Ben Hvrt

Welcome to Ancient Rome, a swinging town with a little something for everyone, even the man who yearns to die horribly in a chariot racing accident. Ben Hvrt is the classic Cheapass Game of chariot racing and fighting, featuring simple game mechanics and hilarious cards.

The game is a series of races, and can be played for money. Players start with 100 Ducats, and are trying to make as much money as possible by buying cards and racing their chariots. Each race is preceded by an auction in which players can buy special cards like Improvements, Drivers, and Move and Event cards. The more money you spend in the auction, the better your chances of winning. But nothing is guaranteed.

Racing chariots is a simple matter of rolling dice and playing your cards. Drivers and Improvements make your chariot more formidable, and Move cards help you roll (or hurt other people's rolls). Event cards can do anything from retiring a Driver to spreading a basket of nails on the track. An elegant system of movement and speed-tracking make the race as quick and exciting as it should be.

After each race, the cards you haven't played are still yours to keep. The first place finisher takes half of the pot, the second takes two-thirds of what's left, and third place gets the rest. When the series is over, whoever has the most money wins.

To play Ben Hvrt you'll need a 6-sided die for each player, a matching lap marker for each player, some kind of money, and at least one more 6-sided die. The PDF edition of Ben Hvrt is a 960K ZIP file containing separate PDF files for the rules, board, and cards. The cards are formatted for 10-up pre-perforated business cards, though you can also hand-cut them if you like.

To find out what great Cheapass Games are still in print, zoom over to their double-secret Web site at www.cheapass.com!