Shepherd

Co-operative game playing for very young children.

From the rules:
"Paul, the Shepherd, has spent the day tending his sheep and lambs. He was helped by his dogs. As evening approached and it was time to bring the sheep and lambs into a pen for the night, Paul busied himself with putting the logs together for the pen while the dogs rounded up the sheep and lambs. It was a game they all enjoyed. The dogs hurried about trying to get the sheep and lambs into the pen before Paul could lay all the logs together to close the two entrances. See if you can help so the dogs can win again."

The players try to drive home the sheep by using their dogs. They have to achieve this before the shepherd completes a pen in the middle of the game area (which is variably set up from tiles, some of which are the sheep). The building speed is determined by the same die that also moves the dogs which can proceed to the next tile of the color that was rolled. As so often with Herder games, players can pass their die results to other players. All players win or lose together (if the pen is completed before the sheep are in).

Game play is varied by the fact that the meadow is completed by the forming of paths using 28 interlocking tiles that feature the sheep, poppies, etc. The number of tiles can be reduced to make the game easier for younger children.