Here are some rules for a game we've been thinking about called "Croquet Deathmatch."
Try it out and add your ideas!
Croquet Deathmatch
What you need: As many wickets as you want (at least nine is recommended, though).
As many balls and mallets as you have players.
Setup: Place
all of the wickets on the course in any way you desire and place the two posts in the approx. center of the course. The course can be any size, but bigger and more obstacles equals more fun.
Play: Each player chooses one wicket as his or her home “base.” If there is a dispute over who gets what base, then play rock paper scissors to determine who gets it.
After everyone has decided upon a base, play order must be determined. The best way to do this is to hold a rock paper scissors tournament.
The object of the game is to be the first player to capture all of your opponents flags and return them to the center posts OR be the last player alive on the field.
To capture a flag, hit your ball through an opponent’s wicket (base). Their base extends one mallets length around their wicket.
Take a captured flag to a center post by hitting the post with your ball. Then, go on and try to get more flags from the other players. You only need to capture each players flag once. Each player can only carry one flag at a time.
Each player has a certain amount of lives. For two players, you get two lives. Three players, two lives. Four players, three lives. Five players, four lives. Six players, five lives…and so on. When you hit a player, they lose a life and you gain a life; however, you can never have more lives then you started out with.
If you hit a player who is carrying an opponents flag, not only do they lose a life and you gain a life, but you also steal that flag and are free to try and take it to a center post. If you succeed in getting it to the post, you do not need to go to that opponents base because you already got the flag.
If you hit a player who is carrying your own flag, they lose a life and you gain a life, and they drop your flag and it goes back to your base.
If you lose all of your lives, you are out of the game.
If you have a flag and you hit another player who also has a flag, you both keep your flags…you just take away and gain a life respectively—UNLESS you have a flag and you hit another player who has a flag from your own base, in which case they drop your flag and it returns to your base.
Extra shots: Passing through any wicket on the course gives you one extra shot. Hitting a ball gives you one extra shot. Killing another player gives you two extra shots. Hitting a center post when you are carrying a flag gives you one extra shot, which can be started from a mallets length away from the center post you hit in any direction.
Vengence: If you have been killed, you are free to move wickets that are not claimed as bases. This is called “Vengence” because you can use it to help or hurt other players. You can move a wicket by turning it in any direction, moving it one mallets length in any direction, or both. You can only use Vengence as many times as you had lives.
**If you hit another player and your ball comes to rest right next to their ball (or any other ball for that matter), you can place your foot on top of your ball and strike it (the ball, not your foot) so as to hit your opponent’s ball away. The ball you hit in this way does not lose a life and you do not gain a life…