Malabares
BGG rank
BGG #24,578
BGG rating
6.0

Malabares

2025

Rules assistance for Malabares

Plain-language explanations of turns, card effects and disputed situations, with official source references and saved question history.

  • 2–3 players
  • 15 min
  • 14+

For 2 players

Rules assistant for Malabares

What would you like to know?

Answers come from the official rulebook, with the page to check.

Malabares is a board game released in 2025 for 2–3 players, 15 minutes per game, and ages 14 and up. It was designed by Arthur Lacerda and its main mechanics are Hand Management, Hot Potato, and Open Drafting.

Expansions

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About the game

The year is 1922 and the famous Circo Alcibíades is bringing joy to the crowds in São Paulo. You are budding clowns looking to make a living through juggling, and the great clown Piolin is ready to teach you how to amaze the audience. Only one of you will be able to join the circus… and the show is about to begin! Malabares is a 18-card micro trick-taking game inspired by juggling. Players start with cards in hand, and some cards begin on the table representing what it's "in the air". A trick goes by playing cards in a must-follow fashion, and the numbers determine the order of drafting for the "in the air" cards. Players score depending of the circus card, that indicates if the show is going on day or night - knives score more during the day, torches at night. Players can also "shoot the moon" by performing the Piolin Move, getting a full hand of low-scoring cards. Game #03 of the Piquinim Collection. —description from the publisher

Questions and answers

Malabares supports 2–3 players according to the catalogue. This range comes from the publisher’s listed player count, so the game can be set up for any group size within it. Some setups, rules and scoring details may still vary by player count, so check your edition’s rulebook for the exact configuration.