Plunder Blunder is a social push-your-luck pirate game where you steal treasure, bribe the Navy, and betray your friends. When the treasure cards run out, the final voyage ends and the pirate with the most buried treasure wins.
Each round has four phases: Plunder, Bribe, Bury, and Return. By the end, you’ll have plenty of treasure, fewer friends, and maybe scurvy.
Simultaneously flip cards, adding them to your hand. Cursed treasure advances your ship toward the Navy, while Special cards provide powerful one-time effects.
Each pirate decides whether to stop for the round or flip another card. You bust if your ship ever reaches or passes the Navy Ship.
If you bust, discard all your unburied treasure cards (buried treasure is safe). Pirates continue simultaneously drawing and revealing cards until everyone has either chosen to stop or busted.
Work together to convince the Navy to hold back. Collectively place any number of treasure cards face down in front of you, then simultaneously reveal them. Four out of five pirates surveyed suggest that this is the best time to betray everyone.
If no one contributes cursed treasure:
Roll the Navy die. Reduce the die roll by 1 for each different uncursed number contributed. Advance the Navy Ship toward the Pirates’ Cove that many spaces (minimum 0). Any pirates whose ships are now in the same space as or past the Navy Ship bust.
If exactly one pirate contributes cursed treasure:
That pirate CANNOT bust from the Navy this round. The cursed treasure does not count toward the Bribe. Resolve the Navy die as described above, then advance the Navy Ship one more space.
In this example, white contributed a cursed treasure and is safe from the Navy. Because the Navy moves one space further, orange busts instead!
If two or more pirates contributed cursed treasure:
Those pirates immediately bust, and everyone else is safe from the Navy this round. Do not roll the Navy die.
Discard all cards contributed to the Bribe. If you survived, prepare to bury your treasure.
Each round, pirates may bury up to one treasure card of each number, including no more than one cursed treasure card. All treasure cards are worth points, even if they are cursed. It’s okay to accumulate duplicate numbers and/or multiple buried cursed treasure cards over several rounds.
Each pirate may choose to discard one cursed treasure card.
Pirates return their ships to the Pirates’ Cove, then advance them one space toward the Navy for each 💀 on their unburied treasure cards.
Reset the Navy Ship, and plunder again!
1–4 P: The game ends at the end of the round in which the deck runs out for the first time.
5–7 P: The game ends at the end of the round in which the deck runs out for the second time.
Whenever the deck runs out, immediately shuffle the discard pile to form a new deck and finish the round (even if it’s the last round of the game).
At the end of the game, pirates add up the value of their buried treasure, including cursed treasure, and the pirate with the highest total value wins.
Pirates may freely claim that they have contributed cursed treasure to the Bribe, even if it’s not true.
After both pirates have placed their Bribe cards face down, but before they’re revealed, one pirate may reveal the other’s Bribe cards.
The other pirate is safe from the Navy this round and returns their Bribe cards to their hand.
Only one pirate may do this per round, with priority given to whoever’s loudest.