Flight FBG-001 · Card game
Nines
Nine numbers. Nine showdowns.
Every card makes nine. Lay down three, then two, then one, all at once, and win a number by playing the most of it. Ties are unfavorable, and the numbers that score climb each round: the 1 to 3, the 1 to 6, then all nine.
- 1 to 6 players
- Best with 3 or 4
- Ages 9+
- 3 rounds of 9 minutes
- Est. $15–25
- Free print-and-play
- Play online
- On BoardGameGeek
- Game designer and artist: Brennan Pope
Play it first: NinesFree in your browser, so you know what you're voting for.
Vote for Nines to go to Kickstarter first. One vote each, and you can move it any time.
How it plays
Three reveals, three rounds.
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01
Deal
Everyone gets 12 cards. Each card is one way to make nine from different numbers: 9, 8-1, 7-2, 6-3, 5-4, 6-2-1, 5-3-1 or 4-3-2.
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02
Choose
All at once, everyone lays three cards face down, then they're all turned up. Then two more, then one: six cards each by the end of the round, and no one waits for a turn.
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03
Score
"Who has the most ones?" Whoever played the most of a number takes its token, worth that number in points. Tie, and you only share if there's a token for each of you; otherwise it stays in the middle and carries into the next round.
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04
Climb
Only the 1 to 3 score in the first round, the 1 to 6 in the second, and all nine in the third. Keep the six cards you didn't play, draw back up to 12, and go again. Most points after three rounds wins.
Why it works
Simple to teach. Lots to think about.
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Everyone plays at once
Every choice is made face down at the same moment, so the whole table is in every reveal.
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Every card is a trade-off
An 8-1 helps you win the ones right now, but it spends an 8 you'll want when the eights score in the last round.
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The pot keeps growing
Ties don't pay and unclaimed tokens carry over, so a contested number can be worth double by the next round.
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Made to read at a glance
One color per number on the cards, tokens and box, in a typeface designed with the Braille Institute for readers with low vision.
What's in the box
Everything you need, nothing you don't.
- 72 cards, nine copies of each of the eight ways to make nine
- 27 tokens, the numbers 1 to 9 in three sets marked with one, two and three stars
- 1 cloth bag for the tokens
- 6 player aids: a round at a glance on one side, what scores on the other
- 6 variant cards, one for each way to play below
- The rules sheet, folded to fit the box
Ways to play
Six variants in the box.
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The Whole Nine Yards
Every number, every round, and the stars multiply.
Best with 2 · good with 3
Play it online -
Odd One Out
Each round one number sits out, and its token waits for whoever's ready.
Best with 2
Play it online -
Up Your Sleeve
Hide one card from the first deal and spring it when it counts.
2 to 5 · best with 2
Play it online -
Buried Treasure
Everyone hides a three-star token: dig yours up when you can win it, or someone else will.
Best with 2 or 3
Play it online -
Beat the Boss
Play alone against a boss that grows a card stronger with every game you win.
Solo
Play it online -
Old School
The game as it was first played: every number scores, every round.
Best with 2
Play it online
Print and play
Print your own copy, free.
Everything in the box but the bag, ready to print at home: the rules sheet, the 72 cards, the player aids, the variant cards and all 27 tokens, with crop marks and the backs set up for double-sided printing. Bring a cup or bag for the tokens, and print as many copies as you like for yourself and your friends.
26 pages: a cover with printing tips, the rules sheet, then 11 sheets of cards and tokens, each followed by its backs.
The story
From the before times.
Nines was first designed around the turn of the millennium. Back then every number scored every round, and that game is still in the box as Old School. This edition rebuilds the original art with a cleaner typeface and a color for every number, picked off a single color wheel so all nine sit together.
Where it stands
Up next.
Nines is being readied for its first small print run through The Game Crafter, and you can print your own copy today. We expect it to sell for about $15 to $25, in line with small-box card games like it; the final price is set at launch. Want to see it on Kickstarter first? Give it your vote.
Play it first: NinesFree in your browser, so you know what you're voting for.