Metabaloids™ Official Rules
Welcome to the World of MetabaloidsMetabaloids is a high-energy, creature-based strategy card game where metabolism is the key to survival. Gather your creatures, manage your resources, and outthink your opponents to be the last one standing.
Winning The Game:
In a 2-player game, when playing without reshuffling, a player loses when they cannot draw a card, regardless of the number of cards in their lost pile. In games with 3 or more players, when playing without reshuffling, the game ends when any player cannot draw a card, the player with the fewest cards in their lost pile wins. If there is a tie, the tied player with fewer cards in the play area wins.Game Length & Reshuffle:
When a player’s draw pile is empty, reshuffle that player’s discard pile to form a new draw pile and continue play. If players agree to play without reshuffling (short game variant), the game ends when a player cannot draw a card and winner is determined using the rules above.Keyword Terms:
Promo Identifier: Marks special event cards.
Rarity: Top-left sphere & color, Green = Common, Blue = Uncommon, Red = Rare, Purple = Super Rare. Also shows card cost.
Card Name: Max 4 copies per deck. Rarity can be mixed into a deck.
Attack: Adds to the total in battle to go against the other players defense.
Metaboloids: Used to pay for cards from your hand into the reserve area. Discard cards to pay cost. This is where the creature’s energy comes from to go into battle.
Defense/Health: This is the amount of defense/health you have to help aid you in absorbing an attack from another player.
Collector Info: Promo if any, Promo Identifier, Set, Rarity and Card number, for instance, 1 C 1, check website for listings.
Game Zones/Special Rules:
Play Area: Active cards in columns (max 3x3). If none remains at turn’s end, lose 2 cards from draw pile.
Column Size: Before deployment, adjust to have max 3 x 3 grid. No column can be deeper than its width. Some cards might be a temporary exception to this rule.
Reserve Area: Cards played here with Metabaloids. Safe until deployed. After cards are placed in reserve you can’t move them until the deploy phase. After drawing, all cards in reserve must be deployed..
Draw Pile: Deck to draw from.
Discard/Used pile: Where discarded or paid/used cards go.
Lost Pile: Where defeated cards go.
Unfinished Actions: If an ability you activate can’t resolve, lose 1 card to lost pile.
Event Cards: Special cards with unique effects; placed separately. Can be used at any time unless noted.
Game Setup
Draw Starting Hand:
Shuffle your deck, draw 7 cards into your hand. This is your starting hand.Determine First player:
Each player cuts and reveals the Cost number. Highest start (ties repeat).Initial Deployment:
Now each player takes turns placing a card into the play area for free, up to the cost of the Cost of 7 points. Once 7 points are reached, they are done placing cards. One or more players could be done before turn order is done. Once you get back to the starting player, then that player takes his normal turn. See game play overview mechanics.Turn Structure
1. Draw Phase 2. Use Abilities 3. Move Cards 4. Deploy From Reserve 5. Attack Phase 6. Restock Reserve/ End TurnDraw Phase:
Draw until you have 7 cards in your hand. If you have 7 or more do not draw but don’t need to discard either.Use Abilities:
Each card’s ability may be used once during each player’s turn, including your own and opponents’ turns, as long as you can pay its cost and perform the action. Some abilities are exceptions to the play area rule or activate specifically during attacks. Player A’s card ability must be resolved before Player A activates other card abilities.Move Cards:
You may move cards from one column to another column. However, it will cost you 1 Metabaloid point to move one card. Paid from Anywhere.Deploy From Reserve into Play Area:
All reserve cards must be deployed into columns in play area, obeying column size limits (no column may be deeper than its width). Cards remain in play area unless, moved by another card’s effect. If the play area is full (3×3 grid), any undeployed reserve cards are sent to the lost pile. If you have no cards in the play area at the end of your turn, lose 2 cards from your draw pile to the lost pile. When the last reserve card is deployed, the deploy action ends.Attack Phase:
In multiplayer games, you may initiate attacks against multiple opponents each turn. Each attack must use a different one of your cards and that card’s column, and you may not attack the same opponent more than once per turn. You must initiate at least one attack per turn. Pay one Metabaloid to initiate each battle; this card goes to your discard pile. If you can’t attack another opponent, lose one card to the lost pile.- Attacker: choose column and card, then turn card sideways, this notes the attacking card.
- Attacker: picks the defenders column and the card he is attacking and turns that card sideways.
- Both players draw a card. Add its Cost value to the attack or defense. After combat resolution, discard the drawn card.
- Attacker adds Attack numbers from each card in their column, plus card bonuses and the drawn card cost value.
- Defender adds Defense numbers from each card in their column, plus card bonuses and the drawn card cost value.
- Results: Higher total wins. If a tie, both players lose the drawn card to the lost pile. The person with the higher amount wins. The losing side calculates the losses as follows.
- If damage is less than attacked card’s defense, that card still takes damage and is sent to the lost pile. Even if it is one point of damage, the creature metabolism surges, burning off the remaining points.
- If the damage exceeds the card’s defense, the attacked card absorbs damage up to its defense and is always lost, then pay the difference from Anywhere. The additional points needed to pay come from the number on the defense icon.
- If pulling from the discard pile you must take the top card and use the defense number. If the defense number is zero that card is still lost at zero points and you move to the next card.
- Card losses may also be paid from cards in players hand, calculated based upon cards’ defense.
- If they decide to take the points from the draw pile, then each card on the draw pile is considered only one point as you can’t look at the cards in your draw pile. If a card takes one point of damage it is lost.
- Now turn the cards on the remaining column sideways. These cards are safe from attacks until reinforcements are deployed. Cards in safety can’t use abilities.
Restock Reserve Area:
Restock cards into your reserve area if you want to. Pay Cost using Metabaloid points from hand. Discard cards from your hand to pay cost. Excess points are lost. If a card costs less than the amount of Metabaloids you have, you don’t save the difference, the amount in excess is lost.Deck Building:
A starter deck is 45 cards. Build using any combination of cards up to 125 Cost points and no more than 45 cards, with a max of 4 copies per card name. Quick start option: all players use the standard 45 card starter deck. Promo cards are extra and may be swapped in, but decks must stay at no more than 45 cards and or a max of 125 Cost points.Starter Deck Set 1 — Official Deck List (45 cards)
Creature Cards (44)
Boxelder Bug x2Differential Grasshopper x2
Green Bottle Fly x2
Whitetail Dragonfly x2
Black Garden Ant x2
Rainbow x2
Stone Fly x2
Brown Soil Centipede x2
Monarch Butterfly x2
House Fly x2
Assassin Bug x2
Red Milkweed Beetle x2
Fire Fly x2
Cabbage White Butterfly x2
Mosquito x2
Dog Day Cicada x2
Ant Swarm x2
Fishing Spider x2
Sowbug x2
Polyphemus Moth Caterpillar x2
Bald Faced Hornet x2
May Fly x2