A cunning game by Frederic Moyersoen

With art by Alexander Jung amigo-spiele.de/02250

For 2–8 Players, ages 10 and up, with a playing time of about 45 minutes

Game Pieces
50 Path Cards (19 x “I”, 17 x “II”, 14 x “III”) 5 Player Aids
32 Action Cards (10 x “I”, 10 x “II”, 12 x “III”) The Tokens:
1 Starting Card 8 Dwarves (with bases)
4 Goal Cards 3 Creatures (with bases)
10 Clan Cards 3 Spiderwebs
8 Dwarf Cards 46 Gold Nuggets
Note: For images of the components, see the sides of the box.

The Goal of the Game

Just as you get your hands on the gold, the earth starts to shake. The cave’s roof is falling
in and water starts pouring through the cracks. There’s only one thing to do: Find an exit,
quickly! But suddenly, it starts dawning on you that not all the dwarves in the clan are loyal
to each other. Some of them may even work for another clan! Save the gold! Otherwise, all
will be lost…
Card by card, you will create paths through the cave together, hoping to find a safe exit.
Spiderwebs and creatures make your task even harder, but ladders and secret tunnels can
help you out of a dead end or create shortcuts for you. Move your dwarves quickly, before
water levels in the tunnels rise and make moving even harder. In the end, the only thing that
counts is the gold that your clan members manage to carry out of the cave. But watch out!
There may be a saboteur in each clan, secretly collaborating with the enemy. The clan with
the most valuable treasure hoard wins the game!

The Dwarven Clans

In Saboteur – The Dark Cave, you’ll play members of two rival clans: the yellow and blue
dwarves. Each clan has up to four dwarves active in the dark cave. However, not all of them
work loyally for the clan they claim to belong to…

The Dwarf Loyal Dwarves

Clans from Both Clans

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 In each clan, there are one or two saboteurs claiming
to work for their own clan, but actually affiliated with
the other clan. The gold these dwarves save counts
towards the opposing clan’s hoard in the end—and
they will be rewarded by that clan accordingly.
Saboteurs in the Clans

Note: Many tales tell only of the exploits of male members of the dwarven clans.
However, in our adventures, female dwarves have always been instrumental in
creating dwarven legends—as you can see from the artwork.

Preparation
 Place the starting card in the middle of the table.
 Shuffle the 4 goal cards and place them in the four corners of the playing area, face
down. If there are 2–5 players, this area needs to be 9 x 9 cards in size; if there are 6–8
players, make it 7 x 7 cards.
 Prepare the clan cards according to the number of players:
For 2 players, use 1 loyal dwarf from each clan.
For 3–4 players, use all the cards of one clan but remove 1 loyal dwarf.
For 5–8 players, use all the cards but remove 1 saboteur from each clan.
Shuffle the prepared clan cards and deal one to each player. Look at your card in secret
and put it in front of you, face down. The other players can always see which clan you
belong to (= yellow/blue card back), but your identity (= loyal/saboteur on the front of
the card) stays secret until the end of the game. Put any leftover clan cards aside without
looking at them. You’ll need them again when the first dwarf leaves the cave.
 Each player picks one dwarf from their clan and takes the corresponding dwarf card. Put
your dwarf on the starting card and place the dwarf card in front of you so everyone can
see it. Then, take 3 gold each and put it on your dwarf cards.
 Sort the path and action cards by their backs into three decks, I, II, and III. Shuffle each
of the three decks separately and count off 5 cards from each. Put these cards back in the
box without looking at them—you won’t need them for this game. Then, deal 5 cards to
each player, from the following decks:
2–4 players: 5 x I
5–6 players: 4 x I and 1 x II
7–8 players: 3 x I and 2 x II
The remaining cards make up the face-down draw deck: Put deck III down first, then deck
II on top of it, and deck I (if there are any cards left in it) on the very top. Keep the draw
deck nearby and leave some space next to it for the (face-down) discard pile you’ll create
over the course of the game.
 Get the 3 creatures, the 3 spiderwebs, and the remaining gold ready in a common pool.

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6-Player Setup:

 







Space for 3 cards

(for 6–8 players)
or 4 cards
(for 2–5 players).

 

Space for 5 cards

(for 6–8 players)
or 7 cards

(for 2–5 players).

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 Playing the Game
The most trustworthy player goes first, then take turns in a clockwise direction. On your turn,
you must carry out these steps in this order:
1. Play 1 card or discard 1–2 cards (required)
2. Move your dwarf up to 3 steps (optional)
3. Draw 1 or 2 cards from the draw deck (required)
Then your turn ends, and the next player is up.
Note: If the draw deck runs out, the third phase gets skipped. If you don’t have any cards at
the start of your turn, skip your entire turn.

Step 1. Play Cards

At the start of your turn, you must carry out one of these actions:
A – Play 1 path card into the network of tunnels
B – Play 1 action card
C – Pass and discard 1 or 2 cards

A – Play 1 path card into the network of tunnels

Path cards allow you to create a network of tunnels stretching from the central starting card
to the four goal cards. When you play a path card, it must connect to a path card that’s
already part of the network or a face-up goal card (see page 11). All path cards must face
the same way: you can’t play them sideways. All paths on all edges of the cards must align
exactly. Each newly played card must extend an existing path.
You can extend the network in any direction you choose, even past the edges of the playing
area.
Note: The card you play doesn’t have to connect
to the starting card or your own dwarf directly, as
 long as you follow the rules above when playing it.

Examples of incorrect placement of path cards:

  Not connected to cards already in the network
 Card played sideways
 Paths not aligned on all sides
 Doesn’t extend an existing path

 

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The Path Cards
The path cards in groups I, II, and III differ in the number of spaces pictured on them. The
more spaces there are on a card, the more steps a dwarf needs to fully cross it:

Path cards from group I Path cards from group II show

show one big space. more spaces: dwarves need
2 steps to cross them.

Path cards from group III show the most spaces and dwarves need 3 steps
to cross them.

Special Path Cards

Dark Hole (9 x + 1 x Goal Card)
Over the course of the game, creatures will climb up through these holes and threaten
the dwarves (see page 8).

Ladder (4 x + Starting Card + 1 x Goal Card)

All ladders are directly connected to each other: You can move your dwarf from one
space with a ladder to any other space with a ladder using just 1 step.

Bridge (4 x)
The two paths crossing on this card are not connected to each other. Your dwarf
cannot move from the bridge down to the path below or vice versa.
If you move your dwarf over the narrow wooden bridge, you immediately lose
1  card from your hand for the rest of the game. The player to your left draws
1 random card from your hand and puts it face down on the discard pile without
looking at it.
Double Bend with Tunnel (5 x)
The two paths on this card are connected by a tunnel. The tunnel counts as a
separate space.
If you move your dwarf into the tunnel, you immediately lose 1 gold. Take the gold
off of your dwarf card and put it back in the common pool.
Note: If you don’t have any gold left, your dwarf can still enter the tunnel. In this
case, you don’t have to pay the gold.

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 Gold Vein (2 x + 1 x Goal Card)
When you place a gold vein in the tunnel network, immediately take 1 gold from
the common pool and place it on the gold symbol on the card. If your dwarf’s
movement ends on the gold vein, take that gold and put it on your dwarf card.
Important: If you take the gold from a gold vein, you must immediately reveal your
clan card and leave your identity visible for the rest of the game.
B – Play 1 Action Card
Action cards help you gain secret information, obtain advantages, block pathways, swap
cards, or attract certain creatures.
Action Cards with Instant Effects
These action cards allow you to carry out the action shown once. Show the card you want to
play to the other players and put it on the discard pile, face down (exception: “Spiderweb”).
Then, carry out the corresponding action.
Secret Information (5 x)
Choose one of these two options and carry it out. Don‘t show the information to
the others.
Take a sneak peek at one of the face-down goal cards. Then put it back in
its place, face down.
Peek at another player’s clan card and put it back in its place, face down.

Rockfall (3 x)
Remove any 1 path card that does not have a dwarf or a creature on it from
the network.
Note: You can’t use “Rockfall” on the starting card or any of the goal cards. If
you remove a path card with a spiderweb on an open end of a path, remove the
spiderweb, too. If you remove a path card with a gold vein and gold, return the gold
to the common pool.
Swap Cards (2 x)
Pick any other player and give them all the cards in your hand, face down. In return,
you get all the cards from that player’s hand, face down. The number of cards you
swap doesn’t have to be the same.
Important: At the end of your turn, don’t draw any cards from the draw deck.
Instead, the other player draws 1 card (see page 11).
Spiderweb (3 x)
Place this card in front of you, face up, and take the spiderweb marker with the
matching symbol (see page 7). Set it down so the  side is showing, either…
…on the connecting point between 2 cards already in the network;
…or on the open end of a path on a card in the network.

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There can be only 1 spiderweb in any one place at the same time. The spiderweb blocks this
section of the path for all dwarves and creatures for 2 rounds. At the start of your next
turn, flip it over from  to . When your turn comes around again, and the spiderweb shows
the , remove it from the network and put the corresponding action card on the discard pile.
Note: If the spiderweb is blocking the open end of a path, you may still extend the path
from there.

✔
✔ ✔ Examples of
correct placement
✔ of spiderwebs
✔ ✔ ✔
✔
Note: To help you keep an eye on the spiderwebs, each spiderweb action card has a marker
that corresponds to it directly. The symbols , or around the number show you which
marker matches which action card. When you remove a spiderweb from the network, put the
matching action card on the discard pile.
Action Cards with Tools
These action cards equip you for the tasks at hand inside the cave. When you play one of
them, place it face up in front of yourself or any other player.
Boots (3 x)
When you have boots in front of you, you may move your dwarf 1 additional step
on each of your turns (see page 10).
Note: Each player can have only 1 boots card in front of them.

Battle-Axe (3 x)
If you have a battle-axe in front of you, you can use it as follows:
If you find yourself in a space next to a spiderweb at any point during your turn,
you may discard the battle-axe to flip the web from  to  or remove it if the
 is already showing.
If a creature moves into your space or you move into its space, you may use the
battle-axe to drive away the creature before it attacks you: Discard the battle-
axe and remove the creature from the network. The player with the action card
matching the creature puts the card on the discard pile.
Note: To use the effect of the battle-axe, you must have it in front of you already.
You can’t play it from your hand and use it immediately.

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Action Cards for Attracting and Moving Creatures
With these action cards, you can lure different creatures from their dark holes and move
them through the tunnel network to attack other dwarves. Each creature has a different effect
when it attacks (see page 9).

When you play an action card with a creature, place it face up in front of you.
Take the matching creature and put it on any space in the network showing a
dark hole.
Note: If there aren’t any dark holes in the network yet, you can’t attract a creature.
Then, move the creature the number of steps shown on the action card along the existing
paths of the network.

When moving a creature, please note:

You don’t have to move the creature the full number of steps. Feel free to forfeit any
number of steps you don’t want to use.
You may move a creature one way and then back again.
If a creature encounters a dwarf, it immediately stops in the dwarf’s space and attacks
them. If there are several dwarves in one space, they all get attacked at the same time.
If one dwarf drives the creature away with a battle-axe, all the dwarves in that space are
spared from the attack.
Note: An attack occurs if a dwarf moves into a space occupied by a creature, too (see
page 10).
Creatures can move from ladder to ladder, over bridges, and through tunnels without
restrictions, but they can’t move through spiderwebs.
Creatures can’t reveal face-down goal cards.
Creatures disappear from the tunnel network after one round—until they’re attracted again
by another action card. Remove the creature at the start of your next turn and discard the
action card in front of you.

If the Creature Is Already in Play

If you play an action card for a creature that is already roaming the tunnel network, do not
place it on a dark hole. Instead, move it from the space it currently occupies. If the creature
starts in a space with one or more dwarves, it only attacks those dwarves if it leaves and
reenters that space later.
The player who had the action card for that creature in front of them up to now discards the
card. The creature now stays in play until your next turn comes around.

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Creatures and Their Effects
Rat (5 x)
Rats move up to 3 steps. If they enter a dwarf’s space, that dwarf
immediately loses 1 card from their hand for the rest of the game. Their
left-hand neighbor draws 1 card from their hand at random and puts it
face down on the discard pile without looking at it.

Lindworm (4 x)
Lindworms move up to 4 steps. If they enter a dwarf’s space, that dwarf
is paralyzed for one round. Immediately lay the dwarf down in its space.
On that player’s next turn, stand it back up, but don’t move it.

Goblin (4 x)
Goblins move up to 5 steps. If they enter a dwarf’s space, that dwarf
immediately loses 1 gold. Take the gold from their dwarf card and put it
back in the common pool.
Note: If you don’t have any gold, the goblin can’t steal any from you. It
still stops if it moves into your dwarf’s space.

 
 

Example: The “Rat” action card is played. The active player places the action card in front
of them and starts the rat on a dark hole space, moving up to 3 steps away. After 2 steps, the
rat encounters a blue dwarf and attacks them. The blue dwarf loses 1 card.
C – Pass and Discard 1 or 2 Cards
If you can’t play a card according to action A or B, or if you choose not to, you must pass
and discard 1 or 2 cards from your hand. Put the discarded cards on the discard pile, face
down.

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 Step 2. Move Your Dwarf
After playing or discarding your cards, you may move your dwarf up to 3 steps. Each step
moves your dwarf 1 space along an existing path.

 


Example: After playing a card, the yellow dwarf moves 3 steps along the path.

Remember the following rules when moving:

V If you have boots in front of you, you may move your dwarf up to 4 steps.
V For path cards from group II or group III, you need to spend 2 or 3 steps to cross them
entirely.
V Each space can hold any number of dwarves.
V It takes 1 step to move from any ladder to any other ladder.
V If your dwarf crosses a bridge, you lose 1 card from your hand immediately.
V If your dwarf enters a tunnel, you lose 1 gold immediately: Put 1 gold from your dwarf
card back in the common pool.
V A spiderweb blocks a path: If you can’t or don’t want to remove it with a battle-axe, you
can’t use the path there.
V If your dwarf moves into a space with a creature, your movement ends immediately and
the creature attacks as above (see page 8/9). If you have a battle-axe in front of you, you
can use it to drive the creature away.
Note: If you don’t have any cards in your hand at the start of your turn, your dwarf can’t
move during your turn either. Your turn is skipped entirely.

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Reaching the Goal Cards
If you’re the first player to move their dwarf onto a goal card, turn over that card. Align it so
that it connects to the tunnel network at the place where you entered it. Then, move your
dwarf onto the first space of the goal card and end your movement there.

Example: The yellow dwarf moves onto a goal card during their turn. Before they move onto
the card, it’s revealed and aligned so the yellow dwarf can actually move there. The dwarf is
then placed in the first space of the goal card and their movement ends.
Note: When you reveal a goal card, it may not line up with the existing path cards on all
sides. In this case, you must place it in a way that extends the path your dwarf is entering
it from.
Exiting the cave
Only one of the four goal cards shows an exit from the cave. In order
to leave the cave, your dwarf must reach the exit space. If they do, take
your dwarf off the goal card immediately, put it in front of you, and
reveal your clan card. You still continue playing the game by playing
and drawing cards.

Step 3. Draw Cards

At the end of your turn, you must draw cards. If you played a path or action card, draw 1
card from the draw deck and add it to your hand. If you passed, draw as many cards (1 or 2)
as you discarded.
Note: If the draw deck runs out, don’t draw any more cards.

The End of the Game and Scoring

The game ends immediately when one of the following situations occurs:
V The draw deck has run out and everybody has played all of the cards in their hands.
V All the dwarves working for the same clan have left the cave through the exit. If you
set aside any clan cards at the start of the game, the first player who moves their dwarf
out of the cave takes them and looks at them in secret. This allows them to determine
exactly how many dwarves are in play for each of the clans and they announce the end of
the game if this situation occurs.
Hint: If none of the remaining dwarves are in a position where they can reach the exit, you
can agree to finish the game early.
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Distributing the Gold
Everyone now reveals their clan cards and shows their identities. If you haven’t left the cave,
return your gold to the common pool. Then, count all the gold each clan has managed to save
to determine the total value of your treasures. Keep in mind that any gold the saboteurs have
saved counts towards the other clan’s treasure. Determine the treasures’ value as follows:
Amount of gold saved
x
Number of dwarves working for the opposing clan
The clan with the more valuable treasure wins. If there is a tie, the winning clan is the one
that the first dwarf who left the cave was working for—either a loyal dwarf of their own ranks
or a saboteur from the opposing clan.
Example of the Treasures’ Value in a 5-Player Game:

XX

The yellow clan has two dwarves working for it. The third yellow dwarf is a saboteur working
for the blue clan. Two dwarves from each clan have managed to leave the cave. The third blue
dwarf unfortunately lost their gold because they didn’t make it out in time.
V Yellow Clan: 2 + 2 = 4 gold, times 3 (number of blue dwarves) = 12
V Blue Clan: 2 + 3 + 0 = 5 gold, times 2 (number of yellow dwarves) = 10
The two dwarves of the yellow clan were able to save the more valuable treasure and win
the game!

More Fun in
the World of
Saboteur!

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please do not hesitate to contact us directly.
Do you have any questions? We would be happy to help.

© AMIGO Spiel + Freizeit GmbH, D-63128 Dietzenbach, 2022 Version 1.1

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