Levy
Original · a pay-to-pass auction for two
Every pass costs a coin, every take costs a demand, and runs of demands count once.
Ready to play now.
A demonstration of Levy, played by the computer against itself.
Levy — playing itself
Ways to play
Alone, against the computer
Your own pace, no arranging anything. Take a move back whenever you like.
Play alone3 opponents, weakest first
- The DreamerTakes or passes by the seed. A ledger of 70.7 against 14 coins kept, and it still won 96 of 250 against the Marginalist — this table is kinder to luck than it looks.
- The MarginalistWeighs each demand by what it actually does to the ledger — nothing if the run below carries it, a point OFF if it undercuts the run above, its face if it stands alone — and takes when the pot covers that, counting the coin a pass costs. 149–100 over the Dreamer, and the lightest ledger on the ladder at 38.8.
- The HagglerDoes not weigh the demand; solves the fight over it. A pass costs a coin and sweetens the pot for whoever gives in, so the Haggler plays the argument out one pass each way — the rival’s own run arithmetic included — and takes exactly when taking is the cheaper road. 180–68 over the Marginalist, 177–66 over the Dreamer, and it carries a HEAVIER ledger doing it (46.6 against 38.8 with 9.7 coins left): the lighter list is not the same thing as the won one.
Together, in the same room
2 players. One device goes round the table, or everybody plays off the same screen.
Play in the same roomOnline, at a table
A room code, joinable from anywhere. Pause tonight and pick it up next week from your device.
Play online
About
A customs list of twenty demands, numbered one to twenty-four — the clerk burned four before play began, and nobody knows which. One demand at a time lies on the table with a pot of coins beside it: pay a coin into the pot and send it on, or take it, coins and all, onto your ledger. Ledgers are weighed in RUNS — consecutive demands count only their smallest, so a demand the run below already carries weighs nothing and one that UNDERCUTS a run makes the ledger lighter — and coins weigh against the ledger. When the clerk runs out, the lighter ledger keeps the harbour.
How it feels
- A coin you will not see again
- The 17 that makes your 18 stop counting
- A purse running out on purpose
What the design is for
Pay to pass
Passing is not declining — it is buying time with a coin that goes into the pot the taker will collect. Every pass makes the demand sweeter for whoever gives in, and a broker with an empty purse gives in by rule: a demand they cannot pay, they take.
Runs count once
A stretch of consecutive demands weighs only its smallest, and that cuts both ways: take 19 while holding 18 and the 19 weighs nothing, take 17 while holding 18 and the ledger gets a point LIGHTER, because the 17 becomes the run’s smallest and the 18 stops counting. Heavy lists get light by growing — the whole ledger game is which numbers you can afford to stand beside.
The burned four
The clerk destroys four demands of the twenty-four before play begins, and the table never learns which — the view carries the count of what remains and nothing else. Every run you are building is missing four bricks, and you will not know until they never come.
Coins are points
At the weighing, coins subtract from the ledger — a purse is a score you can spend. Passing buys time with points; taking converts pots into points plus weight. The whole tension is which of those you are shorter of.
Taught coin by coin
Five steps: the pass that pays, the take that collects, the run that UNDERCUTS — a 17 taken over an 18 makes the ledger lighter — the purse that cannot pay, and then the whole list to yourself.
- Best at
- 2
- Kind
- Party
- Table
- Competitive
- Studio
- Board.game Originals
The opponents
The Dreamer
Takes or passes by the seed. A ledger of 70.7 against 14 coins kept, and it still won 96 of 250 against the Marginalist — this table is kinder to luck than it looks.
The Marginalist
Weighs each demand by what it actually does to the ledger — nothing if the run below carries it, a point OFF if it undercuts the run above, its face if it stands alone — and takes when the pot covers that, counting the coin a pass costs. 149–100 over the Dreamer, and the lightest ledger on the ladder at 38.8.
The Haggler
Does not weigh the demand; solves the fight over it. A pass costs a coin and sweetens the pot for whoever gives in, so the Haggler plays the argument out one pass each way — the rival’s own run arithmetic included — and takes exactly when taking is the cheaper road. 180–68 over the Marginalist, 177–66 over the Dreamer, and it carries a HEAVIER ledger doing it (46.6 against 38.8 with 9.7 coins left): the lighter list is not the same thing as the won one.
Achievements
0 of 5 earned
The Lighter List
Win a round of Levy.
The Long Run
Win holding a run of five consecutive demands or more.
The Short List
Win with a ledger weighing ten or less.
Paid To Wait
Win with a purse of ten coins or more.
Not Close
Win by ten or more.
Key art
Key art — Board.game art system
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