Fightball
Encyclopedia
Fightball is a real-time card game
designed by James Ernest
and Mike Selinker
and published by Cheapass Games
in 2002
. Fightball is the third real-time card game published by Cheapass Games, following the success of Falling
and Brawl.
of one of six futuristic basketball
teams competing in the fictional sport of Fightball. Each player will have his own deck of cards representing that team.
When the game begins, both participants simultaneously play cards that feature players, balls, shots, and special effects. The goal of the game is to create Complete Plays by forming stacks, each featuring a shooter (player) card, ball card, and shot card that together total at least ten points.
Interaction between players is introduced by allowing players to play blockers and other cards into their opponents' stacks to attempt to reduce the total to less than ten.
A round (or quarter) of gameplay ends when either coach plays a Buzz card (which is at the bottom of their deck), after which there is a scoring round to determine the number of Complete Plays for each Coach.
A game of Fightball consists of four quarters, and the winner is the Coach with the largest number of Complete Plays.
Cavaliers vs. Team Sport. Each individual deck is compatible with and playable against all of the rest.
Real-time card game
A real-time card game is a card game in which all players may act simultaneously .The card game Set has a real-time element; in Set, the players are racing to identify patterns in the cards on the table...
designed by James Ernest
James Ernest
James Ernest is an American game designer and juggler. He is best known as the owner and lead designer of Cheapass Games. Prior to founding Cheapass, he worked as a juggler at various venues, including Camlann Medieval Village, and as a freelancer with Wizards of the Coast. He also worked for...
and Mike Selinker
Mike Selinker
Mike Selinker is a game designer whose design credits include Pirates of the Spanish Main and Fightball with James Ernest, Axis & Allies Revised Edition with Larry Harris, the Marvel Super Heroes Adventure Game, and Risk Godstorm. He was a creative director for the 3rd edition of Dungeons & Dragons...
and published by Cheapass Games
Cheapass Games
Cheapass Games is a game company founded and run by game designer James Ernest, based in Seattle, Washington. Cheapass Games operates on the philosophy that most game owners have plenty of dice, counters, play money, etc., so there is no need to bundle all of these components with every game that...
in 2002
2002 in games
This page lists board and card games, wargames, miniatures games, and table-top role-playing games published in 2002. For video and console games, see 2002 in video gaming.-Death:...
. Fightball is the third real-time card game published by Cheapass Games, following the success of Falling
Falling (game)
Falling is a real-time card game from James Ernest in which all players are falling from the sky for no apparent reason. The object of the game is to hit the ground last...
and Brawl.
Gameplay
In Fightball, each player takes the role of a CoachCoach (sport)
In sports, a coach is an individual involved in the direction, instruction and training of the operations of a sports team or of individual sportspeople.-Staff:...
of one of six futuristic basketball
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...
teams competing in the fictional sport of Fightball. Each player will have his own deck of cards representing that team.
When the game begins, both participants simultaneously play cards that feature players, balls, shots, and special effects. The goal of the game is to create Complete Plays by forming stacks, each featuring a shooter (player) card, ball card, and shot card that together total at least ten points.
Interaction between players is introduced by allowing players to play blockers and other cards into their opponents' stacks to attempt to reduce the total to less than ten.
A round (or quarter) of gameplay ends when either coach plays a Buzz card (which is at the bottom of their deck), after which there is a scoring round to determine the number of Complete Plays for each Coach.
A game of Fightball consists of four quarters, and the winner is the Coach with the largest number of Complete Plays.
Distribution
The six Fightball decks are sold in pairs, Aztecs vs. The Dark, The Cruisers vs. Texas Wildcats, andCavaliers vs. Team Sport. Each individual deck is compatible with and playable against all of the rest.