Aggravation Board Game Rules

Aggravation is a classic board game that involves rolling dice, racing marbles to the finish line and aggravating the other players in the process. This game is designed for two to six players aged 6 and up. The object of the game is to be the first person to make it "Home" with all four of your marbles.

Each player picks four marblesof the same color and places them in the "Base" of that color. To determine the order of play, all players roll the die and whoever has the highest roll plays first. Game play then continues to the left of the first player.

You can only start a marble from your "Base" if you roll a one or a six. If you roll a six anytime throughout the game, you get another turn. Each player begins by rolling the die to try to start or move one of his marbles. You can only have one marble in your "Start" spot at any given time. Marbles are moved clockwise along the game path following the direction of the solid arrows on the game board. Once you start a marble, you can move it the die count on your subsequent turns. After you have started a marble, if you roll a one or a six you have the choice of either moving a marble you already have on the board or starting another one. Furthermore, you can jump other player’s marbles and count them in your number of spaces to move if they are in your path. You cannot, however, jump over your own marbles on the board or land in a spot occupied by one of your own marbles. If you are unable to move the full die count due to one of your marbles blocking a space, you cannot move the blocked marble. If the full die count prevents you from moving any of your marbles, your turn is over without making a move. If one player lands on another player’s marble by exact count, the marble landed on becomes aggravated. The aggravated marble has to be returned to the player’s "Base" and the other marble moves into its spot on the game board. The aggravated marble has to begin the start process all over again. Marbles cannot be aggravated on the "Base" or "Home" spots on the game board.

There are two different types of shortcuts in Aggravation that may get you to your "Home" spot quicker. If by exact die count a player’s marble lands on a star space shortcut, he can move the marble clockwise around the star spaces on a subsequent turn in accordance with his die roll. Exit the star spaces onto any path with the goal being the path that leads to the "Home" spot. The player can then continue his play on the path by moving the number of spaces left in the die count.

If a player lands on a center space super-shortcut by exact die count, he can advance to a star space of his choice. The only way to get out of a center space once you land on it is to roll a one in another turn. The player then exits the center space on the star space of his choosing.

Marbles that are on any of the shortcut spaces can still be aggravated.

The first person to get all four of his marbles into the "Home" space is the winner. You can only place a marble in the "Home" space by an exact die count. A marble must be moved a full die count during the entire play of the game, including entering the "Home" space.