Kaboom! Intro In Kaboom! players attempt to unload a gigantic bomb on each other.  You may ship it to a stranger, drop it down a chimney, or simply toss it over the neighbor's fence... anything!  Just make sure you're not holding it when it blows! You will find that Kaboom! is not like most card games, where a single player triumphs in the end.   In Kaboom! it is far more crucial to determine a loser.  If you are holding the bomb when it explodes, you lose!  We recommend house-ruling additional punishments as well. Kaboom! is a family game for 2-5 players.

Setup Remove the bomb card from the deck, shuffle the deck, then deal 6 cards to each player. Place the remaining cards in the center of the play area as a draw pile. During gameplay, place discarded cards face-up, adjacent to the draw pile. The ugliest player starts with the bomb card. If all players are equally attractive, you’ll have to develop a house rule. Gameplay Each round of Kaboom! is played in three phases—Preparation, Passing, and PANIC! Preparation—In the preparation phase, players set traps by laying up to three cards face down on the table. Any card may be placed as a trap. However, some cards are more effective as traps than others. Passing—The player who possesses the bomb card at the beginning of the passing phase gains a “free pass” and may pass the bomb to any other player without the use of a card. However, once the bomb has started moving, it may only be passed if a card gives specific instructions to do so. Any player passing the bomb is called an attacker. Any player receiving the bomb is called a defender. To pass the bomb, the attacking player simply places the bomb card before any of the defending player’s traps. The trap is revealed and the defending player follows the instructions written on the trap card. If a defender has no traps, then they must take the bomb directly into their hand. In addition, some cards bypass traps, which may cause the bomb to go directly into a player’s hand. When the bomb is in a player’s hand, that player may not use traps to pass the bomb. However, other cards may still be played. The passing phase continues until a player is unable to pass the bomb, and that player immediately PANICS! PANIC!—Players panic when they are unable to get rid of the bomb card. The panicking player flips the top card from the draw pile face-up in to the discard pile, and then suffers the PANIC! effect depicted in the lower right corner. The player may be forced to discard cards, pass cards to other players, or may explode on the spot! If a card tells a player to panic, that player must panic, even if they still possess cards capable of passing the bomb! If no cards remain in the draw pile, then players automatically explode while panicking! At the end of the panic phase, revealed traps are discarded, each player draws two cards, and a new round begins.

Winning the Game There is no winner in Kaboom! Losing the Game The first player to explode loses the game. The losing player passes the bomb card to a player of his choice, and is then removed from the game. The remaining players start a new round, with a new bomb, and play to establish additional losers. Play continues until all but one player has exploded. Card Types The Bomb—A card with a gigantic bomb. If you are unable to get rid of this card, you will panic and may explode. The bomb card may not be discarded. Trap Cards—Any card may be played as a trap; however this is the only use for trap cards. Trap cards may not be played from the hand. Defense Cards—Defense cards are similar to trap cards, except they may be played from the hand. If you have no traps on the table, or if an attacker bypasses your traps, you will need to play a defense card or you will panic! If a card tells you to panic, it is too late to use a defense card—skip directly to the PANIC! phase. Panic Cards—Panic cards may only be played during the PANIC! phase, and typically affect the likelihood of a player exploding. Cards without any of the above symbols may be played at any point, without restriction. Panic Symbols The following symbols are found in the lower right corner of each card, and only effect players who are panicking: Discard Cards—In your panic, you drop some of your cards. Discard the depicted number of cards. Pass Cards—While you are panicking, another player manages to steal some of your cards. Pass the depicted number of cards in the direction shown. Explode!—You are removed from the game. Discard your hand and all traps you have placed on the table. If more than one player remains, you may pass the bomb card to the player of your choice.

Optional Rules Countdown— Kaboom! is a fast-paced game. If a player with the bomb acts too slowly, any other player may begin a 5-second countdown. If the bomb has not been passed within that time, the passing phase ends, and the panic phase begins. The player holding the bomb will panic! Ghosts—When a player is eliminated from the game, they become a “ghost” and may pester remaining players. Ghosts may not draw cards or play cards; however, if the bomb is passed to a ghost, the ghost may immediately pass the bomb to any player.