How to Play Unstable Unicorns: Rules and Review

Feel like building a unicorn army, betraying your friends, and having a lot of fun in the process?

Then you’ll need to learn how to play unstable unicorns with us first.

Unstable Unicorns is a card game designed by Rami Badie. Designed to appeal to the generation of card-game players in love with things like Fluxx and Cards Against Humanity, Unstable Unicorns is a unique approach to competitive gaming.

From the moment you open the box, you’re sure to fall in love with the cute and playful artwork, the fast-paced rules and the replay-ability of this modern title. We’d wager that you’ll want to share this game with as many of your friends as possible as soon as you can!

Let’s take a look at the basics of playing Unstable Unicorns

How to Play Unstable Unicorns: Setup

The Unstable Unicorns box comes packed with 105 cards in total, and a rule book to guide you through the game.

There are seven distinct types of card included in the bundle including:

13 baby unicorn cards
30 magical unicorn cards
22 basic unicorn cards
23 magic cards
8 downgrade cards
14 upgrade cards
14 instant cards

If all of those unique kinds of cards sound overwhelming at first – don’t worry; it’s really easy to get the hang of this game.

Essentially, you start with a baby unicorn in your stable and start building a unicorn army from there.

Every single unicorn in your deck will have its own special power – even basic unicorns have their appeal.

To win, all you need to do is get the right number of unicorns in your magical stable.

Once you’ve won, everyone else needs to bow down to you, as the Righteous Ruler of all things magical.

Once you’re ready to play, start by gathering all the baby unicorns from your deck, and giving one to each player.

That baby unicorn will join the player’s stable. You can place the rest of the baby unicorns into a stack known as the “nursery.”

The remaining cards then need to be shuffled, before you hand 5 at random to each player. The remaining cards are your draw pile.

The person wearing the most colors will go first.

How to Play Unstable Unicorns: Game Play

With your game set up, each player will draw a card, then either play a card from their hand or draw another card.

While a magical unicorn or a magic card can have immediate effects on the game, stable upgrades need to be in the stable at the start of a turn for players to see their benefit.

Additionally, it’s worth noting that there’s a hand limit of seven cards.

If you end up with too many cards, you’ll need to discard some.

Ultimately, the aim of the game is to collect 7 unicorns in total – but it’s more complicated than it seems.

You can’t have two of the same unicorn, for instance, and each card has its own unique effect to think about.

For instance:

Instant cards can stop other people from playing their cards or putting down their unicorns
Upgrade cards allow you to add positive effects to your stable
Downgrade cards allow you to add a negative effect to someone else’s stable
Magic cards create mayhem in the game. One might allow you to discard your card and draw a bunch of new ones, for instance.
Magical unicorn cards: Magical unicorns count towards your total and have a magic power
Basic and baby unicorns: These have no magic powers, but they still add to your total, and take you closer to winning the game.

If you run out of cards, the game can end, or you can reshuffle the discard pile and keep going.

How to Play Unstable Unicorns: Who Can Play

Learning how to play unstable unicorns is pretty easy.

The game is very basic and doesn’t require a great deal of strategy or skill to play. However, that doesn’t mean that you can’t have a lot of fun with these cards.

The more you play, the more you’ll learn how to use the special abilities on certain cards to your advantage. You can even sabotage other players for a bit of malicious fun.

The simplistic nature of Unstable Unicorns makes us think that the recommended age limit of 14 years and above is a little bit dramatic.

Some of the cards have very subtle adult themes, but it’s not enough to shock and appeal your children in any way.

The content used on the cards and the simplicity of the game could make this title a great option for younger players too.

Another major benefit of Unstable Unicorns is that it comes with a lot of replay-ability.

Unstable Unicorns Expansion Packs:

There are tons of expansions on the market today, including:

Uncut unicorns: The NSFW expansion pack specifically designed for people who want to bring more cards against humanity shock factor to their games.
Dragons expansion pack: The game that adds multiple high-power dragons to your game and gives each playing session a new challenge.
The Unicorns of legend expansion pack: A selection of new and exciting unicorns to explore, each with their own impressive abilities.
The rainbow sprinkles pack: A range of unique basic unicorns to add to your standard game. This pack is more for art appeal than anything else.
Apocalypse expansion pack: This comes equipped with the four unicorns of the apocalypse, each of which has a huge impact on the way that the game is played.

Should You Play Unstable Unicorns?

Ultimately, Unstable Unicorns is a game that’s quick to learn, easy to play, and fun for virtually all members of the family.

The artwork is appealing, and the rules are compelling, so you’re sure to have fun if you’re looking for a quick way to laugh with friends and family.

It’s not the most challenging or strategic game in the world, so you’re probably not going to get hours of entertainment value out of Unstable Unicorns.

However, if you just want something that you can use to break the ice when people come over for drinks, or to help the kids wind down after school, this game could be a great choice.

Pros:

Attractive artwork
Easy to learn and play
Fantastic range of expansion options
Great for replay-ability

Cons:

Not particularly challenging or unique
Games don’t last long