The Fox In The Forest is a simple yet thematic two-player trick-taking game consisting solely of 33 cards and a handful of scoring tokens. It makes for a refreshing addition to the genre, ditching the dryness of Hearts and the complications of Cat In The Box – instead finding its niche by not just asking, “Can you win?” but “Should you?”.
To set up The Fox In The Forest, you must shuffle your deck of cards, then deal 13 cards to each player. The remaining seven cards should then be placed in a pile between the players, forming a “draw deck”. Finally, place the top card of the draw deck face up in front of both players – this is what the game refers to as the “decree card”, however, trick-taking veterans will know it as the “trump card”.
The game is played over a varying number of rounds, with players scoring points at the end of each round – but when one player reaches 21 points after the end-of-round scoring phase, the game ends, and the player with the highest total score wins the game. In the case of a tie, the player who won the most tricks in the final round wins!
Each round consists of 13 turns (or “tricks”) in which each player plays one card from their hand. For the first turn of the first round, choose a random player to start (perhaps whoever wasn’t the dealer, or, for fun, whoever seems most likely to cut off their foot to fit into a glass slipper). The player who wins the trick then starts (or “leads”) the next trick. Meanwhile, each new round is started by the person who didn’t start the previous round.
The first player (or “leader”) of each trick has no restraints on which card they can play from their hand. Meanwhile, the second player of each trick (the “follower”) must play a card of any value that matches the “lead” card’s suit. However, if they don’t have a card in the lead suit, they may then play any card from their hand without restraints.
When a card is played, any ability it might have is immediately resolved. Only the odd-numbered cards have abilities, but each one has the power to alter the course of the round and change the narrative in this constructed fairytale. The Swan lets you lose a trick on the current turn in order to lead the next one – perfect for setting up a comeback. The Woodcutter allows you to draw a new card, subtly shifting your hand’s momentum. The Fox can swap out the decree (trump) card with one from your hand, giving you the power to upend your opponent’s carefully laid plans. The Treasure card offers bonus points to the trick winner, a valuable lifeline when you’re trailing behind. The Witch can turn any card into a trump, injecting just enough uncertainty to keep every play tense. And the Monarch forces your opponent to play either their highest card or a one, revealing key information about their hand.
Don’t worry about memorizing all of these effects – the game includes two excellent player reference cards that keep everything at your fingertips, so you can focus on outwitting your rival instead of flipping through the rulebook!
Once both cards have been played, and their abilities have been resolved, the highest-ranking card in the current decree card’s suit wins the trick. If no card in the decree card’s suit has been played, then the highest ranking card in the lead card’s suit wins the trick. Once a player has won (or “taken”) a trick, they place it face-down in a pile to the side of the playing area, so that both players may track the number of tricks that have been won by each player.
At the end of each round, the players each tally the number of tricks that they’ve taken, and then score them. Here the game reveals its most intense twist – one that can expose the hubris of even the purest hero. You see, in The Fox In The Forest, scoring is curved across a scale that turns strategy into an intense two-player tightrope walk. If a player humbly takes up to three tricks, they’ll earn six glorious points, most likely by lulling their opponent into a false sense of security. If a player takes four, five or six tricks, they’ll gain one, two or three points, respectively – playing the game too complacently to earn them any respectable amount of fame. Then, if a player takes seven, eight or nine tricks, they’re once again deemed worthy of a mighty reward: six points. But players must beware, as unchecked ambition will always betray you. If a player takes ten or more tricks, they are punished by the forest for their hubris, receiving no points at all. Like in all the best fairytales, greed comes with consequences.
This approach to scoring combined with the understated folklore illustrations on the cards turns The Fox In The Forest into an invitation to rethink what a card game can be: quietly competitive, narratively rich, and a deeply satisfying fairy tale for two. I still can’t wrap my head around how such an engaging experience of daringness, desperation and heroic downfall can fit into such a tiny box… but hopefully you can now at least wrap your head around the rules!
