- BGG rank
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- 6.2
Indian Chief
- 2–8 players
- 10 min
- Complexity 1.7/5
- 2004
- BGG rank
- BGG #26,846
- BGG rating
- 5.7
Pain Doctors: The Game of Recreational Surgery
1996
Rules assistance for Pain Doctors: The Game of Recreational Surgery
Plain-language explanations of turns, card effects and disputed situations, with official source references and saved question history.
- 2–6 players
- 60 min
- 14+
- Complexity 1.5/5
For 2 players
Rules assistant for Pain Doctors: The Game of Recreational Surgery
What would you like to know?
Answers come from the official rulebook, with the page to check.
Pain Doctors: The Game of Recreational Surgery is a board game released in 1996 for 2–6 players, 60 minutes per game, and ages 14 and up. It was designed by Stven Carlberg, Michael A. Powell, and Victor Oliver and its main mechanics are Hand Management.
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About the game
A Mille Bournes type of game. You are a doctor doing surgery as recreation. You get one of your patients healthy enough to withstand whatever surgery you want to perform on him. Other players will be attempting to lower your patient's health at the same time. Once you do get your patient to surgery then it becomes a game of chicken with yourself. Do you keep doing more surgery for more points but risk killing him and not scoring at all. There are a few different systems at work here and they do go together well. The art and subject matter are very very dark.
Mechanics
Publishers
- Dreamsville Publishing
Questions and answers
Pain Doctors: The Game of Recreational Surgery supports 2–6 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 Pain Doctors: The Game of Recreational Surgery 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 Pain Doctors: The Game of Recreational Surgery for ages 14 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.
Pain Doctors: The Game of Recreational Surgery has a complexity rating of 1.5 out of 5 from BoardGameGeek players, which makes it a 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.
Pain Doctors: The Game of Recreational Surgery belongs to these categories: Card Game, Horror, and Medical. Its main mechanics are Hand Management. 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 Pain Doctors: The Game of Recreational Surgery are: Stven Carlberg, Michael A. Powell, and Victor Oliver. 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 Pain Doctors: The Game of Recreational Surgery 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.