Bat Flip Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Overview
• Box Contents
• Setup
  • Team Reference Cards
  • Random Teams
  • Setup Example
• The Game
  • Your Deck
  • The Bases
  • Runners and Scoring
  • Outs
  • Drawing Cards
• At-Bat Step
• Action: Hit
• Action: Walk
  • Illegal Walk
• Action: Bat Flip
• Action: Strikeout
• Flyball & Groundball
• Steal Step
  • Stealing Home
• Pitchers
• Player Abilities
  • Keywords
  • Activated Abilities
• Hand Size: 7 Cards
• Empty Hand
• Illegal Defender
• Play Example
• Stat Key

Overview

Bat Flip is a two-player team-drafting baseball card game.

You and your opponent are rival baseball managers. You'll each create your own custom team by drafting two team decks and shuffling them together, fusing their strengths and abilities into a combined player deck.

The objective of the game is to have the most runs at the end of the 3rd Inning. Runs are scored by advancing Runners to Home plate by Hitting, Walking, and Stealing bases.

Box Contents

• 8 Twelve-Card Team Decks
• 8 Team Reference Cards
• 2 Bat Flip Cards
• 2 Field Cards
• 1 Scoreboard

Setup

• You and your opponent randomly determine who is Home manager and Away manager.
• The Away manager selects one team.
• The Home manager selects two teams.
• The Away manager selects a second team.
• Each manager shuffles the teams they selected together into their own deck.
• Place a Field card in front of each manager.
• Each player places their Bat Flip card "On Deck"-side-up on the table.
• On the Scoreboard, set the Outs and Runs to 0, and set the Inning to the Top of the First.
• Each manager draws a hand of five cards from their deck. Keep your hand secret!
• Each manager may play a Pitcher from their hand onto the Field card in front of their opponent. (Resolve any applicable abilities.)
• The Away team bats first!

Team Reference Cards

Each team has a Reference Card that describes its background and mechanics. Use them to help you pick a team, and hold on to your teams' cards to help you play them throughout the game.

Random Teams

If you want to assign teams randomly, shuffle the Team Reference cards and deal two to each manager: those are your Teams for this game!

Setup Example

The manual's setup example (page 4) is a diagram with the following labelled components: Away Bat Flip Card, Scoreboard, Away Field, Away Hand (five cards), Home Pitcher (Antwan Blunt, played by the Home manager onto the Away Field), Away Discard, and Away Deck. (Editor's note: the card text printed on the Home Pitcher in the diagram is too small in the print to transcribe reliably; the card's abilities are on the card itself.)

The example continues on the Home side, with labelled components: Home Bat Flip Card, Home Deck, Home Discard, Home Hand (five cards), and Home Field.

The Game

The objective of the game is to have the most runs at the end of the 3rd Inning. Runs are scored by advancing Runners to Home plate.

Each Inning has two halves: the Top and the Bottom. At the Top of an Inning, the Away team bats and the Home team fields, then vice versa for the Bottom.

Each half-inning contains two continually alternating steps: the At-Bat Step and the Steal Step. Alternate At-Bat and Steal steps in that order until the batting manager has three Outs. Then swap batting and fielding roles, and proceed to the next half-inning.

If the game is tied after the 3rd Inning, keep playing additional innings until someone wins!

If the Home team is winning after the Top of the third inning, the Home team wins.

Your Deck

The two teams you drafted compose your deck. If your deck ever runs out, immediately shuffle your discard pile; it becomes your deck again.

The Bases

There are four Bases: First, Second, Third, and Home. Players advance around these bases in order.

Runners and Scoring

When a Batter successfully Hits or Walks, they become a Runner and advance bases. When a Runner reaches Home Plate (the final base), they are discarded and that player's manager scores a run. Then, both players draw a card.

Outs

When one of your players becomes Out, discard them and move the Out tracker one slot. Then, both players draw a card.

Drawing Cards

Whenever there is an Out, BOTH managers draw a card.

Whenever Runners score, BOTH managers draw a number of cards equal to the number of Runs scored.

At-Bat Step

The At-Bat Step is your opportunity to put Runners on bases as the batting manager. Most of the game action takes place during the At-Bat step.

In the At-Bat Step, you can choose to perform one of the following actions:

• Hit: Smack the ball and advance as many bases as you can.
• Walk: Play it safe and advance only one base. You can't choose to Walk twice in a row.
• Bat Flip: Take a mighty hack that can cut through the other team's defenses. You can only choose to Bat Flip once per inning... but some cards can break this rule!
• Strikeout: Accept an Out and hope for better cards.

Action: Hit

Hit vs Defense to advance one or more bases.

If you decide to Hit, play a player from your hand as a Batter. After seeing what you've played, your opponent may play a player from their hand as a Defender (or play the top card of their deck as a Defender if their hand is empty).

Compare the Batter's Hit stat to the Defender's Defense stat. If there is no Defender, their Defense is zero.

If you beat their Defense, your Hit was successful! The Batter and all of your Runners advance a number of bases equal to the difference. (Hit MINUS Defense)

If you don't beat their Defense, your Hit fails and your Batter is Out!

After you've resolved your Hit, discard any Defenders, any Runners who scored, and any players who are Out. Then proceed to the Steal step.

Example: Mitch Crook is a Batter with 3 Hit, and Rip Fray is a Defender with 2 Defense. 3 minus 2 equals 1, so Mitch will advance 1 base.

Action: Walk

Walk vs Control to advance one base.

If you decide to Walk, play a player with a Walk stat greater than the opposing Pitcher's Control stat from your hand as a Batter. If there is no Pitcher, their Control is zero.

The Batter immediately advances to First. If there's already a Runner on First, that Runner advances to Second, and so on until all bases have only one Runner.

After you've resolved your Walk, discard any Runners who scored. Then proceed to the Steal step.

You can't choose to Walk twice in a row.

Example: Gary Tools' 2 Walk beats Chet Edmonds' 1 Control, so Gary can Walk if Chet is the Pitcher. Gary doesn't beat Antwan Bunt's 2 Control, though, so he couldn't walk if Antwan is the Pitcher.

Illegal Walk

If you play a Batter to Walk, but the Pitcher's Control increases after your Batter is played, return the Batter to your hand. The At-Bat step proceeds as if you hadn't played a Batter.

Action: Bat Flip

Flip the top card of your deck for an indefensible Hit!

If you decide to Bat Flip, flip your Bat Flip card to its "Used" side to show you've used it this inning.

Then reveal and play the top card of your deck as a Hit. Your opponent can't play a Defender against that player (but both you and your opponent may still play activated abilities).

If you revealed a Pitcher, that player is Out (Pitchers can't Hit, after all!). Don't resolve any of their abilities.

After you've resolved your Hit, discard any Runners who scored and any players who are Out. Then proceed to the Steal step.

You may only Bat Flip once per inning. Reset both Bat Flip cards at the end of each inning.

Action: Strikeout

Discard a card. Add an Out. You draw two, your opponent draws one.

If you decide to Strikeout, discard a card from your hand, then add an Out. Then draw a card.

Remember: Whenever a player is Out, both players draw a card. You will therefore draw a total of two cards when taking this action, and your opponent will draw one.

Flyball & Groundball

Some players have extra arrows on their Hit stats. An upward arrow (blue) indicates that the player hits Flyballs. A downward arrow (green) indicates that the player hits Groundballs.

A Batter who Hits Flyballs or Groundballs may only be Defended by a player who Defends that type (with a matching arrow on their Defense stat). Players that Defend Flyballs or Groundballs may still Defend against players without those abilities.

All Pitchers can Defend both Flyballs and Groundballs.

Example: James Makeup Hits Groundballs and can Defend against Flyballs.

Steal Step

Steal vs Defense to advance to an open base.

After the At-Bat step, the batting manager may attempt to steal open bases in the Steal step to advance Runners even further. Each Runner may attempt to steal once per Steal Step.

If you decide to Steal, choose a Runner whose next base is open. Your opponent may play the top card of their deck as a Defender.

Compare your Runner's Steal stat to the Defender's Defense stat. If there is no Defender, the Defense is zero.

If you beat their Defense, your Steal was successful. The Runner advances to the open base.

If you don't beat their Defense, your Steal fails and your Runner is Out.

After you've resolved all your Steals, discard any Defenders, any Runners who scored, and any players who are Out. Then proceed back to the At-Bat step.

Stealing Home

A Runner may only attempt to steal Home if a successful Hit was made in the preceding At-Bat step!

Pitchers

Play as a Defender from your hand. Stays on the field for Control.

Pitchers are special cards that work differently from other players. Their primary function is to prevent the opponent from Walking, by using their Control while they're on the field.

• Pitchers can be played as Defenders from your hand, just like other players.
• Pitchers can't be played as Batters (they can't Hit or Walk).
• After you play a Pitcher as a Defender, they stay on the field in the Pitcher slot after they're played, even as innings end.
• Each manager may only have one pitcher on the field; if you play a second pitcher, the new pitcher becomes your active pitcher and the old one is discarded once the current At-Bat is resolved. (It's possible that both pitchers can have have their abilities triggered before one is discarded!!)
• All Pitchers can Defend both Flyballs and Groundballs.

Example card: Hoshi Ito (Pitcher, Stars & Scrubs). Ability: Discard Hoshi Ito from your hand: Search your deck for a card and put it into your hand. Then shuffle your deck. Stats: Control 3; Stays in Play After Defending; Defense 4 (with both Flyball and Groundball arrows).

Player Abilities

Most players have abilities in addition to their stats. Abilities have a variety of useful effects. Read the card's text box to see what an ability does! All the rules for resolving it are contained on that card.

Abilities resolve immediately when the card is played unless otherwise stated.

Keywords

Many abilities are keyworded. Abilities with the same keyword work the same way across all players with that ability.

Activated Abilities

Many players have activated abilities. Look for an exclamation mark icon to identify which cards have activated abilities.

Activated abilities may be used at any time their text allows, including in the middle of a game action (like attempting a hit). They resolve immediately; no other activated abilities may be used before their effects happen.

Example: Alejandro Perfecto's "Catcher" activated ability lets him instantly put out a Runner attempting to Steal. The ability and the left side of his card are marked with an exclamation mark icon to help you find it in your hand.

The example card, Alejandro Perfecto (Catcher, Aces), reads: Alejandro Perfecto's Control is equal to your Pitcher's Control. Catcher (Discard this player from your hand when an opposing Runner attempts a Steal: That runner is out.)

Hand Size: 7 Cards

The maximum number of cards you may have in your hand is 7. If you have more than 7 cards in your hand at any time, discard cards until you have only 7.

Empty Hand

If you can't use an action during your At-Bat because your hand is empty, reveal and play the top card of your deck instead. You can choose to Hit or Walk with the revealed card. If it's a Pitcher, discard it and take an Out (and then both players will draw a card, as usual).

If your hand is empty when you could play a Defender, you may choose to reveal and play the top card of your deck as a Defender instead.

Illegal Defender

(The manual's Contents page lists this section as "Illegal Play".)

If an ability causes a Defender to be illegal, return the Defender to its owner's hand and continue as if no Defender had been played.

For example, if you play a Defender, but the opposing batter gains Groundball and your Defender can't Defend it, then your Defender is returned to your hand.

Play Example

1 - Action: Hit. Barry's Juicers are at bat against Ruth's Moneybags. It's the At-Bat step, and Barry decides to Hit with Angel Perra. Angel's Hit is 1.

2 - Defend vs Hit. Ruth defends with Fernando del Oro. Fernando's Defense is 3. Right now, Angel's Hit doesn't beat Fernando's Defense, and he'll be Out unless something happens...

3 - Activated Ability. ...so Barry decides to activate Angel's ability! He discards Diesel Durante from his hand to add Diesel's 3 Hit to Angel's 1. That pumps it to 4, which is enough to beat Fernando.

4 - Advance Bases. Ruth doesn't have any more responses, so Angel advances one base (his 4 Hit minus Fernando's 3 Defense = 1 base).

5 - Steal. Barry's At-Bat step is now over, and it's time for the Steal Step. He's feeling lucky, so he decides to Steal with Angel to get him to second base. Angel's Steal is 3.

6 - Defend vs Steal. Ruth flips the top card of her deck for a Defender. It's Billy Greenback! Billy's Defense is also 3. Angel has to beat that though, not just match it...

7 - Out! Barry doesn't have any responses, so Angel is Out! Because a player was put Out, both Barry and Ruth draw a card.

The play example is illustrated on the following page with numbered steps 1 to 7 matching the steps above (Angel Perra, Fernando del Oro, Diesel Durante, Billy Greenback, and the OUT! marker on Angel Perra). Diesel Durante's ability text in the diagram reads: "Discard a non-Pitcher card from your hand: Add that player's Hit to Angel Perra's Hit. You may use this effect once per At-Bat." The diagram shows "+3" Hit.

Stat Key

• Hit (bat and ball icon): the Batter's offensive stat for Hitting. Defended against by Defense.
• Steal (cleat icon): the Runner's stat for stealing bases. Defended against by Defense.
• Walk (bat and base icon): the Batter's stat for Walking. Prevented by Control.
• Defense (glove with ball icon): defends against Hit and Steal.
• Control (glove with base icon): a Pitcher's stat that prevents Walking.