Spolia

Product Packaging Board Game Design

First Honorable Mention in the Collab Student Design Competition Game On! Philadelphia Museum of Art, Philadelphia, PA 2012

Spolia is a game about mythologies and stories from different cultures. The game promotes learning the history behind the stories and promotes the blending of ideas to create new stories from these existing symbols.

~Rules: The Game can be played with 3 to 6 players, though more can join in if players team up. All players draw 10 Companion cards. One player is chosen to go first. Player One draws a Quest Cards and reads it aloud. The other players must fill in the blanks with the information from their Companion cards, thus creating a part of a story. Player One chooses the answer they like the best. The Chosen Player keeps their winning cards while the other players discard theirs. The Chosen Player spins the center piece and land on one of four options. If the player lands on:
The Mentor: they move forward one space.
The Shadow: they move backwards one space.
The Shapeshifter: all players move forward one space except the spinning player.
The Trickster: all players move backward one space except the spinning player moves forward one space.
Players start their pawn’/hero piece on the tip of the outermost petal of the game board, moving inward. They advance to the tip of the second tier of the petals in a clockwise rotation (one outer and inner petal per player).
A player will not move backwards if they are at the first spot of either petal tip. The player who won/spun the last round reads the next Quest card.
All players refill their hand each turn so they have 10 Companion cards. The player(s) who reach the last space on the second tier of their petals wins and they get to read their cares aloud, telling the new story they have created.
Extra blank cards are provided to encourage the creation of new characters, ideas, and stories.

~Packaging: Spolia was designed with packaging in mind. The game board folds up and is held in place by sliding rings on the center handle. The playing pieces can fit in between the petals so they are not lost. Also, there is space in the bottom of the board that can store the cards. The entire game can then be lifted by the top handle and carried to its next destination. For shipping and store display I suggest that the game can be sealed with a plastic wrap around it to make sure it cannot be opened before purchase.