Playing Guide

The Original Shed Game.

Shed Builder BuyOut! is a real-to-life experience on a board game bringing today’s barn building skills and competition right into your living room. In the game, up to four players choose one of the barn-building companies as their own barn-building business in the game’s competition. As the game-playing business owners start up their factories and delivery fleets, they move into real-time risk and strategy to grow their operations. When a playing business owner reaches the game’s maximum potential for his company, he can BuyOut! competing businesses with a goal to finish the game as the largest company.

2 to 4 four players can play a game lasting for 2 to 3 hours. Miniature factories and delivery trucks bring a real-time dimension to the game. The game board brings real life to the roll of the dice: there are shed move job spaces for delivery guys, good shop-crew bonuses, and payroll spaces. It’s fun to build a 25 Barn-Week and sell inventory, but Restocking Supplies can get expensive for large factories, and Economic Recessions could slow you down! Sit down with some great friends and play a good game together!

For 2-4 players who are looking for hours of real-life fun!

NEW GAME: Each player gets $150,000 in cash (2-$50,000; 1-$20,000; 1-$10,000; 3-$5,000; 4-$1,000; 2-$500), one 2-bay factory, one brand-new delivery truck, and their choice of a title card of one of the four barn-building companies to start up their shed business. Elect a banker from among the players. The banker player receives the banker fee from other players when others land on the banker fee space. If the banker lands on the banker fee space, he does not need to pay.  The player with the longest experience in the shed industry gets to go first. Take your turn with a roll of one playing dice.

YOU MAY BUILD (purchase from the bank) additional 2-bay factories or purchase additional delivery trucks anytime during the game at regular prices: 2-bay factory: $100,000; Delivery truck: $75,000

NO BORROWING is allowed in the game. You can liquidate your capital assets when in need of funds: 2-bay factory liquidation value: $75,000; Delivery truck liquidation value: $50,000

WHEN BUILDING BARNS, roll 1 dice (unless you’ve drawn a “roll 2 dice” shed card) and multiply the number rolled x $1,000 for the individual building    income amount. Multiply this unit amount times the number on your barn week space. This is your total barn week income from the bank. Using this base figure, receive an additional 10% from the bank for each delivery truck owned. Then, using the same original base figure, pay out 20% commission to the barn lot (Pay the bank if barn lot is unowned. If you own the lot, you don’t need to pay.) You can use the included Build Chart Cards to help find the correct percentages.

YOU CAN PURCHASE BARN LOTS from the bank and receive additional income. You must land on the Barn Lot Space to purchase a particular Barn Lot. You may purchase multiple Barn Lots. Upon ownership, you receive a title card. The Barn Lot owner is responsible to notify the other players when he purchases a lot so he can begin receiving the commission. He is also responsible to ensure commission is paid to him during the rest of the game. Barn Lots are considered capital assets; you must pay 10% of the Barn Lot purchase value around TAX-TIME. When another barn building business wants to buy your business, they must add the purchase value of your Barn Lot to your other capital assets for the total BuyOut! amount paid to the Bank. When in need of funds, you can liquidate a Barn Lot for the amount listed on the back of the title card. When liquidated, a Barn Lot is returned to the bank and is open for other players to purchase.

PLAYER BUYOUT! Once your barn building business owns five 2-bay factories and 5 delivery trucks (the maximum allowed per business in the game), you can BuyOut! other player’s businesses to form powerful partnerships. To BuyOut! another player’s business, you must be in the BuyOut! Zone and you must pay the bank cash money equal to the player’s assets-less-cash value. The business you are purchasing must restart its cash-on-hand to $150,000 by the bank. You now receive the title card from the added business to prove your ownership. You own the additional business, but the purchased player stays in the game and continues as before, running the business for you.   Your businesses can share cash to operate either business or BuyOut other players. Only one business or business partnership may be purchased on a player’s turn. As owner, you make the final decisions for each business you own even while the player of your newly acquired business continues playing. Here is your opportunity to practice real-time inter-business relations!

BUYOUT! BENEFITS: If you’ve acquired another company with a Barn Lot (or lots), all of the businesses under your ownership benefit from owning the barn lot (since you own the lot, you don’t need to pay out the 20% commission on barn week builds).

BUYOUT! WHEN MULTIPLE BUSINESSES OWNED: If you own two or more businesses and want to BuyOut! another player’s business, each of your businesses must own the maximum amount of Delivery Trucks and Factories allowed in the game (5 of each) before you can consider purchasing another business. Only when your game pawn (as business owner) lands on the BuyOut! Zone can you purchase additional businesses. Only one business or business partnership may be purchased on a player’s turn.

 CHARITABLE CONTRIBUTION: If you land on this space, you must pay the bank 10% of your total cash in hand. Round down to the nearest $500 when figuring amount owed. To figure your TAXTIME deduction, multiply charitable contribution amount paid x 2. If this amount is equal to or larger than the taxes you owe against your assets-less-cash, you don’t need to pay taxes as you go around TAXTIME (unused tax credit on any given year is non-refundable and non-transferable). If this amount is less than the taxes you owe against your assets-less-cash, you must pay the remaining amount owed as you go around TAXTIME.

TAXTIME: You must observe TAXTIME at the end of every game year whether you land directly on the space or pass over the space. Figure up your assets-less-cash value (Factories, Trucks, and Barn Lots owned) and pay the bank 10% of this total amount into the bank. Round down to the nearest $500 when figuring amount owed. Factory Taxable Value: $100,000; Delivery Truck Taxable Value: $75,000. You must pay taxes for ALL factories owned regardless of your most recent state of economy.

PAYROLL and TAXTIME cards: You must redeem any Payroll or Tax Time cards on the same turn that you land on the next Payroll or Tax Time space.

Set up for hours of real-to-life action!

FAQs

Q: What do I do if I land on the coffee space?

A: Take a break with a cup of coffee and review your business strategy for the coming year.

Q: Can I purchase additional factories in order to do a barn week job I just landed on?

A: Absolutely. You can buy factories and delivery trucks anytime during the game.

Q: Can I purchase additional factories before paying the Charitable Contribution so my cash assets total value is less?

A: Technically, yes. But it’s doubtful you will be any further ahead. 10% of $100,000 is the same whether in the form of cash or hard assets, which means you either pay now or around TAXTIME. Remember, you will get to double up what is paid as Charitable Contribution for a TAXTIME credit.

Q: Can I buy another 2-bay factory when I land on the Stock Build Bonus space in order to receive more bonus money?

A: Sure. I do that all the time. It’s kind of like getting a factory built with a fun discount!

Q: Can I buy additional delivery trucks before I roll the dice if I’ve landed on a move job?

A: Now you’re thinking. Go ahead, I’ve done that too.

Q: What are my assets-less-cash?

A: Your assets-less-cash are all your assets minus your cash on hand, (in other words, all factories, delivery trucks, and barn lots that you own).

Q: What are my cash assets?

A: Your cash assets are your cash money on hand.

Q: Who do I pay the Banker Fee?

A: Pay the player who is in charge of the game banking. He’s probably working overtime trying to stay on top of the massive cash flow from all those barn building companies!

Q: What does “per bay in operation” mean?

A: This term is specifically for the benefit of those players who are in an Economic Recession year. Even if they own five 2-bay factories, while in Economic Recession, they must only maintain the two 2-bay factories in use that year.

Q: What can I do to protect myself from getting bought out by another player?

A: Good Question. Probably the most effective is taking the risks to build your own business as fast as you can. You could also try buying some Barn Lots to increase your BuyOut! overall worth.

Q: Can I BuyOut! another business while I am in an Economic Recession?

A: Yes, you can. Economic Recessions only affect your cash in-flow. You can do other business as normal.

Q: I landed on Restock Supplies and do not have sufficient funds to purchase my supplies. If I liquidate a 2-bay factory for the much-needed cash, does that affect the bay quantity I am buying supplies for?

A: No. You will pay the Restock Supplies amount according to the number of bays owned before you liquidated for funds.

Q: I pulled a “sub-out deliveries” Shed Card. Does the player doing my deliveries go by the amount of my trucks or their trucks?

A: They will drive their own trucks.

Q: I pulled a “deduct $1,000 per shed” Shed Card and I rolled one dice and got 1. How do I figure this barn-week’s building prices?

A: Unfortunately, that puts individual building pricing at $0 this week. Been there, done that.

Q: What is an easy way to figure delivery and Barn Lot percentages?

A: Remember, 10% of a number can be as easy as dropping a 0 from the base number. Let’s say you’re on a 10-barn week. You roll 5. That’s $5,000 times 10 = $50,000 for building the barns. What do you make additionally per delivery rig? For 10%, drop a 0 from $50,000 and get $5,000. Multiply that times as many delivery rigs as you own. Finding Lot percentages is just as easy: in our scenario, take the 10% ($5,000) and multiply times 2 for the 20% = $10,000. Believe me, you will sharpen your mental math skills after a game or two of barn building! You can also use the included “Barn-Week Build Chart” cards to simplify the math.

Q: When do I draw a SHED CARD?

A: Only when you’ve landed on a Barn Week space that your shed-building factories can handle.

Q: How do I sub-out deliveries?

A: The bank pays out for all deliveries. If you’ve drawn a “Sub-out Deliveries” SHED CARD, you forfeit the delivery opportunity and give the designated player (to the left or right of you) the job instead. You roll the dice to get the base dollar amount for your barn-building job. Then the bank pays them 10% according to this base dollar amount for each delivery truck they own.

Q: How can I help myself remember that I’m in an economic recession?

A: With only two 2-bay factories in operation, you could flip your unused factories up-side-down.