Trick-or-Treat

The ultimate Halloween card game for spooky fun. Free to print.

How To Play

The game box contains 112 cards - two identical decks with 56 cards each. Shuffle all cards together and place the shuffled deck face down in the center of the table. This is called the draw deck.

Deal each player 8 cards from the draw deck. Players keep their cards hidden, so every player can only look at their own cards. The goal is to get rid of your cards first.

Turn over the top card of the draw deck and place it face up in the center of the table. This is called the discard deck. The top of the discard deck is called the top card.

Moving clockwise, every player attempts to discard a card on their turn. A card can only be played if it matches the top card in some way - here it is Frankenstein's monster on purple background.

These are monster cards. A monster card can be played if it matches the background color of the top card (purple) or if it matches the face of the top card (Frankenstein's monster).

These are special action cards. An action card can be played if it matches the background color of the top card (purple) or if it matches the face of the top card (Frankenstein's monster).

These are special action cards with multi-color background. They can always be played, regardless of what the top card is. This makes them quite powerful so save them for special occasions!

Back to our game... Each one of the 5 cards highlighted in red match the current top card (Frankenstein's monster on purple background) and can be played in this turn.

Let's say we choose to play Frankenstein's monster on green background. The card is discarded onto the discard deck and becomes the new top card for the next player.

The next player just played the Pumpkinhead monster on green background. This card becomes the new top card and the turn passes on to the next player.

Let's say that the next player doesn't have any card that matches the top card and therefore no card can be played. In this case, the player draws a card from the draw deck instead of playing one.

After a few rounds, players discard more and more of their cards. The first player to discard their last card wins the game. You may continue playing without the winner to see who takes second place.

Special Action Cards

After this card is played, the next player loses their turn and the turn moves to the following player after them.

Reverses the direction of play from now on. The next player is counter-clockwise instead of clockwise (or the opposite).

The discarding player must play again (with the plus as top card). They must draw a card if they have no other suitable card to discard.

The next player will have to draw two cards unless they have another Evil Twins card to discard. If so, the following player will have to draw four cards unless they have another Evil Twins card to discard. This continues and stacks up.

The player may continue discarding all cards with the same background color. If they have none, the right passes on. After that, they may discard one card of a different color with the same face.

Similar to a regular Trick-or-Treat card but also allows the discarding player to choose the background color before starting to discard more cards.

The discarding player declares the next background color of the top card. The next player can discard a card with the newly declared background color.

The discarding player can choose one other player that will have to reveal all of their cards to everybody for the duration of one turn.

Frequent Rule Questions

What happens when the draw deck runs out?

Take the entire discard deck below the top card, shuffle it and turn it into a new draw deck. Leave the top card alone as the base of a fresh discard deck.

What happens after a redirect card is played when there are only 2 players?

Clockwise or counter-clockwise don't matter when there are only 2 players. The turn passes to the other player.

What happens after a stop card is played when there are only 2 players?

The other player is stopped and loses their turn, which means the discarding player gets another turn and should play another card.

What happens if the player has no more suitable cards to play after playing a plus card?

After playing a plus card, the discarding player must play another card with the plus set as the top card. If they have no suitable cards to play, they must draw a card.

Crazy Optional Rules

These optional rules expand the original game instructions for some extra fun. You may choose to add one or more in any combination or even all of them together!

Start playing the game without them. Once comfortable with the core rules, experiment to see which crazy optional rules you like best.

Optional Rule 1 - Last Card

When a player has one card left, they must declare and say the words "last card" out loud. If they fail to do so before the next player plays, they must draw four cards from the draw deck.

Optional Rule 2 - Spy and Trade

When a spy card is discarded, after the other player reveals their cards, the discarding player can choose whether to trade cards with them. The discarding player's cards remain hidden.

Optional Rule 3 - Silly Slime

When a Slime monster card is discarded, the discarding player must make a silly noise or say a silly word out loud. All other players must immediately repeat the noise or word and say it after them. The last player to do so must draw two cards from the draw deck.

Optional Rule 4 - Stop and Name

When a stop card is discarded, in addition to stopping the next player, the discarding player must also choose a new name for the stopped player. The new name must be used by everybody until the end of the game. If any of the players forgets and calls the stopped player by their real name, they must immediately draw one card from the draw deck.

Optional Rule 5 - Redirect and Steal

When a redirect card is discarded, in addition to reversing the direction of play, the discarding player chooses one other player to steal one card from. The discarding player can steal any one of their cards (without looking at the card's face). In exchange, the discarding player must give one of their own cards to this player.

Optional Rule 6 - Evil Twins or Bluff

Unlike other cards, Evil Twins monster cards are always discarded face down. Players may bluff by discarding a different card. The next player can either continue or call the bluff. If the bluff is correctly called, the bluffer takes two cards plus the +2 pot. If the call is wrong, the caller takes two cards plus the +2 pot instead.

Optional Rule 7 - Hijack Monster

After a player discards any monster card, if any other player has the same exact monster with the exact same background color, they may play it immediately out of turn and hijack the turn from the next player. The hijacking player has a small window of opportunity to do so before the next card is played in turn. This rule also holds if the player discarding the monster is in the middle of a Trick-or-Treat streak and the hijack will break the streak. After a successful hijack, the game continues with the player following the hijacking player.