A Frontier Hunting Card Game
Be the first to complete the hunt of all 5 animal species during the game. (log in)
Cardswild is a strategy card game for 2-4 players, ages 8 and up. Players race to collect five hunting trophies, Grouse, Rabbit, Deer, Elk, and Bear, while overcoming wilderness hazards and sabotaging rival hunters.
Draw a card. Play a trophy, fortune, safe, or trouble card. Block rivals, shout “Giddyup!”, and race from Grouse to Bear.
Draw a card from the pile
Play Daylight, License, and Small Bullets to prepare your hunt
Lay down trophy cards to reach each target count
Throw Trouble at rivals to halt their progress
Play Safe cards and shout “Giddyup!” to bounce attacks back
First player to hunt Grouse through Bear wins
Fast turns. Strategy. Trouble cards. Comebacks. One perfectly timed “Giddyup!” can change the whole game.
Games take 20-40 minutes. Every turn matters. Draw, play, and watch your rivals squirm.
Deal six cards and start playing. Kids pick it up in one round, adults get hooked by the second.
Play Trouble cards to halt a rival, steal trophies with the Mountain Lion, and shout “Giddyup!” to bounce attacks right back.
One compact deck. No board, no batteries, no WiFi. Built for kitchen tables, campfires, cabins, and game night.
Race through all five trophies, from Grouse to Bear, while dodging Trouble, blocking attacks, and shouting “Giddyup!” at just the right moment.
Every card drawn from the Colorado high country, rendered in the tradition of frontier engravings.
Hunt all five in order, from Grouse to Bear. Collect the required number of each before you advance.
Grouse • Rabbit • Deer • Elk • Bear
These red-bordered hazards halt a rival’s progress until overcome.
Nightfall • Bad Weather • I'm Lost • Out of Bullets • Lose License
Overcome Trouble, gear up, and keep the game alive.
Daylight • Good Weather • Compass • Small Bullets • Big Bullets • License
Blue-bordered wards of protection. Play them to block Trouble, or shout “Giddyup!” to turn a rival’s Trouble right back on them.
Shelter • Ammo Pack • Guide
The Mountain Lion lets you steal any animal card from another player's hunt, or take the top card from the discard pile if it's an animal.
Mountain Lion
Learn the rules and start playing.
📜 Official Rules: one page, printable →
New here? Watch How to Play in 8 Minutes →
Be the first to complete the hunt of all 5 animal species during the game. Each trophy has a target count that must be reached before you advance to the next. The game unfolds season by season. Every time the draw pile runs out and is reshuffled, a new season begins. Play continues until a player completes all five trophies or the table agrees on a stalemate.
2-4 Players • Ages 8+
Five species, hunted in order from lowest to highest. Small Game requires Small Bullets; Big Game requires Big Bullets (or Ammo Pack for either).
| # | Trophy | Category | Required |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Grouse | Small Game | 4 |
| 2 | Rabbit | Small Game | 3 |
| 3 | Deer | Big Game | 2 |
| 4 | Elk | Big Game | 1 |
| 5 | Bear | Big Game | 1 |
Play these against another player to halt their progress. Only one Trouble card may affect a player at a time. The targeted player must overcome the Trouble with the matching Good Fortune or Safe card before continuing.
| Trouble | Effect |
|---|---|
| Nightfall | Darkness falls. You can no longer hunt. |
| Bad Weather | A storm rolls in. Hunting is impossible. |
| I'm Lost | You've lost your way in the wilderness. |
| Out of Bullets | Your ammunition is spent. |
| Lose License | Your hunting license has been revoked. |
Safe cards protect against specific Trouble. They may be played proactively (before Trouble arrives) or reactively. If a Safe card is already face-up and the matching Trouble is played against you, the Trouble has no effect. If the matching Safe card is still in your hand when Trouble is played, you may immediately call “Giddyup!” and play the Safe card. The Trouble card is then turned back on the player who played it.
The Mountain Lion lets you steal any animal card from another player's hunt, or take the top card from the discard pile if it's an animal. The Wild card may never be drawn from the face-up discard pile, but it is reshuffled into the draw pile at the start of each new season.
The Help cards are not used during play. Remove them from the deck before dealing. Players may keep a Help card nearby for quick reference.
For fewer than 4 players, remove the following cards before dealing:
| Card | 3 Players Remove | 2 Players Remove |
|---|---|---|
| Grouse | 5 | 10 |
| Rabbit | 4 | 8 |
| Deer | 3 | 6 |
| Elk | 2 | 4 |
| Bear | 2 | 4 |
| Daylight | 2 | 4 |
| Good Weather | 1 | 2 |
| Compass | 1 | 2 |
| Small Bullets | 2 | 4 |
| Big Bullets | 2 | 4 |
| License | 2 | 4 |
| Total removed | 26 | 52 |
| Deck size | 88 | 62 |
Exactly one card leaves your hand each turn: never two plays, never a play and a discard. Playing your card ends your turn immediately.
When the draw pile is exhausted, shuffle the entire discard pile (including the Wild card) and place it face-down to form a new draw pile. A new season has begun. The game continues across as many seasons as needed.
The first player to complete all five trophies, Grouse through Bear, wins the game! If play becomes hopelessly locked, the table may agree to call a stalemate.
Play the full game free in your browser. Take on AI opponents, learn the rules fast, and see if you can hunt all five trophies first.
Play Free Online Try SoloThe perfect gift for Father's Day, birthdays, or a stocking stuffer for the hunter who has everything.
The complete Cardswild hunting deck with its Basecamp card holder
All four Cardswild games, each with its own color-matched card holder
A note on availability: we make decks in small batches. If a game sells out before your order ships, we will email you the same day and refund you in full.
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Free shipping within the United States. All orders ship from Colorado. One compact deck. Perfect for hunting camp, the cabin, camping trips, or screen-free family game night.
A family tradition, nearly two decades in the making.
Cardswild was born around a kitchen table in the mountains of Colorado, where the Wolcott family spent years refining a simple idea: a card game that captures the spirit of the American frontier hunt.
Inspired by the strategy of classic card games and the rugged beauty of the Rocky Mountain wilderness, each card is original artwork in the style of 1900s frontier engravings. From the patience of tracking Grouse through the aspens to the thrill of encountering a Bear in the high country.
What started as a family pastime in 2007 has grown into a labor of love spanning nearly twenty years of play-testing, refining, and perfecting. Every rule has been shaped by countless rounds at kitchen tables, around campfires, and in mountain cabins across the Colorado high country.
Cardswild is made in the USA. The cards are printed in Madison, Wisconsin. We build the card holders, assemble every deck, and ship every order ourselves from Denver, Colorado. Cardswild is owned and operated by Larry Wolcott.
A family-built card game from the Colorado high country. Frontier art, fast strategy, and just enough mischief to ruin your rival's hunt. Learn more about our American heritage →
Jasper, Colorado. Estimated population: a few good souls and plenty of grouse, rabbits, deer, elk and bears.
2-4 players, ages 8 and up. The deck scales automatically. For 2 or 3 players, you remove a set number of cards before dealing. A typical game takes 20-40 minutes.
It's the perfect gift for anyone who loves to hunt. Great for Father's Day, birthdays, stocking stuffers, or hunting camp send-offs. Every card features original artwork in a frontier engraving style.
Cardswild uses a race-and-hazard mechanic inspired by the classic French card game. Instead of racing to drive 1,000 miles, players race to collect five hunting trophies. Trouble cards function like hazards, and Safe cards have a Giddyup! mechanic similar to the coup-fourre.
Yes. When a game is in stock, the Shop Now button above takes you to our store. Orders ship from Denver, Colorado, usually within one business day. If a game sells out, the button says Sold Out and the Hunt List will tell you when it is back.
Yes! You can play the full game free in your browser against AI opponents. No download, no signup required.
In the USA. The game was invented in Jasper, Colorado, a small mountain town, in 2007. Today the cards are printed in Madison, Wisconsin. The card holders are built, and every deck is assembled, in Denver, Colorado. Orders ship from Denver.
Get an email when a sold out game is back in stock or a new game comes out.
No spam. Unsubscribe any time.
You're on the Hunt List. We'll email you about restocks and new games.
Same proven engine. Different themes. Every game is free to play online.
Tried and Tested
Played by the Wolcott family since 2007
Printed in Wisconsin, assembled in Denver
Great for family game night, cabins, hunters, campers, and card-game fans