The Tulip Festival — an online hidden-role game scenario
The Tulip Era, a night garden lit by candles and a bulb that blooms once in a hundred years.
▶ Play this scenarioThe story
Istanbul, 1726 — the Tulip Era. The whole city is mad about tulips: every variety has a poetic name, and the rarest bulbs are worth more than gold. This spring a night festival is held in a seaside garden: candles glow along the paths, and, as a tradition of the time has it, turtles amble calmly between the flowerbeds carrying tiny lights. Somewhere in the garden, under one of three silk covers, the legendary “Morning Star” is about to bloom. The gardeners want to find it before dawn. But a secret Rival hides among them: he wants his own tulip to win and stalls until the festival ends.
Chapters
This is a story scenario: a new chapter opens before every round, and after the game you see an ending that depends on who won.
Chapter I. A bulb with a name
Spring 1726. An old gardener receives a single bulb wrapped in silk as a gift. The label bears a name — “Morning Star”. They say this tulip blooms once in a hundred years, and only at night, by candlelight. It was planted in one of three beds, but nobody remembers which.
Chapter II. Turtles with candles
The night of the festival. Candles flicker in glass covers along the paths, soft music plays, and, as the old tale goes, turtles amble calmly between the beds, each carrying a tiny light in a glass cup. They say the turtles always know where the rarest tulip blooms. You just have to follow them.
Chapter III. Before dawn
The last night of the festival. The candles are burning down, and the sky over the Bosphorus is turning pale. If the “Morning Star” doesn't show itself to the guests before dawn, its miracle won't be seen for another hundred years. Find the bed before the sun rises.
Roles
Lay a garden path to the bed where the “Morning Star” is blooming.
Stall: the festival must end before the gardeners find the “Morning Star”.
Items
Event cards let you break other players' items, help cards repair them. With a broken item you can't play path cards.
The twist
Turtles with candles. At the start of a round one random player secretly learns what's under one of the covers.
A bit of history
The Tulip Era (Lâle Devri) is the name for 1718–1730, the reign of Sultan Ahmed III. Istanbul fell in love with gardens, poetry and tulips: varieties were given poetic names, and rare bulbs cost a fortune. In spring, night festivals were held in the gardens by the Bosphorus, with the flowers lit by hundreds of candles.
FAQ
How many players do I need for “The Tulip Festival”?
From 3 to 10. If you are short of friends, bots fill the empty seats: they build the route, scout the goals and even bluff in the chat.
What makes “The Tulip Festival” different from the other scenarios?
Turtles with candles: At the start of a round one random player secretly learns what's under one of the covers. It is also a story scenario with chapters between the rounds.
Do I need to download anything or sign up?
No. The game is free and runs in the browser on a phone or a computer: all you need is a name and a room code.