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Depot
- 3–5 players
- 15 min
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Couperation
2018
Rules assistance for Couperation
Plain-language explanations of turns, card effects and disputed situations, with official source references and saved question history.
- 2–4 players
- 15 min
- 8+
- Complexity 2.0/5
Rules assistant for Couperation
What would you like to know?
Answers come from the official rulebook, with the page to check.
Couperation is a board game released in 2018 for 2–4 players, 15 minutes per game, and ages 8 and up. It was designed by 沢口游祐 (Yusuke Sawaguchi) and its main mechanics are Hand Management, Cooperative Game, and Pattern Building.
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About the game
In Couperation (クーペレイション), players try to play cards from their hand to create a card pyramid seven layers high while staying within certain rules for the placement of cards. Cards in the deck range from 1-50, and the cards numbered 1 and 50 — along with 2-4 other random cards — are placed in the reserve at the top of the playing area before the game begins. Each player receives a hand of three cards. On a turn, you draw 0-4 cards from the deck depending on which card was played the previous turn. (The first player of the game optionally draws one card.) Then you can play a card face up or face down in the pyramid. Within a row, card values must escalate from left to right; when placing a card on a higher row, that card must be supported by two other cards and the newly placed card's value must be between the values of the two supporting cards. When you place a card face down, you ignore the value restriction. Alternatively, you can discard two cards to the reserve, then draw a card from the reserve that equals the sum or the difference of these two cards. (You can discard other cards in your hand from the game to raise or lower this sum/difference by 1 for each such card.) You then place this card from the reserve in the tower, either in an empty spot or in place of another card (with you adding this replaced card to your hand). If you manage to create a card tower seven layers tall (i.e., with 28 cards) and all those cards are face up, then you win. Once you play a few times, you can add the Finish card (#25) to the game. During set-up, you shuffle this card in the bottom half of the deck. Whoever draws it places this card in front of themselves, then draws a replacement card. The Finish card is part of this player's hand, but doesn't count against their three-card hand limit. The Finish card cannot be played face down, and if it's removed from the tower, it must be placed face up in front of the active player. The Finish card must be the final card played at the top of the tower for players to win.
Categories
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Publishers
- MTS Games
- Fudacoma Games
Questions and answers
Couperation supports 2–4 players according to the catalogue. This range comes from the publisher’s listed player count, so the game can be set up for any group size within it. Some setups, rules and scoring details may still vary by player count, so check your edition’s rulebook for the exact configuration.
The listed playing time for Couperation is 15 minutes. This is the publisher’s estimate for a full game. The actual duration depends on the group, the player count and familiarity with the rules: first sessions usually run longer, while experienced groups often finish faster. Setup and teaching time are not included in this estimate.
The catalogue lists Couperation for ages 8 and up. This is the publisher’s recommendation and reflects reading demands, rule complexity and small components rather than theme alone. Younger players can often join with help from an adult, so check the age guidance on your edition and consider your group’s experience with board games.
Couperation has a complexity rating of 2.0 out of 5 from BoardGameGeek players, which makes it a medium-light game. The rating reflects how much rules knowledge, planning and decision-making a typical game demands. Expect a longer first teach for heavier games, and use a preparation guide before game night.
Couperation belongs to these categories: Card Game. Its main mechanics are Hand Management, Cooperative Game, and Pattern Building. Categories describe the theme and setting of a game, while mechanics describe what players actually do on their turns. Each mechanic links to a catalogue hub with similar games, which helps when you want something comparable.
The credited designers of Couperation are: 沢口游祐 (Yusuke Sawaguchi). These credits come from the published game data and name the people responsible for the game’s design, not its illustrators or publishers. Designer pages on MeepleRules collect other titles by the same designers, which helps when you enjoy a game and want to find similar ones.
The catalogue lists Couperation as a base game. It can be played on its own with the components in the box and does not require any other title. Expansions, if any exist, add new content or rules on top of it and are listed separately in the catalogue with a link back to this base game.