Don
by Michael Schacht
Published by Queen Games 2001
English translation by Pitt Crandlemire; edited and formatted by W. Eric Martin
For 3-6 players aged 10 and up

Contents
30 cards showing districts of Chicago with the numbers 0-9 being represented three times; 72 thick chips; 1 set of instructions.

Goal of the Game
Score the most points by buying districts, preferably many of the same color.

Game Preparations
Choose a start player. This person shuffles the deck, then places it face-down. Each player takes 12 chips; this money supply may be kept hidden.

Playing the Game
The game is played over several rounds, with each round divided into two phases:
1. Turn over district cards.
2. Auction these cards.
The game ends after 15 rounds, after which all of the districts will have been auctioned.

1. Turn over district cards
In each round, a different number of district cards are revealed: in the first round, one district card; in the second round, two cards; in the third round, three cards; then repeat this pattern. Thus: 1-2-3-1-2-3-etc.

2. Auction these cards
Now the revealed cards are sold as a lot. The start player makes the first bid at any amount of his choosing. The next player in clockwise order must make a higher bid or drop out of this auction. Then the next player in clockwise order either raises or drops out, etc. When all players but one have dropped out, the high bidder places the district cards face-up in front of himself, then pays a number of chips equal to the bid.

If no player bids on the lot, then the start player takes these district cards for free.

Note: Players may not bid more than they can pay. If this occurs, the offending player must discard one of his previously won district cards as a penalty. This card is removed from the game. The revealed districts are auctioned once again, and the offending player may not participate.

Who gets the money?
Once the price for a lot is set, you must determine who gets the money. Two factors play a role here: the winning bid, and the numbers on the district cards that players have previously won. If the bid matches the number on an owned district, the owner of that district receives a share of the money.

Example: Anke buys a lot for 7 chips. Bert owns the only district with a number 7, so Bert takes the 7 chips from Anke.

Players who own the same number of districts with a matching number receive an equal share of the winning bid.

Example:  Dieter buys two districts for 9 chips. Anke, Bert and Claus each own one district with the number 9. Dieter pays Anke, Bert and Claus 3 chips each.

A player who owns more districts with a matching number than anyone else receives all of the winning bid by himself.

Example: Anke buys a district for 8 chips. Bert owns two districts and Claus one with the number 8. The 8 chips go to Bert because he owns more districts with the number 8 than Claus.

If no one owns a district with a matching number, the money is distributed evenly.

Example: Anke buys a district for 6 chips. No one owns a district with the number 6, so the money is split evenly among all players other than Anke.

Important: The winner of the auction never receives any of the money being distributed.

Two-digit numbers
If the winning bid is a two-digit number, the units digit determines how the money is distributed. Thus, on a bid of 14, the number to match is 4; on a 10, the 0, and so on.

Example: Claus buys three districts for 12 chips. Burt owns the only  district with a 2. Because only the last number counts with double-digit bids, Burt receives the 12 chips.

Remainders
The bid won't always be evenly divisible. When this happens, round down to distribute the chips evenly. Place any remaining chips in the middle of the table (in the Pot) and distribute them with the payment of the next auction.

Example: Anke must pay Bert and Claus 13 chips. They receive 6 chips each, and the remaining chip is placed in the Pot. In the next round, Bert must pay 9 chips to Anke and Claus. When the chip that lies in the Pot is added in, each of them will receive 5 chips.

Bid restrictions
An important restriction applies to bids: A player may not make a bid that matches the numbers on the districts that he has already acquired. This includes any two-digit bid in which the final digit matches these numbers.

Anyone who makes such a bid must pay a penalty chip to the Pot (provided he has money), even if he corrects himself immediately. The incorrect bid is withdrawn, and the player must make a new bid or pass.

Example: Anke owns districts with the numbers 4 and 6. He may therefore not make bids of 4, 6, 14, 16, etc.

Next round
Whoever wins the auction becomes the new start player. The two phases are repeated: Turning over districts and auctioning them.

End of the Game
After all districts have been auctioned, scoring occurs. The more districts you have of the same color, the more points you receive:
  • 1 district = 1 point
  • 2 districts of the same color = 3 points
  • 3 districts of the same color = 6 points
  • 4 districts of the same color = 10 points
  • 5 districts of the same color = 15 points
  • Whoever holds the most chips receives 2 points. If several players hold the same highest number of chips, they each receive 2 points.
The player with the most points wins. In case of a tie, the player with the highest sum of numbers on their district cards wins.

Side auctions
If a player runs into financial difficulty, he may — if he wishes — sell one of his districts in a side auction. He does this at the start of a round before new districts are turned face-up. Since the player is selling one of his own districts, he receives all of the money.

Variant
At the start of each round, an additional "Exchange" phase takes place. (At the beginning of the game, no one owns any districts, so this phase is skipped.)

The start player goes first and announces whether or not he will exchange a district. If he does, he simply takes a district from an opponent and places it in front of himself, then gives the opponent one of his own districts. The opponent can do nothing to prevent this. Then the next player in clockwise order has the opportunity to exchange, and so forth. After everyone has had the opportunity to exchange -- at most once per round -- new district cards are turned over.

Players who chose to exchange a district may not participate in the auction this round! If all players exchange districts, the auction doesn't occur and the start player takes the revealed district cards for free.