Page 1 · Guest rules
White elephant: our house rules
Hosts use different rules. This is InviteBird's suggested ruleset; agree to this version before playing.
Maximum spend: __________ Gift style: __________________
Regifts: __________________ Exchange start: ______________
Steal: take an eligible opened gift. Round: one numbered turn plus replacement choices, ending when one new wrapped gift opens. Frozen: a gift with three steals across numbered rounds.
- Participation is optional. Each player brings one wrapped gift; spectators need none. Agree the cap, gift style, regift policy and any spare-gift arrangement in advance. The cap is a maximum, not required spending.
- Count actual players and usable gifts. Resolve missing gifts and arrivals before drawing. Draw one unique number per player, 1 through N. Do not add players after play begins.
- Player 1 opens and shows one gift. Opening is not a steal; its count starts at zero.
- Each later numbered player opens a wrapped gift or steals an opened gift that is unfrozen and has not been stolen this round.
- After a steal, add one to that gift's count and mark it stolen this round. Its previous holder opens or steals another eligible gift. They cannot immediately steal the same gift back: it has already been stolen this round.
- Continue until someone opens a wrapped gift. The round ends; everyone who has taken a numbered turn has one gift. Clear this-round markers, but keep cumulative counts.
- A gift's third steal freezes it immediately with its new holder. It cannot be stolen again or used in the final swap. Its former holder still chooses; freezing does not end the round.
- After the last numbered round, Player 1 may keep their gift. If their own gift is unfrozen, they may make one direct swap with another unfrozen gift. No replacement choice or new chain follows: play ends immediately. If Player 1's gift is frozen, or all other gifts are frozen, there is no final swap. This closing trade is separate from numbered-round steal counts; no further counting is needed.
- Keep the gift you hold at the end. Any later trade is a separate voluntary agreement.
A gift can finish with zero, one or two steals. Three is the maximum, not a target. There is no separate three-steals-per-round limit.
Page 2 · Host desk — keep with the organizer
Prepare, track, close
- ☐ Confirm cap, style, regifts, optional participation and any agreed spare gifts.
- ☐ Settle arrivals and match actual players to usable gifts before drawing unique numbers.
- ☐ Print guest rules, prepare gift IDs, a tracker and removable this-round markers.
- ☐ Show and name each opened gift. Offer a willing helper to move gifts for seated players.
- ☐ After each steal: tick the count, update the holder, mark this round; the third tick means FROZEN immediately.
- ☐ After each opening: confirm one gift per player who has taken a numbered turn; clear round markers only.
| Round / action | Holdings at its end | Cumulative counts |
|---|---|---|
| 1: P1 opens A. | P1=A | A=0 |
| 2: P2 steals A; P1 opens B. | P1=B; P2=A | A=1; B=0 |
| 3: P3 steals A; P2 steals B; P1 opens C. | P1=C; P2=B; P3=A | A=2; B=1; C=0 |
| 4: P4 steals A (frozen); P3 steals B; P2 steals C; P1 opens D. | P1=D; P2=C; P3=B; P4=A frozen | A=3; B=2; C=1; D=0 |
| Final: P1 swaps D directly for P3's B. Stop. | P1=B; P2=C; P3=D; P4=A frozen | No further numbered round |
Exact final-choice script
“You may keep your gift. If yours is unfrozen, you may trade once with another unfrozen gift. That one trade ends the game.”
P1 may instead keep D in the example. Frozen A is excluded. If P1 holds a frozen gift, or all other gifts are frozen, stop without a swap. Do not start a replacement chain or count the closing trade as another numbered-round steal.
Small groups: two players can use these rules or choose the separate no-stealing variant. One participant does not make a meaningful swap game.
Page 3 · Cut turn slips — one unique number per participant
Turn numbers
Use only numbers 1 through your actual player count. Print only one needed set. Write additional unique numbers on the blanks if required. The 24 printed numbers are a sheet layout, not a tested ideal or maximum group size.
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 |
5 | 6 | 7 | 8 |
9 | 10 | 11 | 12 |
13 | 14 | 15 | 16 |
17 | 18 | 19 | 20 |
21 | 22 | 23 | 24 |
____ | ____ | ____ | ____ |
Actual participants: ______ Usable wrapped gifts: ______
☐ Counts match before drawing. ☐ Every included slip is unique.
Page 4 · Host gift tracker — print more copies if needed
Track gifts, not contact details
Identify each opened gift by ID or nickname. Tick one new box after each numbered-round steal and update its holder. The third tick freezes the gift immediately. Use removable markers on gifts for “stolen this round”; clear those only when a wrapped gift opens.
| Gift ID / name | Steal 1 | Steal 2 | Steal 3 = FROZEN | Current holder |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ☐ | ☐ | ☐ FROZEN | ||
| ☐ | ☐ | ☐ FROZEN | ||
| ☐ | ☐ | ☐ FROZEN | ||
| ☐ | ☐ | ☐ FROZEN | ||
| ☐ | ☐ | ☐ FROZEN | ||
| ☐ | ☐ | ☐ FROZEN | ||
| ☐ | ☐ | ☐ FROZEN | ||
| ☐ | ☐ | ☐ FROZEN |
Current numbered round: ______ Next number: ______
☐ At round end, every player who has taken a numbered turn holds one gift.
Final choice: keep, or one direct swap only when both gifts are unfrozen. Update the two holders; no replacement chain or further counting. Stop immediately.
Page 5 · Planning cards — choose the rules before inviting
Invitation planning card
- Event / hosts
- Date / place
- Full address
- Arrival / start
- Cap / style
- Regifts / spares
- Food provided
- Reply route / date
- Exact rules link
State who is invited. Explain that the exchange is optional and each participating person needs one wrapped gift. Ask separately for total attendance and exchange participants.
Separate no-stealing variant
Use this entire variant only if you choose it before inviting. Do not combine it with the guest rules on page 1.
- Agree the cap, gift style and regift policy. Participation is optional; each player brings one wrapped gift.
- Resolve gifts and arrivals before play. Draw one unique order number per player.
- In number order, each player chooses and opens one wrapped gift, shows it and keeps it.
- There are no steals and no final forced swap. The exchange ends when the last gift opens. Any later trade is voluntary.