At dawn on September 1, 1985, roBert BaLLard saw the first traces of the wreck of the Titanic, the giant transatlantic passenger liner that sunk in 1912, emerge from the depths of the ocean. Join in on its discovery, challenging yourself with a game that requires insight, a sense of observation, and a great memory!
“doCtor Livingstone, I presume!” To explore the heart of Africa, the choice is up to you: you can walk in the shoes of David Livingstone, the legendary English explorer from the late 1800s who is famous for having been the first European to reach Victoria Falls, or you can play the part of Henry morton stanLey, the journalist tasked with locating and interviewing the explorer (unheard from for months) who uttered this memorable phrase once they finally met.
Here’s a challenge that will leave you breathless, even if only due to the freezing temperature of the air around you . . . . Among the ice of Antarctica, two explorers were out chasing the same dream: to be the first to reach the South Pole. History has it that roaLd amundsen beat his “rival” roBert FaLCon sCott by a few weeks, but you could rewrite the story, challenging your opponent with a throw of the die . . . .
sir edmund PerCivaL HiLLary is the man credited with first reaching the top of the world, the peak of Mount Everest, on May 29, 1953 to be exact. But if we’re being totally honest, his Sherpa guide, tenzing norgay, was absolutely essential to the success of their incredible expedition. Choose which of the two mountaineers you want to be, maneuvering amid pickaxes, ropes, and unlucky rolls of the die, as you try to reach the peak of the mountain.
“That’s one small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind!” These now-famous words were proclaimed by neiL armstrong, the first person to step on the surface of the moon, on July 20, 1969. You’ll have to take leaps just as big to beat your opponent in this galactic race among astronauts, inspired by a traditional game called Mu Torere.
Wait! Where are you going?
You have to practice before you start playing!
To find out what you need to do, go to the last page.
In the footsteps of LEWIS & CLARK
Number of players: 2, or 2 teams of multiple players
Pieces: Each player gets 9 matching tokens (either the buffalo or the cougar)
Objective: Leave your opponent with only 2 tokens, or unable to move their tokens
How to play: Roll the die to determine who goes first. Whoever rolls the highest number starts, placing a token on one of the white circles found at the intersections of the lines and squares. Then it’s the other player’s (or team’s) turn to place their first token on a different white circle.
The curse of TUTANKHAMUN
This secreT room is full of oinTmenTs
The smell overpowers You And You go bAck 2 spAces
You’ve found 130 of The phArAoh’s wAlking sTicks limp forwArd 2 spAces
Two lArge sTATues flAnk A wAlled-in door
You’re AbouT To discover someThing roll AgAin!
The god Anubis is guArding The enTrAnce go bAck To sTArT!
You mAde iT To The AnTichAmber: skip A Turn To cATAlog All The ArTifAcTs
Number of players: 4
Pieces: 1 die, 1 piece per player, curse tokens
Objective: Be the first to get to the Pharaoh’s tomb
How to play: Each player chooses a piece. Take turns rolling the die: whoever rolls the highest number goes first. But before you start, place the curse tokens along the path of play, setting them on the squares that contain the matching blue symbol. If you land on a square with one of the tokens, you’ll be struck by the curse of the pharaohs. To find out which one, look at the key to the right, finding the corresponding symbol, and do everything the pharaoh commands. If you don’t, or if you stop while playing, it’s straight back to the starting point! The only way to get rid of the curse is to land on one of the white symbols. To reach the burial
You fAll inTo A TrAp go bAck, following The Arrow
You mAde A hole in The wAll wiThouT AuThorizATion: go bAck 5 spAces!
You’ve found The phArAoh’s cAnopic jArs whAT A discoverY! move forwArd 5 spAces
lAdY eveline is The firsT To enTer The buriAl chAmber if You hAve her piece, move forwArd 1 spAce
chamber, however, you have to pass all the obstacles, the last of them being your arrival: you have to land exactly on the Pharaoh’s sarcophagus. Otherwise, you’ll have to go back the excess number of spaces rolled.
YOU MADE IT TO THE PHARAOH’S SARCOPHAGUS! CONGRATULATIONS!!
square occupied by the head of a red snake, you have to go back to the square indicated by the tip of the snake’s tail (the red arrow). If you land on a square with a condor, you can ask the majestic bird to fly you over the Andes, landing on the square indicated by the arrow. Don’t forget:
there are lots of difficult challenges for such an expedition. The final one may even seem impossible: while approaching the sun at the end, if you roll a number that takes you beyond the sun, you have to go back the number that exceeds the end point (example: need 3, roll 5, go back 2).
At the bottom of the ocean, searching
for TITANIC
Number of players: 2, or 2 teams of multiple players
Pieces: 2 sheets of paper, 2 pens
Objective: the first player to get 10 correct wins
How to play: Before starting, read the definitions on the right of the board and decide who will go first. Player/team 1 then chooses an animal or object from those with definitions, writing the word on a piece of paper, hidden from his or her opponent. Player/team 2 then gets to ask player/team 1 three questions,
Chandelier
Viperfish
King of herrings
Pourtalesia
Compass
Violin
Statue
Horn
Sheet music
Bed
Piano
Rusticles
Deep-water jellyfish
Alvin the submersible
Wreckage
Safe
Suitcase
Plates
Opisthoproctus
trying to guess which animal or item has been chosen. For example: Does it have fins? Is it a musical instrument? If player/team 2 guesses the item and points to it on the board, player/team 2 gets a point. If not, no points are awarded. Then it’s player/team 2’s turn to pick the item and answer the questions. The first to get 10 correct wins.
DEFINITIONS
deeP-sea jeLLyFisH: helmet shaped, with its tentacles facing upward like a crown, this creature shies away from artificial light but emits flashes if disturbed.
king oF Herrings: a deep-sea fish, similar to an eel, measuring over 33 feet long, with a characteristic crest on its head.
giant squid: this invertebrate is one of the largest living animals on the planet. It can reach up to 43 feet long.
PourtaLesia: this irregularly shaped sea urchin is covered in spines.
viPerFisH: this fish has teeth so long it can’t even close its mouth. It has a light-producing organ that it uses to lure its prey.
oPistHoProCtus: often called “barreleye,” the enormous eyes of this fish are directed upward, watching for the silhouettes of prey against the faint light coming from the surface.
PoLyCHeLidae: this family of blind crustaceans has highly developed limbs.
aLvin tHe suBmersiBLe: this deep-water research vehicle was used to explore the ocean floor. Ballard used it to take pictures of the wreck of the Titanic in 1986.
rustiCLes: these rusty formations are caused by bacteria that feed on iron. They are slowly consuming what’s left of the Titanic.
TRY TO FIND THESE ITEMS, GUESSING WHAT THEY ARE:
5
nAme 5 mAmmAls from AfricA
5
This Time, You hAve onlY
5 seconds To nAme
3 kinds of Trees
5 nAme 5 conTinenTs
5
nAme 5 explorers ThAT Are menTioned in This book
5 do You know 5 breeds of birds?
5 lisT
5 AnimAls ThAT sTArT wiTh The leTTer m
monkeys, on the other hand, will steal your equipment. You’ll have to follow them, going back two spaces, while the crocodile will force you to go back to the start! The pelican will help you fly two spaces forward. Lastly, if you end up on a square with the number 5, you have to answer
the explorer’s quiz correctly in 10 seconds. If you don’t, sit out for a turn. Don’t worry, you’ve almost made it! All you need to do is reach the mask with an exact roll—otherwise you have to go back the number of extra spaces you rolled.
CHALLENGE on ICE
YouneedTosTockup onsupplies:GOBACKTOTHESTART!
eAchTimeYoulAndonAhuskY,ROLLTHEDIE AGAIN
before climbing The TrAnsAnTArcTic mounTAins, resT for A Turn
Number of players: 2, or 2 teams of multiple people Pieces: 1 die, 1 piece for each player/team Objective: Be the first to get to the South Pole!
AdvAnce 3 squAres supplies!
Your ship is sTuck in The ice: SKIP A TURN!
Roald Amundsen base camp
How to play: Each player or team chooses to be either Roald Amundsen or Robert Falcon Scott. Place the pieces on their respective base camps (yellow for Amundsen, purple for Scott). Take turns rolling the die: whoever rolls the higher number gets to go first. Player/team 1 rolls the die again, then moves forward the number of spaces rolled. Be careful: the road to the South Pole is full of hazards, each one
Whale Bay
Icefish
Rossseal
Bluewhale
SOUTH
An elephAnT seAl is blocking Your wAY roll The die IF YOU GET LESS THAN 5, SKIP A TURN
eAch Time You lAnd on A huskY, roll The die AgAin
The polAr wind pushes You bAck, BACK TO THE START!
Your snowmobile is ouT of gAs SKIP A TURN
different for the two explorers, depending on the paths they’ve chosen. Follow the instructions on the squares and, if you have to skip a turn, seize the opportunity to observe some of the incredible animals that live in this icy, inhospitable land. The last obstacle is that the flag has to
be placed precisely on the South Pole. You have roll the exact number you need to land on it, no more, otherwise you have to go back the number of extra spaces you rolled. Are you ready start this challenge and conquer the South Pole?
Robert Falcon Scott base camp
Adélie penguins
Orca
before climbing The TrAnsAnTArcTic mounTAins, resT for A Turn
Whoever gets the higher number starts the game. Players have to move along the various routes available, heading in the direction indicated on each circle by the number rolled with the die. If you end up on a broken rope or roll the large number at the center
of the circle, you have to skip a turn. But don’t worry: in this game of chance, your luck and the route you take can change at any second! Of course, the winner is whoever gets to the top of the world’s tallest mountain first!
rolling the die: whoever rolls the higher number gets to fire up the jets on the shuttle and blast off first. Once you’ve completed that mission, the real challenges can begin! You can move one of your two pieces closest to those of your opponent, moving the piece to the center of the star. Take turns moving one piece at a time, to reach the nearest empty space,
whether it’s one of the edge points or the center of the star. Be careful, though: you can only move a piece if it has one of your opponent’s pieces to the right or left of it. Lastly, it’s not worth jumping between the two farthest points of the star: the lack of gravity will mean you’ll immediately find yourself floating in deep space. . . .
P ieces and die
Below are all the pieces that you need to play:
To create the character pieces, remove them from the page along with the bases that, once assembled, will help them stay standing on their own. The tokens, on the other hand, are ready to use once detached from the page. When you’re done playing, put the pieces and tokens back in their places, so you’ll easily find them next time.
d ie
Even assembling the die is an adventure, though it doesn’t have any challenges or obstacles! To assemble it, detach the four pieces from the book and combine them as illustrated. To use it, just roll it like a normal die, reading the number that lands face up. Then proceed to moving your piece according to the number you’ve rolled.
