Rules Overview
Game design: David McDougal
Requires special Heckadeck.
Claim a suit, win tricks, and place cards into shared regions to seize control. Twelve Oddball Powers add single-use twists that can flip a region in an instant.
Players: 2-4 Mechanic: Trick-Taking
Components
- Heckadeck: 100 cards, consisting of 8 unique suits. Each player claims one suit.
- 12 Oddball Powers (single-use special cards).
- Score sheet and pencil.
Setup
Suit Assignment & Regions
- Each player claims one suit from the Heckadeck as their personal suit.
- Arrange the shared board into regions. Each region has two sides; cards are placed into a region's sides as the game progresses.
Personal Play Decks
- Each player's personal play deck consists of all cards of their claimed suit.
Oddball Assignment (Core Game)
- Deal or assign Oddball Powers to players as directed by the core game setup so that each player begins with a starting set of Oddballs available for use.
Additional Oddballs (Round 2)
At the start of Round 2, players receive additional Oddballs. The method depends on player count:
- 4 players: Each player receives 1 additional Oddball.
- 3 players: Players draft the remaining 6 Oddballs in pairs (take turns selecting one at a time until all 6 are claimed).
- 2 players: Deal 3 Oddballs to each player; each player keeps 2 and discards 1.
Turn Structure
Each round proceeds through the following phases:
1. Draw Phase
Each player draws cards from their personal play deck until they hold 5 cards in hand.
2. Trick Phase
All players simultaneously reveal one card from their hand to form the trick. The trick winner is determined by the standard trick-taking comparison for the round.
3. Placement Phase
Only the trick winner places a card into a region, choosing a side of the region to add it to.
4. Region Scoring
When a region reaches 4 cards on a side, that side is scored and control is evaluated (see Scoring & Tiebreakers).
Oddball Powers
Each player may use up to 2 Oddball Powers per round. Each Oddball is single-use: once played, it is spent and removed from the game. An Oddball is declared when its owner reveals their trick card for that trick.
Oddballs are grouped into three tiers by strength.
Tier 1 (Strong)
| Oddball | Effect |
|---|---|
| Beast | Remove an opponent's card from a region, then place Beast there instead. |
| Omnihedron | Wipe both sides of a region clean, then place Omnihedron there as a marker. |
| Eleven | Place your trick card and Eleven into the same region, but only if that region currently has 2 or fewer of your cards. |
| Joker | After the final trick of the round, place Joker into any region. It breaks ties in your favor. |
Tier 2 (Medium)
| Oddball | Effect |
|---|---|
| Hunter | Place your trick card as normal, then place Hunter into a region where you have no cards. |
| Traveler | Swap one of your cards with another player's card between two regions. The swapped cards must match in suit or rank. |
| Arrow | Move 1 opponent's card to the opposite side of its region, or move up to 2 of your own cards. |
| Talisman | Place Talisman into a region. It counts toward that side's card limit, and the next card placed there counts double. |
Tier 3 (Mild)
| Oddball | Effect |
|---|---|
| Zero | Lock a region: no further placements are allowed in that region for the rest of the round. |
| Darkness | Remove one card from each side of a region, then discard Darkness. |
| Watcher | Peek at one card from each opponent's hand. You do not place a card this trick. |
| Crone | Reverse the direction of play order until the end of the round. |
Scoring & Tiebreakers
- When a region's side reaches 4 cards, evaluate control of that region.
- Control: determined by comparing total card value on each side.
- Tiebreaker cascade, in order: 1. Total value on each side. 2. If still tied, personal suit match (the side containing more cards of a player's own claimed suit). 3. If still tied, suit hierarchy (compare by the established suit ranking).
Game End & Sudden Death
- The game ends when one player's regions reach 4 total regions controlled; that player wins.
- Round 3 Sudden Death: if the game reaches a third round without a winner, sudden-death rules apply, allowing players to place 2 cards per Placement Phase instead of 1 to accelerate region control.
Variants
Variant A: Purist / Battle Line Mode
Remove all 12 Oddball Powers from the game. Play proceeds using only the Draw, Trick, and Placement phases with no special powers.
Variant B: Tiered Draft
Before the game, draft Oddballs using a point-limit system instead of the standard assignment:
- Tier 1 Oddball = 3 points
- Tier 2 Oddball = 2 points
- Tier 3 Oddball = 1 point
- Maximum of 6 points may be spent per player.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where can I find the official rules?
This page presents the current rule text for easy reading. The linked official rulebook remains the printable reference.
Is this game still being updated?
The status and resources above reflect the current catalog listing. If a rules update is published, the official linked rulebook takes precedence.
