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- BGG #396
- BGG rating
- 7.3
Century: Spice Road
- 2–5 players
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Rules assistance for Ruthless: Tall Tales
Plain-language explanations of turns, card effects and disputed situations, with official source references and saved question history.
- 1–4 players
- 45–60 min
- 10+
- Complexity 3.0/5
Rules assistant for Ruthless: Tall Tales
What would you like to know?
Answers come from the official rulebook, with the page to check.
Ruthless: Tall Tales is an expansion for Ruthless released in 2022 for 1–4 players, 45–60 minutes per game, and ages 10 and up. It was designed by Roland MacDonald and its main mechanics are Hand Management, Set Collection, and Open Drafting.
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About the game
The award-winning pirate deck-building game returns with an expansion. Chests brimming with new ideas and fantastical pirate tropes. Discover new thematic content, new mechanics and stunning new artwork. The Merfolk: This new suit adds a dual rank mechanic, new powers and unique artwork. The Merfolk are a very flexible addition to your raiding party. The Kraken: An ancient threat from the deep emerges. Attacking the Kraken becomes the priority and those tentacles offer plentiful rewards. The Notorious: Infamous figures offer their services for the right price. By adding strength and strong new powers these characters are formidable allies. Chests & Quests: Treasures await for pirates that achieve one off goals during the game. Will you keep the points, use the one time extra powers or recruit one of the Notorious? New Powers: Five new powers are featured in Tall Tales, opening up new strategies and combos for the most cunning pirates to exploit. Solo Mode: Test you prowess on the high seas against the pirate Queen Ching Shih in the all-new solo mode. —description from the publisher
Categories
Designers
Publishers
- Board Game Circus
- Roland's Revenge Games
Questions and answers
Ruthless: Tall Tales supports 1–4 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 Ruthless: Tall Tales is 45–60 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 Ruthless: Tall Tales for ages 10 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.
Ruthless: Tall Tales has a complexity rating of 3.0 out of 5 from BoardGameGeek players, which makes it a medium-weight 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.
Ruthless: Tall Tales belongs to these categories: Card Game, Pirates, and Expansion for Base-game. Its main mechanics are Hand Management, Set Collection, and Open Drafting. 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 Ruthless: Tall Tales are: Roland MacDonald. 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 Ruthless: Tall Tales as an expansion for Ruthless. Expansions add new content, rules or scenarios to the base game and usually cannot be played on their own, so you need Ruthless to use it. Check that your edition of Ruthless is compatible, as some expansions were revised between editions.