(Reverse) Sheep is a game that is part Family Feud, part trivia game. The object of the game is to outwit other players through a series of questions that are usually united in theme. There are two types of questions.

The first, Sheep, is one where you try to think like everyone else and match their answers. The more people you match, the better you do. Let's say we have a game of six players (A through F). A Sheep question might be something like "Name a great color." Sheep questions never have right or wrong answers. Let's say our five players answered like this:

Players A, C, and E said "Blue"
Players B and D said "Green"
Player F said "Chartreuse"

Scoring in Sheep games is like golf: the lower your score, the better. The "Blue" players get -3 points (and the best answer). The "Green" players get -2 points. Player F did not match anyone and gets 0 points.

The second type of question, Reverse Sheep, is the exaxt opposite. You want to avoid matching other players. A Reverse Sheep question might be something like "Name a state of the Atlantic Coast." Reverse Sheep questions always have right or wrong answers. Let's say our players answered like this:

Players D and E said "Delaware"
Players F and B said "Maine"
Player C said "Texas"
Player A said "South Carolina"

The "Delaware" players get +2 points (a penalty, since you want to have a low score). The "Maine" players also get +2 points. Player C's answer might be debated among the players to see if it is considered correct or not. Wrong answers always score above the most common answer. You're always better off going for something obvious than for something obviously wrong.

That's the gist of it. Each person running a game adds little rules here and there but those are the basics.

"These things are the most fun way to waste time at work since GemCraft." - maxfisher

"This is the most stirring display of gallantry and sportsmanship since Mountbatten gave India back to the Punjabs." - wishbone

"These have been really fun." - Tracer Bullet

"I would like to take this opportunity to thank The Bus for quite possibly the funniest commentary of any of the sheep games." - orangecrush18

<ul><li> The object of the game is to out-think everyone by picking answers to questions that are the most common (<FONT style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #F9DF00">Sheep</font>) or least common (<FONT style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #A3D867">Reverse Sheep</font>), but still correct.
<li> Example <FONT style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #F9DF00">Sheep</font> question: "Name a professional golfer." A good answer might be Tiger Woods and a bad answer might be Chichi Rodriguez.
<li> Example <FONT style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #A3D867">Reverse Sheep</font> question: "Name a play by Shakespeare." Romeo & Juliet might be a bad answer, but Two Gentlemen of Verona might be a good answer. (Unless everyone is trying to go as obscure as possible).
<li> Scores are tallied according to the number of players answering that question. Sheep answers are tallied as negative. Reverse Sheep answers are tallied as positive. The lowest score wins.
<li> There is no such thing as wrong answer for a Sheep question. Wrong answers in Reverse Sheep are scored two points above the most common answer. This penalty is multiplied by the Lightning Round Multiplier.
<li> Certain rounds are considered Lightning Rounds (designated by a multiplier, such as ×2). In these rounds, scores are adjusted by the <u>number on the multiplier</u>. A wrong answer still gets a +4 penalty in a ×2 round and a +6 penalty in a ×3 round, and so on. In a sheep round, a wrong answer scores normally.
<li> You may not cheat by using Google, Wikipedia, etc. Use only what's in your head, with the exception of questions followed by a <b>√ Check</b>. (Not always in every game). (See more in the Sets section below).
<li> Please send in your answers to me via PM. Place only one answer per line, without numbers, set info, or the question itself. Add {sd} to the end of the answer, not the beginning. Those who do not do this will be penalized 10 points right off the bat.
<li> Note: Be creative with your answers, but don't be stupid.
<li> Sheep questions are marked by an <FONT style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #F9DF00">S:</font>, Reverse Sheep questions are marked by an <FONT style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #A3D867">R:</font>.
</ul>

<ul><li> Unless specifically mentioned in the question, all albums have to be non-live, non-compilation albums.
<li> When I say "major-label" band, I mean a band that at some point was under contract with one of the Big Four record labels or one of its subsidiaries.
<li> Question spreadsheets for your convenience: <a href="http://www.fantasticdamage.com/blog/MusicQ3.xls">Excel</a> | <a href="http://spreadsheets.google.com/ccc?key=0Asm-9xufUpeedHhJYkZwSzJ6Skx4S01ZZzRJVzRSa3c&hl=en">Google Docs</a>
<li> Unique Bonus: Reverse Sheep questions will generate additional bonus (negative) points according to the following:
1 Unique is awarded -15
2 Uniques are awarded -10 each
3 Uniques are awarded -6 each
4 Uniques are awarded -3 each
5+ Uniques are awarded -1 each
<li> Wolf Questions. Some questions, marked as <FONT style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #FF5B60">W:</font>, are designed to improve the scores of most players, while penalizing a few. Think of them as a Reverse Sheep question with elements of a Sheep Question, or a Wolf culling the Sheepiest of the group. The most common answer is scored via Reverse rules. All other correct answers are scored via Sheep rules. Example below:
Suppose the question is as follows:

<FONT style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #FF5B60">W:</font> <b>Name a fruit.</b>

And the answers were:

The Bus, Pharoh, JasonF, orangecrush18: Blueberry
Red Dog, Tracer Bullet: Banana
VinVega, Mordred: Apple
Venusian: Black


Answers are scored as follows:
Blueberry: +4
Banana: -2
Apple: -2
Tomato: 0
Black: +6 (wrong answer)
The bottom line is you want an answer that is correct and common, but not too common.
<li> NEW! Slam Dunks {sd} Players have the power of multipliers in their hands. Each player is given five (5) Slam Dunks ({sd}s) which they use by adding {sd} to the end of their answer. You can only use one per question. Slam Dunks have different effects depending on the question you use them in:
<ul><li> In <FONT style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #F9DF00">Sheep</font> questions, the {sd} adds 1 to the Multiplier. You are allowed to use only one {sd}s per Sheep question.
<li> In <FONT style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #A3D867">Reverse Sheep</font> questions, you can use a single {sd} to add +1 to everyone else's Multiplier (who has the same answer as you) while keeping your Multiplier at 1. If your answer is unique, it will add +2 to the Multiplier for your Unique Bonus. However, if your answer is wrong, it does nothing.
<li> In <FONT style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #FF5B60">Wolf</font> questions, the {sd} can act in three different ways. For the most common answer, it turns the answer from something that scores Reverse points into a question that scores Sheep points and adds +1 to your Multiplier. For the less-common answers, it adds +1 to the Multiplier for each other person with your answer that also used a dunk. If your answer is wrong, it does nothing.</ul>
<li> This <a href="http://www.fantasticdamage.com/blog/sdexpl5.gif">chart</a> may explain it more clearly. As said before, each player has five of these to use per game. When you send in your answers, simply add {sd} to the end of the answer, and I will know that you want that answer to fall under Slam Dunk rules.