Exploding kittens
Objective
The objective of the game is to be the last player standing who hasn't exploded. To achieve this, you need to avoid drawing the famous exploding kittens, while trying to set up your opponents to draw them instead.
Distribution
At the beginning of the game, each player receives a defuse card and 7 other cards at random. Undealt cards make up the draw pile, to which as many exploding kittens as there are players minus one are added, so that when all exploding kittens have been drawn, a single player who hasn't exploded remains.
The exact contents and number of cards depend on the number of players.
Your turn
At your turn, you can play as many cards as you wish, in whatever order you like. The actions indicated on the cards apply, unless they are countered (see further down). When you've done everything you wanted to do, or if you don't have any card left in your hand, you end your turn by drawing a card from the draw pile.
- If the card you have just drawn isn't an exploding kitten, everything is fine: your turn is finished and the next player takes their turn.
- However, if you have just drawn an exploding kitten:
- If you have a defuse card, play it quickly! You can then put the exploding kitten back in the draw pile wherever you like. You can put it back directly on top of the draw pile to immediately trap the next player, or deep in the pile to stay safe for a while. Once it is done, it's the turn of the next player.
- If you don't have any defuse cards, or if you aren't quick enough, the kitten will explode after a few seconds and you are eliminated from the game.
All other cards will help you to avoid drawing cards and leave that delightful privilege to your opponents.
Don't forget: each time you draw, you take the risk to find an exploding kitten!
Cards
The game contains the following cards:
- Defuse
Allows you to disable an exploding kitten and avoid being eliminated from the game.
- Exploding kitten
If not defused, it will explode after a couple of seconds and you are out of the game.
- Nope!
This card allows to counter the last card played, so that its action doesn't take effect. It isn't possible to counter an exploding kitten with anything else than a defuse. However, you can counter a Nope! by another Nope! so that the initial card played finally takes its effect normally. A Nope! card can be played at any time, even if it's not your turn.
- Attack
Ends your turn without drawing, and forces the next player to take two turns in a row.
- Targeted attack
Ends your turn without drawing, and forces the selected player to take two turns in a row.
- Triple attack
Ends your turn without drawing, and forces the next player to take three turns in a row.
- Skip
Ends your turn without drawing. If you have multiple turns to play, this card only ends one of them.
- Favor
The player you select must give you one card of their choice.
- Shuffle
The draw pile is reshuffled.
- Bottom draw
You end your turn by drawing the card on the bottom of the draw pile, instead of the one on top.
- Divination
You can look at the next three cards in the draw pile.
- Super divination
You can look at the next five cards in the draw pile.
- Manipulation
You can view and reorder the next three cards in the draw pile.
- Super manipulation
You can look at and reorder the next five cards in the draw pile.
- Reverse
Ends your turn without drawing, and reverses the order of play. If you have to play several turns, this card only ends one of them.
- Super skip
Ends your turn without drawing, even if you have multiple turns remaining. Unplayed turns are passed to the next player.
- Recto verso
Swaps the first and the last card of the draw pile.
- Bury
You draw a card, and then immediately put it back at the bottom. If the card has a draw effect like an exploding kitten, it isn't triggered.
- Personal attack
At the end of your turn, you play two more times. Useless, you say?
- Black cat, white cat, gray cat, tabby cat, red cat, feral cat
Cat cards don't have any effect on their own. They are played in combos (see further down).
Combos
Instead of playing cards one by one, you can combine them and obtain more interesting effects. Effects indicated on the individual cards don't apply when they are played in combos.
- A pair of identical cards
You can steal a random card from the hand of another player.
- Three cards of a kind
You can ask another player for an exact card. If they have it, they must give it to you. Otherwise, if they don't have it, too bad.
- Five different cards
You can pick a card of your choice from the discard pile.
Note that a feral cat can replace any other cat or count as a unique color, depending on the situation.