piece may not occuy a closed station at the end of its players turn.
co-located: A station is co-located if it has two line segments "drawn" together going from it.
gambit:
green station: A green station is a station whose name contains the string "green" at some point within it.
GSD: The GSD is the Game State Document. It is the record of everything that has happened in the game and usually the method used to communicate a players turn to the other players.
has: The term has refers to any event that has already happened. Specifically "has passed through...this turn" and "has occupied...this turn" mean events that happened before the action or event that refer to it, not any event this turn.
interchange: An interchange station is one that has at least 3 adjacent stations.
line: A thing on the map.
line change: A line change occurs when a player finishes a step on a different line to th one started on.
line segment: A line segment is a piece of line that goes between two stations and has no intermediate stations.
mainline: Another name for a BR station.
map:
MC: Short for Mornington Crescent.
meridian: The central-most station on the map (Tottenham Court Road).
metallic: A metallic token is one that is gold, silver or bronze. See also plastic.
Mornington Crescent: A station on the London Underground. Also the name of a game.
move: A piece's move is its motion during the movement Phase of a player's turn.
neutral actions: Actions that may be played before or after the player's move.
occupy: A player occupies the station eir piece is currently located at.
open: A station is open if it is not closed or blocked.
pass through: A station is passed though if it has been stepped to and from during a turn.
piece: Each player has a piece to represent eir on the board.
plastic: A plastic token is one that is blue, green, red or black. See also metallic.
play: A play is what a player does with eir actions and moves during eir turn. eg A player can play the [Block] action.
player: Some enitity playing the game with a piece on the board and following the rules (usually a person).
post-move: Actions that may only be played after the player's move.
pre-move: Actions that may only be played before the player's move.
round: A round is a sequence of turns in which all player's play. An effect that is said to endure for one round lasts from the point at which the effect begins until the end of that player's next turn.
shortest route: The shortest route between two stations is the route that takes the least number of steps.
stack: A stack is a ordered pile of tokens on a station.
station: A thing on the map.
step: A step is moving to an adjacent station.
terminus: A terminus station is one that has exactly one adjacent station on some line.
token: Tokens are the unit of currentcy in MC.
turn: A player's turn is the combination of the eir move and actions played during one Round.
zone: A thing on the map.

8.2 - Todo

• New def of interchange.
• zone and zone numbers.
• Do we want BR stations (as opposed to mainline stations)?
• Example GSD.
• Itallicize terms
• Game time.
• Replaying Turn.

8.3 - Update Log

• Date: updates
• 2000-8-12: Removed Black Tokens and rewrote Green Token def.
  Removed Black Token bonus.
  Rewrote moveing Rule to use time.
  Added Action rule.
  Rewrote Turn section
  Added RL and EMail Sections.
• 2000-8-6: Token Running added.
  Round def updated
  Pick up tokens from stations passed through.
  Definitions of green station, token, action, station, meridian, stack, gambit, play, metallic, GSD and co-located added.
  Rewrite Pick Up Action.
  Stack and Gambit rules added
  Placeholder gambit added to action table.
  Changed token bonuses