Molt
Match the top card. Shed your hand.
A fast shedding game for two to six players: play a card that matches the top of the pile, use the action cards to trip up the next player, and be the first to play away every card in your hand.
- Play at a real table
- Printable rules card
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MoltHosted rooms open soon.
Want to play now? Play at a real table, no room code needed.
- Players
- 2 to 6
- You need
- The 76-card Molt deck
- Style
- Shedding
- Goal
- Empty your hand
- Time
- About 20 minutes
What is Molt?
Match it. Then shed it.
Molt belongs to the big family of match-the-top-card games, and adds wild cards and cards that make the next player miss a turn or draw. Everyone starts with seven cards, and the first player with an empty hand wins.
The deck has 76 cards in four pelts: moss, ember, tide and dusk. Each pelt has one 0, two each of 1 to 5, and two each of three action cards: hop, turn and snare. Four chameleons and four howls are wild and belong to no pelt.
A little history
A game that sheds.
Games where you match the top card of a pile and race to empty your hand are among the most played in the world, and every family has a version. Molt is Feral Worlds’ own take, with its own deck: four pelts, three kinds of action card and two kinds of wild.
There are many ways to play a game like this. These are our Classic rules, taken from the Feral Game Kit’s definition of the game, and they are shown before every game.
Fun facts
- The deck has 76 cards, and each pelt has seventeen of them.
- With two players, a turn card works like a hop, so you play again.
- If the stock runs out, the discards under the top card are shuffled into a new stock.
Why people love it
Simple turns. Sharp choices.
One card, one turn.
Match the top card by pelt or by face, or draw. That is nearly all there is to learn.
Action cards bite.
A hop skips the next player, a snare makes them draw two, and a turn sends play the other way.
Wilds change everything.
A chameleon goes on anything and you name the next pelt. A howl does the same and makes the next player draw four.
Counting wins late games.
Each pelt has seventeen cards. Know what has gone, and you can name a pelt the next player has run out of.
How to play
Match. Play. Go out.
Setup
- Players: two to six.
- Deal: everyone gets seven cards.
- Start: the next card that is not a wild is turned up to start the discard pile. The rest, face down, is the stock.
- First turn: the player left of the dealer goes first, then play moves round the table.
Winning
Be the first to play away every card in your hand. If nobody can play or draw, the lowest card points win.
- 1
Play a matching card
Play one card that matches the top card’s pelt, or its face: the same number, or the same action.
- 2
Or play a wild
A chameleon goes on anything and you name the pelt that comes next. A howl does the same, and the next player also draws four cards and misses a turn.
- 3
Use the action cards
A hop makes the next player miss a turn. A snare makes them draw two and miss a turn. A turn sends play the other way.
- 4
Or draw one card
You may draw one card, even when you hold a card that fits. If the card you drew fits, you may play it at once; otherwise your turn ends.
- 5
No passing it on
A snare or howl cannot be passed on by playing another one on it, unless the table allows stacking.
These are our Classic rules, taken from the Feral Game Kit's definition of the game. Some tables say to draw only when stuck, or to keep drawing until a card fits; the host picks, and the table shows which. Printable rules card →
Scoring
Go out, or count up.
Going out first wins the game. If the last card you play is a snare or howl, the next player still draws. If nobody can play or draw, the lowest card points win.
| Card | Points if nobody goes out | |
|---|---|---|
| A number card (0 to 5) | Its face value | |
| An action card: hop, turn or snare | 20 points | |
| A wild: chameleon or howl | 50 points | |
| Going out first | You win | |
| Nobody can play or draw | The lowest card points win |
When the stock runs out, the discards under the top card are shuffled into a new stock.
Strategy
Play it smart. Then play it feral.
Tip 1
Keep your wilds for when nothing fits.
After a wild, name the pelt you hold most of.
Tip 2
Play action cards while they hurt.
A snare or hop on a player with few cards left buys you time.
Tip 3
Change the pelt without a wild.
A card with the same face in a new pelt changes the pelt, and can strand a player who has been drawing on the old one.
Tip 4
Watch who draws.
Someone drawing on a pelt may be out of it. Drawing while you could play is allowed but rarely pays.
Tip 5
Count what has gone.
Each pelt has seventeen cards. Once most of one is out, naming it after a wild can leave the next player with nothing.
The Feral Worlds community
Play-testing Molt? Tell us in Discord.
Found a bug, a rule that feels off, or a house rule your family swears by? Our Discord is where we collect play-test feedback, and where game nights are starting to happen.
Glossary
Talk like a regular.
- Pelt
- One of the four suits: moss, ember, tide or dusk.
- Face
- A card’s number or its action. Matching the face lets you change pelt.
- Hop
- An action card: the next player misses a turn.
- Turn
- An action card: play goes the other way.
- Snare
- An action card: the next player draws two and misses a turn.
- Chameleon
- A wild card. Play it on anything and name the next pelt.
- Howl
- A wild card. Name the next pelt, and the next player draws four and misses a turn.
- Stock
- The face-down pile you draw from.
The Feral twist
Still under the hat.
Every game can be played Classic. In Feral mode, the host writes the house rules: whether snares and howls stack, when you may draw, and whether a howl can be challenged.
In play-testing
Molt is in play-testing.
Molt is not in a pack yet. You can play it in the Feral Table Games client while we test it.
$9.95, one time, to host every game in it. Playing is always free. Packs go on sale when the full game launches.
Molt is in play-testing
Save a seat.
Hear when the Kickstarter opens, and when Molt can be hosted with friends.