HeartSwitch

About this board game

HeartSwitch is a 2013 trick-taking card game for 3–6 players, played in about 45 minutes. Inspired by Hearts, it challenges players to finish with the lowest score while navigating a deck filled with unusual magical cards.

The 60-card deck combines a standard 52-card deck with four Magicians and four Witches. Two Witches are good and two are bad, and all Witches rank between Jacks and Tens. In each trick, the lead player plays one card, and everyone else must follow suit when possible, although a player may always play a Magician.

Magicians are null cards that cannot win a trick unless every card played is a Magician. Otherwise, the highest card in the led suit takes the trick, and its collector leads the next one. Once all hands are empty, players score the cards they have collected.

• Each heart is worth 1 point.
• The Queen of Spades is worth 13 points, while the Witch of Spades is worth 5.
• The Witch of Clubs cancels points earned by either Spades card.
• The Witch of Hearts doubles heart points, up to a maximum of 15.
• The Witch of Diamonds reduces a score by up to 5 points.

Players can also attempt the dramatic shoot the moon: collecting every heart plus the Queen of Spades, the Witch of Spades, or both scores the successful player nothing, while every other player receives 20, 25, or 30 points.

Rounds continue until one player reaches 70 points, and the lowest score wins. Alternatively, players can agree on a fixed number of rounds. With its familiar foundation and disruptive special cards, HeartSwitch puts a fresh spin on classic Hearts-style play.