The goal of Deathtrap Dungeon is to rid the dungeon of monsters; players 'kill' monsters by discarding cards and are then scored depending on who gets rid of all their cards first - the player with the most points at the end of 4 rounds wins the game.

Shuffle and deal all the cards in the pack to the players evenly until all have been dealt (some players may end up with one more card than others)

The player who has been dealt the Exploding Pig begins the round by using the pig to 'kill' any monster in his hand (The Pig plus a card of the player's choice can be discarded.) The player to the left then starts the hand. (Always proceed clockwise)

Players should conceal their cards and arrange them in sets (creature type); Orc, Priestess, Warrior etc. The first player starts the hand by putting down any number of cards of the same set on the table - face up. The next player can then also discard cards if he/she can put down the same number of cards with a higher value. i.e. Four Skeletons (with a value of 3 each) could be followed by four Warriors (worth 5 each). However if the second player did not have four cards in a set, or his/her set had a value of less than (or only equal too) the last card type played - he/she could not play and would have to pass.
A player may also choose to pass even if they have suitable cards - to secretly save them to a win a hand later!

The winner of the hand is the player who puts down the set of the highest value once all players at the table have played or passed. (This will always be the last player who was able to play!) This person then starts the next hand. The first player to put down all of their cards wins the round, however, the round continues to be played until all players have discarded their cards. A note is then made of who 'fought' best in ascending order:

The cards are shuffles and re-dealt for the 2nd Round. But before the 2nd round can begin the Total Wimp must hand over his/her 2 highest value cards (not including 'Special Cards') to The Big Hero and The Big Hero gives The Total Wimp back any two cards. (Exchanged cards are not revealed to the table). Also The Wimp must hand over his/her highest value card in exchange for any one card from The Hero. The other players do not exchange cards.

The rounds continue until 4 rounds have been played and then the game ends.

Special Cards: Chaindog and Red Lotus Cards are wild cards that can be used to add to any set. Played on their own, Chaindog or Red Lotus have a value of 0. Exploding Pig is played before a round starts to allow a player to discard one card and select which player goes first. The Killing Machine can be played on its own at any time to stop a hand, the player that used it then begins the next hand.

Winning - Points are scored at the end of each round according to the number of players and the order of finishing: If there are six players:


The ultimate winner is the player who finishes the 4 rounds with the most points, he/she must then be hailed as The Ultimate Hero of all time! and other players should grovel suitably.