
- BGG rank
- BGG #12,988
- BGG rating
- 5.8
Buzzword
- 4–12 players
- 45 min
- Complexity 1.2/5
- 2003

2004
Rules assistance for Shoot The Moon
Plain-language explanations of turns, card effects and disputed situations, with official source references and saved question history.
For 2 players

What would you like to know?
Answers come from the official rulebook, with the page to check.
Shoot The Moon is a board game released in 2004 for 2–6 players and ages 8 and up. It was designed by Garrett J. Donner and Michael S. Steer and its main mechanics are Team-Based Game and Trick-taking.
This is a trick-taking card game, which may be played individually or in partnerships of 2 or 3. The game comes with a deck of 52 cards, made up of 4 colored sets of 12 cards (numbered 1 to 12) - the colored sets are suits of red rockets (always trump), green crescent moons, purple stars and blue full moons. There are also 2 orange big moon (bonus cards, always high), 2 orange little moon cards (penalty cards, always low) and 40 Shoot the Moon chips. Players start with 2 chips and are dealt 5 cards for each round of play. Players gain chips by winning odd number of tricks or the big moon cards. The first player to win 7 chips wins. This is not the same game as the other game with this title in the BGG database - that one appears to be a set-collecting card game.
Shoot The Moon 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 catalogue lists Shoot The Moon for ages 8 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.
Shoot The Moon has a complexity rating of 1.2 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.
Shoot The Moon belongs to these categories: Card Game. Its main mechanics are Team-Based Game and Trick-taking. 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 Shoot The Moon are: Garrett J. Donner and Michael S. Steer. 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 Shoot The Moon 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.