THWACKET!

A village game of guile and applied violence

A Box of Frogs Production

Introduction
On any quiet summer evening in the villages of the Ardfells one can hear the distinctive sound of wood upon Goblin. Teams gather around their village greens to spend a few hours chasing a Goblin about and trying to thwack it over the Gate set in the middle. It is a noble sport and one that has been handed down through generations to the children of every race. No matter what their other differences humans, dwarves, orcs and elves will put down their hatreds and schemes to play this game. Each county has a League which plays throughout the summer until one team is declared the champion. These then travel to the great city of Codai to play in the finals and onto glory!

The Rules of the Game

The Teams
There are two teams of six players, plus an Umpire. Each team also has one substitute who can come on if a team mate is Slammed. Each player has a Thwacker, which is a large wooden bat. Each player is rated in terms of their Strength [STR], Dexterity [DEX] and Speed [SPD] see the Team Rosters section. One of the players is the Captain. He is usually a veteran player of great ability. The Captain chooses how many Blockers and Runners he will have. He needs a balance of both as he needs players who can run and intercept and others who can thwack hard and barge. He may also assign one of these to become a Plonker. There are lists at the end of these rules from which a Captain may choose his team.

The Officials
There are four officials in a game of Thwacket: 1. 2. 3. 4. The Umpire is the final arbiter of the Game. He is usually from another village and is completely neutral. He spends mot of the game by the Gate. No-one is allowed to barge him. The Bagger holds the bag of goblins, and tries to catch goblins who make it to the boundary. He also collect the bodies of those that dont. The Greenkeeper roves around the boundary, ensuring the players dont enter or leave when they shouldnt. He is permitted to bludgeon any that do. The Tallyman keeps the scores.

The Green
The Green is roughly circular with a Gate in the middle. It is twenty four hexes across. The Gate has an 'Upside' painted white and a 'Downside' painted black. Players cannot move through the two hexes containing the Gate. The half of the field on the Upside of the Gate is called The Upfield. The half of the field on the Downside of the Gate is called The Meadow. The Home team begins on the boundary of the Upfield and the Visitors along the boundary of the Meadow. The Umpire begins by the Gate with the Goblin and the Plonkers begin five hexes from the Gate on their opponents side of it.

The Game is Afoot!

The game begins when the Umpire releases a Goblin on top of the Gate and hollers The Game is Afoot!. The Goblin then moves 1D6+2 hexes in a random direction. The Home team always begins first and can move each of their players 1D6+SPD hexes. If any player intercepts the Goblin at any point of his move he can attempt to Thwack it (see below). His movement then ends there. If none can Thwack the Goblin after they have all moved, then play passes to the opposing team.

If the Goblin can reach the edge of the Green it is free (unless caught by the Bagger or if it is boundaried). Then the Umpire calls for a new Goblin. All players except the Plonkers retire to any point their boundary and play is restarted.

Thwacking the Goblin

The aim of the game is to thwack the Goblin across the Gate. Thwacking it from Meadow to Upfield is worth three points. Thwacking it from Upfield to Meadow is worth five points. Thwacking it so it lands precisely onto the Gate is worth one point and the Umpire calls for a reset. All players, except the Plonkers, retire to any point on their boundary and play is restarted. Thwacking it from within three hexes of the Gate is called 'dobbing' and if the Goblin goes over the Gate the team gains a bonus point. Thwacking it from beyond three hexes is called a volley. When a player intercepts a Goblin and Thwacks it, it will fly 1D6+STR hexes. The player can aim the Goblin at the Gate (see the Offside rule) or at a fellow team member. If he aims at a fellow player he must declare which player he is aiming at before he rolls the distance. If the Goblin reaches that team member he can also Thwack it. Passing the Goblin this way between three players is called a 'Run' and if more than that, a 'Daisy Chain'. It is a great way to move the Goblin from close to the boundary to the Gate for an attempt at dobbing. If the Goblin falls short this is a 'flop' and it will immediately run 1D6+2 hexes towards the nearest section of the boundary. It will always take the shortest route, but cannot pass through a hex containing a player. Upon a flop, play passes to the opposing team and they can then try and get a player to the Goblin. If the Goblin flies over a hex containing an opposing team player he can attempt to intercept. He rolls 1D6+DEX and if he rolls higher than the player that thwacked it he has stopped the Goblin in mid-air and can thwack it. Play then passes to his team. A player cannot catch, hold or carry a Goblin. He can only thwack it or intercept it in order to thwack it.

The Goblin
Each time the Goblin is thwacked it takes a point of damage. It begins with ten and when they are all gone it collapses. Then the Umpire calls for a new Goblin. The Bagger comes on with a new goblin and retrieves the body of the fallen one. All players, except the Plonkers, retire to any point on their boundary and play is restarted. A Goblin must be conscious when it crosses the Gate to score any points.

The Offside Rule

Note that standing within three hexes of the Gate and trying to intercept an opponent's volley or dob is considered to be offside unless the player is a Plonker. If the intercept is successful and the player thwacks the Goblin away from the Gate to a fellow player this is legal. Trying to score from an intercept while in an offside position is illegal and will get the player bounded (i.e. sent to the boundary). Play restarts with none of the other players having to move from their current position and the offended team getting the turn of play.

The Plonker
Each team can deploy a Plonker, but they do not have to. This is usually a Blocker. While being a Plonker the player must wear a distinctive hat so the Umpire knows what he is. The Plonker spends the whole game within five hexes of the Gate, he never goes to the Boundary for any reason. His role is to intercept a Goblin being thwacked at the Gate by the opposing team then knock it away towards his own team mates. As a Plonker he is not allowed to thwack a Goblin over the Gate and score. At the beginning of the game, and at each restart, he starts five hexes from the gate on his opponents side of it.

Barging
If a player chooses to on his move he can attempt to 'barge' past an opponent. This involves running through the hex upon which his opponent is standing. The player doing the barging is called the 'Barger', and his opponent the 'Bargee'. The Barger rolls 1D6+STR, the Bargee 1D6+DEX. The lowest scorer ends up on his back. On his team's next turn the prone player can only get up, and if lobbed a Goblin try and Thwack it. He cannot move from where he went down, nor can he attempt an intercept in that turn. If the Barger wins then he can carry on leaving the Bargee in the dust. If the Bargee wins then the Barger ends up in the hex just before the Bargee. If the Barger rolls a six and the Bargee rolls a one this is called being 'Slammed'. The bargee drops like a stone and must be removed from play. Each team has one substitute for occasions like this. The substitute must enter play on his team's next turn from his side of the boundary (Upfield for the Home team, the Meadow for the Visitors). If the score is tied then the umpire noticed and blows his whistle. Then the Barger is sent to the nearest boundary, even if he is a Plonker. A Plonker that is bounded must try and get back to within five hexes of the gate on his next and subsequent moves by the shortest route. He cannot intercept a Goblin in that time, though he can try and barge any opponents that are directly in his way

Boundarying
Even if a Goblin reaches the boundary he may not yet be safe. The Player whose turn it is can make one last chance to catch the little beggar by boundarying. If he thinks he has a player in reach, who has not yet moved on this turn of play, he can roll 1D6+SPD for that player and if he reaches the Goblin he thwacks it back onto the Green 1D6+STR hexes. The Goblin will fly directly towards the Gate. Anyone who can intercept it can do so as usual as the Goblin is back in play. However, to do this the player must step over the boundary, where he is at the mercy of the Greenkeeper [STR 3]. This official will make a Barge attack on the Player and if he wins he will hold onto him for a turn before he can be returned to play, while giving him a piece of his mind. If the Greenkeeper slams the player then a substitute may be played as usual.

Game Length
Game length is measured in the endurance of its Goblins. Usually this is three Goblins knocked out or escaped per half. At half time any players that were slammed and carried off in the first half are restored to their teams. Any caught by the Greenkeeper in the last turn of the half are released.

Pigging
Some teams prefer to play with a Pig. The Pig reacts pretty much as a Goblin does except it does not run around players it barges through them with a STR of 3. A slammed pig is considered out and will be retrieved by the Bagger as usual.

Teams Rosters
Human
Human Village teams make up the majority of the League. They are known for their adaptability and skill. Most Human teams have a balance between Blockers and Runners, and they normally deploy a Plonker. Type STR DEX +2 +1 +2 SPD +2 +1 +2 Captain +2 Blocker +2 Runner +0

Human teams are often named after their Village Pub.

Dwarf
Dwarven Miner teams are rough, tough and love barging. As a result they often only play a couple of runners, relying instead on knocking down their faster opponents. Very few Dwarven teams play without a Plonker. Type STR DEX +1 +1 +2 SPD +1 +0 +1 Captain +3 Blocker +3 Runner +1

Elf
The Elves have their own League, and games there are reputed to look more like freeform gymnastic displays. Teams close to human communities often play in the Provincial League as well. They are fast and light, often playing teams made up entirely of Runners without even a Plonker. Type STR DEX +3 +2 +2 SPD +2 +1 +2 Captain +1 Blocker +1 Runner +0

Orc
Orc teams come from the Tribal villages in the North. They play a very hard game, but often their downfall is their inability to cooperate. Orcs will even barge their own fellow players to get to a goblin rather than going around. No Orc will stand being a Plonker. Type STR DEX +2 +0 +0 SPD +2 +1 +2 Captain +2 Blocker +3 Runner +2