Our step-by-step guide to the rules of how to play Risky Chicken Board Game. This is a light but strategic press your luck game where you need to move up a mountain to get the biggest reward. The hook is that when you make an attempt, you have to take one of your fellow players with you and while they may help you, they may also stab you in the back. The game is for 3 – 8 players at ages 13+. The rules for how to play Risky Chicken are very straight forward so we should have you up in running in no time.
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HOW TO PLAY RISKY CHICKEN – WHAT IS IT?
Welcome to Risky Chicken, where each player is a chicken who wants to get rich. Players can choose to take risks or play it safe. They can benefit from an honest reputation or lie to get ahead. What kind of chicken will you be? A player wins the game by being the first to obtain a certain number of gold coins.
The game consists of a series of “mountain climbs”, each involving two players at a time, the “leader” and their chosen “sidekick”. As players ascend the mountain, the potential payout grows, but so does the risk of falling, and it becomes wise to chicken out. At each level of the mountain, the leader and sidekick discuss whether they should continue climbing.
HOW TO PLAY RISKY CHICKEN – STEP BY STEP
Time Needed: Approximately 30 – 60 minutes.
This is a step by step guide for how to play Risky Chicken the fun push you luck and trust board game. Additional notions and special rules can be found below the list. These will be referenced for your convenience.
1. SETUP | Put Out Game Board
To kick off how to play Risky Chicken, unfold the “golden mountain” game board and put it in the center of the table.
2. SETUP | Give Out Player Markers
Each player takes one of the colored chicken tokens to act as their player marker for the game.
3. SETUP | Give Out Chicken Cards
Each player gets two “chicken cards”, one that says “climb” and one that says “chicken out”. These are needed to secretly vote each climbing interaction.
4. SETUP | Give Out Chicken Trick Cards
There is a stack of 12 different “trick chicken” cards. These are one time special abilities to use throughout the game when each player sees fit. Shuffle these up and deal one to each player. The base game says face up so everyone knows, but as a variant, you can keep these secret. Beginners can also choose not to play with these when initially learning the game flow.
5. SETUP | Put Out Die
There is a single six-sided die for determining climb success. Put this in the central area so all can access it.
6. SETUP | Choose Starting Player
The final step to how to play Risky Chicken setup before getting into gameplay is to choose the starting player. The book says this should be the youngest player, but go ahead and use your randomizer of choice to determine.
7. GAMEPLAY | Active Player Chooses Sidekick
The person whose turn it is has the title of “Leader”. On a leader’s turn, they must select any of the other players to be their “Sidekick” and come with them. Since everyone is trying to get to a certain amount of coins, you want to choose someone with a low coin count or at least something you think you will be able to trust for the turn. Take the two player markers for leader/sidekick and put them on the bottom level of the mountain on the game board.
8. GAMEPLAY | Mountain Climb Attempt
Collectively the leader and the sidekick are going to decide if they are going to take the money at the level they are at (shown in the pot of the level you are on) or attempt to climb to a higher level. The two players secretly choose either their “climb” or “chicken out” cards. Players then reveal these cards at the same time, and this determines what happens next. Discussions help guide the conversation to plan, but they are not bidding. Even if you both discuss selecting a card, one of the players could lie and backstab you in an attempt for a big payout.
9. GAMEPLAY | If Both Players Select “Chicken Out”
If both player votes result in a chicken out then the turn ends and both players split the gold on the level they currently are. Give out coin tokens to each player equal to the number of coins they gained.
10. GAMEPLAY | If One Player Selects “Chicken Out” and One Selects “Climb”
If the two players play different cards, the turn ends and the person who selected “climb” gets all the coins from the level and the player who selected “chicken out” gets nothing. This will only happen if one player stabs another in the back.
11. GAMEPLAY | If Both Players Select “Climb”
If both players select “Climb” cards, then play continues and both players attempt to move up the mountain to get to a more lucrative level and start the process all over again. To make this attempt, you need to roll the six-sided to see if you make it. The level on the board will show which numbers allow you to move up and which have you fall (lower levels have more numbers that allow you to move up and it gets harder as you ascend). If you move up, you restart the “mountain climb attempt” but if you miss, you both fall off and get nothing.
12. GAMEPLAY | Playing A Chicken Trick
At any point in the game, each player can use their one “chicken trick” card where relevant. These each alter some aspect of the game and is clearly listed on the card. Once used, the trick is discarded and cannot be used again.
13. GAMEPLAY | Turn End and Repeat
After a turn is completed, with coins given out or players falling off the mountain, the next player goes. It moves clockwise around the circle and then that player picks their own sidekick and starts the process again.
14. GAME END | First To A Number Of Coins
The game ends and a winner is declared once someone hits a certain amount of coins. This is based on the number of players – 3 players @ 80, 4 – 5 players @ 70, 6 players @ 60 and 7 – 8 players @ 50 coins.
HOW TO PLAY RISKY CHICKEN – KEY INFORMATION
IMPORTANT GAME RULES
Each player must make all their gold coins visable to other players at all times.
No player may give gold coins to another player outside the rules of the game.
No player may physically reveal the egg card they intend to play before flipping it over. This truly needs to be a secret, regardless of what you discuss. The only exception is the “spy chicken” tactic card.
ALTERNATIVE GAME MODES
Got somewhere to be? Play a smaller number of gold coins for a shorter game.
Mountain too slippery? Make the die friendlier, always ascend on rolls of 2.
Too many liars? Reward honesty, give players 3 coins when they agree to play “chicken out” and follow through.
Are you a Risky Chicken egg-spert? Play with two “chicken tricks” per player.
Want another twist? Begin the game with each player keeping their trick secret.
GAME CONTENTS
- 1x Gameboard
- 12x Chicken Trick Cards
- 17x Egg Cards
- 80x Gold Coin Chips (different denominations)
- 8x Chicken Game Pieces
- 1x Instruction Book
- 1x Die
HOW TO PLAY RISKY CHICKEN – IN CLOSING
We hope you can now say that know how to play Risky Chicken. Billed as a game of strategy, danger, trust and betrayal, this is a very light and breezy push your luck game with an interesting “sidekick” player interaction component. Decide how high you want to make it up the mountain and roll the dice to get the biggest prize possible. Since it is not entirely up to you, things get interesting. Learning how to play Risky Chicken easy, it is walking the fine line of balance and best judging your fellow players that will take some time to master.
