First, players put all of their pieces into storage areas
called stash pads.
The game starts when everyone indicates (by touching one
of their pieces) that they are ready to begin.
During the game, players move their pieces from their stash
pads into the playing field, playing them either defensively
(standing upright) or offensively (lying down and pointing at
Players may play at any time, without taking turns.
Large pyramids are worth 3 points, medium sized pyramids
are worth 2, and small pyramids are worth 1 point.
Attacking pieces can either succeed or fail. For an attack
to successfully "Ice" a defender, the combined value
of the attacking pieces pointing at a defending piece must exceed
the value of the targeted defender.
To succeed, an attacking piece must point in an unobstructed
fashion at a defending piece, from no further away than its own
Players are not allowed to position attack pieces such that
they point at other attack pieces or at their own color defending
pieces. However, it is legal for this type of situation to occur
if the sequence of play is reversed.
The game ends when all pieces have been played. At the end
of the game, points are awarded for all successfully attacking
pieces and for all defending pieces that survived attack. The
player with the highest score wins.
Players may not use both hands at once, nor use alternating
hands, in order to play more rapidly.
The first two pyramids of each color must be played defensively.
Failure to do this is called a Meltdown, and is penalized.
All players should attempt to keep at least one defender
free from successful attack at all times. If a player has less
than 8 pieces on his stash pad, and all of his defenders are
iced, he can be put "in the icehouse." This happens
when somebody calls "icehouse." A player in the icehouse
gets a score of zero, and loses control of his unplayed pieces
to the person who made the call. Icehouse calls made in error
If an excessive number of attack pieces are brought to bear
on a single defending piece (a condition called over-icing),
the owner of the defending piece can capture the redundant attack
pieces, so long as the defending piece remains iced.
Once played, pieces cannot be moved except under specific
circumstances. Care must be taken to avoid accidentally shifting
the locations of pieces that have been played. Such an accident
is called a crash, and is penalized.
Players can gain control of opponent pieces, via over-icing
or penalties. These "prisoner" pieces can be played
in whatever way the controlling player chooses. The player looses
control of the piece when they play it. The original owner always
retains the point value.
The game will have a fixed end point, usually indicated by
the sounding of a hidden timer, after which all unplayed pieces
will be of no value.