
- BGG rating
- 6.3
Poor Choices: Black Mamba Expansion
- 3–10 players
- 30–120 min
- 2017

2016
Rules assistance for Poor Choices
Plain-language explanations of turns, card effects and disputed situations, with official source references and saved question history.
For 3 players

What would you like to know?
Answers come from the official rulebook, with the page to check.
Poor Choices is a board game released in 2016 for 3–10 players, 30–120 minutes per game, and ages 13 and up. It was designed by Wade Welsh and its main mechanics are Take That, Storytelling, and Role Playing.
Setup Place all four decks of cards face down in the middle of the table. Deal five Character Cards and five Trait Cards to each player, and keep the remaining decks of cards in the middle of the table. The person wearing the ugliest shirt is Player One for the first round. If everyone is wearing the exact same shirt or if everyone is shirtless, the shortest person is Player One for the first round. Gameplay The round begins when Player One draws an Adventure Card and reads it out loud. Each adventure needs a character, and it’s the job of the other players to provide the best one. The other players choose a Character Card from their hand that’s best equipped for that particular adventure, and place it face down on the table in front of them. Then players get to attack one of their opponents. The same players choose a Trait Card from their hand to sabotage their opponent’s character, and pass it face down to the player on their right. Players should not look at the trait that’s passed to them. At this point, each player (except Player One) should have the character that they chose along with the trait that their opponent gave to them. Player One gathers all of the character and trait combinations and reads them out loud. Then, Player One decides which character is the best and worst choice for that particular adventure. Scoring Players are rewarded for making poor choices — not good ones. The player who played the trait of the worst choice earns a point and becomes Player One for the next round. The player who played the trait of the best choice must draw a Humiliation Card and do whatever it says to do. If the losing player has one or more points, he or she also has the option to avoid the humiliation at the cost of one point. Finally, each player (except Player One) draws a new Character Card and a new Trait Card so they have five of each for the next round. The next round begins when the winner draws a new Adventure Card. Winning The first player to earn five points wins. If you run out of cards, you can reshuffle them and continue playing. If you run out of time, the player who accumulates the most points wins. If there’s a tie after all of this, it’s obvious that this group can’t even make poor choices the right way — so nobody deserves to win.
Poor Choices supports 3–10 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 Poor Choices is 30–120 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 Poor Choices 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.
Poor Choices 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.
Poor Choices belongs to these categories: Humor, Party Game, and Mature / Adult. Its main mechanics are Take That, Storytelling, and Role Playing. 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 Poor Choices are: Wade Welsh. 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 Poor Choices 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.