Goblins Drool, Fairies Rule!

Overview

Goblins Drool, Fairies Rule! is a card game of rhyme and reason for 1 to 4 players. A gang of mischievous goblins has escaped from the fairy ring, and players must send them back before they cause trouble. An ancient spell of rhymes transforms goblins into fairies and fairies into goblins, making this a tricky task. The goal is to be the first player with no Goblins at the end of your turn, or the first player to have 6 Fairies.

Components

20 unique double-sided cards (one side Goblin, one side Fairy)
Each card has one of 4 Symbols: Sun, Moon, Mushroom, or Frog
Symbol pairing rule: Sun is always opposite Moon; Mushroom is always opposite Frog
Cards with stars around the edges are called “Star Cards”
Names are divided into 5 rhyming groups ending in: “oop,” “elly,” “ock,” “our,” or “ew”
No two cards share the same combination of Goblin and Fairy rhyming groups
No card has the same rhyming group on both sides

Setup

All cards begin goblin-side-up in the deck.
Each player is dealt 1 random Goblin Star Card. Un-dealt Goblin Star Cards are set aside, out of the game.
Shuffle remaining cards and deal 3 more Goblin Cards to each player (starting left of dealer).
Each player now has 4 Goblins.
Deal 4 Fairies from the deck to the “Fairy Ring” in the center of the play area.
Set aside all remaining cards (out of the game).
Determine first player (youngest, rock-paper-scissors, or fastest to say “Goblins Drool, Fairies Rule!”).

Turn Structure

Each turn consists of three steps performed in order:

Step 1: Add

You must add 1 card from your collection to the Fairy Ring (can be a Goblin or a Fairy).

Step 2: Flip

If any cards already in the Fairy Ring rhyme with the name of the card you just added, flip those rhyming cards over (Goblins become Fairies, Fairies become Goblins).
Read the names of rhyming cards aloud as you flip them.
The card you just added does not flip.
Star Card exception: When you add a Star Card, ALL other cards in the Ring are flipped, regardless of rhyming.

Step 3: Take

After flipping, you must take all cards from the Fairy Ring that match the Symbol of the card you added.
You do not take back the card you added.

Play passes clockwise.

Actions

On your turn you perform exactly the three steps above (Add, Flip, Take). There are no optional actions.

Key decisions:

Which card to add to the Fairy Ring
Whether to use a Star Card (which flips ALL cards) vs. a regular card (which only flips rhyming cards)
Timing symbol matches to pick up Fairies rather than Goblins

Scoring / Victory Conditions

Win Condition #1: At the end of your turn, if you have no Goblins, you win. You may still have Fairies.

Win Condition #2: At the end of your turn, if you have 6 Fairies, you win. It does not matter how many Goblins you have.

Special Rules & Edge Cases

No peeking: Once the game starts, you may never look at the face-down side of any card.
Open information: All players’ cards on the table are visible to everyone at all times.
Star Cards flip everything: When a Star Card is added, ALL other cards in the Ring flip, not just rhyming ones. Then take matching-symbol cards as normal.
Solitaire variant: Deal yourself 1 Goblin Star Card + 4 more Goblins (5 total). Deal 5 Fairies to the Fairy Ring. Win by having no Goblins at end of turn.
Solitaire challenges: Try to win in fewer turns; increase difficulty by starting with 6 or 7 Goblins/Fairies; achieve a “flawless victory” by having every card fairy-side-up.
Goblins Rule variant: Reverse the setup – deal Fairy Star Cards and Fairy Cards instead. The Fairy Ring becomes the “Goblin Cave” with Goblins. Win by having no Fairies or by having 6 Goblins.

Player Reference

Step	Action	Details
1	Add	Place 1 card from your hand into the Fairy Ring
2	Flip	Flip all rhyming cards in Ring (or ALL if Star Card)
3	Take	Take all cards matching your added card’s Symbol

Rhyme Groups: -oop, -elly, -ock, -our, -ew

Win: No Goblins at end of turn OR 6 Fairies at end of turn