Deadfall

About this board game

Deadfall is a gambling and bluffing card game for 2–7 players that takes about 20 minutes to play. Players ante one coin, receive a hand of six cards, and compete to win the pot by judging which card ranks remain in play.

Everyone plays one card to begin, and the lowest card goes first. On your turn, you may play a new card face up or call an opponent. Playing a card declares that someone’s hand still contains another card of that rank. If you hold one yourself, you know the play is safe; otherwise, you are making an educated guess.

• Ante one coin and start with six cards.
• Play a card face up or call an opponent on your turn.
• Use card ranks to judge whether another card of that rank remains.
• Risk penalties equal to the rank of the card when making a call.

A call immediately ends the hand. The caller is claiming that the opponent was wrong to play their last card because no cards of that rank remain in anyone’s hand. If correct, the caller wins the pot and receives a penalty equal to the card’s rank from the called player. If the call is wrong, the called player takes the pot and collects the same penalty from the caller.

Deadfall rewards two different approaches. You can catch opponents when they play the wrong cards, or you can trick other players into calling you when your play is safe. Every face-up card creates information, but deciding when to trust that information is where the bluffing begins.