US2273292A - Game - Google Patents

Description

Feb. 17, 1942; J. E. SMITH 2,273,292

GAME

Filed Jan. 26, 1946 s Sheets-Sheet 1 v INVENTOR @2121? Z JMJTH ATTORNEY Feb. 17, 1942.

J. E. SMITH 2,273,292

GAME

Filed Jan. 26, 1940 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 /7/VL 4N0 Pam/v0 INVENTOR @yzs Z. x 'flTff ATTbRNEY J. E. SMITH Feb. 17, 1942.

GAM E 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed Jan. 26, l940 f UNITED STATES I fill-00,000.

INVENTOR jqyfls'lf JZMITH- ,M/aow$@ ATTORN EY W Patented Feb. 17, 1942 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 2 Claims.

My invention relates to improvements in a game, and it consists of the combinations, constructions and arrangements hereinafter described and claimed.

An object of my invention is to provide a game board which has a map thereon showing the various countries and the purpose of the game is for one player to conquer all of the other countries of the world. The map has seven World powers designated thereon, the territory controlled by each world power being given a different color, the remaining portions of the map being white. Each player controls a world power andfirst tries to acquire neutral countries and then other world powers. A circular track encloses the map and is divided into segments. The players are given markers or playing pieces and these are moved around the track according to numbers appearing on dice after they have been thrown. The track segments have indicia printed thereon telling the player, whose marker lands on the segment, what to do.

The portion of the game board surrounding the track is divided into spaces equal in number to the number of world powers and each space has a flag of one of the world powers printed thereon and an area composed of two rows of openings, one row being entitled War and the other, Allies. The purpose of these two rows of openings will be explained hereinafter. The players are given playing pieces in addition to the markers and these consist of flags, paper money, and armed power, the latter comprising metal tokens and wooden discs of different colors. Further details of the game will be explained in the body of the specification.

Other objects and advantages will appear in the following specification, and the novel features of the device will be particularly pointed out in the appended claims.

My invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings forming a part of this application, in which Figure 1 is a plan view of the game board shown on a greatly reduced scale;

Figure 2 is a plan View of a portion of the game board on a much larger scale;

Figure 3 shows one of the world power cards;

Figure 4 shows one each of the three different denominations of paper money used in the game;

Figure 5 shows a side view and a top plan view of one of the markers or playing pieces;

Figure 6 is a View of one of the flags used in the game;

Figure 7 shows a side view and a top plan view of one of the wooden tokens;

Figure 8 is a side elevation of ametal token shaped like a cannon;

Figure 9 is a side elevation of another metal token shaped like a battleship; and

Figure 10 is a top plan view of another metal token shaped like an airplane.

In carrying out my invention, I provide a game board indicated generally at l and this board has a map of the world 2 printed thereon. A circular track 3 encircles the map. The map shows the different countries and seven world powers are indicated by coloring certain countries with contrasting colors. The seven world powers on the map are as follows: United States, Soviet Union, Japan, Germany, France, Italy and Great Britain. The United States is colored green on the map, the Soviet Union red, Japan purple, Germany blue, France orange, Italy pink, and Great Britain yellow. All of the other countries are white. These seven main world powers may be divided into three groups known as the American, European and Asiatic groups. The American group will include only the United States; the European group will include Germany, France, Italy and Great Britain; while the Asiatic group will include Japan and Soviet Union.

The portion of the game board I surrounding the circular track 3 is divided into spaces 4 to 10 inclusive. The space 4 is for the player representing the United States, while spaces 5 to 10 inclusive, are for the players representing Soviet Union, Japan, Germany, France, Italy and Great Britain, respectively. Each space has the countries flag printed thereon and these are indicated at 4a to 101a inclusive. The spaces 4 to l0 also have arcuate-shaped areas I I to IT inclusive provided thereon and each area is divided into two parts, the inner one Ila to Ila inclusive having the word War printed thereon and the outer one llb to lib inclusive, having the word Allies printed thereon. Each country on the map is provided with an opening I8 and flags, of the type shown at [9 in Figure 6, are designed to be placed in the openings i8 in accordance with the rules of the game hereinafter set forth. Each player is provided with a number of flags of the country he represents and also with a black war flag.

The seven World powers have possessions which belong to the player at the start of the game. For example, the player owning the United States, also owns Alaska, the Hawaiian and the Philippine Islands. The Soviet Union possesses Tannu Tuva, while Japan has Taiwan and Chosen. Germany is not provided with any possessions, but France has Algeria, Madagascar and French Indo-China. Italy has Libia, Ethiopia and Italian Somaliland, while Great Britain has India, Kenya, Tanganyika, Union of South Africa and Anglo-Egyptian Sudan. The countries owned by the seven world powers are given the same color as the parent country. The players are given a sufiicient number of flags of their country to place a flag in the opening l8 of the parent country and in all of the countries possessed by the parent country. Four of the United States flags are given to the United States player at the start of the game and the other players receive flags of their country as follows: two Soviet Union flags; three Japanese flags; one German fiag; four French flags; four Italian flags; and live British flags.

Each country on the map is given an arbitrary value in money and armed power. The term armed power includes man power and mechanical equipment such as all army, navy and air fighting machines. The paper money value and the armed power is printed directly on the country. The map in Figure 1 shows the countries on too small a scale to indicate this, but the portion of the map shown in Figure 2 is on a larger scale and therefore the armed power and the paper money value of each country is indicated directly on the map. The seven world powers each have a paper money value of $10,000,000.00 and an armed power of 2,000,-

000. The ratio of paper money to armed power is 10 to 1 which means that $10,000,000.00 in paper money will buy 1,000,000 in armed power. The names of all of the countries on the map and the value of each country in paper money and armed power is as follows:

Name Armed power Paper money value Alaska None $5, 000, 000. Canada. 300, 000 l, 000, 000. 00 Mexico 150, 000 700, 000. 00 Central America 50, 000 300, 000. 00 Colombia 50, 000 500, 000. 00 Venezuela. 50, 000 200, 000. 00 Guineas (S None 300,000.00 BraziL..- 150, 000 3, 000, 000. 00 Ecuador" None 200,000.00 Peru. 50, 000 300, 000. O0 Chile 50, 000 300, 000. 00 Argentina 50, 000 500, 000. 00 Paraguay and Uruguay None 400, 000. 00 Greenland lone 200,000.00 Iceland None 100, 000. 00 Hawaiian Islands None 200, 000. 00 Philippine Islands- None 200, 000. 00 Cuba l 50, 000 200, 000. 00 Bolivia. N one 200, 000. 00 Belgium 100, 000 500, 000. 00 N0lW8y 50, 000 200, 000. 00 Finland '30, 000 200, 000. 00 Sweden l00, 000 400, 000. 00 Denmar 50, 000 200, 000. 00 Poland 200, 000 1, 000, 000. 00 Netherlands 50, 000 100, 000. 00 Czechoslovakia 150, 000 700, 000. 00 Switzerland 50, 000 100, 000. 00 Austria Hungary 150, 000 700, 000. 00 Romania 100, 000 800, 000. 00 Jugoslavia 100, 000 500, 000. 00 50, 000 200, 000. 00 50, 000 300, 000. 00 200, 000 2, 000, 000. 00 50, 000 300, 000. 00 100, 000 500, 000. 00 50, 000 500,000. 00 50, 000 200, 000. 00 100, 000 300, 000. 00 1, 000, 000 10, 000, 000. 00 50, 000 100, 000. 00 50, 000 100, 000. 00 50, 000 200, 000. 00 150. 000 700, 000. 00 None 400, 000. 00 50, 000 300, 000. 00 50, 000 200, 000. 00 100, 000 900. 000. 00 100, 000 500, 000. 00 None 400, 000. 00 None 100, 000. 00 50, 000 200, 000. 00 50, 000 100, 000. O0 50, 000 200. 000. 00 50, 000 800, 000. 00 None 200, 000. 00 None 200, 000. 00 200, 000 700, 000. 00 l, 000, 000 10, 000, 000. 00 Manchukuo. 300. 000 1, 000, 000. 00 Tannu Tuva None 100, 000. 00 French Indo C 200, 000 500, 000. 00 Siam 100, 000 500, 000. 00 Malay Archipelago (3 Br.) 100 000 500. 000. 00 Malay Archipelago Neth.) 100,000 500, 00. 00 Autralia 50. 000 l, 000, 000. 00 New Zealand None 400, 000. 00

The sixty-eight segments of the circular track 3 are letter from a to l inclusive, and since the information contained in each segment cannot be shown in Figure 1 because of the small size of the segments, the following list is given in which the letters of the segments are associated with the information contained in each segment. In the actual production of the game, this information will be printed on each segment:

Statments appearing in segments in circular track enclosing map .Start-If landing here take 50,000 armed power.

.Take $200,000.00 for oil sold.

Lose $400,000.00 for purchase of copper.

. Take 50,000 armed power join and swear allegiance to your country.

Lose $200,000.00 for airplanes purchased.

Take $400,000.00 for gold produced.

.Collect $100,000.00 from each world power country-If you are Japan you lose $100,- 000.00 to each world power country.

it. Lose $700,000.00 for purchase of chemicals.

2'. If you are an Asiatic power, take New Zealand or one-half Malay Archipelago, other players take $100,000.00 and 50,000 armed power.

7' Take $200,000.00 for food sold.

k. Lose $400,000.00 on new chemical process.

Z. Lose 50,000 armed power from internal trouble.

111.. Take $200,000.00 for sugar sold.

12. Lose $300,000.00 for oil purchased.

0. If you are a European power, take Iraq or the Netherlands, other players take $100,- 000.00 and 50,000 armed power.

p. Lose $700,000.00 silver down.

q. Collect $100,000.00 from each country. If Germany, lose $100,000.00 to each country.

1'. Take $200,000.00 for copper sold.

s. Lose $400,000.00 for purchase of iron and steel.

1.. Take $800,000.00 for minerals sold.

it. Lose $600,000.00 coal shortage.

o. If you are an American power, take Central America or Peru, other players take $300,- 000.00 and 50,000 armed power.

to. Take $200,000.00 for meat sold.

3:. Lose $100,000.00 for purchase of corn.

1;. Take $300,000.00 for chemicals sold.

2. Lose $300,000.00 for food imports.

a Collect $100,000.00 from each country.

France, lose $100,000.00 to each country.

0 Lose $300,000.00 for purchase of sugar.

0 Take $800,000.00 for exports sold.

(1 Lose $400,000.00 for tin purchased.

6 Take $500,000.00 for lead sold.

f Lose $400,000.00 for mineral imports.

g Collect $100,000.00 from each country. If Italy, you lose $100,000.00 to each country.

h Lose $500,000.00 on boycott of your exports.

2' If you are an Asiatic power, take Siam or onehalf Malay Archipelago, other players take $500,000.00 and 100,000 armed power.

7' Take $200,000.00 for armaments sold.

k Take 50,000 armed power on value of new invention.

1 Lose $100,000.00 for purchase of lead.

m Take $900,000.00 for iron and steel sold.

n Lose $900,000.00 for imports.

0 Collect $100,000.00 from each country. If Britain, lose $100,000.00 to each country.

p Lose $300,000.00 for shortage of gold.

q Take $400,000.00 for sale of cotton.

r Lose 50,000 armed power through sabotage.

one

$ If you are a European power, take Bulgaria or Norway. Other players take $200,000.00 and 50,000 armed power.

15 Take $200,000.00 for arms sold.

u Lose $600,000.00 for purchase of oil.

Take $200,000.00 for minerals sold.

w Lose 50,000 armed power through earthquake. 1

.12 Take $200,000.00 for coal sold.

y Lose $200,000.00 for ammunition purchased.

2 Collect $100,000.00 from each country. If United States, you lose $100,000.00 to each country.

a Take $900,000.00 for increase in silver.

I) Lose $400,000.00 for purchase of meat.

c Take $300,000.00 for airplanes sold.

cl Lose $300,000.00 for imports of potatoes.

6 If you are an American power, take Colombia or Argentina, other players take $200,000.- 00 and 50,000 armed power.

f Lose 50,000 armed power due to shortage of raw material.

g Take $200,000.00 for rice sold.

72.2 Lose $200,000.00 for arms purchased.

2' Take $400,000.00 for corn sold.

i Collect $100,000.00 from each country. If Soviet Union, lose $100,000.00 to each country.

k Take $300,000.00 for sale of zinc.

Z Lose $500,000.00 for wheat purchased.

In Figures 3 to 10 inclusive, I show the various articles used in playing the game. The world power card shown at in Figure 3 carries the name United States. There are seven of these world power cards and each bears the name of one of the seven World powers. In Figure 4 I show the paper money used and this is printed in denominations of $100,000.00 bills shown at 2|, $500,000.00 bills shown at 22, and $1,000,000.00 bills shown at 23.

The armed power comprises both wooden and metal tokens. The wooden tokens are in the shape of small colored discs such as shown at 24 in Figure '7. This figure shows a side view and a plan View of one of the tokens. The tokens are in two colors, blue and red, the blue color representing 50,000 armed power and the red color representing 100,000 armed power. The metal tokens are of three diiferent types and each token represents 1,000,000 armed power. In Figure 3 I show a metal token 25 in the shape of a cannon, in Figure 9 I show another metal token 26 in the shape of a battleship, and in Figure 10 I show still another metal token 21 in the shape of an airplane.

Each player is given a marker or a playing piece shown at 2B in Figure 5 and this piece is moved around the circular track 3. shows a side elevation and a top plan view of the marker. The map area within the circular track 3 is divided by vertical lines 29 and horizontal lines 30 for a purpose hereinafter set forth.

From the foregoing description of the various parts of the device, the operation thereof may be readily understood.

The game is founded on conditions and situations very similar to those that actually exist in the world today, and the rules governing the playing of the game are in accordance with the means and methods employed by dictators in gaining possession of territory and natural resources. The countries on the map have armed power and paper money value printed thereon which is determined from population, geograph- Figure 5 ical position, strength and commodities of the country. Each of the seven world powers on the map is assumed to be under the control of a dictator who is the player controlling the country. From two to seven persons (dictators) may play the game at one time and the object of the game is for one dictator to become the ruler of the world. At the start of the game, the seven world power cards are shuflied and each player draws one of the cards and receives the number of flags 19 of the world power corresponding to the card drawn. In addition, each player receives the black war flag. The world power flags are properly placed on the map. A marker 28 is given to each player and the color of the marker agrees with the color of the world power on the map controlled by the player. Each player further receives 2,000,000 armed power consisting of two of the metal tokens shown in Figures 8, 9 and 10, and also receives $l0,000,000.00 in paper money divided into ten $100,000.00 bills, four $500,000.00 bills, and seven $1,000,000.00 bills. A world bank is depository for all excess flags, armed power and paper money.

To begin the actual playing of the game, a single die, not shown, is thrown by each player and the one throwing the highest number on the die starts the play. The markers 28 of the players are successively placed on segment a in the circular track 3 as each player takes his turn and the markers are moved in a clockwise direction around the track as indicated by the arrow placed adjacent to the segment a. The first player throws two dice and moves his marker a number of segments corresponding to the number indicated on the dice. At the end of his mave, the player must carry out the instructions set forth in the segment on which he lands. For example, if he throws a two and a three on the dice making a total of five, he moves his marker to segment e on the circular track 3. The notation on this segment states Lose $200,000.00 for airplanes purchased. This means that the player must give to the world bank $200,000.00. All of the other players take their turn and each must carry out the instructions set forth on the segments where their marker stops at the end of the move.

The game proceeds until one player completes the circuit of the circular track 3. As soon as this player passes the starting mark, i. e. segment a, he can immediately commence a conquest or aggression of other countries on the map. If the player lands on the starting segment a, he must await his next turn before starting aggression. A player does not have to take countries after completing one circuit of the track 3, but the more territory he acquires, the more likely he is to win the game. The players aggression of another country is indicated to the other players by his placing a black flag l9 in the war zone of his own country. These war zones are shown at I la to Ila inclusive. When the player places his War flag in the war zone of his own country, he must openly declare his intentions of aggression by naming the country he is going to annex the next time he receives a turn to throw the dice. He usually first tries to acquire neutral countries rather than any one of the other world powers. Aft'er declaring his intentions, he throws the dice and moves his marker 28 in the usual manner. On his next turn he can take the country he mentioned in his former turn unless another player in the meantime contests his right. If this right is not contested, he can take the country and receive from the world bank the armed power and the paper money value designated on the map of the country. For example, if the player representing the world power France wishes to take Spain and no contest develops between the time he declares his intentions and his next turn, he will receive 200,000 armed power and $2,000,000.00 from the world bank. He then places his flag I9, corresponding to the flag 8a, in the opening IS in Spain.

All of the uncolored sections of the map are open for immediate aggression by any of the world powers. The player does not shake the dice when annexing a country, but must await his next turn before he can do this. The player can file intentions on his very next turn to acquire another country should he so desire. The game proceeds in this manner and the players are either winning or losing according to the segments on the circular track on which their markers land or they are acquiring additional territory on the map.

One difficulty created by the game which closely parallels actual war conditions is that should a player wish to acquire a country considerably removed from his own territory, or even close to his territory, he must pay $100,000.00 to the world bank for each line 29 or 30 that lies between the two countries. In the example given of France acquiring the neutral country Spain, the player representing France would have to pay into the world bank $100,000.00 because one of the lines 30 separates France from Spain, see Figure 2. In acquiring another country, it is possibl for the player to count the lines 29 or 30 not only from the world power belonging to him, but to count from any one of his possessions that lies nearest the land he wishes to acquire. If one of the player's possessions is closer to the land to be acquired than the world power country belonging to the player, the player will be able to pay a less amount of money to the world bank because fewer lines 29 or 30 pass between the possession and the country to be captured.

In case of a contest between two world powers who wish to take the same country, a fight ensues. If the player representing the world power Germany should wish to capture Poland, he so declares when he throws his dice. Should the player representing the Soviet Union also wish Poland, he also declares his intentions when it comes his turn and the contest is settled in the following manner. The player representing Germany places his war flag in the row Ma when declaring his intentions to capture Poland. When the player representing Soviet Union receives his turn, he states his intentions to fight for Poland and then the two countries Germany and Soviet Union exchange their world power flags, a German flag being placed in the row [52a and a Soviet Union flag being placed in row Ma. It is possible for the Soviet Union player to declare his intentions of acquiring another country at the same time if he so desires. The play then continues in the usual manner until the player representing Germany again receives his turn. It is now up to the German player to either fight the Soviet Union or back down. If he decides to fight, the two countries, Germany and Soviet Union compare their armed power and paper money and the one having the greater amount, takes the other world power country. If the Soviet Union player should have armed power and paper money totaling more than Germany, then the Soviet Union player would receive all of Germanys assets and the game would end so far as the German player is concerned. Neither player to the contest has the right to first check his armed power and paper money before deciding to fight or back down. Should the German player decide to back down instead of fighting, the player representing the Soviet Union would remove his black war flag from the row I20: and give back the German flag to the German player, receiving in return his own flag which the German player removes from the row Ma. W'hen it now comes the Soviet Unions turn to play he will acquire Poland and receive from the world bank 200,000 armed power and $1,000,000.00 paper money. No line 20 or 30 separates the Soviet Union from Poland, so no amount would have to b returned to the world bank.

As the neutral territory to be acquired diminishes or if one player becomes very strong, he may declare his intentions against any other of the world powers and acquire them by conquest in the same manner as the neutral territory has been acquired. Should the Soviet Union player think that he has become strong enough in armed power and paper money to declare his intentions to take the world power Franc and the player representing the world power France feel that he is not strong enough to fight the Soviet Union, he may acquire world power allies in self defense if one or more of these world powers decides to join with him. Should France and England join as allies, they would exchange their world pow-er flags and place these in the Allies rows I50 and llb, respectively. The Soviet Union player will now have to fight the combined strength of the two world powers, France and England, and must be able to show a total of armed power and paper money greater than that possessed by both the other world power countries combined. If the Soviet Union player has a greater total, then he can take France and England and all possessions owned by them. The players representing France and England will thus be eliminated from the game.

On the other hand, should France and Englands combined armed power and paper money strength be more than that possessed by the Soviet Union player, they would take the Soviet Union world power and di ide the armed power and paper money possessed by this world power. The Soviet Union player would be out of the game and stopped from continuing any further play. Should an odd piece or paper money or armed power result from the equal division of spoils, the French and Great Britain players could shake the dice and the one receiving the highest number would receive the remaining piece. As many countries may ally themselves together against an aggressor as they see fit, but such an alliance can only be efiected for defense against an aggressor and not for any purpose of world conquest. The conquest of world powers by other world powers usually proceeds after all of the neutral countries have been captured. When one world power emerges the conqueror of all of the countries in the world, he wins the game.

While I have shown only the preferred form of my invention, it should be understood that various changes or modifications may be made within the scope of the appended claims without departing from the spirit of the invention.

Iclaim:

1. A gam comprising a playing surface having a map with countries depicted thereon, certain of the countries being individually colored in order to be distinguishable from each other, the playing surface surrounding the map being divided into areas equal in number to the individually colored countries and each representing a home base for a player, each area having a portion thereof colored similar to the country on the map it represents and having two rows of flag-receiving openings, one row of openings being labelled War and the other row Allies, and different flags for each of the colored countries, the flags of the players being exchanged and placed in the War row of openings when the players are at war with each other and bein placed in the Allies row of openings when the players are aiding each other.

2. A game comprising a playing surface with a map thereon containing the countries of the world, certain groups of countries being given distinguishing colors and representing World powers, the remaining countries being given a neutral color, the playing surface surrounding the map being divided into areas equal in number to the differently colored groups of countries or world powers and each representing a home base for a player, each area having a portion similarly colored to the world power on the map it represents and having two rows of flag-receiving openings in the colored portion, one row of openings being labelled War and the other row Allies, war flags and distinguishable world power flags for each world power, the player when declaring war on a neutral country placing a war flag in his War row of openings and when declaring war on another world power exchanging world power flags with the opponent representing the world power, the exchanged world power flags also being placed in the War row of openings.

JAMES E. SMITH.

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