Unstable Unicorns - General Player Rules

What Did You Get Yourself Into?

Start with a Baby Unicorn in your Stable, and begin building your Unicorn Army. Each Magical Unicorn comes with a special power, but don't underestimate the power of Basic Unicorns! Use Upgrades and Downgrades to protect and build your stable (or attack other players MUAHAHAHA). Instant Cards stop other players from laying down a card, so they'll either be your best friend or your worst enemy. The first person to complete their Unicorn Army wins!

Setup

Gather all Baby Unicorns from the deck and place 1 in the Stable of each player. Place the rest of the Baby Unicorns in a stack. This will be your Nursery. Shuffle the remaining cards and deal 5 to each player. The rest of the stack will be your Draw Pile.

What To Do On Your Turn

Turns go clockwise around the table, and each turn is made up of 4 phases.

• Beginning of Your Turn: If any of your cards has an effect that happens at the beginning of your turn, you may use that effect now. If you forget to do it before you draw, you miss out on using that effect.
• Draw Phase: Draw 1 card from the Draw Pile.
• Action Phase: Play 1 card from your hand. OR Draw 1 more card from the Draw Pile.
• End of Your Turn: Discard down to the hand limit. (If you are holding more than 7 cards.)

How To Win

The frst person with the required number of unicorns in their Stable wins! Everyone must bow down to them.

• 2 players 7 Unicorns to win*
• 3 – 5 players 7 Unicorns to win
• 6 – 8 players 6 Unicorns to win

What if you run out of cards?

• If you’re a stickler, the game ends when you run out of cards. If no one completed their Unicorn Army, no one gets to be The Righteous Ruler of All Things Magical.
• If you’re a rule-breaker, you can reshuffle the discard pile back into the deck when you’re out of cards. The rules say not to, but you just don’t give a care. You’re a rebel. Good for you.
• If you are a Baby Unicorn, the game ends when you flip the table. Don’t be a Baby Unicorn. You’re better than that.

== Who Goes First? Whoever is wearing the most colors is obviously the unicorniest, so they go first!

Card Types

• Instant: Play an Instant Card at any time to stop someone from playing a card. Send the Instant Card to the Discard Pile after use.
• Upgrade: Play an Upgrade Card during your turn to give someone’s Stable a positive effect. (Your own Stable is always a good choice!)
• Downgrade: Play a Downgrade Card during your turn to give someone’s Stable a negative effect. (Pick an opponent’s Stable, duh!)
• Magic: Play a Magic Card during your turn to create mayhem. Send the Magic Card to the Discard Pile after use.
• Magical Unicorn: Play a Magical Unicorn Card by placing it in your Stable during your turn. Each one comes with a special power!
• Basic Unicorn: Play a Basic Unicorn by placing it in your Stable during your turn. They don’t have powers, but they are still special!
• Baby Unicorn: Each player starts with a Baby Unicorn in their Stable. You can only summon more by using special cards!

FAQ

• If you’re holding more than 7 cards at the end of your turn, discard down to 7. If you’re holding fewer than 7, don’t get greedy and draw more. Patience is a virtue.
• When the card says “each player” that includes you, too.
• If you run out of Baby Unicorn cards at any point, root through your pockets for spare change, gum wrappers, or lint to represent additional babies.
• When Pandamonium is in play, all of that player’s Unicorns are Pandas, but their effects remain the same.