BACKSTAB FISH

Hey there, welcome to Backstab Fish – the fishing card game that’s perfect for 4 to 10 players! The goal of the game is simple: collect more sets of 4 cards than anyone else.

SETUP

First things first, we need to set up the game. To kick things off, we’ll randomly choose someone to be the dealer. The dealer then shuffles the deck, making sure everything is nicely mixed up. Once that’s done, each player gets 7 cards that they can keep in their hand. Don’t worry, we’ll get to using those cards in just a moment! The remaining cards are placed in a neat little pile in the center of the table, which we’ll call the draw pile. That’s it, we’re all set up and good to go!

Now, let’s talk about the aim of the game. In Backstab Fish, the goal is to collect 4 cards of the same rank. We don’t really care about the suits here, so just focus on getting sets of 4 cards with the same number or letter.

GAMEPLAY

Alright, it’s time to dive into the gameplay. The player sitting to the left of the dealer goes first. On your turn, you have the power to ask another player for a specific number of cards with a specific rank. For example, you might ask someone for 3 aces. One thing to remember is that you can only ask for a rank of card that you already have at least one of in your hand. So make sure you keep track of what you’re holding!

When you ask another player for a specific number of cards, they have two options. First, they can give you exactly the number of cards you asked for. Alternatively, if they don’t have any or have fewer cards than you asked for, they will tell you to “go fish.” In this case, you’ll need to draw one card from the top of the draw pile.

During your turn, before it ends, you can decide whether to place any completed sets of 4 cards in front of you. However, there’s a risk involved. If you choose to keep them in your hand, another player might snatch them from you.

Once you end your turn, the player you asked for a card, regardless of whether they had the requested cards or not, starts their turn.

If you run out of cards in your hand, you’ll need to draw 7 more cards from the draw pile.

The game continues until the draw pile and all players’ hands are completely empty.

SCORING

When you play the game, every set of four that you make is worth one point.

Game Over

Once you score, the game ends and we compare scores. The player with the highest score wins. If there’s a tie, all tied players are winners.

I’m Amber, and I love games. I’m a self-proclaimed gaming master who also adores dogs, plants, and D&D.

I’m Amber, and I love games. I’m a self-proclaimed gaming master who also adores dogs, plants, and D&D.