A fast, sneaky card game for 2 to 5 pirates.
Two minutes to learn. Half an hour of glorious backstabbing.

Get the launch alert See how it's played

Build ports. Upgrade ships.
Take over the world.

Hustlin' Pirates is a real, physical card game for 2 to 5 players aged 7 and up: about 25 to 30 minutes a game, and 2 minutes to learn.

Build ports with resources, bolt upgrades onto your ships, and play instant actions on other people's turns. Nobody at the table is ever just waiting.

How a turn works

  1. Draw 3, play up to 4.

    Start your turn with three new cards, then take up to four actions with whatever is in your hand.

  2. Put resources on your ports, upgrade your fleet, play actions on your mates.

    Every action card can also be tucked under a port as a resource, so each one is a choice.

  3. Win: hold 3 ports in your colour, or 1 port on each of the 5 continents.

    Either one wins on the spot, even in the middle of someone else's turn.

BUILD

Claim ports. Complete them.

Play resources onto your ports to build them. Each port needs three: gold, wood or iron, and a gem stands in for any of them. Complete three in your colour and the game is yours.

SCHEME

Instant actions. Any moment.

Plan your instant actions carefully. They can be played at any moment, even when it's not your turn. Hold them back as a defence, or spend them as an attack.

UPGRADE

Build your ship into a beast.

Play upgrades onto your ships to make them stronger. A Crow's Nest draws you an extra card each turn. Armour Plating protects your gear. The Pirate Launcher blasts enemy upgrades clean off.

PLUNDER

Fire the combo.

Give a ship one attack and one defence upgrade and its combo attack is armed. Fire it to steal a port, swap hands or draw big. The ship is spent when you do, so time it well.

SABOTAGE

Stick them where it hurts.

Play sabotage cards onto enemy ships. Bottle o' Poison drains one action from its owner every turn until they deal with it. Simple, slow and very annoying.

FORTIFY

Upgrade your ports too.

Ports take upgrades of their own. Play Fortify on a completed port and it can never be stolen or destroyed. There are plenty more where that came from.

Action card: Ship Architect, draw any ship from the discard pile

Lost a ship?
Raise it from the depths.

Ships are the heart of your crew. Launch them, bolt on upgrades, and fire combo attacks that turn the whole game on its head. When one goes down, the Ship Architect pulls it straight back out of the discard pile.

Ask the Rule Bot.

Mid-game argument? Skip the rulebook and ask the Rule Bot, which knows every rule in the box. Try one of the quick questions below, or type your own.

  • The same Rule Bot lives behind the QR code on the box.
  • It covers winning, turns, combos, instants and every dirty trick.
Rule Bot usually right, always confident
Ahoy! Ask me any rules question: winning, turns, combos, instant actions, the lot.

Bring it anywhere there's a table.

  • A warm game night table set with cards, hot chocolate and snacks

    Family game night

    Seven-year-olds can play it. Twelve-year-olds plot like admirals. Parents hold grudges.

  • Cards dealt on a sunny pub table between two pints, sea through the window

    Holidays & pub tables

    A small box and a 25 minute game with nothing to set up, so it fits in a backpack and comes out at pubs, beaches and long lunches.

  • A card game on a picnic blanket with a phone lying face down and forgotten

    No screens required

    It is a real deck in a real box, with nothing to download, charge or update. Just cards on a table and a little treachery.

Questions from the crow's nest

How many players?

2 to 5 players.

How long is a game?

25 to 30 minutes, and about 2 minutes to learn with the quick rules card.

What age is it for?

Ages 7+ can play along. The strategy really kicks in from around 12 up, and adults get properly competitive.

How do you win?

Two ways: complete 3 ports in your own continent's colour, or complete 1 port in each of the 5 continent colours. Either wins immediately.

What do gems do?

Gems are wild. A gem counts as gold, wood or iron, whichever a port still needs.

Can I do anything on other players' turns?

Yes. Instant action cards fire on anyone's turn and cost you nothing when it isn't your turn. Undo their play, redirect their attack, or rob the discard pile mid-turn.

What's the 16-card rule?

If your hand ever reaches 16 cards, even during someone else's turn, you immediately discard your whole hand, so hoarding has a price.

Can my Flagship be destroyed?

Never. Your Flagship can't be stolen or destroyed. If something would sink it, only the cards attached to it go to the discard pile.

What happens if my port gets stolen?

You must always have at least 3 ports. If a theft leaves you with fewer, you immediately draw a new port from the port pile. The game never locks you out.

Is it a physical game or an app?

It's a real card game, an actual deck in an actual box you play at a table. The box QR code adds a rules video and the Rule Bot, but the game itself needs no screens at all.

Where to buy

Hustlin' Pirates launches on Kickstarter first, then lands in the usual shops. None of these are open yet, so the launch alert below is the one that matters.

  • Kickstarter First copies and the best price, for early backers. Coming soon
  • Amazon Standard retail after the campaign, delivered to your door. Coming soon
  • TikTok Shop Straight from the videos, once the shop is approved. Coming soon
The Hustlin' Pirates box

The tide's coming in.

Hustlin' Pirates launches on Kickstarter soon, and early backers get the best price. Leave your email and we'll tell you the day it goes live.

One email when the campaign opens. No newsletter, no nonsense.