

Oar Else!
Description
Stranded in shark infested waters, race to shore or find the items necessary for an immediate rescue. Play as a "team" or jump overboard and go it alone, overcoming torrential storms, blabbering parrots, pirate attacks, and simply losing your mind. Hoard food for an end game bonus. Oar Else! is a "cooperative" card game for 3-5 players, ages 8+.
Everyone starts together, adrift at sea in a lifeboat. The game can be played cooperatively by paddling to shore together in the boat, collecting cumulatively fifteen paddle cards. An alternate win is for the group to find three out of four items necessary for the boat's immediate rescue.
However, players also have the option to jump overboard and "go it alone", taking their paddling contribution with them in the hopes of either paddling to shore before the boat or by achieving their personal immediate rescue scenario.
Once the boat reaches shore, food cards are used to break-the-tie. When food cards are drawn during a player's turn, they do not get to keep the card. Instead, the others in the boat must bid on the card by using cards from their hand.
Thank you to Chris Baylis at the Games Gazette (http://www.gamesgazette.co.uk/gg/main.php?p=content/Board+Games/OAR+ELSE+card+game+fun.htm) for writing this great review of Oar Else!. I appreciate his honest and constructive feedback and have since revised the rules in the hopes to make learning the game easier.
Rules revision: 2.19.14: http://www.flatcar6studios.com/oarelse/pdf/oarelse_rules_2014_0219.pdf
Download and print the combined set-up card: http://www.flatcar6studios.com/oarelse/pdf/OarElse_CombinedSetupCard.pdf