Lucky Bastard · A party card game

Bet big.
Risk bigger.

A high-stakes party card game where the bold build a fortune, the greedy tempt fate, and one bad draw can take it all.

How to play

Prototype in progress

The chaos crew

Meet the Bastards

Seven cards. Zero mercy. Tap a card to flip it over.

All In card
Lucky Bastard card back
1 / 7

The complete game

Shuffle up. Draw. Risk it or cash out.

How to play

Goal: First to 100 permanent points wins. Want a longer night? Agree on a bigger number before you start.

Setup & your turn
  • Shuffle the 108-card deck. 2–8 players.
  • Everyone starts at 0 permanent points. Track them with poker chips (optional), a scorepad — or simply use the chip calculator.
  • Oldest goes first. They don’t have time to waste.
  • Draw a card and resolve it. Then RISK IT (draw again) or CASH OUT (bank your turn score as permanent points and end your turn).
  • A BUST destroys your entire turn score and ends your turn. Your permanent points are untouched, unless a card says otherwise.
  • Unless a card says otherwise, your turn continues after it resolves, and you choose to risk it or cash out.
  • When the deck runs out, shuffle the discards into a new deck. Face-up INSURANCE cards stay in front of their owners.
  • Short on points: whenever a card makes you lose or give up more permanent points than you have, you lose all you have. No one goes below 0.

No chips? Open chip calculator to keep track of your score.

Core cards — 96
NUMBER 1–10 (×70)Add the number to your turn score.
BUST (×14)Lose your entire turn score. Your turn ends.
DOUBLE (×4)Double your turn score. (Doubling 0 stays 0.)
STEAL 10 (×4)Take 10 permanent points from any other player. They go straight to your permanent points.
HIGH STAKES (×1)Triggers a showdown (see below).
RIGGED (×3)Draw 3 cards. Keep 1 and play it now. Stack the other 2 on top of the deck in any order. Then your turn ends. Cash out, unless the kept card was a BUST.
Bastard cards — 12
ALL IN (×2)You can’t cash out until you’ve drawn 2 more cards. Resolve each normally. A BUST ends your turn immediately.
ROBBERY (×2)Take 5 permanent points from every other player.
HOUSE MONEY (×2)Add 15 to your turn score. If you BUST later this turn, you also lose 10 permanent points (10 total, even with multiple HOUSE MONEY cards).
HIGH ROLLER (×2)Every number card you draw counts double for the rest of this turn. It doubles only the numbers you draw afterward, not your existing score. A second HIGH ROLLER does nothing extra.
BET THE HOUSE (×1)Move all your permanent points into your turn score, then draw again. If you BUST, everything in your turn score is destroyed, including what you moved in, and you drop to 0. If you cash out, it all banks.
INSURANCE (×2)Keep face-up in front of you. Hold as many as you want; they can’t be stolen. Discard one to cancel a BUST you draw on a later turn, keeping your turn score intact. Doesn’t work the turn you draw it, or on LAST CALL.
LAST CALL (×1)Every player, including you, draws and reveals one card. Anyone who reveals a BUST loses 10 permanent points. If that’s you, your turn score is safe. Everything revealed is discarded and your turn continues.
High Stakes showdown
  • When you draw HIGH STAKES, everything stops. You are the Dealer.
  • Every player puts 10 permanent points in the middle. If any player has fewer than 10, skip the showdown: discard HIGH STAKES and draw a new card.
  • Deal one card face-down to each player, including yourself. Flip them all on three.
  • Highest number wins the pot. Action cards count as 0 and their effects don’t trigger.
  • Ties split the pot evenly, rounding down. Any leftover points go to the Dealer.
  • If everyone flips 0, deal again.
  • If a split would put two or more players at 100 or more, those players flip one more card each. Highest wins, ties flip again.
  • After the showdown, your turn ends and your turn score is banked.
Chained cards
  • RIGGED into RIGGED fizzles, as does ALL IN into ALL IN.
  • Any other chain resolves normally, including HIGH STAKES, which ends your turn as above.
  • If RIGGED’s kept card is a number, HIGH ROLLER doubles it.

Behind the game

The first real look comes after the prototype.

The physical game is being tested and refined now. Final photography, box details, and buying information will be added once the finished prototype is in hand.

  • Full product reveal and real game photography
  • Final rule revisions and expanded card guide
  • Where to buy and launch details
  • Play videos, reviews, and table reactions

Straight answers

Before you ante up.

The game is still in prototype review, so details will be added as they’re locked.

It’s a gambling-style party card game built around betting points, drawing cards, pushing your luck, and deciding when to cash out.

Not yet. The physical prototype is in progress, and purchase details will be announced after it has been reviewed and playtested.

The current rules are in The Game section above. Final refinements and an expanded card guide will be added after prototype review.

Lucky Bastard is on Instagram and TikTok. The profile links will appear here when the accounts go public.

Price is still TBD. Join the launch list and you’ll be the first to know when it’s set.

Launch date is TBD. The prototype is under review now, and the launch list hears the date first.

The game plays 2 to 8. Bigger tables mean bigger pots and more backstabbing.

One round and you’ve got it. Draw a card, then risk it or cash out. That’s the whole game.

Not yet. The base game comes first.

Yes. If you can draw a card and decide whether to push your luck, you can play.

Game-night tool

Need a scorekeeper?

The chip calculator keeps every turn and permanent score in one place, away from the rest of the site.

Open chip calculator  →

Also opens directly from the QR code in the booklet.