SO LONG SUCKER1.A game for exploring negotiation and game

theory

Players. Exactly four players.

Equipment. 28 stackable tokens in four different

colors or markings (7 x 4 = 28), e.g. poker chips, playing cards of four suits, or marked pieces of paper.

Something to hold tokens taken out-of-play.

A flat playing surface.

Setup. Each player takes seven tokens of one

color, and owns that color. You must keep all tokens in your possession, including captured tokens (“prisoners”), in plain view at all times.

Randomly select the start player.

Rules (Game Play).1. Negotiation. Coalitions, or

agreements to cooperate, are permitted, and may take any form. However deals are unenforceable within the game. There is no penalty for breaching an agreement. You may confer openly at the table during the game. Secret and prior agreements are prohibited.

2. Transferring Prisoners. You may transfer one or more prisoners (but not your own color token) to another surviving player at any time. Once complete, transfers are unconditional and cannot be retracted.

3. Killing Prisoners. You may kill one or more prisoners in your possession at any time, from time to time. You may not kill your own color tokens except from a captured pile.

1 Hausner, M., Nash, J. F., Shapley, L. S. & Shubik, M., (1964), "`So Long Sucker,' A Four-Person Game". It should be noted that the game as played by the inventors had a saltier name, and often got so heated that it resulted in spouses going home in separate cabs.

4. Killed Tokens. Killed tokens are taken out-of-play.

5. Moves. You move by placing any token in your possession onto either (a) the playing surface to create a new pile, or (b) any existing pile. (The start player has only one move.)

6. Unable to Move | Losing. If you have the next move but have no tokens in your possession, then every player holding prisoners must either declare their refusal to rescue you by transferring prisoner(s) to you, or come your rescue. If you still cannot move, then you lose the game. After losing, your tokens remain in play as prisoners, but are ignored in determining the order of play.

7. Capture. If two tokens of the same color are played on top of a pile:

If the owner of that color has already lost, then kill the entire pile.

Otherwise, if you own that color then you must (a) choose one token from that pile and kill it (you may choose your color), and (b) capture the rest of the pile and take it into your possession.

8. Next Move (Order of Play). After a player loses: the next

move rebounds to the player who gave the losing player the move.

After a capture: the next move goes to the player capturing the pile, or if no player captured the pile, then the next move rebounds to the last player to move.

After you make any other move: you must give the next move to any player (including yourself) whose color is not included in the pile you just played on. If all surviving players’ colors are in that pile, then (a) look at the color of the token on the top of the pile – the surviving player who owns that color is ineligible to move;

(b) continue down that pile in that fashion until only one surviving player remains eligible to move – that player must make the next move.

Winning. The last surviving player wins. A player can win even if they hold no tokens and all of their tokens have been killed.