Fisticuffs!

Fisticuffs! is a free-for-brawl fighting card game created by The Nerdologues, a bunch of people you don’t know but could totally be friends with. Four to six players engage in head-to-head (-to-head-to-head) constant combat until the frenzy peaks and one player emerges victorious. 

The physical copy of the game will come to you in a nice box, professionally printed and sealed for freshness. And here's a Nerdologues website special for y'all: order two or more copies of Fisticuffs! and get free shipping! Share the love!  

When Baron Reginald Fistcuffington Smythe discovered the new super-element hydrolium, he could have ushered in a new era of glorious technological achievement and peace. Instead, he built a massive airship powered by his discovery and traveled the world in search of able-bodied combatants to fight each other for his amusement. Baron Smythe, possessing unbelieveable technology and fantastic wealth, offered a lucrative reward to those who would become champion of “His Majesty’s Fisticuffs Bouts” — your greatest wish fulfilled.

Fighters from the world over flocked to Baron Smythe’s flying boxing ring. Pugilists decided their fates with hooks and haymakers, spits and stomps; anything goes when you’re boxing in the sky! Previous Fisticuffs champions such as Jason “The Great” Gatsby (wished for fantastic wealth) and Ripjaw “The Bonesaw” Bloodsmash (wished for a quiet house in the suburbs) became famous for their deft footwork, masterful technique, and extravagant wishes.

You are one of the fighters who has climbed aboard the Baron’s airship to participate in his most recent tournament. Can you become champion and get your greatest wish fulfilled? This is Fisticuffs! 

Fisticuffs! includes:

  • 54 Punch Cards 
  • 21 Rounds Cards 
  • 8 Character Cards 
  • 6 Reference Cards 
  • 6 Life Counters 
  • 1 Bell Token Card 
  • 1 Glove Token Card 
  • Rules Sheet 
  • Our hopes and dreams 

 

Need more info? Read the rules of Fisticuffs! or our Frequently Asked Questions regarding the game!

Fisticuffs! Store Locator

There are a handful of lovely retailers out there who carry our game. If you don't trust ecommerce (hey, we get it!), you can visit the following locations to pick up a copy in the flesh! Keep checking this page as the list grows! And if you DO visit these stores, tell them the Nerds sent you! And that you love us! And that you'd marry any one of us, if given the chance! (Also, if you WISH your local game shop carried our game, have them email eric at nerdologues.com right away!)

Illinois

The Chicago Design Museum
108 N State St
3rd Floor
Chicago, IL 60602
(312) 894-6263

Neighborly
2003 W Montrose Ave
Chicago, IL 60618
(773) 840-2456

Pastimes Comics & Games
8502 W Golf Rd
Niles, IL 60714
(847) 470-9636

Quimby's
1854 W. North Ave
Chicago, IL 60622
(773) 342-0910

Minnesota

The Source Comics and Games
2057 Snelling Ave N
Roseville, MN 55113
(651) 645-0386

Wisconsin

Noble Knight Games
2242 Kennedy Rd
Janesville, WI 53545
(608) 758-9901

Related blog posts

Reposted from our successful Fisticuffs! Kickstarter

Hey fighters!

Please update your addresses if you haven't yet!

Week six of our character introductions brings the haymakerin' hammerin' hunk, the security guard, Gene the Gorilla, otherwise known as The Congo Bongo.

Reposted from our successful Fisticuffs! Kickstarter

Hey fighters!

Great news! Things are rolling here at Nerdologues HQ as we're nearing getting the game into your hands!

Just so we have some transparency about how the game will get to you, we made a small rush printing to make sure the games looked good and were up to snuff before sending off for the final print job. Our full print is being done through AdMagic, and will be shipped on a boat to the States, where it will go to a warehouse in Indiana and be shipped from there to you. We're still ironing out the exact details, and once we have more we'll get them to you! So far, everything is moving right on schedule.

Because we're getting closer to shipping the games to you, if you have moved since we sent out the backer survey requesting your address, you need to update your address or else your game might not get to you!

The PDF was also released last week to all of our backers! Hooray! If you missed it, do a quick search in your email for the last backer update from us, or take a look at the Kickstarter's update page for the message letting you know how to download/print a copy on your own.

Week five of our character introductions delivers the dashing deviant dynamo, the saxophone-playing, trick card magician, Theo Thomas, otherwise known as The Saxomagician.

Reposted from our successful Fisticuffs! Kickstarter

Hey fighters!

We've finally recovered from PAX and Labor Day and are back in the swing of things! First of all, thank you so much to all of the people who stopped by the booth while we were at PAX, demoed the game, or bought an early copy! You're all a bunch of champions (and for those of you who won during your demo games, you're double champions). We had so much fun getting the game seeing people's reaction to the game and knocking each other around - it was a hit!

Secondly, a big thanks goes out to everyone who came to our shows - you all are awesome - as well as to Cards Against Humanity (for putting the space together) and Improvised Star Trek (for flying as our wingman for those shows). If you missed them, well, you really missed out on some cool stuff!

We also finished the PDF for our backers! We will send out another backer update soon with the link and basic instructions on how to print and play with your digital copy of the game (hint: it involves going to Kinkos and asking them to print it).

Picking up where we left off with character introductions, week four brings us the bronzed bashing battler, the prize fighter of Baron Smythe himself, Steam-0, otherwise known as The Metal Devil.

Reposted from our successful Fisticuffs! Kickstarter

Hey fighters!

We'll be at PAX Prime in Seattle this weekend! Because of you awesome backers, we were able to rush print a small amount of games to bring with us, and we'll be demoing and selling those extra copies of the game as part of the PAX-adjacent Cards Against Humanity store in the ACT Theatre! If you've backed the game and you'll be at PAX, you can stop by and let us know and we can give you your backed copy right there!

We'll also be performing in multiple comedy shows this weekend in that same space - stop by the store to get a program of the weekend's events. We'll be doing our trademark brand of stupid sketch comedy (re: fart jokes), as well as some Cards Against Humanity improv shows with the game's creators, like we did for the past few years. Fun stuff!

However, because of the trip, we might not be able to send out the Character Update on next Tuesday since we'll be in transit back to Chicago. :( We'll do our best!

Additional cool news - we're almost ready to release the PDF of the game to all of our backers! Once we're back from this weekend's trip, it will be our next priority. Stay tuned!

Week three of our weekly character previews introduces the marvelous and mighty marsupial Archie the Kangaroo, otherwise known as The Thunder From Down Under.

Hey fighters!

First, some good news! We ordered a small batch of the game to see how the print came out, and the good news is that they came out perfect! We're really excited to get them to you, and the rest are on their way.

We'll be at two places this Saturday demoing the game, if you're in Chicago and want to play! We'll have a crew at BitBash as part of the Cards Against Humanity’s Quiet Fun Sit Down Lounge (Tabletop Section) - so swing by and say hi after checking out all the cool stuff there is to offer there. We'll also have another crew at the Chicago Southland Mini Maker Faire with our own table, so you have two chances to see us and the game this weekend! No excuses!

Week two of our weekly character previews introduces the statuesque, stately slugger Annie Columbia, otherwise known as The Lady of Liberty.

Reposted from our successful Fisticuffs! Kickstarter

Hey fighters!

This is the first of our eight weekly updates about the characters of Fisticuffs!

In these updates we'll give you a bit of background about the eight world warriors who inhabit the world of Fisticuffs! and some handy tips and tricks for playing as them from our team, to give you a bit of a head start on your competition.

Our first fighter is the battlin' Burt Reynolds look-a-like, the clobberin' Clifton Walker Jr., otherwise known as The Lion Son.