STRATEGY

KING OF TOKYO: THE TOKYO TRADE-OFF

Roll Yahtzee-style monster dice. Attack, heal, score points, or buy power cards. Stay in Tokyo to score VP — but you can't heal there.

DIFFICULTYBEGINNER

PLAYERS2–6

PLAY TIME30 min

AGE8+

KING OF TOKYO DICE FAMILY

STEP 1

SETUP

1Each player picks a monster card and matching standee.
2Place all monsters on their starting health: 10 HP, 0 VP, 0 Energy.
3Shuffle the power card deck; deal 3 face-up next to the deck (the market).
4Place 8 monster dice (6 black for everyone, 2 green unlocked later).
5Tokyo and Tokyo Bay (5–6 players only) are empty.
6Youngest monster goes first.

STEP 2

HOW TO PLAY

EACH TURN: 3 ROLLS

1. Roll all 6 dice. 2. Keep any number, re-roll the rest. 3. Re-roll one more time. After the third roll, RESOLVE all dice symbols: ATTACK (deal 1 damage per claw, hits everyone NOT in Tokyo if you're inside; hits ONLY the player in Tokyo if you're outside), HEAL (heart, +1 HP — only if outside Tokyo), ENERGY (lightning, +1 energy chip), VP (1/2/3 numbers, score VP for triple-matches).

ENTERING TOKYO

If you attack from outside Tokyo AND Tokyo is empty, you MUST enter. While in Tokyo: gain 1 VP at start of each of your turns + 2 VP each time you enter Tokyo. But you can't heal while inside.

LEAVING TOKYO

When attacked while in Tokyo, you may LEAVE (the attacker enters instead). Leaving costs you no VP but gives the attacker the Tokyo bonus. This decision — stay and gain 1 VP/turn or flee to heal — is the heart of the game.

POWER CARDS

Spend energy at end of turn to buy a power card from the market. KEEP cards (permanent ability), DISCARD cards (one-time effect). Refresh the market for 2 energy if you don't want what's available. Cards often decide tight games.

★ WIN CONDITION

Two ways to win: (1) reach 20 VP first, OR (2) be the last monster alive (everyone else at 0 HP).

STEP 3

QUICK TIPS

▸If Tokyo is empty at 8+ HP, take it. The 2 VP bonus + free 1 VP/turn is huge.
▸Don't stay in Tokyo below 4 HP. You can't heal there — flee and recover.
▸Triple 3s scores 3 VP — quadruple 3s scores 4 VP. Re-rolling a triple for the 4th is usually wrong.
▸Energy cards are how snowballs start. Save 6+ energy for a permanent power card.
▸Eliminating opponents counts toward the 'last monster alive' win condition.
▸Two-player King of Tokyo is significantly weaker than 4–5 player. The Tokyo dynamic needs spectators.

DEEP DIVE

STRATEGY NOTES

King of Tokyo is what happens when Richard Garfield decides to design a family game. The dice mechanic is pure Yahtzee — roll six, keep some, reroll twice more — but the symbols on the dice trigger different actions.

The central tension is the Tokyo rule. The monster occupying Tokyo can't heal and takes damage from every other player's attacks, but their attacks hit everyone outside Tokyo. Going into Tokyo is high-risk, high-reward — and choosing whether to stay or leave when your health drops is the single most-loved decision in the game.

Power cards are the variance engine. Bought with energy tokens, they do everything from "extra die" to "deal 2 damage to everyone in Tokyo every turn" to "win when you have 5 energy tokens at end of turn." Sniping the right card with an opponent on the board edge is the most satisfying play in the game.

The single biggest strategic call is whether to chase the 20-point victory or the eliminate-everyone victory. New players default to attacking; veterans realise that scoring triple-3s on the dice accumulates faster than killing opponents one HP at a time.

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