Superhero Audition Card Game

You're voting for your city's new official superhero! You'll test each candidate in a series of elimination rounds until only one hero is left! Vote wisely!
» Development Status: Beta
» Design Notes

Stuff You Need
1-6 Players
10-20 Minutes
A pencil and paper to keep score
A token to mark the First Player
A deck of Superhero Audition Cards



Setup
Each player gets their own set of three cards. One card has a star, the second card an X, the third has a robber. Keep your cards hidden so no one can see what's in your hand. Shuffle the hero cards and lay out a row of seven cards with the hero-side facing up. Place the remaining deck at one end of the row with the crisis-side facing up. The First Player token goes to the oldest player.



How To Play
Step 1: The Debate
There is a crisis afoot in the city! Consider the question on the crisis card and debate who you think the other players should vote for or against. You have no real information about the heroes except what's on the cards, so feel free to infer details. Example: Household pets are rebelling against their masters! Who can make peace between the species?



Step 2: The Vote
The player with the First Player token votes first. Turns continue clockwise around the table. On your turn, use your star to vote for a hero OR use your X to vote against a hero. Make sure your cards are face down so no one can tell who you've voted for or against. After voting, pass the First Player token to the player on your left. Example: After some debate, the players cast their votes as shown above. Player 1 voted first, followed by players 2, 3 and 4.



Step 3: The Results
Once all the votes are cast, turn the player cards face-up. You will score one point for every vote on a hero that matches your own. Any opposing votes on that hero will deduct from the available points. If you're the only one to vote for or against a hero, you'll score one point for that hero. Example: The players reveal their votes and score points accordingly...


Player 1 voted for Vampire Matt [STAR], but another player voted against [X]. Those votes cancel each other out, meaning there are zero points available to Player 1 from Vampire Matt. Player 1 voted against Professor Pharaoh [X], but another player voted for [STAR]. Those votes cancel each other out, meaning there are zero points available to Player 1 from Professor Pharaoh. That's a grand total of +0 points for this round. Ouch.


Player 2 voted for Professor Pharoah, but another player voted against. Those votes cancel each other out, meaning there are zero points available to Player 2 from Professor Pharaoh. Player 2 voted against Baby Hands McGee and there were no other votes for or against, so Player 2 gets 1 point from Baby Hands McGee. That's a total of +1 point this round.


Player 3 voted against Vampire Matt, but another player voted for. Those votes cancel each other out, meaning there are zero points available to Player 3 from Vampire Matt. Player 3 voted for Zoobot and another player agreed, so Player 3 gets 2 points from Zoobot. That's a total of +2 points this round.


Player 4 voted for Zoobot and another player agreed, so Player 4 gets 2 points from Zoobot. Player 4 voted against Scotch Ape and there were no other votes for or against, so Player 4 gets 1 point from Scotch Ape. That's a total of +3 points this round.



Step 4: The Elimination
After scoring, the hero who got the most stars moves to the end of the row closest to the crisis deck. In case of a tie, whoever is already closest wins. The hero who got the most Xs is eliminated and their card is placed at the bottom of the crisis deck. In case of a tie, whoever is already farthest wins. (Well, "winning" is relative in that case.) If a hero got opposing votes, those votes cancel each other out. Example: Zoobot got the most stars, so she moves to spot closest to the crisis deck. Vampire Matt, Professor Pharaoh, Baby Hands McGee and Scotch Ape each got one X, so let's sort this out. Vampire Matt and Professor Pharaoh each got a star, canceling out their Xs, so they're both safe. That leaves Baby Hands McGee and Scotch Ape, each with an X against them. Unfortunately for Scotch Ape, he's farthest from the crisis deck, so he's eliminated. His card is placed at the bottom of the crisis deck.

This ends the round. Play continues with a new round from Step 1, with a new crisis revealed on top of the crisis deck.



The Robber Card
During the voting step, you can use the Robber card as your vote. The Robber itself isn't worth any points. Instead, The Robber gives all the available points from the chosen hero to you and no one else. If multiple players place a Robber on a hero, they both get the available points from that hero. However, multiple robbers on the same hero do not count as matching votes. So, if a hero only gets Robbers, it is not worth any points. Example: The example above shows the results of a later round of play. Three players all voted for Vampire Matt. Under normal circumstances, those three players would all get 3 points, but because Player 1 has used his Robber on Vampire Matt, only Player 1 gets those points. In addition, he scores 2 points because he voted against Baby Hands McGee and another player had a matching vote. That's a grand total of +5 points. Good comeback!


How To Win
The game ends when there is only one hero remaining in the lineup. The player with the most points wins!


Design Notes
You can see some influences here from Apples to Apples, the Resistance, and Dixit. It all blends together shockingly well. The one thing I like most about the game is that you can use your old superhero cards or just about any other card from any other CCG as long as it depicts a person or creature of some kind.