Zombie Chickens
Zombie Chickens Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Setup
- Shuffle the Day Cards and deal 5 to each player. Place the remaining Day Cards face-down in the center of the table. (This is the "Day Deck".)
- Turn the top 2 cards of the Day Deck over and place them separately face-up next to the Day Deck.
- Shuffle the Night Cards and place them face-down in the center of the table. (This is the "Night Deck".)
- Give Life Cards to each player. (In 2 player games, each player gets 5 Life Cards. In 3 and 4 player games, each player gets 4 Life Cards.) Set any extra Life Cards in the box (the extras will not be used in this game).
The example setup for a 2 player game shows: Player 1's Hand, Player 1's Life Cards, Day Discard Pile, Night Discard Pile, Life Discard Pile, Day Deck, Face-Up Cards, Night Deck, Player 2's Life Cards and Player 2's Hand.
Overview
In ZOMBIE CHICKENS, players take turns building defenses during the Day and defending against zombies at Night. The basic game flow is:
- DAY
- Morning Turn: Each player has the opportunity to Discard 1 card, Place 2 cards on their Farm, and Draw 2 cards to end their turn.
- Afternoon Turn: The process is the same as the Morning, giving each player one more turn to prepare their Farm before the nightly zombie attack.
- NIGHT: Players are dealt cards from the Night Deck, forcing them to defend against attacking zombie chickens and react to various events.
The above Day and Night cycles are repeated until the game ends. The onslaught of zombie chickens gets more difficult as the game continues, because each night more Night Cards are dealt than the previous Night. The game ends when all players are out of Life Cards except one - the LAST FARMER STANDING!
How to Play
Choose a player to go first. Player 1 will always be the first to start a new DAY or NIGHT. Other players will follow in a clockwise direction. When starting a new game, play begins with Player 1 in the Morning.
Day
Every DAY, each player gets two turns (Morning & Afternoon) to prepare defenses by placing Day Cards on their "Farm" (the area in front of each player is their "Farm").
Morning
Each turn consists of the following 3 actions:
- DISCARD 1 Card from your hand (OPTIONAL) - If a player chooses to discard 1 card, they immediately draw 1 replacement card from the Day Deck and place it in their hand. (Discarded cards should go in a separate discard area away from the center of the table.)
- PLACE 2 Cards on your Farm - Players choose 2 cards from their hand and place them on their Farm (the area in front of each player). Cards are placed in separate "stacks" that represent the defenses available to use when battling zombies at night. (See the "UNDERSTANDING CARD STACKS" section on the back.)
- DRAW 2 Cards - A Day turn ends when the player draws 2 cards and places them in their hand. The player may choose to either draw the top 2 face-down cards from the Day Deck, OR take the 2 face-up cards next to the Day Deck. (If the 2 face-up cards are chosen, the top 2 cards on the Day Deck should be flipped over as replacements.)
*NOTE - Players should have 5 cards in their hand at the end of each turn.
Afternoon
Once all players complete their Morning turn, Player 1 begins the Afternoon. The steps for the Afternoon are the exact same as the Morning. This gives each player one more opportunity to Discard 1 card, Place 2 cards, and Draw 2 cards before night begins.
Take a moment to review the Day Cards. You'll see they represent various defenses a player can place on their Farm (see table below). But beware! The Zombies you encounter will have traits allowing them to bypass some of your defenses. You will need to hone your defensive strategy in order to survive difficult nights!
| DAY CARD | # in DECK | DESCRIPTION |
|---|---|---|
| Hay Bale | 20 | Stack 3 Hay Bales to build a Hay Wall |
| Scarecrow | 6 | Scares away Timid zombies |
| Shotgun | 14 | Combine with Ammo to blast a zombie |
| Ammo | 24 | Combine with Shotgun to blast a zombie (1-Time-Use) |
| Booby Trap | 10 | Terminates 1 zombie (1-Time-Use) |
| Shield | 6 | Shields a stack from an Exploding zombie (1-Time-Use) |
| Flamethrower | 6 | Combine with Fuel to roast a zombie |
| Fuel | 6 | Combine with Flamethrower to roast a zombie |
Editorial note: the source prints no heading for the Night section; the examples below open it on the page after the Day table.
Night Examples
EXAMPLE #1: A player flips over a Night Card to reveal a zombie with the Invisible trait. (Therefore the player cannot stop the zombie with a Shotgun or Flamethrower.) However, she fortunately has a Hay Wall and can therefore stop the zombie! She therefore discards the zombie card and play continues to the next player. (Reminder: Discarded cards should go in a separate discard area away from the center of the table.)
EXAMPLE #2: A player flips over a Night Card to reveal a zombie with the Flying and Fireproof traits. (Therefore the player cannot stop the zombie with a Hay Wall, Booby Trap, or Flamethrower.) He fortunately has a stack containing a Shotgun and 2 Ammo. He uses 1 Ammo to defeat the zombie. Since Ammo is a 1-Time-Use card, he discards the Ammo card in the discard area to the side. (The zombie card is also discarded.) Play continues to the next player.
EXAMPLE #3: A player flips over a Night Card to reveal a zombie with the Flying, Timid, and Exploding traits. (Therefore the player cannot stop the zombie with a Hay Wall or Booby Trap.) She does, however have a Shotgun stack with 3 Ammo. She could use an Ammo to stop the zombie, but since it's an Exploding zombie, that would destroy her entire 4-card Shotgun stack! Fortunately, she also has a Scarecrow. Since the zombie is Timid, she is able to use her Scarecrow to stop it. However, since the zombie is also Exploding, she has to discard the Scarecrow she used to stop it. Both the zombie and Scarecrow are discarded and play continues to the next player.
EXAMPLE #4: A player flips over a Night Card to reveal a zombie with the Invisible trait. He only has a loaded Shotgun and a Flamethrower on his Farm. Since neither of those defenses can defeat an Invisible zombie, the zombie gets through the player's defenses and the player must discard 1 Life Card!
Event Cards
In addition to zombies, the Night Deck also contains Events that affect all players in the game. When an Event card is drawn, all players must follow the instructions on the card. Play then continues to the next player.
Ending a Night
Players take turns flipping over 1 Night Card at a time and defending against it. (After each Night Card, play moves to the next player.) This continues until all Night Cards have been flipped over, or until only 1 player remains alive (see "ENDING THE GAME" below). Once all Night Cards have been played, remaining players breathe a sigh of relief and move on to the Morning of the next Day.
The below image shows an example of what the play area might look like during the Night:
[Example Night play-area diagram: Day Discard Pile, Night Discard Pile, Life Discard Pile, Player 1's Hand, Player 1's Night Cards, Player 1's Life Cards, Player 2's Night Cards, Player 2's Life Cards, Player 2's Hand, with Farm defenses shown in play.]
(The example Night play-area diagram continues on this page: it shows the Day Discard Pile, Night Discard Pile, Life Discard Pile, Player 1's Hand, Player 1's Night Cards, Player 1's Life Cards, Player 2's Night Cards, Player 2's Life Cards and Player 2's Hand, with Farm stacks in play.)
Understanding Card Stacks
During the Day, cards are placed in separate "stacks" on your Farm. A "stack" can consist of only 1 card, or a group of cards that must be used together. Since Exploding zombies destroy whatever stack was used to stop it, you might want to avoid large stacks that would be especially costly if used against an Exploding zombie.
In the above example Farm, you'll notice that cards are only stacked together if they must be used together. Also, the player chose to have two separate Shotgun card stacks (instead of stacking all Ammo on ONE Shotgun card). The reason for this is that if one Shotgun stack must be used to stop an Exploding zombie, the player would still have a second loaded Shotgun to use against other zombies!
During the Day, you may rearrange the stacks on your Farm if it is your turn. However, you may not rearrange the stacks on your Farm during the Night!
Game Flow (Day & Night Cycles)
Gameplay follows the simple Day and Night cycle shown below. Remember that every Day, each player will have 2 turns (Morning & Afternoon) to build defenses on their Farm before having to start the next Night.
- Day (Morning & Afternoon)
- Night 1 (Each player receives 1 Night Card)
- Day (Morning & Afternoon)
- Night 2 (Each player receives 2 Night Cards)
- Day (Morning & Afternoon)
- Night 3 (Each player receives 3 Night Cards)
(This cycle continues until the game ends.)
Ending the Game
In the COMPETITIVE version of ZOMBIE CHICKENS, the game ends when all players have died (lost all their Life Cards) except one. The "last farmer standing" is the WINNER and sole survivor of the Bok-Bok-Alypse!
To ensure the game is fair, all players should have the same number of turns. For example, in a two-player game, if Player 1 dies (runs out of Life Cards) on their second card of Night 5, Player 2 should also play through their second card of Night 5 to ensure they do not tie by dying at the same point in the game.
Breaking a Tie
In the case of a tie, the winner is the tying player who has the most cards left on their Farm at the end of the game. If this is also a tie, then no player is the winner and the zombies win!
The sheet's "Important" box points readers to the FAQs on the other sheet for more information on how to play.
FAQs
How does the Exploding Trait work? An Exploding zombie destroys the card stack that was used to defeat it. E.g., if a stack containing a Shotgun and 2 Ammo is used to defeat an Exploding zombie, the entire stack (Shotgun and 2 Ammo) is discarded. Remember that a "stack" might contain only 1 card, such as a Scarecrow or a Booby Trap.
How does a Shield work? A Shield cannot defeat a zombie by itself. However, it can be used to shield a stack from destruction when defending against Exploding zombies. For example, if you have a Shield on your Farm and you use a Flamethrower/Fuel stack to defeat an Exploding zombie, you may choose to use the Shield to save the Flamethrower/Fuel card stack from the explosion. (Discard the Shield since it is a 1-time use card.)
Do I have to stop a zombie if I don't want to? For example, if I'd rather give up a Life Card than have my Hay Wall destroyed by an exploding zombie, can I do that? You do not have to stop a zombie if you don't want to. On occasion you might decide to give up a Life Card instead of destroying a stack. It's your decision!
During my turn, if I choose to Discard 1 card can I choose one of the two face-up cards as the replacement card? No. If you Discard 1 card from your hand, you must take the top face-down card from the Day Deck as the replacement card.
What happens if we run out of Day Cards or Night Cards during the game? If you run out of Day Cards (or Night Cards) at any point during the game, simply replenish the deck by shuffling the discarded Day Cards (or Night Cards) and using them to continue play.
Can I have more than 1 of the same card stack on my Farm? (For example, 2 Hay Walls or 3 Booby Traps?) Yes. Your Farm is your land and you can defend it however you'd like!
Do I have to stack Day Cards of the same type together on my Farm? (e.g., do all Scarecrows have to be stacked together or can I keep them separate?) No, you can keep cards separate unless they must be used together. (e.g., Hay Bales must be stacked together to make a Hay Wall.)
If I turn over an Event Card, do I have to draw another Night Card in its place? No. If you turn over an Event Card, all players should follow the instructions on the Event Card. Afterward, play continues to the next player.
What does W.O.L.R. stand for? Weapon Of Last Resort!
Do I need to start worrying about a real-life bok-bok-alypse? Yes.
For more FAQs, visit zombiechickensgame.com
Cooperative Version
Important! Before learning the Co-op Version, make sure you've learned the Competitive Version!
Objective
In the COOPERATIVE version of ZOMBIE CHICKENS, players work together to defend a single Farm. The group's objective is to try to survive SEVEN NIGHTS of zombie attacks! (A rescue party arrives at dawn on the eighth day!)
Setup (Cooperative)
Setup for the COOPERATIVE version is the same as the COMPETITIVE version, except for the below changes:
- Both the Day Deck and the Night Deck are positioned toward the side of the play area instead of the center (to leave space for the group's Farm in the middle of the table).
- Instead of dealing Life Cards to each player, the entire group shares a single stack of 5 Life Cards.
NOTE - Each player is dealt their own hand of 5 Day Cards, just as in the COMPETITIVE version.
The sheet shows an example setup for a 3 player COOPERATIVE game (Group Farm in the center, Day Deck, Face-Up Cards, Night Discard Pile, Life Discard Pile, Night Deck, 5 Life Cards, Player 1's Hand, Player 2's Hand, Player 3's Hand).
Gameplay (Cooperative)
Gameplay for the COOPERATIVE version is the same as the COMPETITIVE version, except for these changes:
- 1 Farm - All players work together to place cards on one Farm in the center of the play area (instead of each player having their own Farm).
- 1 Turn per Player each Day - During the Day, each player has 1 turn to build defenses on the group's Farm (instead of each player having a turn in the Morning and a second turn in the Afternoon).
- Trade with other Players - During the Day, players may trade any number of cards from their hand with other players. All players must end each trade with 5 cards in their hand.
- Defend Together - During the Night, players must decide together how to handle each zombie.
- Events Impact the Group - Events that reference "All players" should be handled as if the group is 1 player. (E.g., if the event says "All players must discard 3 cards from their Farm", the group should collectively choose 3 cards total to discard.)
- Shared Life Cards - The group is dealt one stack of Life Cards to share together.
Game Flow (Cooperative)
The goal of each game is to work together to try and survive 7 Nights of zombies. However, the game starts and ends on a different Night based on the number of players as shown in the table below:
| # OF PLAYERS | STARTING NIGHT | ENDING NIGHT |
|---|---|---|
| 2 | 1 | 7 |
| 3 | 3 | 9 |
| 4 | 5 | 11 |
Therefore, the game flow for a 2 player COOPERATIVE game is:
- Day (Player 1, Player 2)
- Day (Player 1, Player 2)
- Night 1 (Receive 1 Night Card)
- Night 2 (Receive 2 Night Cards)
(This cycle continues until the group successfully survives Night 7 or runs out of Life Cards!)
The game flow for a 3 player COOPERATIVE game is:
- Day (Player 1, Player 2, Player 3)
- Day (Player 1, Player 2, Player 3)
- Night 3 (Receive 3 Night Cards)
- Night 4 (Receive 4 Night Cards)
(This cycle continues until the group successfully survives Night 9 or runs out of Life Cards!)
The game flow for a 4 player COOPERATIVE game is:
- Day (Player 1, Player 2, Player 3, Player 4)
- Day (Player 1, Player 2, Player 3, Player 4)
- Night 5 (Receive 5 Night Cards)
- Night 6 (Receive 6 Night Cards)
(This cycle continues until the group successfully survives Night 11 or runs out of Life Cards!)
Ending the Game (Cooperative)
In the COOPERATIVE version of ZOMBIE CHICKENS, the game ends either when the group runs out of Life Cards, or when the group beats the game by successfully surviving a total of SEVEN Nights of zombies! (A rescue party comes at dawn on the eighth day! Congrats!) Use the below table to score the group's performance:
2 player Game
| HOW LONG DID YOU LAST? | TITLE |
|---|---|
| Died during (or before) Night 4 | Chicken Feed |
| Died during Night 5 | Early Eggs-it |
| Died during Night 6 | Hen-orable Mention |
| Died during Night 7 | Special Forces |
| SURVIVED Night 7 | Team Terminator |
3 player Game
| HOW LONG DID YOU LAST? | TITLE |
|---|---|
| Died during (or before) Night 6 | Chicken Feed |
| Died during Night 7 | Early Eggs-it |
| Died during Night 8 | Hen-orable Mention |
| Died during Night 9 | Special Forces |
| SURVIVED Night 9 | Team Terminator |
4 player Game
| HOW LONG DID YOU LAST? | TITLE |
|---|---|
| Died during (or before) Night 8 | Chicken Feed |
| Died during Night 9 | Early Eggs-it |
| Died during Night 10 | Hen-orable Mention |
| Died during Night 11 | Special Forces |
| SURVIVED Night 11 | Team Terminator |
Solo Version
Important! Before learning the Solo Version, make sure you've learned the Competitive Version!
Objective (Solo)
In the SOLO version of ZOMBIE CHICKENS, a single player battles waves of zombie chickens on their own in hopes of surviving against all odds! The objective is to survive SEVEN NIGHTS of zombie attacks! (A rescue party arrives at dawn on the eighth day!)
Setup (Solo)
Setup for the 1 Player SOLO version is similar to the COMPETITIVE version. The below image shows what the play area should look like after Setup for a 1 player SOLO game:
The diagram shows: Day Discard Pile, Night Discard Pile, Life Discard Pile, Day Deck, Face-Up Cards, Night Deck, Your Farm, Your Hand and 5 Life Cards.
Notice that in 1 player games, the player gets 5 Life Cards.
Gameplay (Solo)
Gameplay for the SOLO version of ZOMBIE CHICKENS is the same as the COMPETITIVE version, except the player does not need to wait for other players before taking his or her next turn. Therefore, the game's flow is:
- Day (Morning & Afternoon)
- Day (Morning & Afternoon)
- Day (Morning & Afternoon)
- Night 1 (Receive 1 Night Card)
- Night 2 (Receive 2 Night Cards)
- Night 3 (Receive 3 Night Cards)
(This cycle continues until the player successfully survives Night 7 or runs out of Life Cards!)
Ending the Game (Solo)
In the SOLO version of ZOMBIE CHICKENS, the game ends either when the player runs out of Life Cards, or when the player beats the game by successfully surviving through the end of Night 7! (A rescue party comes at dawn on the eighth day! Congrats!) Use the below table to score your performance:
| HOW LONG DID YOU LAST? | TITLE |
|---|---|
| Died during (or before) Night 3 | Bird Brain |
| Died during Night 4 | Easy Pickins |
| Died during Night 5 | Better Cluck Next Time |
| Died during Night 6 | Hard to Kill |
| Died during Night 7 | Survivalist |
| SURVIVED Night 7 | Zombie Slayer |