The game is played in two stages that can also be played individually as shorter games.
Level 1
Goal: Collect (save) as many dragons as you can.
Set up
Shuffle the spell cards and give 6 cards to each player. Keep the rest of the spell cards deck face down to be used as a draw pile.
Shuffle the Dragon cards and place eight cards down with the numbers and Dragons facing up. Keep the rest of the dragons in a pile face down.
Play
- The players take turns. The youngest player goes first.
At their turn, the players look at their cards and try to find a pair of numbers that when multiplied gives as product one of the Dragon numbers that are down. The players can use the Times Table (spellbook) for help.
2. When a player finds a lucky pair, they show the other players and get the Dragon. (discard the spell cards used)
3. The players collect the Dragons until one of them finishes their spell cards (short game) or until all the Dragons are saved (long game).
4. The Wizard’s spell card can replace any spell card/ number 1-10.
5. When a player cannot find a lucky pair in their hand to get a dragon they draw a new spell card and wait for their next turn.
6. The winner of the first stage is the player with the most Dragon cards.
Level 2
Goal: Free your Dragons.
1. The players use the Dragons they saved in stage 1. Put the spinner in the middle. The players take turns spinning the spinner.
2. After every spin, all the players study their Dragon cards and find one that has the feature (factor, even/odd, square number) that the spinner indicates. They keep the Dragon near the spinner. It is consider freed.
3. When a player does not have a lucky Dragon they wait for the next spin.
4. When the Evil Swap Spell comes the players exchange Dragons clockwise (the ones in their hand)
5. The game ends when only one or none of the players is left with Dragon cards. The winner is the player with the most freed Dragons.
There are more than one way to play Dragon Times. Would you like to practice a specific table with your child, make the game less challenging for younger players, practice only division, or play with the whole class? Here are some more ideas.