Pipoca
Pipoca Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Components
- 16 popcorn cards
- 2 pot cards
Goal
Make your popcorn kernels escape the pot faster than your opponent.
Setup
- Shuffle the 16 popcorn cards and deal 8 to each player (try not to look at the cards).
- Place all the cards so that the popcorn seed side is facing up.
- Put the pot card as the last card in your hand, with the side without a star facing you.
- You can freely organize the cards in your hand, except for the pot.
- The player who last ate popcorn starts the game.
Hold the cards however feels most comfortable. The examples in this rulebook show a left-hand grip — if you're holding them the other way, just mirror everything.
How to Play
Pipoca is played in a series of turns in which, alternately, each player must try to beat the card formation shown by the opponent. If it's the first formation being played, any combination is valid. If the opponent can't beat the previous formation, they must pass their turn — in that case, the popcorn used in the last unbeaten formation escapes the pot.
On your turn, you must either show a formation to your opponent or pass your turn.
Card Levels
- Level 1 → Cards have only one value (1 to 16).
- Level 2 → Cards have only one value (1 to 16).
- Level 3 → Cards can be played as one value or another (one between 1–8 and another between 9–16). Declare which of the two values you're using when you play the card.
- Level 4 → Cards are wild and can count as any value from 1 to 16 (not 0 or 17). Declare which value you're using when you play the card.
Show a Formation
Select cards that are still in the pot to build popcorn formations. The hierarchy of formations, from weakest to strongest, is:
- Single card (A) — examples: 1, 5, 7, 16
- Two-card straight (A-B) — examples: 2-3, 7-8, 10-11, 15-16
- Three-card straight (A-B-C) — examples: 1-2-3, 4-5-6, 9-10-11, 13-14-15
- Pair (A-A) — examples: 1-1, 3-3, 8-8, 15-15
- Three of a kind (A-A-A) — examples: 2-2-2, 7-7-7, 12-12-12, 14-14-14
Important: Formations of the same type with higher cards are stronger. For example, the formation 5-6-7 is stronger than 4-5-6.
The pot card has a reminder of the possible formations printed on it.
The pot card marks the boundary between what is inside and outside the pot. Cards in front of the pot card are considered inside the pot and can be played on your turn. Cards behind the pot card are considered outside the pot and cannot be played (treat them as your discard pile).
When selecting cards, use your other hand (not the one holding your cards) to pick them up and show them to your opponent, announcing their value. You may play any formation if your opponent hasn't shown a formation yet.
Example: You choose the cards 7-8-9 from your hand and show them to your opponent.
Your opponent may then show a stronger formation than the one you've shown — either by using higher cards in the same type of formation, or by using a different but stronger formation regardless of card values. If they do, return the cards you were showing back to your hand and pop each one up by one level (see the next section for how this works).
Example: The opponent beats your 7-8-9 with an 11-11. You return the three cards to your hand and pop each one up a level, ending up with a 12, a 10, and a 7.
Popping Popcorn
Each time your opponent beats you, you must pop each card that returns to the pot, following the symbol shown just below the card's value. When popping, apply the following effects:
- Down arrow: Rotate the card so the bottom edge is now facing up (Level 1 and Level 3 cards). Example: a card showing 10 (Level 1) becomes a 5 (Level 2), and a card showing 16 or 2 (Level 3) becomes a wild (Level 4).
- Side arrow: Flip the card to its opposite face without changing its orientation (Level 2 cards). Example: a card showing 2 (Level 2) becomes a 1 or 15 (Level 3).
- X: Wilds (Level 4 cards) do not change to a new value. Instead, they leave the pot: move them behind the pot card. Example: a wild (Level 4) is moved behind the pot card.
After your opponent shows a formation, you may respond with a stronger one — including using the new values of any cards that were just popped.
You and your opponent take turns beating each other's formations until one of you either can't or chooses not to play a stronger one. That person then passes the turn.
If you can't or don't want to show a new formation, you may pass.
Passing the Turn
When you pass your turn, return one of the cards from outside the pot to inside the pot, without changing its orientation. This card cannot be a Level 4 card — in other words, wilds cannot go back into the pot.
If you have no cards outside the pot, you must pop one popcorn card instead.
Example: If you have cards outside the pot, one must return inside — the 14 is moved back into the pot. If you have no cards outside the pot, you pop a popcorn card — the 10 (Level 2) is popped and becomes a 9 or 7 (Level 3).
When you pass, your opponent must perform two actions:
- Take all the cards from the last formation shown and place them outside the pot, without changing their level.
- Show a new formation of cards.
Example: After you pass, your opponent moves the pair of 11s they had just played outside the pot, then selects a single card — 1 — to be the new formation.
End of the Round
You win the round if, when presenting a formation of cards, you have no cards left inside the pot in the hand holding your cards!
Example: You show a three-of-a-kind of 10, using the cards wild-10-(8 or 10), and since there are no other cards inside the pot, you win the round.
Flip the pot card to the star side and start the preparation phase again. The player who lost the round will be the first to play in the next one.
If, when winning a round, the star side is already facing you (meaning you've already won a round before), then you've won the game!
Playing Without a Table
If you don't want (or can't) play without a table, when presenting cards, place them on the table instead of holding them in one hand. The other cards you hold can stay in a card holder.
Variant — Solo Mode
Pipoca also has a solo mode, published by the publisher as a separate rules document ("Pipoca - Rules - Solo Mode"). We recommend learning how to play the two-player version of Pipoca before trying this variant.