Defeating Monopoly
New Rules to an Old Game
Edward J. Dodson
[2013]
The game Monopoly is a global phenomenom with a long history.
The objective is to drive all other players into bankruptcy by
becoming the game's most successful land speculator. These new rules
remove the advantages of speculation in land by requiring players to
pay ground rent charges to the community. Players are rewarded
financially by making shrewd investments in capital goods (i.e., in
buildings that generate revenue as investment properties). And, of
course, a good deal luck is involved as players roll the dice and
travel around the standard Monopoly game board.
OBJECT
The object of the game is to become the wealthiest player through
leasing locations on the board from the Community Bank, buying and
selling of buildings, obtaining building use fees from other players,
and acquiring cash payments from travelling around the game board.
EQUIPMENT
The equipment consists of a board, 2 dice, tokens, 32 houses and 12
Hotels and 12 Office Buildings. There are 24 Chance and 24 Community
Chest cards, 28 Building Deed cards and 28 Community Lease cards (one
each for each property), and paper currency.
PREPARATION
Place the board on a table and put the Chance and Community Chest
cards face down on their allotted spaces on the board.
Each player roles the dice to determine his/her starting position in
the game:
- Player with the highest role begins the game with $7,000 and is
first player to role the dice and begin moving around the board.
- Player with the second highest role begins the game with $5,500
and is the second player to role the dice and begin moving around
the board.
- Player with the third highest role begins the game with $3,000
and is the third player to role the dice and begin moving around
the board.
- Player with the fourth highest role begins the game with $2,500
and is the fourth player to role the dice and begin moving around
the board.
- Any additional players with lower roles begin the game with
$2,500 and are ranked by their dice role to begin moving around
the board.
Each player is given paper currency as above, as follows:
- 5 $1 bills
- 5 $5 bills
- 7 $10 bills
- 10 $20 bills
- 6 $50 bills
- 9 $100 bills
- The remaining amount in $500 bills
All of the remaining paper currency ($275,000) is deposited in the
Community Bank, as agent for the Community.
COMMUNITY BANKER
Select as Community Banker a player who will also serve as
Auctioneer. A Community Banker who plays in the game must keep his/her
personal funds separate from those of the Bank.
THE COMMUNITY BANK
The Community Bank holds a monopoly over the lending of money in the
game. No player may borrow from or lend money to another player.
Besides the Bank's money, the Community Bank holds the Building
Deeds, Community Land Leases, as well as the houses, hotels and office
buildings prior to purchase by the players.
Funds from the Community Bank are also used to pay salaries and
bonuses, as directed when a player is instructed to draw a Chance or
Community Chest card.
The Community Bank acts as agent for the Community in the leasing of
land parcels or the auctioning of houses, hotels or office buildings
in the event an owner is forced into a foreclosure sale.
The Community Banker sells houses, hotels or office buildings to the
players and loans money when a player desires to purchase a building
using borrowed funds. The purchasing player must make a cash down
payment of at least one-half of the purchase price. The Community
Banker records the amount of mortgage loan made before delivering the
building and Building Deed to the purchasing player.
When a player who owns a building subject to a mortgage lands on or
passes the location on the board, the player must repay 10 percent of
the original loan amount. This payment is recorded as a reduction in
the amount owed to the Community Bank.
As agent for the community, the Community Banker collects all taxes,
fines, loans, interest charges, land leasing fees and the price of all
properties which it sells and auctions.
NOTE: The Community Bank does not become insolvent. If the Bank runs
out of money, the Community Banker may issue as much new money as
needed by writing on any ordinary paper or introducing additional
currency from any reserve source.
THE PLAY
Based on the above starting order, each player in turn throws the
dice, placing his/her token on the corner marked "GO", then
throwing the dice and moving the token (in the direction of the arrow)
the number of spaces indicated by the dice.
After a player has completed his/her play, the turn passes to the
next player based on the earlier role of the dice. The tokens remain
on the location dictated by the end of play. The player proceeds from
that point when his/her next turn arrives.
Two or more tokens may rest on the same space at the same time.
Depending on the space a player's token reaches and how the space is
controlled, the player may be entitled to lease land from the
Community, "construct" houses, hotels or office buildings on
land already owned or leased, or be obliged to pay an occupancy fee to
the building owner, pay taxes on a property you own, draw a Chance or
Community Chest card, Go To Jail, or simply remain there until the
next role of the dice.
If a player throw doubles, the token is moved as usual, the sum of
the two dice, and are subject to any privileges or penalties
pertaining to the space on which the player lands. Retaining the dice,
the player throws again and moves the token as before. Throwing
doubles three times in succession results in movement of the token
immediately to the space marked "In Jail".
PASSING GO
Each time a player's token lands on or passes over GO, whether by
throwing the dice or drawing a card, the Community Banker pays that
player a $200 bonus. The $200 is paid only once each time around the
board. However, if a player passing GO on the throw of the dice lands
2 spaces beyond it on Community Chest, or 7 spaces beyond it on
Chance, and draws the "Advance to GO" card, the player
collects $200 for passing GO the first time, and another $200 for
Advancing to it the second time based on the instructions on the card.
LEASING LOCATIONS FROM THE COMMUNITY
Whenever a player lands on an unleased parcel of land, the player may
lease that parcel from the Community at its printed "rent".
The player receives the Community Land Lease card showing possession
of the location as a lessee.
The Community Land Lease card is placed face up in front of the
player. If the player does not choose to construct a building at that
point, a "holding fee" equal to one-half of the "rent"
for that location is charged by the Community and paid to the
Community Bank. The full rent for that location is due to the
Community Bank each time the lessee player lands on or passes a leased
location.
If the lessee player is unable to pay the additional "holding
fee," the other players can enter bids to acquire the lease to
the land parcel through an auction. The high bidder pays the Community
the amount of the bid in cash and receives the Community Lease card
for that parcel of land. However, building construction cannot take
place until the successful player begins his/her next turn.
BUILDING USE FEES
When a player lands on a property that is improved by a building
owned by another player, the owner collects a "building use fee"
from that player in accordance with the list printed on its Building
Deed card.
If the building is mortgaged, the building use fee is paid to the
Community Bank and recorded as a payment against the outstanding loan
amount.
The owner of a building may not collect the building use fee if they
fail to ask for it before the next player following throws the dice.
However, the Community Banker is at that point permitted to require
the payment and collect the fee without crediting payment against the
outstanding loan amount.
CHANCE AND COMMUNITY CHEST
When a player lands on either of these spaces, the player takes the
top card from the deck indicated, follows the instructions and returns
the card face down to the bottom of the deck. The "Get Out of
Jail Free" card is held until used and then returned to the
bottom of the deck. If the player who draws it does not wish to use
it, then he/she may sell it, at any time, to another player at a price
agreeable to both.
INCOME TAX
If a player lands on the "Income Tax" space, the player has
two options: (1) pay an estimated tax of $60 to the Community, or (2)
roll the dice and pay to the Community Bank a tax of ten times the
total of the dice.
JAIL
A player lands in Jail when...
(1) The player's token lands on the space marked
"Go to Jail",
(2) The player draws a card marked "Go to Jail" or
(3) The player throws doubles three times in succession.
When a player is sent to Jail the player cannot collect the $200
bonus for passing "Go" in that move since,
regardless of where the token is on the board. The player's token is
moved directly to the Jail and the player's turn ends.
If a player is not "sent to jail" but in the ordinary
course of play lands on that space, the player is considered "Just
Visiting" and incurs no penalty. The player can then move
ahead around the board in the usual manner on the next turn. Also, the
player is still able to collect building use fees on buildings owned
while "Just Visiting" at the Jail space.
A player gets out of Jail by...
- Throwing doubles on any of the next three turns. If the player
succeeds in doing this the player immediately moves forward the
number of spaces shown by the doubles throw. However, even though
the player had thrown doubles, the player is not permitted take
another turn.
- Using the "Get Out of Jail Free Card"
- Purchasing the "Get Out of Jail Free Card"
from another player and using it.
- Paying a fine of $50 before the roll the dice on either of the
player's next two turns. If the player does not throw doubles by
the third turn, a fine of $50 is paid and the player gets out of
Jail and immediately moves forward the number of spaces shown by
the throw of the dice.
NOTE: While a player is in Jail and other players land on locations
improved with buildings, the building use fees are placed in the
center of the board. The next player to land on or pass GO collects
whatever amount is on the board in addition to the normal $200.
FREE PARKING
A player landing on this space does not receive any money, property
or reward of any kind. This is just a "free" resting-place.
HOUSES
When a player leases a land parcel from the Community, the player may
purchase houses from the Community Bank and place them on that land
parcel. Each parcel of land may be improved by up to four houses. The
price paid to the Community Bank for each house is shown on the
Building Deed card corresponding to the land parcel leased.
Following the above rules, a player may buy and place on the location
at any time as many houses (up to the maximum limit of four) as
his/her judgment and financial standing will allow.
Once four houses are located on a land parcel, that parcel is
considered "fully improved" for residential occupancy. If
the player who owns the houses lands on the location after improved by
four houses, the "rent" for the parcel paid to the Community
is doubled (reflecting the fact that the houses must be replaced by a
hotel or office building.
HOTELS AND OFFICE BUILDINGS When a player has four houses on
a land parcel, the player may buy a hotel or office building from the
Community Bank and place it on the location, reflecting the higher
land value of the land parcel. The houses on that location are
returned to the Community Bank (for potential recycling). The price to
be paid for the hotel or office building is shown on the Building Deed
card. One additional hotel or office building may be purchased and
placed on the location space, but the rent to be paid to Community is
doubled.
BUILDING SHORTAGES
When the Community Bank has no houses to sell, players wishing to put
a house on a location must wait for a player to return or sell their
houses to the Community Bank before the purchase can be made. If there
are a limited number of houses, hotels and office buildings available
and two or more players wish to buy more than the Bank has as
inventory, the buildings are sold at auction to the highest bidder
(the bidding to start at the stated purchase price).
SELLING PROPERTY
Railroads, utilities locations and buildings may be sold to any
player as a private transaction for any amount the owner can get.
However, for locations held under lease a "lease transfer fee"
of $200 must be paid to the Community Bank -- $100 by the seller and
$100 by the purchaser.
Houses, hotels and office buildings may be sold back to the Bank at
any time for one-half the price paid for them in the event a player
must raise cash to meet payments to other players, taxes or fines.
MORTGAGES
As indicated above, houses, hotels or office buildings can be
purchased with a minimum cash down payment of one-half of the stated
purchase price. The Community Bank will provide a mortgage loan for
the balance of the purchase price.
In order to "satisfy" the mortgage, the owner must pay the
Bank the amount of mortgage loan outstanding, plus a final interest
payment of 10% of the original loan amount.
A player is permitted to sell a building to another player for a
negotiated price. The selling player receives the net proceeds after
the mortgage balance plus interest is paid to the Community Bank. The
purchaser may obtain a mortgage loan of one-half the purchase price to
complete the transaction.
BANKRUPTCY
You are declared bankrupt if you owe more than you can pay either to
another player or to the Community Bank. If your debt is to another
player, you must turn over to that player all that you have of value
and retire from the game.
If you have mortgaged property you also turn this property over to
your creditor but the new owner must at once pay off the mortgage to
the Community Bank or relinquish the building or buildings. The
Community Bank will then offer the building for sale at auction to the
highest bidder.
Should you owe the Community Bank, instead of another player, more
than you can pay (because of taxes or penalties) even by selling off
buildings, you must turn over all assets to the Community Bank. In
this case, the Community Bank immediately sells by auction all
buildings taken. A bankrupt player must immediately retire from the
game. The last player left in the game wins.
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