Crits & Tricks Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Components
• Overview
• 3-4 Player Setup
• Round Start
• Quests
• Barkeep's Challenge
• Trick Play
  • Leading the Trick
  • CRIT Abilities
  • Winning the Trick
  • Examples
• End of Round
• End of Game
• Playing with 2
  • Setup
  • Round Start
  • Completing Quests
  • Game End
• A Solo Challenge
  • Setup
  • Round Start
  • Tricky Play
  • End Game
• 3-4 Player Game Reference
• Credits

Components

67 Loot — coins, trinkets and treasures: 8x $10 Coins, 12x $3 Coins, 8x $1 Coins, 16x $5 Coins, 14x $½ Coins, and 1 of each treasure token (varied worth): sword, shield, mask, gem, boot, axe, and bag.

48 Mercenary Cards in 6 Suits — 8 Wizards (Transmute: Swap die with one played previously), 8 Rogues (Sneak: Skip yourself in turn order (go last)), 8 Barbarians (Rage: Adjust your die +/- 1-3 (to min/max)), 8 Bards (Improvise: Reroll your current die up to 2 times), 8 Paladins (Defend: You win ties this trick), 8 Druids (Entangle: Force another player to reroll their die). Card back shown separately.

24 Polyhedral Dice (4 Coloured Sets) — d4, d6, d8, d10, d12, d20, smallest to largest.

65 Quests

4 Barkeep's Challenges

4 Player Screens — your seat at the table—get comfortable!

Overview

Welcome to the Gutter's End, adventurer—your last quest must have gone awry if you've ended up here…

Sit down and enjoy a game of Crits & Tricks—if all goes well you'll be able to trade in your meager coins for a bounty of loot as you lighten the pockets of your new "friends."

As a daring adventurer, you'll roll dice and assign them to your Mercenaries, hoping to complete your drafted Quests. Each Quest offers a prized reward, and the public Barkeep's Challenge provides an additional objective, tempting everyone with extra loot.

After 3 rounds, the adventurer with the heaviest coin purse wins! So pull up a chair, roll the dice, and remember: fortune favours the bold, whether on the battlefield or in the tavern!

Hey newbie! I've jotted down a few pointers for ya. You owe me a drink!

3-4 Player Setup

Playing with 1 or 2 players? We recommend reading through the full ruleset, as the game follows the same basic structure at all player counts. You'll find special setup and tweaks for 2-player games on p.10 and solo play on p.11.

1. Each player selects a set of 6 coloured dice (A) and a player screen (B). Position your adventurer's likeness facing outward while keeping the gameplay guide visible to you.

2. Form the Mercenary Deck (C) based on your player count. Return unused Mercenaries to the box.

   For your first game, we recommend Wizards, Rogues, and Barbarians. (Bards will always be included.)

   4 players: Select 3 Character Suits and shuffle 8 cards from each suit + 8 Bards together.

   3 players: Select 3 Character Suits and shuffle 6 cards from each suit + 6 Bards together.

3. Prepare the Quest Deck (D) by returning Quests to the box with suit icons (below the title) that do not match the suits you've chosen. All remaining Quests are shuffled to form the deck.

   Examples: Druid Quest — "Unnatural: Capture no Druid cards"; Paladin Quest — "Deflect: Win a Paladin trick you did"

4. Locate the 4 Barkeep's Challenges (E), and place them near the play area.

5. Place all loot (F) in the center of the play area to form the "pot."

Round Start

The game unfolds over a series of 3 rounds, each following this structure:

1. Check Initiative

   In Round 1, each player rolls a d20. The highest roll wins initiative and will lead (start) the first "trick" (a term for when each player plays one card from their hand). If two or more players tie, they reroll until a leader emerges.

   In Rounds 2 and 3, the player whose loot is worth the most leads the first trick. In case of a tie, the tied players roll their d20s for initiative.

2. Summon your Strengths

   • Behind their player screen, each player rolls their set of 6 dice (including the d20).
   • These dice represent the strengths or attributes of your Mercenaries and will determine their effectiveness in upcoming tricks.
   • Dice should remain hidden from other players (for now…).

3. Form your party

   Each player is dealt a hand of 8 Mercenaries from the Mercenary Deck. Don't let others see your cards!

4. Claim your Quests

   • Each player is dealt 4 Quests from the Quest Deck. Study your Quests and choose one to keep, placing it behind your screen.
   • Once everyone has chosen one card, pass your remaining cards to the next player—clockwise in rounds 1 and 3, and counterclockwise in round 2. Continue choosing one card and passing until each player is passed one final card.
   • Each player reviews their 4 Quests and discards one. Set all discarded Quests aside, out of play, for the remainder of the game. The 3 remaining Quests stay hidden behind your player screen.

5. Reveal the Barkeep's Challenge

   In round 1, shuffle the Barkeep's Challenge cards, and reveal one faceup in the center of the table.

   In rounds 2 and 3, the player with the least loot reviews all Barkeep's Challenge cards, including any that have already been used. They select one Challenge and place it faceup in the center of the table.

   We recommend using the "Friendly" Challenge for the entirety of your first game, rather than changing the Challenge each round.

Quests

• Each player will have 3 unique Quests available to them each round. Aim to fulfill as many as possible before the round ends.
• When you complete a Quest, reveal it immediately and claim the indicated loot. Some Quests can only be completed at the end of the round. (Complete a Quest? Rake in the loot!)
• Completed Quests are discarded from play for the remainder of the game.

Example: Calculating — End the round with 2+ dice showing the same number — $2½

Barkeep's Challenge

The Barkeep's Challenges present all players with an opportunity to earn loot by winning the right number of tricks.

Unlike Quests, Challenges can only be fulfilled at the end of the round, and cannot be claimed during the round. Play smart to earn bonus loot!

Tricky — Earn $4 if the number of tricks you won does not match the Value of any of your final dice results.

Friendly — Earn $3 if the number of tricks you won matches the Value of any of your final dice results.

Creative — The player who won the most tricks this round earns $2. The player who won the fewest tricks this round earns $3. If there is a tie for most and/or fewest tricks won, the tied players do not earn any loot.

Brutal (Recommended only for advanced play — good luck!)

• Once during the round, after a trick is resolved, players may place the die they just used on the Barkeep's Challenge card as their "bid die." If the total number of tricks you've won matches the Value on your bid die, earn $5.
• Once placed, the die is "locked in" and cannot be manipulated by any CRIT abilities.
• A player can declare a "nil bid" before the round starts, meaning they aim to win zero tricks. If a player does not assign a die to the bid card during the round, it does not count as a nil bid.

Trick Play

Each round of the game consists of 6 tricks, where each player will play a Mercenary from their hand, and assign one of their die to the card as its Value.

Play proceeds clockwise until all players have played a Mercenary and assigned its Value.

Leading the Trick

The player who won initiative starts (leads) the first trick by (1) playing a Mercenary from their hand. This sets the suit that all other players must follow, if they can.

The lead player (2) assigns the Mercenary's Value and may use a CRIT ability if they wish before play passes to the next player in clockwise order.

Each time a suit is led, it establishes the rule for how that trick will be won. Only players who followed with a card of that suit are eligible to claim victory. (See p.8 for examples)

• Barbarian: Strength - The player whose Barbarian has the highest Value wins.
• Rogue: Noise - The player whose Rogue has the lowest Value wins.
• Wizard: Precision - The player whose Wizard has a Value equal (or closest) to 5 wins.
• Druid: Balance - The player whose Druid has the second-highest Value wins.
• Paladin: Honour - The player whose Paladin has the highest Value and uses the same die size as the lead player's Paladin wins.
• Bard: Versatility - The Bard matches the winning condition of the suit it represents, see below.

Notes on Bards:

• A Bard is always "wild."
  • When leading with a Bard, the player must declare which of the other 3 suits the Bard represents. The Bard adopts that suit for the trick, determining both how the trick is won and the suit others must play (if possible).
  • When played after a different suit, it is considered to be a card of the lead suit.
• Bards can still be played as a certain suit even if all Mercenaries from that suit have been played in earlier tricks.

(1) Playing a Mercenary

• Players must match the suit of the lead player's Mercenary if possible.
• Alternatively, they may play a Bard, as Bards are wild and automatically follow the lead suit.
• If a player doesn't have a card of the lead suit in their hand, they may play a card of any other suit, but they cannot win the trick (called "sloughing").

NOTE: Players are never required to play a Bard. This is important because (as you'll see on p.9) each captured Bard is worth $1 at the end of the round!

Warning: Allowing a Bard to travel with your party may result in excessive flirting, improvised musicals mid-combat, and at least one awkward moment involving a cursed lute. Proceed with caution and a sense of humor.

(2) Assign Mercenary Value

Once a Mercenary is played, the player must select one of the dice from behind their screen and assign it to the card as that Mercenary's Value. When doing so, the player has a choice. They may either (A) use the current Value on the die as it was rolled during round setup or (B) reroll the die and keep the new result. (You can do this every trick!)

Use a CRIT Ability (Optional)

On their turn, a player may reveal a Mercenary from their hand to use its CRIT ability (see below).

• Each player may use up to 2 CRIT abilities per round. Players may play both CRITs in the same trick if they choose.

CRIT Abilities

CRIT abilities may be used at any time on a player's turn, with the exception of the Rogue.

Wizard — Transmute

Swap your current die with one of your previously played dice. Transmute may not be used on dice that have been assigned to the "Brutal" Barkeep's Challenge. (First trick? No use!)

Rogue — Sneak

Skip your turn to become last in turn order. If you're already last, the ability has no effect. You must activate the "Sneak" ability before playing your Mercenary.

Bard — Improvise

You may reroll your current die up to 2 times, but you must keep the result of your final roll.

Barbarian — Rage

Physically increase or decrease your current die's Value by 1, 2, or 3 (within the die's numerical limits).

Paladin — Defend

If your die's Value is tied for winning the trick, you win and do not move on to tiebreakers.

Druid — Entangle

Force an opponent (who has already resolved their turn this trick) to reroll their die once. They must keep the new result.

NOTE: If multiple Sneak or Defend abilities are used, they resolve in the order played. The last player to use Sneak will act last in turn order. For Defend, the player who used the CRIT ability last wins the tie.

Winning the Trick

Determine the winner of the trick by the win condition of the lead suit. Only players who followed with the matching suit (or a Bard) are eligible to claim victory.

• Rogue: Lowest Value wins
• Barbarian: Highest Value wins
• Wizard: Value equal (or closest) to 5 wins
• Paladin: Highest Value and matches lead die size
• Druid: The second-highest Value wins
• Bard: The win condition matches that of the suit declared by the lead player

Remember, the more sides a die has, the "larger" it is! (d4, d6, d8, d10, d12, d20 — smallest to largest.)

Tiebreakers

1. In the case of a tie, the winner is the player who played the larger die.
2. If a tie persists, the winner is the tied player who was later in turn order.

Examples

(♛ = Winning Mercenary; ↻ = Turn order (winner leads next trick))

Rogue: Lowest Value wins.

Barbarian: Highest Value wins.

Paladin: Highest Value and matches lead die size.

Druid: The second-highest Value wins.

Wizard: Value equal (or closest) to 5 wins. Example: The orange and purple player are both within 1 of "5." Purple wins the trick with the larger die.

Bard: The win condition matches that of the suit declared by the lead player. Example: The lead player declares their Bard to be a Rogue, so the lowest Value will win the trick.

Prepare for the next trick

1. The winner collects all Mercenaries played in the trick. They do not collect Mercenaries that were used for CRIT abilities, which are returned to their owners faceup in front of their screens as a reminder of how many CRITs they've used this round.

   The winner will always collect cards equal to the number of players in the game, and should place the Mercenaries they've collected in a facedown pile to the side of their screen.

   To keep track of the total number of tricks a player has won, the cards from new tricks should be added in an alternating direction. (4 tricks won!)

2. All players, including the winner, reclaim the die they used, placing it in front of their screen, maintaining its Value.

3. If a player has successfully completed a Quest, they reveal it and claim the specified loot immediately. The Quest is then discarded for the remainder of the game. (Remember that some Quests may only be completed at the end of the round.)

   All loot is always kept in front of the players' screens. Bragging rights!

4. If players have dice remaining behind their screens, the round continues, and the winner of this trick leads (starts) the next one. If it was the 6th trick, the round ends.

End of Round

A round ends once the 6th trick is resolved, leaving players with no dice remaining behind their screens.

Players earn loot from the following:

1. Each Bard collected during the round is worth $1. Those used as a CRIT or in hand are worthless.
2. Quests resolved at the end-of-round payout if they were successfully completed.
3. The Barkeep's Challenge awards loot (as indicated) to all players who met its condition.

Items have their Value on the back side, and work the same as coins.

If this was the third round, the game ends.

If not, prepare for the next round as follows:

• All Quests that were in play (completed or not) are discarded for the remainder of the game. All Mercenaries (in tricks, used for CRITs, or left in hand) are shuffled to form a new deck. Prepare for the next round as described on p.4.

End of Game

After the third round, the game ends. The player with the most loot is the winner! If there is a tie, play another round until someone wins.

You came here to win—ties are for chumps!

Playing with 2

(Date Night?)

Setup

• Each player selects a set of 6 coloured dice (A) and a player screen (B). Position your adventurer's likeness facing outward while keeping the gameplay guide visible to you.
• Form the Mercenary Deck by selecting 3 (non-Bard) suits and shuffling 4 cards from each suit together with 6 Bards. For your first game we recommend: Wizard, Barbarian, Rogue.
• Build the Quest Deck by removing all "3+" Quests and those with suit icons that don't match the suits you selected for the game. Then, shuffle the remaining cards.
• Remove the "Creative" Barkeep's Challenge from play.

Quest Example: Storm — Lose a Druid trick by rolling a d6 — $1½

Round Start

• Check initiative, then summon your strengths by rolling your dice behind your screen.
• Once the Quest Deck has been shuffled, reveal the top 6 cards faceup within sight of both players (C). Quests will not be drafted in the 2-player game. (You've gotta fight for 'em!)
• Deal 8 Mercenary Cards to each player (D), setting the remaining 2 cards facedown and out of play—these remain unseen. (Thwarting perfect knowledge for pesky card counters!)

Completing Quests

When a player completes a Quest, they immediately claim it, collect the indicated amount of loot, and discard the Quest for the remainder of the game.

If both players complete the same Quest during a trick or at the end of the round, neither scores it.

In 2-player games, tied Quests are always discarded, regardless of what the text on the Quest might say.

At the end of the round, all unscored Quests are also discarded from the game. At the start of rounds 2 and 3, 6 new Quests will be revealed.

Game End

The player with the most loot at the end of 3 rounds wins! If tied, play another round.

A Solo Challenge

(Play With Yourself!)

Setup

• Select a set of 6 coloured dice and a player screen. Position your adventurer's likeness facing outward while keeping the gameplay guide visible to you.
• Form a second play area with a full set of dice, and a stack of 6 faceup Bards for Drakor - your imaginary friend (haha!).
• Build the Quest Deck by removing all "3+" Quests and those with suit icons that don't match the suits you selected for the game. Then, shuffle the remaining cards, placing the deck facedown within reach.
• Form the Mercenary Deck by shuffling together 5 cards from each of the Wizard, Barbarian, and Rogue suits.
• Set aside 1 Bard before returning unused cards to the box. Important: Bards collected during the round are worth $0.
• Leave all Barkeep's Challenges in the box.

Round Start

1. Summon your strengths by rolling your dice behind your screen.
2. Form your party by drawing 7 Mercenaries and the 1 Bard you set aside earlier, keeping the remaining cards facedown in Drakor's play area.
3. Roll an unused d6 to set the Solo Challenge. This is the number of tricks you are trying to win.
4. Draw 4 Quests, select 3 to keep and discard 1 from the game.

Solo Challenge

At the end of the round, compare the number of tricks you won to the number on the Solo Challenge die:

• If they match, you earn $5.
• If they do not match, you earn $5, less $2 for each trick you are over or under. This could result in a loss of money! But you cannot lose more money than you have. (Tell that to the tax collector!)

Tricky Play

Begin the round by revealing the top card from Drakor's Mercenary Deck. Assign their Mercenary's Value by rolling all of their unused dice, and selecting the "best" die on their behalf. "Best" is defined as the optimal die for them to win the trick—taking into account potential tiebreakers. Continue playing by following the standard rules, except:

• When Drakor leads, reveal the top card of their Mercenary Deck. When you lead, they always follow with a Bard.
• Either way, you will always roll all of Drakor's unused dice and select the best one for their Mercenary to win.

End Game

Win by earning $25 or more after 3 hands! No one will question your victory... probably!

Solo Scoring

Score	Title	Flavor
$25-29	"Street Hustler"	You scraped together just enough to avoid the gutter. The shady back alleys of the tavern still call your name.
$30-34	"Coinspinner"	Your purse jingles with modest loot. You've caught the eye of a few regulars but haven't yet made your mark.
$35-39	"Savvy Gambler"	Your sharp play has lined your pockets. The tavern's best players are keeping an eye on you…
$40+	"Master of Fortune"	You've cleaned the table and earned the respect of every shifty character within earshot. Drinks are on you tonight!

3-4 Player Game Reference

Round Structure

1. Determine Initiative (Leads the first trick).
   • Round 1: Roll d20.
   • Rounds 2-3: Player whose loot is worth the most.
2. Summon strengths (Roll dice behind screen).
3. Form Your Party (Deal 8 Mercenaries to each player).
4. Claim Quests (Deal and draft 4 Quests, then discard 1).
5. Barkeep's Challenge.
   • Round 1: Shuffle and draw 1.
   • Rounds 2-3: Player whose loot is worth the least chooses the Challenge.
6. Play 6 Tricks.

Trick Play

• The lead player sets the win condition for the trick by playing a Mercenary.
  • If leading with a Bard, they declare which suit it represents.
• When playing a Mercenary, assign its Value using a die from behind your player screen. Either maintain its Value OR reroll once, keeping the new result.
• Play proceeds clockwise.

CRIT Abilities | Use up to 2 CRITs per round

Before you play a Mercenary:

Rogue: Go last in turn order.

At any time on your turn:

Wizard: Swap your current die with one from a previous trick.

Bard: Reroll up to twice, keeping the final result.

Barbarian: Physically adjust your die's Value by +/- 1, 2, or 3.

Paladin: Win ties for Value.

Druid: Force an opponent to reroll their current die.

Winning the Trick

• Only players who followed the lead suit (or played a Bard) are eligible to win a trick.
• The player who best met the lead suit's win condition wins the trick (see pages 6, 8); if tied, see below.

Tiebreakers (in order)

1. Largest die wins.
2. Latest in turn order wins.

Completing Quests

• Reveal and discard completed Quests (immediately after a trick, or at the end of the round).
• Claim loot from the supply as shown on the Quest card.

Winning the Game — At the end of the third round, the player with the most loot wins!

Credits

© Inside Up Games 2025

Game Design: Pete Wissinger Art: Arad Safarzadegan Lore: Trevor Waytowich Development: Conor McGoey, Carter Morash, Chris Walters, Brandon Nall Graphic Design: David Shaw, Riley Lem, Katie Hoang Wordsmith: Jenna Muir Editing: Dan Mansfield