Overview

I’m the Boss! is a negotiation game where players compete to make the most money by closing lucrative business deals. Players take turns as the Boss, assembling required investors to close deals. Other players can negotiate for a share of the profits or play influence cards to interfere. The player with the most money at the end wins.

Components

• 1 Game Board (showing 16 Big Deal spaces)
• 6 Investor Cards (illustrated on both sides)
• Deck of Influence Cards (Clan cards, Travel cards, Boss cards, Stop cards, Recruitment cards)
• Deal Tiles (numbered 1-15)
• 1 Dollar Figure Token
• 1 Die
• Money

Setup

1. Remove the 6 Investor Cards from the deck (illustrated on both sides).
2. With more than 3 players, each player receives one Investor Card; extras placed near the board.
3. Shuffle remaining deck; deal 5 cards to each player (kept secret).
4. Place remaining deck face-down in center of board.
5. Order deal tiles by number (1st deal on top, 15th on bottom) and stack in center.
6. Each player starts with NO money. Choose a banker.
7. Player whose investor is first alphabetically goes first.
8. Player to the right of the starting player places the dollar figure token on any space.

Turn Structure

On your turn, choose one of two options:

Option A: Declare your desire to make a deal at the current dollar token location.

Option B: Roll the die and move the dollar token clockwise that many spaces (skip concluded deals). Upon landing on a new space, either:

• Attempt to make a deal, OR
• Draw 3 cards from the deck

Actions

Making a Deal

1. The player announcing the deal becomes the Boss.
2. The Boss must assemble all required investors for the current deal space.
3. The Boss’s own Investor Card is automatically in play (multiple investor cards if owned).
4. Clan Cards (same family name/color as Investor Cards) may substitute for investor cards.
5. If the Boss has all required cards, the deal closes immediately.
6. If investors are still needed, negotiations begin.

Negotiating

• Players with needed cards may offer them.
• Investor cards are offered verbally; Clan cards are placed face-up on the table.
• Negotiations involve the Boss paying dividends from the current deal.
• Payments are cash from the deal – no pre-payments allowed.
• Any Clan cards shown remain on the table during the deal (whether used or not).
• No special order to negotiations – anyone can act at any time.

Influence Cards

• Travel Cards: Play against an investor/clan card to remove it from the deal. 3 per family plus 3 “send anyone” cards. On Investor Cards, cover them (discarded after negotiations). On Clan Cards, both are discarded immediately.
• Recruitment Cards: Must be played in sets of 3 to steal another player’s Investor Card. Use cards near the board first; otherwise take from any player.
• Boss Card: Play and say “I’m the Boss!” to unseat the current Boss and take over. Previous agreements may be kept or broken. Multiple Boss cards can be played per deal.
• Stop Cards: Play immediately after a Travel, Boss, or Recruitment card to cancel it. Cannot stop another Stop card.
• No player may hold more than 12 influence cards at once.

Concluding a Deal

• When all required investor/clan cards are collected, the deal closes.
• No more influence cards may be played after closing.
• Unused Clan cards return to players’ hands; used influence cards are discarded.
• Banker pays the Boss: dividend value x number of dividends on the deal tile.
• Boss pays negotiated amounts to other players.
• Turn the deal tile face-down. Move dollar marker to next available space clockwise.
• Play passes to the Boss’s left.

Failed Deal

• If negotiations break down, the deal fails.
• Do NOT turn the deal tile face-down (deal remains available).
• All Clan cards return to hands; influence cards discarded.
• The Boss may not roll or draw cards; play immediately passes left.

Scoring / Victory Conditions

End Game

Starting with the 10th completed deal, after each deal the Boss rolls a die. If the result matches the die symbols on the back of the deal tile, the game ends. Otherwise, the game ends after the 15th deal.

Winning

The player with the most money at the end of the last deal wins.

Special Rules & Edge Cases

• Money must always be kept on the table in sight of all players. It may be stacked to conceal the total.
• No player may touch or count other players’ money.
• Deal share values increase as deal numbers increase.
• Spaces with face-down deal tiles are always skipped when the dollar token moves.
• After a Boss card is played, the turn order after the deal resets from the new Boss.
• When influence cards run out, reshuffle the discard pile.

Player Reference

Card Type	Effect	Quantity Rule
Travel	Removes investor/clan from deal	3 per family + 3 generic
Recruitment	Steal Investor Card	Must play in sets of 3
Boss (“I’m the Boss!”)	Become new Boss	Any number per deal
Stop	Cancel last Travel/Boss/Recruitment	Cannot stop another Stop

Deal Phase	What Happens
Boss announces deal	Identifies available investors
Negotiation	Players offer cards, negotiate dividends
Interference	Influence cards played in any order
Closing	Payment distributed, tile flipped
Failure	Cards returned, play passes left