Starting rule for Topp die Torte!
English summary of Schmidt Spiele German rules, article 40659, phase 2 cake placement
Everyone chooses a cake piece simultaneously. For phase 2, placing the pieces, whoever most recently ate a piece of cake begins the first and every later round.
Rule details
In phase 1, everyone chooses one of their two face-up cake pieces simultaneously and marks it with their figure. This happens before anyone places a piece.
Phase 2 proceeds clockwise from the cake-based starter. The same placement starter begins the first and all later rounds.
In phase 3, everyone passes their unused face-up piece to the person on their left and draws another piece simultaneously. This does not appoint a new placement starter.
The usual game lasts seven rounds. In the final round there is only one remaining piece to place, which may still be rotated. The optional six- or eight-piece game changes the length, not the stated placement-start criterion.
Final scoring has separate clockwise steps for golden sugar cubes and points. Those instructions do not supply a new opening criterion or starting-player tie-break.
Source & edition
- Topp die Torte!: Schmidt Spiele German rules, article 40659Schmidt Spiele GmbH · PDF/printed page 2: phase 1 simultaneous choice and phase 2 clockwise placement, last-cake criterion for the first and all later rounds. Page 1: setup and three-phase overview. Page 3: simultaneous phase 3 passing/drawing and last-round piece. Page 4: clockwise final scoring, six/eight-piece variant and article 40659 publisher imprint. Visible printed pages 1–4 match PDF pages 1–4. · Checked 2026-09-26Printed page references: 2, 1, 3, 4
Image: © Schmidt Spiele GmbH (edition publisher) · Schmidt Spiele
If your rules call for a random choice, use the player picker.
If there’s a tie
The rulebook doesn’t say. If you need a tie-break, pick a player at random.
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