Distribute Blinks evenly to all players (minimum 4 Blinks/player). Each player chooses a team color and sets their Blinks to that color by double-clicking. Once all players are set, recombine all Blinks into a starting arrangement with colors segregated.
Designate a neutral color in addition to your chosen colors.
Example arrangement for 3 players (left), 2 players (right)
The object of this game is to make your Blinks “happy.” In order for a Blink to be happy, it must be 1) touching at least two other tiles, and 2) not touching a tile of its own color.
Unhappy and happy Blinks examples
On their turn, a player makes a fracture by splitting and separating the cluster into two smaller clusters. The clusters can be of any size; they do not have to be equal. You can choose to only move a single Blink, and you can move any tile, not just the ones of your own color.
The player then reconnects the two clusters in any way they choose. Once a player has finished their move, play passes to the next clockwise player.
Example turn
Fractures must be able to be slid into and out of place while remaining flat on the table. They also cannot split the board into more than 2 halves.
Examples of legal and illegal fractures
The game ends when, at the end of a turn, a player has made all of their own color Blinks happy. In games with neutral Blinks, they must make all neutral Blinks happy as well.
Game Designers
Celia Pearce
Emilia Lazer-Walker
Jonathan Bobrow
Artist
Justin Lamb
Fracture is part of the Master Strategist Pack.