SOLIDARITY AND HISTORY BOARD GAME
Rules
1. Make your own board in a Monopoly style, numbering the squares thus: 1-10 on the first side of squares; 11-19 on the second; 20-28 on the third, and 29-36 on the fourth side. Also take a die or dice from another game you might have or make your own spinner with numbers 1-6. Use tokens from another game or coins, pebbles, nuts etc.
2. I made a collage for the large rectangular area within the outside circuit of 36 squares. You might wish to leave yours blank to save time. Or write SOLIDARITY AND HISTORY BOARD GAME. Or whatever.
3. Then add titles to each square. Each title will have an explanation and a score revealed by the judge (See SOLIDARITY AND HISTORY THE CLASS CONFLICT BOARD GAME CLASS CONFLICT SCORES: COMRADE OR OPPRESSOR? This follows this list of rules. It’s right at the end.)
4. Here follows the titles and numbers BUT YOU ARE AT LIBERTY TO CHANGE THESE (and, of course, the linking information at SOLIDARITY AND HISTORY THE CLASS CONFLICT BOARD GAME CLASS CONFLICT SCORES: COMRADE OR OPPRESSOR):
1. Alpha and Omega 2 Fire 3 Stonehenge 4 Romans 5 Vikings 6 Normans 7 Peasants’ Revolt 8 Witches 9 The Reformation 10 The Civil War 11 Enclosure 12 War, Empire and Enslavement 13 Tom Paine, Mary Wollstonecraft and Edmund Burke 14 Turnpikes and bread prices 15 Water power and steam power 16 General Ludd 17 Peterloo 18 Tolpuddle Martys 19 Captain Swing 20 Workhouses 21 Enslavement 22 Chartism 23 Wages and Profits 24 The Age of Empire 25 Votes for Women 26 The Great War 27 Revolution and the end of the War 28 The General Strike 29 Spain 30 The Great Depression 31 Churchill and the Second World War 32 The Cold War 33 Decolonisation and the end of Empire 34 Thatcher 35 Contested culture wars 36 The Anthropocene and the Capitalocene
5. The game can be for 1-4 players or it could be played in paired teams (therefore up to 8 participants. But, again, you can alter the rules to suit the occasion). The judge is elected by the players.
6. Players throw dice. The person with the lowest score goes first. If a tie, obvs have another throw until a lowest score is achieved.
7. Players throw dice in turn. If your score is an even number then the judge will read your class-position and your score for this place in time and space. Ditto, if an odd number. Players keep a record of their class-position scores. (This outlook about odd and even is derived from the proverbial wisdom of an association of even-handedness with fair dealing. Players can change this rule of course.)
8. If you throw a 4, then you gain an additional 10 bonus points for joining a trade union. If you throw a 6, you gain an additional 20 bonus points for persuading someone to join a trade union.
9. Players go around the board three times. Or whatever. If a player lands upon a square that they have already visited then they move to the next one, btw.
10.At the end of three circuits, or ‘whatever’ (for example, a time limit), the player with the highest class-comrade points is the winner and, in celebration, the judge makes everyone a cup of tea.
SOLIDARITY AND HISTORY THE CLASS CONFLICT BOARD GAME CLASS CONFLICT SCORES: COMRADE OR OPPRESSOR?
1. ALPHA and OMEGA
2 FIRE
Even: You say fire will destroy life both animal and floral.
+ 3
-----------------
0dd: You help keep a fire going to clear the landscape.
Minus 2
3 STONEHENGE
Even: You are ordered to help in the construction of ‘Stonehenge’.
You object to forced labour
and are banished. + 2
------------------
Odd: You order the construction of a massive stone monument
And consequent forced labour.
It takes an age.
Miss a go and minus 5
4 ROMANS
Even: You revolt against Roman control + 5
Unfortunately, you are enslaved after the revolt.
Miss a go.
------------------
Even: You welcome Roman civilisation: mosaics and hypocausts!
Minus 5
5 VIKINGS
Even: You adulterate Viking strong drink
with magic mushrooms and incapacitate them.
+ 10
But you also incapacitate yourself.
Miss a go.
--------------------
Odd: You tell the Vikings where to ford the Thames.
You are deemed a traitor by Wessex.
You are abandoned by the Vikings once across the river.
Minus 10 and remorse: miss a go.
6 NORMANS
Even: You tell the Norman Domesday Book commissioner
lies and share hidden crops. +8
And jump two squares
---------------------------
Odd: You are a Domesday Book commissioner
and tour the shires. Minus 10
And it takes up so much time so you miss a go
7 PEASANTS’ REVOLT
Even: You join the Peasants’ Revolt
and march on London. + 1O
And jump three squares.
_____________________
Odd: You stay loyal to Lord and King
in the Peasants’ Revolt.
In consequence, no one in the village will speak to you.
Minus 10
And you will be ignored by everyone in the room
for the next 5 minutes.
8 WITCHES
Odd: You demand the burning of women as witches
when the crops fail. Minus 10
And you are not allowed a drink in real time
for the next 10 minutes.
__________________
Even: You say that there is no god,
no devil and no witchcraft when crops fail or grow.
It is weather and nature. +10
And you can have an extra drink in real time.
If you wish.
9 THE REFORMATION
Even: You support the Reformation
because of the corruption of the Roman Catholic Church.
+ 5
(But mutter a complaint about losing holidays on Saints’ Days
as you add up your score, please.)
___________________
Odd: You support the Reformation because
you want the land and estates of the monasteries.
Minus 5
(But complain to the judge that you heard an opponent
muttering about Saints Days. Request s/he is burnt at the stake.)
10 THE CIVIL WAR
Even: You join the Diggers at St George’s Hill,
Proclaiming ‘All should be held in Common’. +10
(Also share some drink and food in real time.)
--------------------------
Odd: You support King Charles,
asserting ‘The Divine Right of Kings’.
Minus 10
(And explain to the group why a monarchy
is preferable to a republic.)
11 ENCLOSURE
Even: You tear down fences and hedges
in riots against enclosure. +10
Have an extra go too.
___________________
Odd: You take over common land with fences
and hedges and privatise. Minus 10
(And face insults from other players in real time.
And miss a go.)
12 WAR. ENSLAVEMENT, EMPIRE
Even: You speak out against wars, enslavement
and Empire. +10
And take the chance to stretch your legs in real time.
_____________________
Odd: You say that war, enslavement and Empire
bring wealth to the country. Minus 10
And you must remain seated in real time for the next five minutes.
And you go back three spaces.
13 PAINE, WOLLSTONECRAFT, BURKE
Even: You read Tom Paine’s The Rights of Man
and Mary Wollstonecraft’s Vindication of the Rights of Women
to regulars in the tavern. +10
And have a drink in real time.
____________________
Odd: You read Edmund Burke’s
Reflections on the Revolution in France
and say common people are ‘a swinish multitude’.
Minus 10
(And metaphorically was your mouth out)
14 TURNPIKES AND BREAD PRICES
Even: You smash down turnpike gates at toll houses
and riot against the high price of bread too. + 20
And have a bite to eat in real time.
________________
Odd: You invest in a turnpike trust and hoard wheat
to ensure the price goes up. Minus 20
And nobody speaks to you in real time for the next four minutes.
15 STEAM POWER AND WATER POWER
Even: You tell the mill-owner that water power
is not only cheaper than steam but it’s healthier too.
+10
And have a drink in real time.
________________-
Odd: You invest in steam power because
you can control the workforce more rigorously
and keep their wages lower. Minus 20
And you are shunned for the next three minutes in real time.
16 GENERAL LUDD
Even: You say the new machines mean shoddy cloth
as well as unemployment, lower rates and pay. ‘
Smash those machines!’, says General Ludd. + 10
And an extra go.
___________________
Odd: You say: Machines and towns and mills mean progress.
We have all to submit to the march of progress.
What chance do we stand against the army up here?
There are more troops up here than being used against Napoleon.
Minus 10
And nobody speaks to you for five minutes.
17 PETERLOO
Even: You march proudly to St Peter’s Fields in 1819,
banner aloft, for universal suffrage. Including votes for women.
+ 15
_________________________
Odd: You agree with the Home Secretary and the Prince Regent:
the yeomanry did a splendid job keeping order.
Minus 20
18 TOLPUDDLE MARTYRS
Even: You join the Grand National Consolidated Trade Union
You support a general strike.
+10
And an extra go.
_____________________
Odd: You refuse to join the demonstration
in support of the Tolpuddle Martyrs.
Minus 10
And go back two spaces.
19 CAPTAIN SWING
Even: You write a Captain Swing letter demanding
higher wages and an end to threshing machines
which take away your winter work.
+10
__________________
Odd: You inform on your workmates and tell the squire
who wrote the Swing letter and
who smashed the threshing machines. Minus 20
And nobody speaks to you for the next three minutes.
20 THE WORKHOUSE
Even: You campaign against workhouses.
It criminalises poverty and punishes the poor. It splits families up.
+ 10
____________________
Even: ‘If we give the poor support outside of a workhouse it only makes them idle and profligate. Conditions inside the workhouse should be worse than the worst paid job outside. Lesser eligibility.’ Minus 20
And go back two spaces.
21 THE ABOLITION OF SLAVERY
Even: You campaign for the abolition of enslavement.
You show the evils of the Middle Passage,
the cruelty on the plantations and the shame of the triangular trade.
+15
And have an extra go too.
_________________________
Odd: You say workers in British mills are treated
worse than slaves on plantations
in the West Indies.
You get compensation money at abolition
and invest it in railways.
Minus 30
And miss a go.
22 CHARTISM
Even: You join the Chartists:
You say that moral force is not enough.
Appearing ‘respectable’ and ‘deserving’
of the vote could take for ever.
There must be strikes and threats
if the working class is to get the vote.
‘Physical force’.
+10
___________________
Odd: You say ‘moral force’ is the path to enfranchisement.
The working class must be respectful,
lawful and patient.
Minus 5
23 WAGES AND PROFITS
Even: You declare that profits are stolen wages
+10
And have an extra go.
_______________________
Odd: You say that we can only get higher wages
if the boss makes higher profits
Minus 10
And miss a go.
24 THE AGE OF EMPIRE
Even: You oppose the Age of Empire
and the carve-up of Africa
as exploitative and immoral.
+10
And go forward two spaces
_____________________
Odd: You say that the British Empire
civilises the world:
You use the phrase,
“White Man’s Burden”.
Minus 10
And go back two spaces.
25 VOTES FOR WOMEN
Even: You chain yourself to railings
And go on hunger-strike
For Votes for Women.
+15
__________________
Odd: You declare that women are too emotional
And cannot understand politics;
Their place is in the home.
Minus 15
And no-one speaks to you for the next two minutes.
26 THE GREAT WAR
Even: You oppose war in 1914:
‘Workers of the World Unite!’
How can this be a war for democracy
when so many soldiers – and all women –
don’t have the vote?
+15
____________________
Odd: You pass white feathers in the street.
Minus 15
And n0-one speaks to you for the next two minutes.
27 THE END OF THE GREAT WAR
Even: You read about the Wobblies.
You read about revolution in Russia.
You try to form a soldiers’ soviet
in a British Army mutiny
against the slowness of demobilisation in 1919.
+ 10
And move forwards one place.
_________________-
Odd: You want to fight against the Bolsheviks in Russia
and you volunteer for the Black & Tans
in Ireland.
Minus 15
And no-one speaks to you for the next three minutes.
28 THE GENERAL STRIKE
Even: You are on the picket line throughout
The General Strike.
+ 10
And have a drink or something to eat to keep yourself going.
_________________
Odd: You break the strike by volunteering
To drive trains and deliver food.
Minus 10
And miss a go.
29 THE SPANISH CIVIL WAR
Even: You volunteer to go to Spain to aid
the fight against Franco and Fascism.
+15
And an extra go.
_____________________
Odd: You support the British policy of neutrality
Even when British ships aiding
The struggle against Franco are bombed.
Minus 15
And miss a go.
30 THE GREAT DEPRESSION
Even: You go on hunger marches
and the Jarrow Crusade
during the Great Depression.
+10
And an extra go.
_________________
Odd: You support cuts in unemployment benefit,
And you support the Means Test;
You say the government has to balance the budget.
Minus 10
And you have nothing to eat or drink for the next 5 minutes.
31 CHURCHILL AND WW2
Even: You don’t forget Winston Churchill’s actions
during the coal miners’ strike in South Wales;
his bellicosity during the General Strike, and his attitude
towards demands for Indian independence.
+10
_______________________
Odd: You believe Churchill’s speech
where he likens Labour to the Gestapo
and you vote Tory in the 1945 general election.
Minus 10
32 THE COLD WAR
Even: During the Cold War, you say the
Americans are protecting capitalism
rather than democracy.
+10 and have a cup of tea
__________________-
Odd: During the Cold War,
You proclaim,
‘Better Dead than Red.’
Minus 10
And hide under a chair for a minute in case of a nuclear attack
33 THE END OF EMPIRE
Even: You campaign for decolonisation
and the end of Empire,
and against apartheid.
+10
And receive gestures of solidarity from others in the room.
_________________
Odd: You say Africa and ‘the Third World’
are not yet ready for self-rule.
Minus 10
And receive gestures of derision from others in the room.
34 THATCHERISM
Even: You campaign against Thatcherism
and all its varied attacks on collectivism,
Nationalisation, trade unions,
and the Welfare State.
Plus 10
And others in the room give you a drink.
_________________
Odd: You argue for self-help,
standing on your own two feet,
Market forces, laisser-faire,
Cuts in social security etc. etc. etc. etc.
Minus 10
And everyone in the room turns their back on you.
35 CONTESTED CULTURE WARS
Even: You support BLM,
Decolonising the curriculum,
And aid refugees and asylum seekers.
+10
And an extra go.
___________________--
Odd: You use the terms ‘Woke’
‘snowflake’, ‘virtue-signalling’
And ‘cultural Marxism’.
You use ‘Marxism’ as a pejorative.
Minus 10
And everyone in the room turns their back on you.
36 THE ANTHROPOCENE and the CAPITALOCENE
Even: You show how climate change
Was initiated by the British steam-based
Industrial revolution
and the use of more expensive coal over cheaper
water power, because it meant bosses could control
their workforce.
You believe Capitalism is the cause of
Climate catastrophe;
‘The Capitalocene’.
+10
______________________
Odd: You look back to home sapiens;
You say the discovery of fire started it all.
Climate change is down to humanity as a species.
The Anthropocene.
Minus 10 and miss a go too.
Alpha and Omega