Rules Overview
Game design: David McDougal
A Card Game of Loads, Denials, and Refuel Stops
Players: 4
Play Time: 30–45 minutes
Age: 8+
Overview
Across four Hauls, drivers play cards to determine finishing order, then select cargo in reverse order.
Claimed cards are loaded onto a trailer with one storage slot for each suit. Cards of the exact same rank can be combined into a Heavy Load, allowing several cards to share one storage slot.
But Heavy Loads carry risk. If their occupied suit slot is later forced to unload, the entire Heavy Load is lost.
Manage your hand, build valuable cargo, deny opponents the cards they want, and use your two Refuels carefully.
After four Hauls, the driver with the highest total score wins.
Components
- 28-card deck
- 4 Player Boards
- 8 Refuel Tokens, 2 per player
- Score pad
The Deck
Build the deck from a standard deck of playing cards:
- Hearts: 2–8
- Diamonds: 3–9
- Spades: 4–10
- Clubs: 5–J
Jack = 11.
This creates a 28-card deck.
Because 2♥ and J♣ are the only cards of their ranks, they can never form Heavy Loads.
Ranks 5–8 are the only ranks appearing in all four suits.
Setup
- Choose a Dealer randomly or however the table prefers.
- Give each player a Player Board and 2 Refuel Tokens.
- Shuffle all 28 cards.
- Deal 7 cards to each player.
Each trailer has four storage slots:
Hearts | Diamonds | Spades | Clubs
All trailers, Heavy Loads, discarded cards, scores, and remaining Refuel Tokens are public information.
Cards in players' hands remain private.
Game Structure
The game lasts 4 Hauls.
Each Haul contains 7 Loads, one for each card in a player's hand.
At the end of each Haul:
- Score each trailer.
- Record the scores.
- Collect all cards, including discarded cards.
- Shuffle the complete 28-card deck.
- Rotate the Dealer one seat to the left.
- Deal 7 new cards to each player.
Trailers reset between Hauls.
Scores and unused Refuel Tokens carry over for the entire game.
Playing a Load
For the first Load of a Haul, the player to the Dealer's left leads.
For every later Load, the player who finished highest in the previous Load leads.
Starting with the lead player and continuing clockwise, each player plays one card face-up into the current Load.
There is no requirement to follow suit.
Players may play any card from their hand.
Determine Finishing Order
After all four cards have been played, rank them from highest to lowest.
Only rank matters. Suit has no effect.
If two or more cards have the same rank, the card played earlier in turn order finishes higher.
Example
The cards are played: 8 — 5 — 8 — 3
The first 8 finishes first, the second 8 finishes second, the 5 finishes third, and the 3 finishes fourth.
Resolve Cargo
Players resolve cards in reverse finishing order:
- Fourth place acts first.
- Third place acts second.
- Second place acts third.
- First place acts last.
On your turn, you must resolve one card still remaining in the current Load after earlier players have acted.
You may resolve that card in one of two ways:
- Claim Cargo: Choose one remaining card and immediately load it onto your trailer.
- Refuel: Spend one Refuel Token, choose one remaining card, and place it in the discard pile instead. You take no cargo from that Load.
You may choose any card still remaining in the current Load, regardless of who originally played it.
Resolve your choice completely before the next player acts.
Loading Cargo
When you Claim Cargo, you must immediately load the selected card onto your trailer.
You have two possible ways to load it.
Heavy Load
If the card has the exact same rank as an exposed card already on your trailer, you may tuck the new card underneath that matching cargo.
The original exposed card stays on top and continues to occupy its current suit slot.
The tucked card does not occupy its own printed suit slot.
The cards are now linked together as a Heavy Load.
Future cards of that exact same rank may also be tucked underneath the same Heavy Load.
Once cards are joined in a Heavy Load:
- they remain together,
- they may not be rearranged,
- they may not be split apart, and
- the original exposed card remains on top.
If more than one exposed cargo matches the new card's rank, choose one matching cargo to receive it.
Separate matching cargos do not combine with each other.
Heavy Load Example
Your Spades slot contains: 8♠ - 8♥
The 8♠ remains exposed, so this Heavy Load occupies only the Spades slot.
The buried 8♥ does not occupy the Hearts slot, so you may still have another Hearts card on your trailer.
If you later take 8♦, you may tuck it underneath the same Heavy Load: 8♠ - 8♥ - 8♦
The Heavy Load still occupies only the Spades slot.
Load by Suit
You may instead load the card normally using its printed suit.
If its suit slot is empty, place the card there face-up.
If that suit slot is already occupied, you must perform a Forced Unload.
If a card could either join a Heavy Load or be loaded normally by suit, you choose which option to use.
Cargo Stays Put
Cargo already on your trailer may not be moved, rearranged, split, or voluntarily discarded unless a rule specifically instructs you to do so.
Forced Unload
If you load a card into an occupied suit slot, remove the cargo currently occupying that slot and place it face-up in the discard pile.
Then place the new card face-up in that suit slot.
If the removed cargo is a Heavy Load, discard the entire Heavy Load.
Buried cards are not separated, rescued, or moved to their printed suit slots.
Example
Your Spades slot contains:
8♠ - 8♥ - 8♦
You take 6♠ and choose to load it by suit.
The 6♠ causes a Forced Unload.
Discard all three 8s, then place 6♠ in the Spades slot.
Refuel
Each player begins the game with 2 Refuel Tokens.
Each token may be used once.
When it is your turn to resolve cargo, you may Refuel instead of Claiming Cargo.
Spend one Refuel Token, choose one card still remaining in the current Load, and place that card face-up in the discard pile.
You take no cargo from that Load.
A Refuel may be used on any remaining card. The card does not need to threaten your trailer or cause a Forced Unload.
Refueling does not change any cargo already on your trailer.
Refuel Tokens are not replenished between Hauls.
Discarded Cards
Keep all discarded cards face-up in a common discard area.
Discarded cards remain out of play for the rest of the current Haul.
They are public information and may be inspected by any player.
At the end of the Haul, return all discarded cards to the deck before shuffling for the next Haul.
End of a Load
After all four players have resolved one card, the Load ends.
The player who finished highest in that Load leads the next Load.
Using a Refuel Token does not change finishing order or who leads next.
Continue until all seven cards from each player's hand have been played.
Scoring a Haul
After the seventh Load, score every card remaining on your trailer.
Add the rank value of every card, including all cards buried inside Heavy Loads.
Jack = 11.
There are no separate Heavy Load bonuses. Their advantage is allowing multiple scoring cards to occupy a single trailer slot.
Example
Your trailer contains:
- 7♥
- 9♦
- 10♠
- an 8♣ with 8♥, 8♦, and 8♠ tucked underneath it
Your score is: 7 + 9 + 10 + 8 + 8 + 8 + 8 = 58
Record the score.
Then collect all cards, shuffle the complete deck, rotate the Dealer, and begin the next Haul.
End of the Game
After 4 Hauls, add each player's four Haul scores.
The player with the highest total score wins.
Tiebreakers
If two or more players are tied:
- The tied player with the most unused Refuel Tokens wins.
- If still tied, the tied player with the highest score in Haul 4 wins.
- If still tied, the tied players share the victory.
Quick Reference
Each Load
- Each player plays one card face-up.
- Rank the cards highest to lowest.
- Ties favor the card played earlier.
- Resolve cards in reverse finishing order.
- On your turn, choose one card still remaining in the current Load.
- Claim Cargo and load it, or spend a Refuel to discard it.
- Highest finisher leads the next Load.
Loading Cargo
Exact rank already exposed?
You may tuck the new card underneath it to form or grow a Heavy Load.
Loading normally by suit?
Place the card in its matching suit slot.
Suit slot occupied?
Perform a Forced Unload, discarding the cargo already there.
Don't want to take cargo?
Spend one of your two Refuel Tokens, discard one remaining card from the Load, and take no cargo.
