Strategy Games

MOUSE TRAP ATTACK

You will need:

• 4 spring loaded mouse traps per team
• an endless supply of rolled up paper balls

We will suppose that there are four teams or patrols of six boys. They are spaced at equal distances down the length of the hall. Each team or patrol has it's mouse traps cocked at one side of the hall on the floor. At the other side of the hall opposite each group of mouse traps are three attacking boys from each of the other patrols. These attacking boys are armed with rolled up balls of paper. Each patrol is allowed up to three defenders for their mouse traps. These defenders must sit on the floor half way between their mouse traps and the defenders. The attackers must lob the paper balls over the heads of the defenders and set off the mouse traps. The winning patrol is the one that has the last loaded mouse trap.

MOUSE TRAP FISHING GAME

You will need:

• 1 spring loaded mouse trap
• 3 bamboo canes
• 3 lengths of string
• some objects such as plastic bottles to be picked up, for each team

You will have to bore a hole or fit a screw eye in one end of each mouse trap so that it can be attached to a length of string. Each team stands at one side of the hall and the objects they have to collect such as plastic bottles are on the other side of the river (hall). The only way that they can get the objects, is to lash the three bamboo poles together to form a fishing pole and attach the string with the mouse trap attached to the end. You will have to show the scouts how to cock the mouse traps safely or you may have to do some first aid on bruised fingers.

SUBMARINES AND MINEFIELDS

You will need:

• Blindfolds for each member of the minefield

You split into two teams teams, one forms a line across the playing field. They are blindfolded and standing close enough together to touch hands. Each hand is a mine that will 'destroy' a ship (a member of the other team.) that team quietly tries to sneak along the line weaving in and out of the mines, (i.e. between their feet, or between two scouts). we once had someone go fetch a utility ladder and climb over the minefield. After a minefield team member uses one hand and hits a ship, that hand is out of play for the round. Thus later ships may go through an unprotected area. Smaller scouts usually win this one. When the whole team has gone through or not as the case may be, change over. At the end of the game, the winning team is the one that managed to get the most ships through the minefield.

TRADER

You will need:

• 4 counters for each boy, red, blue green and yellow one of each colour.

When the game starts the boys are given a set time 5 to 10 minutes in which they are allowed to trade. They trade in the following manner. A boy approaches another boy with a counter in his left fist , he does not show the other boy what colour he is holding. If they agree to trade then they give each other a counter taking care that they do not show the colour they are swapping. Any boys who do not wish to trade simply cross their arms, this indicates that they are not open for trading. After the trading period is ended you show the lads the stockmarket chart shown below and get the lads to add up their scores.

Print out the following table and make copies.

4 Red counters 100 points 4 Green counters 60 points 3 of any colour 40 points Single Red 1 point Single Green 4 points

4 Blue counters 80 points 4 Yellow counters 50 points 2 of any colour 15 Single Blue 2 points, Single yellow 5 points.

After they have added up their scores and you have found out which scouts have the highest scores, collect the counters in and hand out one of each colour again to the scouts. Now play it again with the scouts knowing the values and see the difference in tactics. From time to time you could introduce jokers these are White counters. You place some of these on the table and the boys are told they can take them if they wish. The value of these is unknown until they add up the scores. You then tell them that they either get 10 extra points for each White counter they have or minus 10 for each White counter they hold, much like Bulls and Bears in the stock market. You can decide if it is going to be a plus or a minus by either tossing a coin or rolling a dice.

THE TRADER GAME

You will need:

• 4 chips for each boy, all of different colours (red, green, blue, yellow)
• 1 chip for each adult - white (I made my chips by cutting 1 inch squares from coloured cardboard)

The boys are given a chip of each colour. the adults each have one white chip. The boys get 7 to 10 minutes to 'trade' chips with each other or an adult. To trade, each boy holds a chip HIDDEN in one hand. When they agree on the trade, the chips are exchanged. ALL TRADES ARE FINAL! Boys who do not wish to trade should fold their arms to signal that they don't wish to trade. All trades are 1 chip at a time. Boys can also trade with adults if they want to. After the trading is over, show the boys the stock market list below and have them add up their scores.

Now that they know the value of the chips, let the boys play the game again. Collect and redistribute the chips, and see how trading tactics change. After the second trading period is over, add up the scores again and see how the boys did this time.

STOCK MARKET CHART - TRADING CHIP VALUES

4 RED - 90 POINTS 4 GREEN - 80 POINTS 4 YELLOW - 60 POINTS 4 BLUE - 50 POINTS 2 WHITE - 50 POINTS 3 OF ANY COLOUR - 40 POINTS 2 OF ANY COLOUR - 20 POINTS

1 (SINGLE) BLUE - 40 POINTS 1 (SINGLE) YELLOW - 30 POINTS 1 (SINGLE) GREEN - 30 POINTS 1 (SINGLE) RED - 20 POINTS 1 (SINGLE) WHITE - 20 POINTS

TRADING POST

You will need:

• Two price lists, one of things that you are selling and one of things that you are prepared to buy back.
• Various things for the teams to buy
• You will also need some form of currency such as coloured cards, paper or even beads.

At the start of the game, each team is given the same amount of currency. They then have to decide what they are going to buy from you in order to make something to sell back to you for a profit. Most things that you buy back should result in a profit, but you should put in some items that produce no profit or even a loss. As an example of the sort of things on your to buy list would be a cup of hot tea for the scout leaders. To do this they will have to purchase from you matches, tea bags, milk and sugar, a cooking stove, fuel for the cooking stove, water pot and water.

LIGHTHOUSE

This game comes from a Games book published by the Bharat Scouts and Guides (India). It is attributed to the Catholic Boy Scouts of Ireland.

You will need:

• enough blindfolds for half your group.
• a reasonably large room.

The Leader is the lighthouse. Half the troop (pack, company) are ships, and put on the blindfolds at one end of the room. The other half are rocks, and distribute themselves on the floor between the ships and the lighthouse. Please ask the rocks to keep their hands and feet in to minimise tripping. The rocks also should not clump up.

The lighthouse goes "woo woo" to guide the ships. The rocks go "swish, swish" quietly to warn the ships of their presence. On go, the ships navigate between the rocks to the lighthouse. If they touch a rock, they are sunk and must sit on the floor (and go "swish, swish" also). When all the ships have made it to the lighthouse (or have been sunk), the rocks and ships switch places.