How to play
Win the most Star Cards. Lead the Flabberbash.
Christmas Flabberbash takes about two minutes to learn. Each round is a quick flip, a little bluffing and a lot of acting — here’s everything you need to know.
- 3–10 players
- Ages 4+
- 10 min – 10 hrs
- Up to 20 with two decks
What’s in the deck
The goal is simple: win the most Star Cards so you get to lead the final Flabberbash. Every deck has two kinds of cards.
32 Character Cards
Four groups — Gingerbread, Snowman, Reindeer and Elf. Each card has a unique Modifier at the bottom.
20 Star Cards
Your points. Each lists four activities, one for every Character group.
All editions have identical rules, with their own characters and Star Card activities. Background patterns make sorting easy.
Setup
Shuffle the Character Cards and Star Cards into two separate piles.
Deal 3 Character Cards to each player.
Decide how many rounds to play — 7 is the default. Or just start and play until you’re ready to stop.
Every round has up to 3 Bashes
- I. Oddball
- II. Tiebreaker
- III. Star
Bash I
The Oddball Bash
Be the odd one out. The rarest Character group wins.
Everyone chooses one Character Card from their hand and places it face-down.
Count “3, 2, 1…” and everyone flips their card.
The Character group (or groups) with the fewest cards wins. Hint: look for the rarest color or icon.
One winner?
They take a Star Card and skip straight to the Star Bash.
A tie?
If 2 or more players tie for the least common group, they go to the Tiebreaker Bash.
| Cards flipped | Result |
|---|---|
| 3 Snowmen, 2 Gingerbread, 1 Reindeer | Reindeer wins! |
| 2 Reindeer, 1 Elf, 1 Snowman | Elf + Snowman go to the Tiebreaker |
| 3 Elves, 2 Gingerbread | Both Gingerbread go to the Tiebreaker |
Bash II · skip if no one tied
The Tiebreaker Bash
Cooperate — or try to steal it all.
All (and only!) the tied players each place the same Character Card face-down, turned so either the Green Tree or the Red Nutcracker faces their opponents. Count “3, 2, 1…” and flip to reveal the colors.
Everyone plays Green
Everyone in the Tiebreaker gets one Star Card.
Only one Red
Red wins it all — one Star Card for every player in the Tiebreaker.
Two or more Reds
Reds get nothing. Greens get one Star Card each.
Everyone plays Red
No one wins. Skip the Star Bash, refill hands to 3 cards and start the next round.
Bonus powers
Some Character Cards have a power printed below the name. Powers only apply if you are the solo winner of a round and someone already has Star Cards. Apply the power before taking your winning Star Card.
Star Stealer
Steal an extra Star Card from a player with the most Star Cards.
Gift Giver
Take a Star Card from a player with the most (even your own!) and give it to someone with the least.
Bash III · skip if everyone played in the Tiebreaker
The Star Bash
The final Bash of each round — and a chance to earn a 2-card advantage next round.
Determine the Judge. The winner of the Oddball or Tiebreaker Bash becomes the Judge. Multiple winners? Whoever has judged the fewest times. Still tied? The youngest.
Determine the activity. Combine the Modifier at the bottom of the Judge’s winning Character Card with the matching Character activity on their winning Star Card. Won more than one Star Card? The Judge chooses which to use.
Perform and judge. All other players perform the same combined activity — one by one, a few at a time or all together, the Judge decides. The Judge picks the best as the Star Performer.
Judge’s Character Card
Players all reenact “slipping on ice while carrying an armful of gifts”… as a zombie!
Star Performer perk
Star Performers don’t win a Star Card. Instead, they can place two Character Cards in the next round’s Oddball Bash — doubling their odds!
Starting the next round
1. Keep your Stars
Players keep their Star Cards to track their score.
2. Discard
Discard and/or reshuffle used Character Cards.
3. Refill
Refill every player’s hand to 3 Character Cards.
End of the game
After all rounds have been played — or all the Star Cards have been claimed — the player with the most Star Cards is the Flabberbash Champion, who leads the final Flabberbash!
The grand finale
The Flabberbash!
Instructions for the Flabberbash Champion, who gets to direct the whole room.
Shuffle all Character Cards and deal one face-up to each of the other players (but not yourself).
Choose one Star Card from your own pile and read out all four Activities. Each player performs the Activity matching their Character group, combined with their card’s unique Modifier.
Take up to 60 seconds to direct the room! Point at single players, several at once, or switch back and forth. Players must perform whenever they’re pointed at.
Option: Permanent Judges
Players who prefer not to perform or compete can sit out standard gameplay and act as Permanent Judges during Star Bashes, either replacing or assisting the round’s main Judge.
See it in action
Rules make more sense once you’ve seen a game night. Watch people flip, bluff and act out their cards.
Prefer paper? Grab the printable rules sheet.
Download rules (PDF)