Overview

Dragon’s Breath (Funkelschatz) is a children’s collection game where players take turns removing ice rings from a column filled with sparkling stones. As each ring is removed, stones tumble out. Players secretly select a color tile each round, then collect stones of that color. The player with the most stones at the end wins. Winner of the 2018 Kinderspiel des Jahres.

Components

• 4 ice rings
• 45 sparkling stones (9 in each of 5 colors)
• 5 sparkling stone tiles (1 per color)
• 1 ice floe tile
• 1 Dragon Dad figure

Setup

1. Place the ice floe tile in the center of the table.
2. Stack ice rings around the ice floe tile to form a column:
   • 2 or 4 players: use all 4 ice rings
   • 3 players: use only 3 ice rings
3. Fill the ice column with sparkling stones:
   • 2 or 4 players: use all 45 stones
   • 3 players: leave 1 stone of each color in the tin
4. Get Dragon Dad and sparkling stone tiles ready.

Turn Structure

Play proceeds clockwise. The most daring player starts with Dragon Dad. Each round has 3 phases:

1. Pick Sparkling Stone Tiles

• 3-4 players: Starting with the player to Dragon Dad’s left and going clockwise, each player picks one sparkling stone tile (choosing a color). Dragon Dad picks last. Remaining tiles stay.
• 2 players: Dragon Dad’s opponent picks first, then Dragon Dad, then opponent picks a second tile, then Dragon Dad picks a second tile.

2. Lift an Ice Ring

Dragon Dad carefully removes the topmost ice ring. Stones will tumble out.

Dragon Rules:

• You may use one or both hands.
• Your fingers may only touch the top ice ring (touching stones while removing is allowed).
• Stones on top of the ring may be tilted back into the column or allowed to tumble down.
• The removed ring is out of the game.

3. Distribute Sparkling Stones

Starting with Dragon Dad, going clockwise: look at your chosen color tile and take all fallen stones of that color. (2-player: take stones of both your chosen colors.) Stones not claimed by anyone are returned to the tin and removed from the game.

Pass Dragon Dad clockwise. New round begins.

Actions

The only active decision each round is choosing which sparkling stone tile (color) to pick, and how carefully to remove the ice ring when you are Dragon Dad. Strategy involves:

• Observing which color stones are most visible near the edges
• Removing the ring to minimize opponents’ colors falling out
• Selecting tiles based on likely stone distribution

Scoring / Victory Conditions

The game ends when the last ice ring has been removed. After distributing the final round’s stones, each player counts their collected sparkling stones. The player with the most stones wins. Ties share the victory.

Tip for young players: Lay stones in a row; longest row wins.

Special Rules & Edge Cases

• If stones accidentally fall between rounds, simply place them back on the column.
• Stones remaining on the ice floe tile at the end are not distributed.
• Shield your personal collection with one hand while a ring is being removed to prevent mixing.
• Variant for Younger Players: At game start, each player draws a face-down sparkling stone tile that remains theirs for the entire game (no tile selection each round).
• Variant for Secret Players: Each round, players secretly select face-down tiles, revealing only during distribution.

Player Reference

Round Sequence:

1. Choose color tiles (left of Dragon Dad picks first, Dragon Dad picks last)
2. Dragon Dad removes top ice ring
3. Collect fallen stones of your color(s); unclaimed stones removed from game

Setup by Player Count: | Players | Ice Rings | Stones | |—|—|—| | 2 | 4 | All 45 | | 3 | 3 | 40 (remove 1 per color) | | 4 | 4 | All 45 |

2-player tile picks: Each player picks 2 tiles (alternating).