Secret Garden Board game
Misselthwaite Manor – the unofficial Secret Garden board game
2 player minimum (optional 3-5 players)
Goal: The goal of the game is to form a path to sneak Colin to the Garden using the tiles, wheelchair and Garden door key. To get the key you must find the Robin.
Preparation: Make or print and cut tiles, character and item tokens as listed below. Make sure to indicate start spaces for Ben (B), Dickon (D), Uncle Craven (U), Martha (M), Colin (C), Robin (R), Mary (red R) and wheelchair (W) on a 1” grid.
Optional Hyperlinks:
1” Wheelchair, Robin, key and lamb tokens
https://cf.geekdo-images.com/original/img/kef596MsHKrNVjHgbv6-8uoHCQY=/0x0/pic1051028.jpg
Characters (print on cardstock, cut around and attach small binder clip to base to help stand up)
https://cf.geekdo-images.com/original/img/hnkiF35GVVoAQwAJEIgDZCfBZV0=/0x0/pic1051030.jpg
Mrs. Medlock, who will need to be scaled to print and binder clipped, the same way as the other characters.
https://www.twinkl.ae/illustration/mrs-medlock
Tiles: (print each page of the images below the instructions on 8 ½ x 11 cardstock and cut off white areas)
Pieces: yard tiles, mansion tiles and foyer tile, character tokens, wheelchair, Robin, lamb and garden key tokens, 1 die (not included). The board itself can be a defined space as big or small as you would like, depending on your desired difficulty. Generally around a standard dinner table size will do fine.
Child characters: Mary (player 1), Dickon (player 2), and Colin.
Adult characters: Mrs. Medlock, Martha, Ben, and Uncle Craven.
Setup: Place Mary’s room tile face-up in one corner of the board. Separate the Foyer tile and put it aside, face-up. Place the Yard tiles face-down in a pile and separate them from the Mansion tiles. Shuffle the Mansion tiles and place them face-down in a separate pile from the Yard tiles.
Narrative start: After losing her parents to cholera in India, a bitter 10 year old girl named Mary is sent to live in England. She is picked up by Mrs. Medlock, the stern head keeper of the manor, who instructs Mary to keep out of trouble and not to disturb her Uncle Craven, who would rather not see her at all. His wife was the twin sister of Mary's mother and owned a garden which has been locked away to anyone since she died. Mary soon makes friends with a gardener named Ben, a servant named Martha and her younger, nature-loving brother, Dickon.
Starting gameplay: Player one places Mary is on her room tile, and a new tile is drawn from the Mansion tile pile. This new tile is placed face-up on the board, making sure to line up a door on the new tile with Mary’s front door. Mrs. Medlock is placed on this first tile outside Mary’s room (facing away).
Next, Player 2 draws a tile from the Yard tile pile and places it face-up on the opposite corner of the board. Player, 2 then places Dickon on this tile (making sure he is on the outside of the garden in the picture.)
Play turns: Play continues, alternating between players, drawing tiles and either matching up doors for the Mansion tiles or grass/garden walls for the Yard tiles. Dickon and Mary may now move once per corresponding player’s turn, by the player rolling a single die and moving the number of spaces rolled. If they come to the end of a tile, they must wait to move until there is tile in front of them to move. Tiles may not overlap with one another or be moved once they are placed on the board.
Once each player has had a turn, any adult characters (Mrs. Medlock, Martha, Ben, and or Uncle Craven) must be moved according to their directions. Play then returns to player 1 as normal.
Once Player 2 is out of Yard tiles, they place the front door of the Foyer tile so that it opens out into the yard. On player two’s next turn they will start drawing from the same Mansion tile pile as player 1. The goal is to get the garden to eventually connect with Mary’s room tile.
*Note, if all tiles are used and a path has not been formed between Colin’s room, his wheelchair and the Garden, the game will be unwinnable, and will need to be restarted.
If a tile is placed on the board containing a start space for Uncle Craven, Ben, Martha, the Robin or the wheelchair, the corresponding character/item token will need to be placed there and be given a turn.
Items: The Garden door cannot be opened without first running into the Robin, after which the players will now have the Garden door key. The wheelchair does not move on its own, but is rather acquired like the Garden key. Once a finding these items, the tokens are kept to the side (off the game board). If Colin is caught with his wheelchair, it is returned to his room with him, rather than back to its starting space.
Moving the adults: Other than Mrs. Medlock, all adult characters have a start space with their name and direction labeled on a tile. One of the two players or a third player may roll for these characters and move them accordingly in a straight line. They pass through any doors they encounter, but if they run into a wall perpendicularly, a player must roll a die for them to decide their new direction: 1-2, they turn left, 3-4 they turn around and head backwards, 5-6 they turn right.
The Robin is considered an “adult” and moves just like the others except it has no such “eyeline” and cannot “catch” any characters. Ben and the Robin stay outside, even if they run directly into the door to the Foyer.
A character is considered in an adult’s “eyeline” if the adult character is facing straight at a player, if they are to the adult’s side or she is facing away from them, she will not see them. If a player passes in front of an adult’s eyeline and is out of their starting space, that adult character will adjust her course and move in the direction she last saw them. Assuming all doors except Mary’s and the Garden’s are open, the adults can see past doors, however walls do obscure their view.
Getting caught: A player is considered caught if an adult character runs into them on the adult’s turn, by exact roll or less. Once caught, the player’s character and anyone they are with (such as Colin if he’s in his wheelchair) are sent back to their starting space. If Mary caught and returned to her starting space her room will now be locked, which means the player will now need connect tiles to the Secret Passage door to get out. They would then try to get their path to meet up with one of the previous rooms to find a way to navigate back to Colin. Alternately, if Dickon can make it to the outside of her door he can unlock it for her.
Colin: When Colin is found, read the Colin Narrative. He does not move independently like other characters, but rather moves with the player who found him, provided they found his wheelchair first.
If Colin is caught, he is placed back in his room with his wheelchair, rather than returning the wheelchair to its starting space.
Colin narrative: Mary discovers her cousin, Colin, in a secret room, who tells her how he's never left the house and cannot walk. He tells her that his mother died giving birth to him and, being so weak, was fed the notion that he will remain so until he develops a hunch like his father and then die. Mary cannot see anything wrong with Colin and with Mary's encouragement, he finally decides that he may be ready to venture outside. He just needs his wheelchair, which must be around here somewhere?
Other: Once per game, Dickon can distract an adult character by letting a lamb loose in the house, which she will then chase. The lamb runs 6 spaces in a straight line in the direction Dickon is facing when using this ability. Once the lamb is intercepted by an adult character, it is removed from the game.
Martha can be played as working with Mary or Mrs. Medlock. She can either catch or ignore Mary, Dickon or Colin depending on the player’s desired level of difficulty. However, if Mrs. Medlock is in eyeline of Martha crossing paths with Mary, Dickon or Colin and ignoring them, Mary is removed from the game (fired). She can also be used to unlock Mary’s door, after Mary is caught – assuming she is being played as working with Mary.
If Mrs. Medlock chases you outside past Ben, he will distract her and stop her on his space.
Narrative end: Uncle Craven demands to see his son, but even Mrs. Medlock cannot find him. They hear laughter in the garden and find the secret door open. The garden is growing once more, Colin's strength has returned, and now Craven's return to the place he thought he'd never see again, all because of Mary – now welcomed as part of their family, Mary leaves the garden open to all.
Made using a tabletop board game's preview tile images and a grid. Added a few "start spots" for characters.
2 player minimum (optional 3-5 players)
Goal: The goal of the game is to form a path to sneak Colin to the Garden using the tiles, wheelchair and Garden door key. To get the key you must find the Robin.
Preparation: Make or print and cut tiles, character and item tokens as listed below. Make sure to indicate start spaces for Ben (B), Dickon (D), Uncle Craven (U), Martha (M), Colin (C), Robin (R), Mary (red R) and wheelchair (W) on a 1” grid.
Optional Hyperlinks:
1” Wheelchair, Robin, key and lamb tokens
https://cf.geekdo-images.com/original/img/kef596MsHKrNVjHgbv6-8uoHCQY=/0x0/pic1051028.jpg
Characters (print on cardstock, cut around and attach small binder clip to base to help stand up)
https://cf.geekdo-images.com/original/img/hnkiF35GVVoAQwAJEIgDZCfBZV0=/0x0/pic1051030.jpg
Mrs. Medlock, who will need to be scaled to print and binder clipped, the same way as the other characters.
https://www.twinkl.ae/illustration/mrs-medlock
Tiles: (print each page of the images below the instructions on 8 ½ x 11 cardstock and cut off white areas)
Pieces: yard tiles, mansion tiles and foyer tile, character tokens, wheelchair, Robin, lamb and garden key tokens, 1 die (not included). The board itself can be a defined space as big or small as you would like, depending on your desired difficulty. Generally around a standard dinner table size will do fine.
Child characters: Mary (player 1), Dickon (player 2), and Colin.
Adult characters: Mrs. Medlock, Martha, Ben, and Uncle Craven.
Setup: Place Mary’s room tile face-up in one corner of the board. Separate the Foyer tile and put it aside, face-up. Place the Yard tiles face-down in a pile and separate them from the Mansion tiles. Shuffle the Mansion tiles and place them face-down in a separate pile from the Yard tiles.
Narrative start: After losing her parents to cholera in India, a bitter 10 year old girl named Mary is sent to live in England. She is picked up by Mrs. Medlock, the stern head keeper of the manor, who instructs Mary to keep out of trouble and not to disturb her Uncle Craven, who would rather not see her at all. His wife was the twin sister of Mary's mother and owned a garden which has been locked away to anyone since she died. Mary soon makes friends with a gardener named Ben, a servant named Martha and her younger, nature-loving brother, Dickon.
Starting gameplay: Player one places Mary is on her room tile, and a new tile is drawn from the Mansion tile pile. This new tile is placed face-up on the board, making sure to line up a door on the new tile with Mary’s front door. Mrs. Medlock is placed on this first tile outside Mary’s room (facing away).
Next, Player 2 draws a tile from the Yard tile pile and places it face-up on the opposite corner of the board. Player, 2 then places Dickon on this tile (making sure he is on the outside of the garden in the picture.)
Play turns: Play continues, alternating between players, drawing tiles and either matching up doors for the Mansion tiles or grass/garden walls for the Yard tiles. Dickon and Mary may now move once per corresponding player’s turn, by the player rolling a single die and moving the number of spaces rolled. If they come to the end of a tile, they must wait to move until there is tile in front of them to move. Tiles may not overlap with one another or be moved once they are placed on the board.
Once each player has had a turn, any adult characters (Mrs. Medlock, Martha, Ben, and or Uncle Craven) must be moved according to their directions. Play then returns to player 1 as normal.
Once Player 2 is out of Yard tiles, they place the front door of the Foyer tile so that it opens out into the yard. On player two’s next turn they will start drawing from the same Mansion tile pile as player 1. The goal is to get the garden to eventually connect with Mary’s room tile.
*Note, if all tiles are used and a path has not been formed between Colin’s room, his wheelchair and the Garden, the game will be unwinnable, and will need to be restarted.
If a tile is placed on the board containing a start space for Uncle Craven, Ben, Martha, the Robin or the wheelchair, the corresponding character/item token will need to be placed there and be given a turn.
Items: The Garden door cannot be opened without first running into the Robin, after which the players will now have the Garden door key. The wheelchair does not move on its own, but is rather acquired like the Garden key. Once a finding these items, the tokens are kept to the side (off the game board). If Colin is caught with his wheelchair, it is returned to his room with him, rather than back to its starting space.
Moving the adults: Other than Mrs. Medlock, all adult characters have a start space with their name and direction labeled on a tile. One of the two players or a third player may roll for these characters and move them accordingly in a straight line. They pass through any doors they encounter, but if they run into a wall perpendicularly, a player must roll a die for them to decide their new direction: 1-2, they turn left, 3-4 they turn around and head backwards, 5-6 they turn right.
The Robin is considered an “adult” and moves just like the others except it has no such “eyeline” and cannot “catch” any characters. Ben and the Robin stay outside, even if they run directly into the door to the Foyer.
A character is considered in an adult’s “eyeline” if the adult character is facing straight at a player, if they are to the adult’s side or she is facing away from them, she will not see them. If a player passes in front of an adult’s eyeline and is out of their starting space, that adult character will adjust her course and move in the direction she last saw them. Assuming all doors except Mary’s and the Garden’s are open, the adults can see past doors, however walls do obscure their view.
Getting caught: A player is considered caught if an adult character runs into them on the adult’s turn, by exact roll or less. Once caught, the player’s character and anyone they are with (such as Colin if he’s in his wheelchair) are sent back to their starting space. If Mary caught and returned to her starting space her room will now be locked, which means the player will now need connect tiles to the Secret Passage door to get out. They would then try to get their path to meet up with one of the previous rooms to find a way to navigate back to Colin. Alternately, if Dickon can make it to the outside of her door he can unlock it for her.
Colin: When Colin is found, read the Colin Narrative. He does not move independently like other characters, but rather moves with the player who found him, provided they found his wheelchair first.
If Colin is caught, he is placed back in his room with his wheelchair, rather than returning the wheelchair to its starting space.
Colin narrative: Mary discovers her cousin, Colin, in a secret room, who tells her how he's never left the house and cannot walk. He tells her that his mother died giving birth to him and, being so weak, was fed the notion that he will remain so until he develops a hunch like his father and then die. Mary cannot see anything wrong with Colin and with Mary's encouragement, he finally decides that he may be ready to venture outside. He just needs his wheelchair, which must be around here somewhere?
Other: Once per game, Dickon can distract an adult character by letting a lamb loose in the house, which she will then chase. The lamb runs 6 spaces in a straight line in the direction Dickon is facing when using this ability. Once the lamb is intercepted by an adult character, it is removed from the game.
Martha can be played as working with Mary or Mrs. Medlock. She can either catch or ignore Mary, Dickon or Colin depending on the player’s desired level of difficulty. However, if Mrs. Medlock is in eyeline of Martha crossing paths with Mary, Dickon or Colin and ignoring them, Mary is removed from the game (fired). She can also be used to unlock Mary’s door, after Mary is caught – assuming she is being played as working with Mary.
If Mrs. Medlock chases you outside past Ben, he will distract her and stop her on his space.
Narrative end: Uncle Craven demands to see his son, but even Mrs. Medlock cannot find him. They hear laughter in the garden and find the secret door open. The garden is growing once more, Colin's strength has returned, and now Craven's return to the place he thought he'd never see again, all because of Mary – now welcomed as part of their family, Mary leaves the garden open to all.
Made using a tabletop board game's preview tile images and a grid. Added a few "start spots" for characters.
