Mr. Jack Pocket

Overview

Mr. Jack Pocket is a two-player asymmetric deduction game set in Whitechapel. One player is Mr. Jack, hiding among 9 suspects; the other is the Investigator trying to identify Jack’s disguise. The game uses a 3x3 grid of double-sided street tiles and 3 Detective tokens that observe from the edges. Each turn, players take 2 of 4 available actions, then conduct an Appeal for Witnesses to eliminate suspects. The game lasts at most 8 turns.

Components

• 9 double-sided street tiles (Empty side / Suspect side)
• 3 Detective tokens (Holmes, Watson, Toby the dog)
• 9 Alibi cards (1 per character, showing 0-2 hourglasses)
• 4 double-sided Action tokens
• 8 double-sided Turn tokens (numbered 1-8 / hourglass)

Setup

1. Shuffle the 9 tiles and arrange in a 3x3 grid, Suspect side up, with random orientation.
2. Place Holmes next to the top-left area, Watson next to the top-right area, and Toby next to the bottom-center area. Rotate adjacent tiles so each Detective token is next to a wall.
3. Mr. Jack draws 1 Alibi card secretly (his disguise) and places it face down.
4. Place remaining Alibi cards in a pile nearby.
5. Place 8 Turn tokens in a line, numbered 1-8, face up.

Turn Structure

Each turn has two stages:

Stage 1: The Manhunt

Odd turns (1, 3, 5, 7) – Investigator starts:

1. Investigator throws 4 Action tokens (random sides showing).
2. Investigator picks 1 action and executes it.
3. Mr. Jack picks 2 actions from the remaining 3 and executes them (any order).
4. Investigator executes the last remaining action.

Even turns (2, 4, 6, 8) – Mr. Jack starts:

1. Flip all 4 Action tokens to their opposite sides.
2. Mr. Jack picks 1 action.
3. Investigator picks 2 actions.
4. Mr. Jack executes the last remaining action.

Stage 2: Appeal for Witnesses

Mr. Jack declares whether his character can or cannot be seen by any Detective.

• Can be seen: All Suspect tiles NOT in any Detective’s line of sight are flipped to Empty side. Investigator takes the Turn token.
• Cannot be seen: All Suspect tiles IN a Detective’s line of sight are flipped to Empty side. Mr. Jack takes the Turn token (hourglass side up).

Actions

Action	Effect
Holmes / Watson / Toby	Move that Detective 1 or 2 spaces clockwise around the grid edge
Joker	Investigator: move any 1 Detective 1 space clockwise. Mr. Jack: move any 1 Detective 1 space clockwise OR do nothing
Rotation	Rotate any 1 tile 90 or 180 degrees. Cannot rotate a tile already rotated this turn. Two rotation actions exist
Exchange	Swap 2 tiles without changing their orientation
Alibi	Investigator: draw an Alibi card, reveal it, flip matching Suspect tile to Empty if still face up. Mr. Jack: draw an Alibi card secretly, keep it face down for hourglass count

All actions are mandatory (must be performed).

Scoring / Victory Conditions

Investigator wins: Only 1 Suspect tile remains face up after an Appeal for Witnesses. That suspect is Mr. Jack.

Mr. Jack wins: Accumulates 6 or more hourglasses (from Turn tokens taken + Alibi card hourglasses) before being identified.

Special case: If both win on the same turn:

• On turn 8: Investigator wins if Mr. Jack can be seen; Mr. Jack wins if hidden.
• Before turn 8: Game continues – Investigator wins the first turn Mr. Jack is seen; Mr. Jack wins if hidden through turn 8.

Special Rules & Edge Cases

• Line of sight: A Detective can see all characters on tiles adjacent to their position, unless blocked by a wall. The barricade on the grey character’s tile is also a wall.
• When flipping tiles, ensure the wall faces the same direction before and after.
• Multiple Detectives can occupy the same edge space.

Player Reference

Turn Phase	Action
Manhunt	Choose and execute 4 actions (split 1/2/1 between players)
Witnesses	Mr. Jack declares visible/hidden; eliminate suspects accordingly
Win Check	1 suspect left = Investigator wins. 6+ hourglasses = Mr. Jack wins