Players: 3-7
Playing Time: 30 minutes
Difficulty: 2 (of 10)

The Components

Nottingham is really just a card game, but it comes with a few extra components:

• 1 gameboard
• 8 playing figures
• 105 cards
• 1 rule booklet

Game Board: The gameboard is a small one-panel board that shows a track through the woods. 22 stops on the track show the game's progress toward completion and also intermediate rewards at each stop. It's full color and linen-textured.

Playing Figures: Eight wooden pawns in the seven player colors (red, yellow, green, blue, purple, white, gray) plus a black pawn for the sheriff, which is used on the gameboard. They're normative wooden pawns.

Cards: The cards are all medium-weight, printed full-color and linen-textured. 84 of these are item cards, which depict 7 different items. Each item has a "suit", a value, some artwork, and additional iconography depicting what the card does. The card looks a little busy at first, but is entirely easy to read once you figure it out. The iconography on the cards is quite good.

There are also 13 ambush cards, which each depict one or two transaction types which you can steal from; and 8 assignment cards, which each detail special sets that you can turn in for rewards. Again, the iconography on these is good. The assignment cards are also double-sided, so that you can flip them over for a lower value if someone else completes the same assignment.

Rulebook: An 8-page full-color rulebook. It's got some illustrations, some examples, and is generally easy to learn from.

Overall the components for Nottingham are good quality, generally attractive, and have great utility. I've given the game a high "4" out of "5" for Style: very good.

The Gameplay

The object of Nottingham is to earn points by turning in various sets of cards.

Setup: Each player chooses a color and takes the appropriate pawn. (It simply reminds people of what color he is.) The gameboard is set out with the sheriff in Nottingham, at the start of the forest track. The item cards are shuffled and each player is given 3. Ambush cards for players not in the game are removed, and the rest of the ambush cards are shuffled and set to the side. The 8 assignment cards are set in the middle of the table. There are 2 each of 4 different assignments.

Order of Play: On his turn a player:

• Draws & Uses a Card
• Trades in Cards for Victory

Draw & Use a Card: A card is drawn from the draw pile, face-up, so that all players can see it. The active player may immediately take the card into his hand, where he'll later get to use it to form sets, or he can immediately use the card's power.

There are 7 different types of cards, each with a different name and value. They are: copper coin (7), silver candlestick (8), gold (9), pearls (10), jewels (11), necklace (12), and chest (13). Each card type also has its own special power. If you decide to utilize a card's special power, the following action is used:

Copper Coin / Purchase. Each other player must offer you a card from their hand, which is played face-down, then all revealed simultaneously. You may then trade one player the copper coin for their card, or else keep it.

Silver Candlestick / Steal. You choose a random card from a player's hand and give him the candlestick in return.

Gold / Ambush. You take two ambush cards, place one face-down under the gold card, and place the other face-down at the bottom of the ambush deck. Each ambush card either shows a player pawn or else a pair of card types. When the depicted player turns in any 3+ card set (not an assignment), or when any player turns in a set of 3+ cards of the depicted card type, you may ambush them. You take one of their cards from the set and given them the gold in return. They may only complete their turn-in of cards if they still have 3 cards of the appropriate type out.

Pearls / Rob. You choose a player, look at their cards, and take one. You give them the pearls in return.

Gems / Hold Up. You choose a player and they must reveal their whole hand to all players. You then take one card and give them the gems in return.

Necklace / Defend. You always take this card into your hand; its power may not be immediately used. Whenever another players tries to play a steal, rob, or hold up against you, you may give them this card rather than them selecting one. You still get their card in return, as usual.

Chest / Trade. In order each player may offer you one or two cards, face-up. You then must trade the chest for one of the offers.

Trade in Cards: At the end of your turn you may turn in one set of cards.

Most frequently this is three or more cards of the same type. You reveal the cards and if no one ambushes you, you then earn the value of the suit (7-13), keeping one card as a point marker and discarding the others. If you get ambushed, you can only continue your trade-in if you were trading in 4 or more cards, and still have at least 3 left.

Alternatively there are four assignments which define different sets you can turn in. The four possible sets are: one each of the 7 suits; five of a kind; 4 pairs; and 3 pairs. The first three of these assignments are worth 30 points if just one player finishes them, or 25 if two do. The last is worth 15 or 10. No more than two players can complete an individual assignment during a game.

After a player turns in cards for points the Sheriff of Nottingham moves forward one space on the forest track. Each space has a number on it from 2-8. Now every player who has that many cards or fewer gets to draw a card. (This effectively rewards people who are making efficient use of their cards and who aren't going for the longer term assignments.)

Ending the Game: The game ends when the sheriff circles the whole forest track or when all eight assignments are claimed. Each players counts up the value of his sets and his assignments, and the player with the highest total wins.

Relations to Other Games

Nottingham is a trading game that involves trading cards. The classic in the genre is of course the designer's own Bohnanza. Other notables include Oltre Mare and Reiner Knizia's Res Publica.

Nottingham is most notable for the manner in which it enforces trades. Players must trade with each other via various means based on the cards that are used against them. This is a pretty unusual mechanism, but also one that ultimately makes Nottingham lighter and less strategic than any of the others.

The Game Design

Generally Nottingham is a light, relatively simple game. There is some strategy, as you try and maneuver yourself into completing the most advantageous sets, but that can be easily spoiled if other people take cards from you.

There is some element of card counting, since you can watch what cards each other player takes, and that can be used to cunning advantage. For example if you see a player pick up a defensive necklace, and you want that necklace, you might purposefully take a card from him, hoping that he gives you the necklace rather than letting you take one of his other cards. It's also possible to try and take a card from someone who has the specific cards you want or to try and spoil a player's hand when they're about to end the game or to collect an assignment that you want. But, that's about the extent of the strategy in the game.

The game says it runs from 3-7, and I suspect that's the case. I played it with both 5 and 7 players, and if anything the 7-player game was more fun. The game still played fast. You had less control, but to some extent you're involved in every player's turn (as you either have to select a trade for them, or quietly hope they won't steal a card from you). Finding a game that works well for 7 players is rare, but this one does.

Generally I think that Nottingham is a fun and enjoyable game if you're looking for a casual game for family or friends. As such as I've given it a slightly high "3" out of "5" for Substance: above average, and particularly notable for its high player numbers.

Conclusion

Nottingham is a new card game of trading by Uwe Rosenberg. Though it doesn't stand up to his Bohnanza its fits well into a quicker, even more casual niche. If you're looking for a light game that runs in half an hour for up to 7 players, this is a nice choice.