Cabinet Reshuffle
Keep your friends close and your enemies closer.
| Cabinet Reshuffle | |
|---|---|
| Designer: | Simon Katan |
| Year: | unknown |
| Players: | 8 |
| Stuff required: | Good news and Bad news cards, minister's voting guide, political name badges, ministerial place markers. |
| Crew required: | 1 |
| Preparation: | 10mins |
| Time required: | 40 - 60 mins |
| Place required: | round a table |
| Activities: | strategising, plotting, deception |
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The Game
You're a cabinet minister in a government in trouble. Opinion poll ratings are at an all time low and still the bad news just keeps on pouring in. You and your fellow ministers are gathered at number 10 for an emeregency meeting and you could cut the atmosphere with a knife. Some are after the top job, all are trying to save their necks, keep your friends close and your enemies closer.
Starting the game
At the start of the game each player is randomly assigned one of eight ministerial posts ranging from Prime Minister to Arts and Culture Minister. Players also choose their political name and write it onto their badge; this could be their own name, the name of a well known politician, or any other name they so choose. Whilst their ministerial post is bound to change during the game, their political name will always remain the same. Ministers should sit round the cabinet table in the order shown below with their ministerial place markers clearly visible to all. Every player should have a ministerial voting guide and the PM should sit at the head of the table with the pile of good news/bad news cards.
Playing a round
The game is played in 12 rounds. At the start of a round the PM picks a hand of eight news cards from a shuffled deck. Some are good news and are worth plus points from 10 to 80 some are bad and worth minus points from 10 to 80. The PM must hand out one news item to each minister including himself. This must all be done publicly and the cards laid on the table at all times so that players can keep track of everyone's scores. Following this there is A.O.B at which point any of the other players can plot and raise a vote of no confidence (highly likely to happen!). When they do this they should recommend another minister - not themselves to become PM. After the PM has made his case, the cabinet with the exception of the PM will vote. The catch is that each of the 7 ministers has a voting power that accords to their ministerial post (chancellor 8 votes, home sec 5 votes, for sec 4 votes ) etc... This leads to some interesting strategic possibilities and group dynamics. If the vote is successful the new PM may reshuffle his cabinet before the start of the next round. Each PM has an extra one reshuffle that they can use before the start of a new round. At the end of the game the score cards are totaled and the highest score wins.
