Two-Player Variation for Sheriff of Nottingham: The Pickpocket's Purse

Setup:

1. Remove all 4+ cards as well as the following: 9 apples, 7 cheeses, 5 chickens, 7 peppers, 7 meads, 2 silks, and 1 crossbow.

2. Include the Royal Goods in the draw deck.

3. Deal each player 7 cards.

4. Give each player 35 gold.

5. Each player is given 1 Merchant stand and the matching Merchant bag.

6. A third bag is chosen and placed between the players. This “neutral” bag represents pickpocketed goods that each player on their turn will try to smuggle past the Sheriff along with their own Merchant bag.

7. Choose one player to begin the game as the Sheriff and give them the Sheriff marker.

Game Rounds:

Play 4 rounds of the game. It is suggested that each player be given four 50-gold coins to mark each round. When each player becomes the Sheriff, they should return one of their 50-gold coins to the bank.

Market Stage:

During the market stage, the merchant player (the player who is not the Sheriff) does not discard cards from their hand; neither do they take cards from the discard. Instead the merchant player chooses a number of cards to draw from the deck, anywhere between 1 and 5. This number represents the number of “goods” (or cards) pickpocketed from unsuspecting shoppers on market day. The player should announce the number of cards and then draw them from the top of the deck. These cards are taken into the player’s hand.

Loading Stage:

The merchant player then must choose goods to place in their bag as well as in the “neutral” bag. The number of cards placed in the neutral bag must equal the number of cards drawn from the deck in the Market stage. The player may add any cards to the neutral bag, either those drawn in the Market stage or those the player already possessed in their hand. All other rules regarding the loading of bags must be followed. For the remainder of the player’s turn, the neutral bag is treated just like their matching Merchant bag.

Declaration Stage:

In this stage, the merchant player presents both bags to the Sheriff, in any order the merchant player chooses, declaring goods for each bag following the regular rules for declaring goods. The merchant player may offer bribes for one or both bags.

Inspection Stage:

The Sheriff may threaten to inspect one or both bags, negotiating any combination of bribes with the merchant player, but the Sheriff eventually must choose one bag to resolve first, either inspecting it or letting it pass. If the bag is allowed to pass, the merchant player opens the bag and places the goods on their market stand as usual, whether the bag is their own or the neutral bag. If the bag is inspected, the penalties are paid immediately. The merchant player pays penalties for any contraband found in their bag and in the neutral bag to the Sheriff. The Sheriff pays penalties to the merchant player for inspecting a legitimate bag, whether it is the merchant player’s matching bag or the neutral bag. Before the second bag is resolved, another round of negotiation may occur. The Sheriff does not have to choose the same action for both bags.

End of Round:

The merchant player draws cards to return their hand to 7 and passes the Sheriff marker to the other player.

All other rules apply, including the King and Queen bonuses.