
- BGG rating
- 7.2
Mr. Card Game: Character Cards
- 2–5 players
- 60 min
- 2014

2014
Rules assistance for Mr. Card Game
Plain-language explanations of turns, card effects and disputed situations, with official source references and saved question history.

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Answers come from the official rulebook, with the page to check.
Mr. Card Game is a board game released in 2014 for 2–5 players, 60 minutes per game, and ages 13 and up. It was designed by Richard James and Graydon Schlichter and its main mechanics are Hand Management, Open Drafting, and Deck, Bag, and Pool Building.
Introduction In Mr. Card Game, you are Mr. Card Game, cousin to the (internet) famous Mr. Adventurer, the hero of the Kingdom of Loathing. Mr. Card Game is a rule-breaking, cross-classing monster killer on a tabletop quest to free King Ralph XI from the Naughty Sorceress. As you and your fellow tabletop adventurers chart a course through the Kingdom of Loathing, whoever buys the right skills, acquires the best stats and can take down the Naughty Sorceress first wins the game and the right to lord it over his or her friends (friends not included with game). Description Mr. Card Game is the official tabletop game of the massive multiplayer online game Kingdom of Loathing. With a mixture of deck-building mechanics and tableau management, Mr. Card Game is a fantasy adventure themed character building card game for 2 to 5 players ages 13 and up which plays in less than an hour. Synopsis Each player begins with a deck of one point stats and a set of basic newbie gear. On your turn, you have the opportunity to select one of the monsters on top of the location draft piles to kill. By defeating a monster, you receive a new item (displayed on the reverse side of the monster card) to add to your tableau, a new stat card to add to your deck and meat tokens you can use on subsequent turns to draft skills. Once one or more of the players thinks they have accumulated enough power from killing monsters, upgrading stats and training skills to defeat the Naughty Sorceress, they may call a March of the Tower where all players have an opportunity to kill her together. They player with the highest power and enough to kill the Sorceress, wins. Strategy The gameplay in Mr. Card Game is a hybrid of deck building and tableau management. Mr. Card Game is a game of drafting, not only drafting items and skills, but also the stat cards necessary to use those items and skills most effectively. You want to plot a course through the locations in the game which maximizes the synergy of the skill and item cards you draft into your tableau with the stat cards you draft into your deck. All the while managing your level of meat, the currency of the realm you acquire from killing monsters, which you need to purchase the skills which make you better. Tactically, the game relies upon your management of your tableau, when to use or sell items, and how effectively you craft the hand of cards necessary to defeat your target or perhaps even win the game.
Mr. Card Game supports 2–5 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.
The listed playing time for Mr. Card Game is 60 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.
The catalogue lists Mr. Card Game for ages 13 and up. This is the publisher’s recommendation and reflects reading demands, rule complexity and small components rather than theme alone. Younger players can often join with help from an adult, so check the age guidance on your edition and consider your group’s experience with board games.
Mr. Card Game has a complexity rating of 2.6 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.
Mr. Card Game belongs to these categories: Card Game and Video Game Theme. Its main mechanics are Hand Management, Open Drafting, and Deck, Bag, and Pool Building. 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 credited designers of Mr. Card Game are: Richard James and Graydon Schlichter. These credits come from the published game data and name the people responsible for the game’s design, not its illustrators or publishers. Designer pages on MeepleRules collect other titles by the same designers, which helps when you enjoy a game and want to find similar ones.
The catalogue lists Mr. Card Game 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.