Unstable Unicorns - Single Player Rules
Contents
The Game
Your goal is to DESTROY as many Unicorns as possible while avoiding off-limits Neigh cards hidden in the Hunting Grounds. Kill while you can, but be careful! At the end of the game, you'll lose points for each Basic Unicorn left in the Hunting Grounds and each Neigh card in the Graveyard.
Unicorn Hunt can be played with your existing Unstable Unicorns deck or you can download the free Print-and-Play version!
Please Note: Unicorn Hunt uses different mechanics, and the standard Unstable Unicorn card effects are not compatible with this game. If you aren't using the Print-and-Play version, consult the Unicorn Hunt Card Effect Key each time you draw from the deck.
The Setup
What you'll need:
- 22 Basic Unicorn cards
- 8 Neigh cards
- 30 Magical Unicorn cards
- A coin to flip
- Shuffle the Basic Unicorn cards together with the Neigh cards, then lay them face down, creating 5 rows of 6 cards each. These are the Hunting Grounds.
- Shuffle the Magical Unicorn cards and set them aside. This stack is your deck.
- Designate a spot for the Effect Chamber, the Graveyard, and the Discard Pile.
- Hunting Grounds: This is the action zone where the shuffled Basic Unicorn cards and Neigh cards are laid face down to await destruction.
- Effect Chamber: This is the area where Chamber cards live. It can only contain one card at a time. If you draw a new Chamber card, DISCARD whatever card is already in the Effect Chamber.
- Graveyard: Destroyed Basic Unicorn cards and Neigh cards go here.
- Discard Pile: Magical Unicorn cards go here after they've been drawn from the deck or removed from the Effect Chamber.
The Turn
Each turn has 4 phases that occur in a set order:
- Beginning: If a card requires you to preform an action at the beginning of a turn, it happens at this point.
- Action: Either REVEAL or DESTROY a card in the Hunting Grounds. (Core Phase)
- Draw: Draw a card from the deck. (Core Phase)
- End: If a card requires you to do something at the end of the turn, it happens at this point.
The two core phases are the Action Phase, which occur every turn. On your first turn, start with the Action phase, then move to the Draw phase. There won't be anything in the Effect Chamber before your first turn, so you can skip the Beginning phase.
The Deck
There are two types of cards in the deck: Instant cards and Chamber cards. The card descriptions will tell you which type each card is.
- Instant Cards take effect as soon as they're drawn from the deck, then they're immediately discarded.
- Chamber Cards are placed in the Effect Chamber to the side of the Hunting Grounds. Only one Chamber card can be active at a time. If there's already a card in the Effect Chamber and you draw a new Chamber Card, put the previous Chamber Card in the Discard Pile and replace it with the new one. Each turn, remember to check to see if the current Chamber Card requires you to do anything.
Please Note: If a card tells you to do something that you cannot do, such as discarding a card from the Effect Chamber when the Effect Chamber is empty, ignore that portion of the card effect, perform any portion of it you can, then move on.
See the PDF of printable cards
The End Of The Game
The game ends when the deck runs out of cards. At that time, tally up your points. Count the Basic Unicorn cards and Neigh cards in the Graveyard.
- You earn 1 point for each Basic Unicorn card in the Graveyard.
- You lose 2 points for each Neigh card in the Graveyard.
Count the Basic Unicorn cards and Neigh cards in the Hunting Grounds.
- You earn 2 points for each Neigh card in the Hunting Grounds.
- You lose 1 point for each Basic Unicorn card in the Hunting Grounds.
It takes 24 or more points to win!
Alternate Play Modes
If 24 points to win isn't your style, you can set your sights on a different threshold.
- Foal Mode takes 16 points to win.
- Easy Mode takes 20 points to win.
- Hard Mode takes 28 points to win.
- Expert Mode takes 32 points to win.
- A perfect game takes 38 points to win.
If you want to play Unicorn Hunt with a friend, just set up a second game next to the first. Take turns revealing, destroying, and drawing cards from each setup. Compare your results at the end! Optional Rule: If you don't like what's in the Effect Chamber, you can RETURN 4 basic unicorns then DISCARD the current Chamber card.
Tips And Tricks
- Don't play too conservatively! You might reveal half the Hunting Grounds before drawing a card that forces you to mix them up. Besides, you might run out of turns before the Hunting Grounds areclear!
- At the beginning of the game, the odds of accidentally destroying a Neigh card are lowest, so you may want to try destroying more frequently at the beginning than at the end.
- If you're not a fan of coin flipping, find an app or a website that'll do it for you! Or, if you have some dice laying around, roll one of them and treat even numbers as heads and odds as tails.
- If you don't have heavy paper for the Print-and-Play version, put the cutout cards into card sleeves! At the very least, they'll be easier to shuffle.
- If you're looking for an easy way to calculate your score, try this:
- Count up the Basic Unicorn cards in the Hunting Grounds, multiply that number by 2, and subtract the result from 22.
- Subtract the Neigh cards in the graveyard from the ones in the Hunting Grounds, then multiply that number by 2.
- Add your points from the Neigh cards and Basic Unicorn cards to get your final score!
Words You Should Know
The following definitions are important for understanding precisely what each card effect is telling you to do. Whenever you see these terms on a card, they'll be CAPITALIZED.
- REVEAL Pick up a card in the Hunting Grounds, look at it, then place it face down again.
- DESTROY Remove a card from the Hunting Grounds and place it in the Graveyard.
- DISCARD Remove a Magical Unicorn card from the deck or the Effect Chamber and put it in the Discard Pile.
- RETURN Remove a card from the Graveyard and place it in any open space of your choice in the Hunting Grounds.
- ADJACENT A card in the Hunting Grounds is adjacent to another card if it's directly to the left, right, top, or bottom. Cards one space away diagonally are not considered adjacent.
Unicorn Hunt Card Effect Key
Use these effects instead of what's written on the card for the standard Unstable Unicorns game.
- Alluring Narwhal. (Instant Card) RETURN a Basic Unicorn card.
- Americorn. (Instant Card) DESTROY 2 ADJACENT cards.
- Angel Unicorn. (Instant Card) RETURN a Neigh card.
- Annoying Flying Unicorn. (Instant Card) Shuffle the cards in the Hunting Grounds and place them face down again.
- Black Knight Unicorn. (Chamber Card) Place this card in the Effect Chamber. While it is in play, you may look at the top card in the deck at the beginning of each turn and place it either on the top or the bottom of the deck.
- Chainsaw Unicorn. (Instant Card) Reveal 3 cards. If any Neigh cards are among them, DESTROY them.
- Classy Narwhal. (Instant Card) REVEAL 3 cards.
- Extremely Destructive Unicorn. (Instant Card) DESTROY 3 ADJACENT cards.
- Extremely Fertile Unicorn. (Chamber Card) Place this card in the Effect Chamber. While it is in play, flip a coin at the beginning of each turn. If the result is heads, RETURN a Basic Unicorn card.
- Ginormous Unicorn. (Instant Card) REVEAL 2 cards, then DESTROY 1 of them.
- The Great Narwhal. (Chamber Card) Place this card in the Effect Chamber. REVEAL one row of cards and keep it face up as long as The Great Narwhal is in the Effect Chamber. If the Hunting Grounds are shuffled, do not shuffle the selected row.
- Greedy Flying Unicorn. (Chamber Card) Place this card in the Effect Chamber. While it is in play, whenever you use your action to REVEAL a card, you may also REVEAL a second card.
- Llamacorn. (Instant Card) DISCARD the card in the Effect Chamber. Search the deck for the Effect Chamber card closest to the top, place it in the Effect Chamber, and then shuffle the deck.
- Magical Flying Unicorn. (Instant Card) Look at the next 3 cards in the deck, then return them to the top of the deck in any order.
- Magical Kittencorn. (Instant Card) Shuffle the cards in the Hunting Grounds and place them face down again.
- Majestic Flying Unicorn. (Instant Card) Look at the next 3 cards in the deck, then return them to the top of the deck in any order.
- Mermaid Unicorn. (Instant Card) RETURN the card in the Effect Chamber to the deck, then shuffle it.
- Narwhal Torpedo. (Instant Card) DESTROY 2 cards.
- Puppicorn. (Instant Card) Shuffle the cards in the Hunting Grounds and place them face down again.
- Queen Bee Unicorn. (Instant Card) RETURN 3 Basic Unicorn cards.
- Rainbow Unicorn. (Instant Card) RETURN a Neigh card.
- Rhinocorn. (Instant Card) DISCARD the card in the Effect Chamber.
- Seductive Unicorn. (Instant Card) RETURN 2 Basic Unicorn cards, then choose a card from the Discard Pile and put it on the bottom of the deck.
- Shabby the Narwhal. (Instant Card) DESTROY 2 cards, then RETURN a Basic Unicorn card.
- Shark with a Horn. (Instant Card) DESTROY a card.
- Stabby the Unicorn. (Instant Card) DESTROY a card, then DISCARD the top card in the deck.
- Swift Flying Unicorn. (Instant Card) DISCARD the top 3 cards in the deck.
- Unicorn on the Cob. (Instant Card) REVEAL 2 cards.
- Unicorn Phoenix. (Instant Card) Choose a card from the Discard Pile and put it on the bottom of the deck.
- Zombie Unicorn. (Chamber Card) Place this card in the Effect Chamber. Whenever you DESTROY a Basic Unicorn card, flip a coin. If the result is heads, immediately RETURN that card.
