Himmelsstürmer

Flame hisses from the burner, hot air flows into the balloon, it's Flying Day for balloons! The best balloon pilots go to the start - and their three teams are there! They support and promote three of these teams. Can the three win? Or are you going to make a crash landing as a sponsor today?

Components

Goal of the Game

Preparation

1. The board is laid out and all 8 balloons are placed on the starting space (= compass).
2. The 8 sponsor cards are shuffled face down and each receives one, which must be protected from the curious gaze of one's opponents. Thus, throughout the game the players do not know which trio of balloons each player supports.
3. In turn each player rolls the die once. Whoever has rolled the highest begins the game. The rest of the players follow in turn order.

Course of Play

The player always has the option to move any one of the 8 balloons and is not restricted to only moving the three balloons found on his sponsor card.

1. DIRECTION OF THE BALLOON

   The direction of a balloon is always determined by the space it is in. Movement is always following the direction of the arrow!

   If a balloon is in a space in which the arrow points backward, the balloon must be moved backwards in an amount equal to the number on the die.

   Further actions may occur depending on the space on which the balloon lands.

   After that the turn ends and the next player continues the game.

2. BUMPING A BALLOON

   Apart from the start and goal spaces, only one balloon may be in a space at at time.

   If a balloon ends its movement on a space alreacy containing another balloon, the newly-arrived balloon takes the space and the previous balloon is bumped.

   The bumped balloon must move to the next vacant space in the same direction from which it was bumped. That is, a balloon can be bumped either forward or backward.

   Note: Only by landing in a space can a balloon bump another, not by passing over it during its movement.

3. SPECIAL SPACES Certain special spaces have corresponding rules to follow.
   1. SUN RAY
      Any balloon which ends in such a space must roll again and move the balloon of the player's choice according to the roll of the die. This extra turn is not given for a balloon bumped to a Sun Ray space.

   2. BAD WEATHER
      Each balloon that ends on a Bad Weather space is immediately struck by lightning and must be moved back to the starting space and begin the race anew.

   3. BECALMED
      Each balloon that ends on such a space loses altitude and lands. Such a balloon is blocked and can be moved only in one of two ways:
      • If the balloon is bumped by another balloon that lands in its space.
      • If the balloon is last in the race, it may be moved via a die roll. A balloon is only in last place when there is no other balloon behind it.

4. GOAL SPACE

   The goal space need not be reached by exact count: extra pips are disregarded. Each balloon which reaches the goal space remains there until the end of the game.

End of the Game

Note: A player may not win on his own turn. For example, if the player already has two balloons on the goal space and another player brings the needed balloon over the goal line, the player wins as it was not his own turn.

Strategic Tips

• Himmelsstürmer is a game for masters of bluff. It pays to skillfully camouflage one's own assignment. Thus once in a while move other balloons forward and your own backwards! Blind pushes forward are often more trouble than they are worth.

• My balloon, your balloon - this doesn't play a role in Himmelsstürmer! One should therefore in the course of the game pay careful attention to the positions of all of the balloons. In certain situations it pays to give the favorites of your opponents a flight backwards or to present them with Bad Weather or a Becalmed.