Nitro Dice
Nitro Dice Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Quick Reference: Preparing for Play
Vehicle Condition Card: 2 Nitro cards, plus a matching-colored die, and condition marker. Put any extras aside; they will not be used. Have each player place the condition marker at 9 on the Vehicle Condition Card. This number represents your maximum speed.
Shuffle the deck and deal 9 cards to each player. This is your hand.
Place the remaining cards face down to form a draw pile.
Have each player roll his or her die to determine starting order. This is the only time you will be rolling the dice.
After determining the order players will start in, place the dice on the corresponding starting positions as shown in the track diagram.
Place the dice with the 0 face-up to represent your starting speed.
Game Components
- 130 Cards
- 1 Start / Finish line card
- 1 Garage Card
- 6 Vehicle Condition Cards
- 6 Player ID Cards
- 12 Nitro cards
- 104 Track / Handling cards
- 6 10-sided polyhedral dice
- 6 Vehicle Condition markers
Game Objective
Be the first to complete the required number of laps.
Preparing for Play
Set up the track as shown in the diagram for a two-lap race. Each player starts by doing the following:
- Vehicle Condition Card: 2 Nitro cards, plus a matching-colored die, and condition marker. Put any extras aside; they will not be used. Have each player place the condition marker at 9 on the Vehicle Condition Card. This number represents your maximum speed.
- Shuffle the deck and deal 9 cards to each player. This is your hand.
- Place the remaining cards face down to form a draw pile.
- Have each player roll his or her die to determine starting order. This is the only time you will be rolling the dice.
- After determining the order players will start in, place the dice on the corresponding starting positions as shown in the diagram.
- Place the dice with the 0 face-up to represent your starting speed.
The two-lap race layout is shown as a diagram on printed page 2 (Start/Finish line, Garage, Draw and Discard, and the starting positions).
How to Race
Rounds are broken into two phases: Speed Determination and Movement. The player order may be different for each. After all players have completed both phases cards are awarded based on position.
Round Summary
- Speed Determination phase
- Movement phase a. Move die b. Place hazards
- Replenish hand
Hazard examples are shown as illustrations on printed page 3.
Speed Determination Phase
Starting with the player furthest forward* and working backwards, each player sets their speed. They may increase or decrease the speed by 1 for free or 2 if they discard a card from their hand. The new speed is recorded on the player's die, but may not exceed the maximum speed recorded on their Vehicle Condition Card.
* Furthest Forward Player: A player is considered furthest forward if they have the fewest sections of track to cross to reach the end of the race. For players on the same section, the player with the fewest spaces needed to reach the next section of track without changing lanes is considered furthest forward. As a tiebreaker the player on the inside lane is furthest forward with players in the garage coming last (See: Garage).
Movement Phase
Turn order is determined first by highest speed, then by whoever is furthest forward at the beginning of the phase.
Each player in turn will move his or her die the number of spaces equal to its speed. Players should play the cards needed for Handling and braking in front of them until their turn is over. After their turn ends and effects are resolved, players may then discard the used cards. If a player moves into a space with a hazard in it they record a point of damage (See: Damage).
Nitrous
During movement a player may use a Nitro card. The nitrous used will give them 2 bonus moves that turn without changing the speed value on their die. These moves may only be used to move onto two consecutive spaces, and only on straight sections of track.
Drafting
If the moving player's die has a speed equal to or greater than the die directly behind it in the same lane, that die is pulled ahead on the first space moved.
Players whose dice are pulled onto another section of track must pay the Handling cost as if they had done it in their own move, and take damage from any hazards they are pulled onto. The player being pulled has the option of braking by expending a card. This resists the drafting effect without changing speed.
Example (printed page 4): The front die (4) moves its first space, pulling the (2) die with it. The (3) die around the corner is unaffected.
Handling
Each time a player moves onto the next section of track they must immediately do one of the following to pay the Handling cost:
- Discard that card type from their hand: Straight, Turn type A, or Turn type B.
- Discard any three cards from their hand.
- Take a point of damage.
Lane Changes
A player may change lanes at any step of his or her movement, discarding one card for each lane change. Changing lanes does not expend any forward movement.
Example (printed page 5): The (4) die moves first on the turn since it is the fastest. The player wants to avoid colliding with the other players so he takes the 1st move, discards a card to change lanes, takes the 2nd and 3rd moves, discards a section of straight track when moving onto the new card, discards a card to change lanes and then takes the 4th move.
Drifting
A racer may perform a lane change combined with a forward move. This requires a discard and the use of one point of movement.
Example (printed page 5): The first Drifting maneuver is on move 1; the player must expend a card to complete it and a straight card for moving onto the new section of track. On move 3 another Drifting maneuver is done requiring a discard. Move 4 requires a turn A for moving onto a new card, and on the 5th move they must discard an additional card to make the Drifting maneuver.
Braking
During movement players may discard cards at any point to reduce speed, expending one card for each reduction of one. They may not reduce the speed below the total spaces moved for that turn. This effect is immediate and the new speed is recorded on the player's die.
Collisions and Avoidance
Two racers may not occupy the same space on the track. Preventing a collision may be done by lane changes, breaking, or a combination of the two.
Rear End Collisions
When collisions occur, the moving player stops in the space immediately behind the die they are colliding with, and both players are given a point of damage. The player to the rear has their speed reduced to the speed of the die they are colliding with if it is lower.
Sideswipes
If a player lane changes so that they strike the other player from the side instead of the back, they may push them out of their space into the next adjacent one in that direction if it is empty. You may not push someone off the track or push if there is no space to push him or her into. Both players record 1 damage.
Damage
Damage is caused by not paying the maneuver cost when moving onto a new track section, running over hazards, and from collisions.
For each point of damage taken, reduce the player's maximum speed on the Vehicle Condition Card by 1. If the maximum speed falls below the player's speed for the turn, it is reduced on their die to match. The effect of the reduction is immediate and will halt further movement if the player has made a number of moves equal to or greater than the new speed.
Damage also limits the player's hand size to the current condition. Players will discard down to that limit at the end of the round during hand replenishment if the limit is exceeded.
Garage
Players with a condition of 8 or less may enter the garage. Regardless of the amount of damage they have taken, they may not have a speed greater than 5 on the turn they enter the garage.
You must lane change to move into and out of the garage. You may enter or exit any of the 3 spaces. If another player is already in that space you may either pass them by if you have the required point of movement, or stop and set yourself next to them in the direction of the arrow. Each garage space is shared and may hold any number of racers. There are never collisions in the garage.
While in the garage you may repair one point of damage for each point of movement you expend while setting in place. Record the change on your Vehicle Condition Card. When your condition reaches 9 you are not required to exit, but no further bonus is gained by expending movement points while setting in place. Players that are in the garage during hand replenishment get an extra card.
When determining who is furthest forward for new rounds, consider those closer to the inside lane to have priority in the same way inside lane has priority over the outside lane, yet with priority after the outside lane. (Order: Inside lane, outside lane, Garage 1st, Garage 2nd, Garage 3rd, etc...)
Placing and Removing Hazards
Once a player has finished moving, they may replace one section of the track with the same type of track (Straight, Turn type Yellow, or Turn type Red) from a card in their hand, as long as they don't replace the Start/Finish line, Garage, and the track section has no player's die on it. The replaced card is discarded.
Replenishing Hand
At the end of the round the players will draw cards based on their current track position. They may draw up to but not exceed their hand limit, which is equal to their condition / maximum speed.
| Position | Cards drawn |
|---|---|
| First place | 3 cards |
| Last place | 5 cards |
| All other players | 4 cards |
| In garage | +1 card |
If a player has more cards than their hand limit allows due to taking damage, they must discard down to that limit. When the draw deck is depleted, shuffle the discard pile to restore it.
Finish!
Winning the Race
On the round that one or more players have completed the required number of laps, the player who is furthest past the finish line wins. Points may be assigned to determine the winner of a series of races. The reward is the inverse of the finishing positions; each player is awarded points equal to the number of players minus the number of players that finished before them.
Suggestions for Setting Up Your Own Track
By designing your own tracks you can adjust the length and difficulty level of the race. Keep the following in mind when creating your own tracks:
- Races that are too short don't give the players at the back enough time to pass. Have the racers crossing 16 or more sections of track to win.
- Tracks that are too long may drag on when speeds drop due to accumulated damage. Make sure it isn't too far to the Garage.
- Multiple lap races will cause the racers to contend with obstacles more than once, making it potentially hazardous for whoever places them.
- An excess of one card type in the track layout will increase the track's difficulty. Keep a balance of Straight, Turn A and Turn B cards to avoid unnecessary type shortages.
Sample track layouts are shown on printed pages 9 to 11: Two Lap Joined Loops (p. 9), Out & Back Race, Three Lap Race, Two Lap Race and Two Lap 8 Race (p. 10 and p. 11). Go to www.MinionGames.com for more options on tracks.
Variants
Nitro Dice Street Racing is extremely flexible, allowing for easy customization to each group's taste. Here are just a few variants to consider:
- Disaster Area: Start the track with randomly drawn hazards, the more the better. Have the players take turns placing the hazards.
- Lap Leader: The player that crosses the finish first on each lap immediately gets two bonus cards. This works best with short tracks with several laps.
- Nitro Madness: Nitro cards may be used for a boost of three instead of two. Doing this causes a point of damage.