Disney Hocus Pocus: The Game Board Game: Rules and Instructions for How to Play

Objective of Disney Hocus Pocus: The Game

The objective of Disney Hocus Pocus: The Game is to work together in order to stall the Sanderson sisters’ potion long enough that the sun rises and foils their plan.

Setup for Disney Hocus Pocus: The Game

Place the Cauldron board in the center of the table. Set the four Trick tokens and the Binx mover near the board.
Place the Witch board to the side of the Cauldron board where everyone can see it. Place the Sun token on the lowest space on the Sunrise track. Set the Stun token near the Witch board.
Shuffle the Spell cards and place them face down near the Witch board.
Shuffle the Ingredient cards and deal cards to each player. The number of cards you will deal to each player depends on the number of players.
- 2-3 players: 4 Ingredient cards
- 4-6 players: 3 Ingredient cards
Players may look at their own cards, but they cannot show them to the other players.
Place the remaining Ingredient cards face down next to the Cauldron board.
Determine who starts the game by figuring out who most recently lit a candle. Otherwise you can let the oldest player go first.

Playing Disney Hocus Pocus: The Game

Disney Hocus Pocus: The Game is a cooperative game where all of the players work together in order to try and win the game. Even though the game is cooperative, players must keep their cards secret from the other players. You cannot share information with other players about what cards you have or what your strategy is. The only exception to this is if a card/gameplay mechanic specifically allows you to.

You will play the game over a number of rounds starting with the first player. Play proceeds clockwise throughout the game. On your turn you will take the following actions:

Ask one question.
Play one Ingredient card.
Draw one Ingredient card.

Ask One Question

You will begin your turn by asking one question to the rest of the players. You can either ask about a specific Ingredient color or Ingredient type. For example you can ask if the players have a yellow card.

Ask A Question in Hocus Pocus: The Game — This player has two Oil of Boil cards in their hand. They should consider asking the other players if they also have Oil of Boil cards.

Starting with the player to your left, each player will answer the question. They can only directly answer and not provide additional information. For example you can say that you have the type/color of card, but you can’t say how many of the card that you have in your hand.

Play One Ingredient Card

After asking a question you will play one of the cards from your hand to the Cauldron board. On the board there are five different spots where you can play cards.

To play an Ingredient card it needs to either match the Ingredient type or color of the top card in the pile. The card you play can also match both the type and color of a pile. If a pile has no cards, the card has to match the color/type printed on the board. If you have a card in your hand that you can play, you must play a card.

Playing A Card in Hocus Pocus: The Game — This player has two cards in their hand that could be played to this space. They could play the blue card because it matches the color of the space. The Oil of Boil card could be played because it matches the ingredient type on the space.

Playing A Card — This player decided to play the green Oil of Boil card.

Some of the Ingredient cards have special symbols printed on them. When you play one of these Ingredient cards, you will take the corresponding action. See the Special Ingredients section below for more details.

If you cannot play an Ingredient card from your hand, you will draw the top card from the Spell deck. You will take the action printed on the Spell card. See the Spell Cards section for details on Spell cards.

Drawing A Spell Card in Hocus Pocus: The Game — This player is forced to draw a Spell card because they don’t have a card in their hand that they can play.

Should you not play a card from your hand, you will also have to discard at least one of the cards from your hand. You can discard as many of the cards from your hand as you want. For each card that you discard, you will draw a new Ingredient card.

Draw One Ingredient Card

You will finish your turn by drawing one card from the Ingredient deck. If a Spell card was drawn during the round, you will draw the card after any effects from the Spell card have been applied.

Drawing a Card — At the end of this player’s turn they will draw the top card from the Draw Pile.

Special Ingredients

Some of the Ingredient cards will have a special icon printed on them. When you play one of these cards, you will take a special action.

Binx

When you play a card that has the Binx icon on it, you will place the Binx Mover in front of any of the players. You can choose to place the mover in front of yourself.

The player that has Binx in front of them may reveal the cards in their hand to the other players. They may play with their cards face up on the table in front of them. They can keep the cards face up in front of themselves as long as they have the Binx Mover.

Binx Example — This player currently has the Binx mover. They will play with their cards face up on the table. This allows the other players to see what cards this player currently has.

Binx will stay in front of the player until one of the following happens:

Another Ingredient card featuring Binx is played.
You are instructed to remove Binx from play.
The current round ends.

Spell Book

When you play a card that features the Spell Book icon, the witches will cast a spell. You will draw the top card from the Spell deck and take the corresponding action.

Spell Cards in Hocus Pocus: The Game

Should a player be unable to play an Ingredient card or an Ingredient card with the Spell Book icon on it is played, the top Spell card is drawn.

Each Spell card features one of the Sanderson sisters casting a spell. The name of the Sanderson sister casting the spell is written at the top of the card. The card also says what the spell does. Read the card and take the corresponding action. After taking the action, discard the card.

Spell Card Example — The Spell card that was drawn was Dance Until You Die. The spell was cast by Winifred. This card forces the players to discard the top Ingredient card from each of the piles unless the card shows the Binx symbol.

If the witch that is casting the spell is currently stunned, the spell will miss. In this case you will ignore what the card says and discard the card. You will not draw another Spell card to replace it.

Stunned Witch Not Being Able to Cast Spell — This Spell card is being cast by Sarah. Since Sarah is currently stunned, the card will have no impact on the players.

You can never avoid the spell Take Flight as it features all three witches. Since you can’t stun more than one witch at a time, it is impossible to stop the spell.

If the Spell card deck ever runs out of cards, shuffle the discard deck to form a new Spell deck.

Trick Tokens

To help you in the game, at the beginning of the game you are given four trick tokens. On your turn you can choose to use one of these tokens. The team can only use each trick once per game though. Once you use a trick, you will flip it over to show that it can’t be used again.

Circle of Salt

When a Spell card is drawn, you can use this trick to ignore its effect. You will discard the Spell card without applying its effect. You will not draw another Spell card.

Daylight Savings Time

After asking a question but before playing a card, choose another player to swap an Ingredient card with. Each of the players in the swap chooses one of the Ingredient cards from their hand and places them face down on the table. The two players will swap these two cards adding the new card to their hand. The current player will then have to play an Ingredient card from their hand. After playing the card, they will draw a card to end their turn.

Billy Butcherson

After asking a question, you can use Billy Butcherson to avoid playing an Ingredient card on your turn. You will not draw a card at the end of your turn.

Burning Rain of Death

After asking a question but before you play a card, you can use this trick to discard three Ingredient cards from your hand. You will draw three new Ingredient cards from the top of the deck. You will then play a card to the Cauldron board and then draw a new card.

Stunning A Witch

After playing an Ingredient card to the Cauldron board, you should check the top card from the five different piles. You should also check after a Spell card is revealed that changed the cards on the Cauldron board. If the card on top of all five boards match, you have stunned one of the three witches. You can stun any of the witches, and can even stun the same witch multiple times in a row. Winifred’s spells are the most powerful so it is best if you can stun her.

The witch you stun depends on how the cards on the top of the piles match.

If the color on top of each of the piles is the same color, you have stunned Sarah.

All Piles The Same Color — The players have successfully played a green card to the five piles on the Cauldron board. The players have successfully stunned Sarah.

If the Ingredient type is the same on the top of each pile, you have stunned Mary.

All Piles Same Type — Each pile on the Cauldron board has a Newt Saliva card on the top of it. The players have successfully stunned Mary.

Should each pile have the same ingredient on top and each are a different color, you have stunned Winifred.

All Piles Same Time and Different Colors — The players have successfully played a Newt Saliva card to each of the five piles. Each of the cards are also a different color. The players have successfully stunned Winifred with these cards.

Whenever you stun a witch, the current round ends immediately. If the card that stunned the witch was a Special Ingredient, you will ignore its effect.

End of Round in Disney Hocus Pocus: The Game

When a round ends you will take the following actions to prepare for the next round.

The player who is the current player when the round ended, draws one Ingredient card from the Ingredient draw deck. Their turn will then immediately end.

Place the stunned token on the picture of the Witch you stunned. Any ongoing Spell effects are ended immediately.

Stunning A Witch — As the players played a card of the same color on top of each pile, Sarah will be stunned. The players will place the Stun token on her section of the Witch board to indicate that she is currently stunned.

Each time you stun one of the witches, you will move the Sun token up one space on the track. It does not matter which witch you stunned. You do not have to stun all three witches during the game in order to win.

Moving The Sun Token — The players successfully stunned the witches ending the current round. For completing the round they moved the Sun token up one space on the track.

Collect all of the Ingredient cards from the Cauldron board and the discard pile. Search for cards that either have the Binx or Spell Book icon on them. Shuffle these cards back into the Ingredient card deck. Return the other cards to the box as they won’t be used for the rest of the game.

If Binx is in front of one of the players, move it next to the Witch’s board. The players won’t have the effect of Binx until one of the corresponding cards is played again.

The next round begins with the player to the left of the player that ended the last round. Players will not discard any of the Ingredient cards from their hands. You will keep the same cards for the start of the next round.

End of Disney Hocus Pocus: The Game

Disney Hocus Pocus: The Game can end in one of two ways.

If you stun the witches enough times to move the Sun token to the top of the Sunrise track, you have defeated the Sanderson sisters and have won the game.

Winning Hocus Pocus: The Game — The players have successfully stunned the witches enough times to raise the Sun token to the top of the track. The players have won the game.

Should you have to draw an Ingredient card but there are no cards left in the Ingredient deck, all of the players lose. You do not immediately lose when a player draws the last card from the Ingredient deck. Players can keep taking turns without drawing Ingredient cards at the end of their turn. Should you be forced to draw an Ingredient card due to a Spell card or not having a card in your hand that you can play, you will lose the game.

Year: 2020 | Publisher: Ravensburger | Designer: Prospero Hall | Artist: Ann Marcellino

Genres: Card, Family, Cooperative

Ages: 8+ | Number of Players: 2-6 | Length of Game: 30 minutes

Difficulty: Light | Strategy: Light-Moderate | Luck: Moderate

Components: Cauldron Board, Witch Board, Sun Token, Stun Token, 50 Ingredient cards, 13 Spell cards, 4 Trick Tokens, Binx Mover, instructions

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