Member House Rules

[mfranko88]

A few of our house rules off the top of my head:

We've expanded the Cheat! card to extend beyond just items. Nothing too drastic. I've cheated on an extra Class card, and I've cheated on a weapon modifier onto my race before. ("I'm an armor-piercing Elf!") Just some examples. My friends and I like to find clever uses for it while still trying to keep it within the realm of the text of the card.

Epic starts at 11, not 10. No real reason, it just makes more sense to me. 10 levels of normal fighting, ten levels of epic fighting.

We've developed a system on discarding cards in situations where there might be multiple cards to discard. This is done for a few reasons: some curses/spells/skills/items/etc. call specifically on "the top XX in the discards." Also, cleric is hugely powerful in my group of Munchkins, because....

The Cleric Resurrection ability can use a discard from either your hand or from your cards in play on the table. On that note, we'd kept the old Wizard abilities, where any sized hand could be discarded to Charm a monster, as long as there was at least one card discarded (as in, you can't discard a hand of 0 cards). Thieves must have a level to lose in order to steal. (Thieves must be level 2 or higher in order to steal) If a Munchkin is a Centaur Ranger, then the Ranger ability that forces you to discard your steed no longer forces you to discard the Steed.

We also play that Munchkins of level 1 or 2 win ties in combat if he is fighting alone. This just helps get the game moving a little bit faster.

I'm not sure if this is in the rules or not, but this is how we do epic door-kicking: if one card is a monster, and the other card could at all affect the combat, it does. If it comes out with a modifier, it affects the monster. If it comes out with a Steed or a Hireling, the monster is riding the steed or fighting with the Hireling. If the monster comes out with "Dead" or "Dead Broke" then the combat ends. If it comes out with Annihilation, the monster is Annihilated. If it comes out with a Wandering Monster/Dogpile/etc. then other monster(s) can be thrown out. If it's with Mate/Mommy/etc. then you are facing the monster and it's mate/mommy (even if the monster wasn't able to be "Mommied")

We always play that you can look through the discards whenever you want. Our rationale is that the more strategic you can be, the better, which includes informing yourself on whether a certain card/combo would work.

If two players are tied for the lowest level, there is no charity. Everything in excess is discarded.

We always EXPLICITLY say, in every combat, what we are gaining. "I'm fighting a gazebo and I'm up 27 to 8. I'm getting a level and two treasures. Is anybody going to do anything?" and if somebody says wait, we must wait if they are going to play a card. If the combat is going to give you the winning level, you must explicitly state that this combat is "for the win" (however, if there is some card/ability than can be used after the combat to give you the winning level, then you do not have to state it's for the win. The only one I can think of right now is one of the spells form Munchkinomicon, which can give the winning level to a Munchkin after a combat)

Super Munchkin and Half Breed cards (and their related cards) are able to be stacked. That is, a person with two Super Munchkin cards could have three classes. Our logic here being that the class is essentially a single slot the represents a value. The super munchkin card just splits that slot in half, now allowing two values into the same space. Either of those new values can be split further by another super munchkin card, just like the original slot. It's like a tree the branches out. You can add a race/class modifier to a SM/HB card and get that benefit for the whole race/class system you have in play.

We've also toyed around with an idea for annihilation. The card text is slightly ambiguous. I believe it says "remove any card from play." And we've always played it that you target a specific card and that one card is gone. But one time I almost tried to annihilate every elf card in the deck, under the argument that I am simply annihilating the elf card. "Elf cards no longer exist." I ended up not being able to try it/argue it, but the idea has always been there.

We also had to come up with a system for curses, to differentiate when a curse hits someone, effects someone, misses someone, etc, because there are now so many different cards that can do/rely on all that. It all came to a crux in a game right after I got both Munchkinomicon and M8, which introduced "Impending Doom." There was the Occasionally Reliable Amulet, Magnificent Hat, and Lucky Talisman, plus the Mutant Gerbil Steed, so there had to be some clarification on the physics of cursing. It was at that point in my life that I (happily) realized that I've played Munchkin probably a bit too much.

[backstabby]

1. I allow players to trade race and class cards. It adds a whole new level of back stabbyness to the game.

2. I also make players announce when the winning level is at stake, if they don't, they lose two level and die.

3. I allow players to put cards from their hands onto the table as part of an "open market" where anyone else can put what they are willing to trade for it on the table face up. The trader's argue and fight over the card, and often kill each other to get it.

4. Looting the body is on a first come first serve basis. Everyone still only gets one card, but it rewards the people who are paying attention rather than the people who are winning.

[Ash Plissken]

Originally Posted by MunchkinMan

The undead rule listed there is an official rule, and has been one since before those house rules were listed.

Zoinks! When was that added? (I bought my first 3 Munchkin sets back when the backs of the Doors were the same color as the backs of the Treasures, and I don't remember it being in the rules then).

And I've been wondering, is there a general term for the act of (legally) adding a monster to a combat without needing to use a Wandering Monster or other additional card, like you can do with the Fries from Munchkin Blender? I can't think of a good one, but most of the house rules I want to use involve certain monsters being able to do that with certain other monsters (e.g. adding the Snot Elemental to a combat involving the Floating Nose).

[Clipper]

Originally Posted by Ash Plissken

Zoinks! When was that added? (I bought my first 3 Munchkin sets back when the backs of the Doors were the same color as the backs of the Treasures, and I don't remember it being in the rules then).

And I've been wondering, is there a general term for the act of (legally) adding a monster to a combat without needing to use a Wandering Monster or other additional card, like you can do with the Fries from Munchkin Blender? I can't think of a good one, but most of the house rules I want to use involve certain monsters being able to do that with certain other monsters (e.g. adding the Snot Elemental to a combat involving the Floating Nose).

It was added in January of this year, I believe, so it's only a few months old.

These cards usually just say they can join any combat (or perhaps any combat with specific conditions) without needing a Wandering Monster card. I don't believe there's an official term for them. Perhaps you could call them Joining Monsters or even Conjoined Monsters :p.

[Iceman_B]

The only house-rule I can think of to add to my games are to allow ANY kind of Die, be it Loaded or Reloaded, to be used BY ANY PLAYER, on ANY die roll.
Last card to hit the table trumps all previous ones played in that "moment".

Just because it livens things up a bit :)

[FourDeuces]

The only house rule we have (admittedly only 3 games into the Munchkin addiction) is that in order to win, you must provide the narrative of the last combat. Doesn't change the game at all, but sure guarantees that every one goes away with a smile on their face. Something like:

I kicked the door down, and was confronted by a Shrieking Geek. I began wailing on him with my Boots of Butt-Kicking as hard as I could. Suddenly, in walked a Vampire Wannabe, who began attacking me from behind! I whirled around and unsheathed me Eleven foot pole, smacking him in the head. When I returned my attention to the geek, he had grown to 3 times his size (Humongous card played), tearing his pocket protected shirt in half Hulk style. He also appeared to be wearing his graduation hat (Intelligent)... I unloaded every potion I had, and, when all still seemed lost, I summoned a twin (Doppleganger) to fight by my side and rid us of the evildoers!

It makes for a great ending to the perfect game!

[mfranko88]

Originally Posted by FourDeuces

The only house rule we have (admittedly only 3 games into the Munchkin addiction) is that in order to win, you must provide the narrative of the last combat. Doesn't change the game at all, but sure guarantees that every one goes away with a smile on their face. Something like:



It makes for a great ending to the perfect game!

Sounds awesome. That's one of my favorite things to do: take a step back form the game and just picture the absurdity of what my Munchkin would actually look like running around a dungeon, fighting monster. Since we always play epic, things can get rather out of hand.

[BlairBear]

I know this thread is kinda dead, but with the introduction of the guild booster we have had to change our house rules. Originally we just kinda ignored the 5 card rule cause it's more fun when someone is about to win and people pull out all sorts of one shots and curses, but with Elected Guild Leader! added that person has a ridiculous advantage. So back to original rules for us.
Love reading everyone else's house rules though! A lot of the "rules" involving th shot glasses sound pretty crazy for the group I play with!

[thedag]

Originally Posted by FourDeuces

The only house rule we have (admittedly only 3 games into the Munchkin addiction) is that in order to win, you must provide the narrative of the last combat. Doesn't change the game at all, but sure guarantees that every one goes away with a smile on their face. Something like:



It makes for a great ending to the perfect game!

You might enjoy Cthulhu Gloom which is anoter sjgames product where it is not compulsory but highly encouraged to tell a story as you play.

[MunchkinMan]

Originally Posted by thedag

You might enjoy Cthulhu Gloom which is anoter sjgames product where it is not compulsory but highly encouraged to tell a story as you play.

Atlas Games, not SJG...