
- BGG rank
- BGG #18
- BGG rating
- 8.4
The Lord of the Rings: Duel for Middle-earth
- 2 players
- 30 min
- Complexity 2.1/5
- 2024

Rules assistance for Cuttle
Plain-language explanations of turns, card effects and disputed situations, with official source references and saved question history.
For 2 players

What would you like to know?
Answers come from the official rulebook, with the page to check.
Cuttle is a board game for 2 players and 5 minutes per game. Its main mechanics are Hand Management, Take That, and Race.
Cuttle is a two-player card game played with a regular deck of 52 playing cards. The aim of the game is to have at least 21 points worth of number cards on the table. During a turn a player can either take a card from the stock pile, play a card on table or play a card as a one-off effect. Almost all of the different ranks of cards have special effects, such as "remove all number cards from the table", "counter an effect just played", "take any card from the scrap pile", "see your opponents cards" etc. The game is somewhat similar to Magic: the Gathering but likely much older. Pagat.com dates it to "the 1970s at the latest". See also Control, Scuttle! and Wreck
Cuttle supports 2 players according to the catalogue. This is the publisher’s listed player count, so the game is designed for exactly that number of participants. Variants for other group sizes, if any, are described in the rulebook of your edition, so check it before setting up a different configuration.
The listed playing time for Cuttle is 5 minutes. This is the publisher’s estimate for a full game. The actual duration depends on the group, the player count and familiarity with the rules: first sessions usually run longer, while experienced groups often finish faster. Setup and teaching time are not included in this estimate.
Cuttle has a complexity rating of 2.3 out of 5 from BoardGameGeek players, which makes it a medium-light game. The rating reflects how much rules knowledge, planning and decision-making a typical game demands. Expect a longer first teach for heavier games, and use a preparation guide before game night.
Cuttle belongs to these categories: Card Game. Its main mechanics are Hand Management, Take That, and Race. Categories describe the theme and setting of a game, while mechanics describe what players actually do on their turns. Each mechanic links to a catalogue hub with similar games, which helps when you want something comparable.
The catalogue lists Cuttle as a base game. It can be played on its own with the components in the box and does not require any other title. Expansions, if any exist, add new content or rules on top of it and are listed separately in the catalogue with a link back to this base game.