Before the first clue
Set up the room
- 1
Form your teams
Players gather in as many as 10 animal teams. The host activates the teams that are playing tonight. New arrivals can join a newly activated team at any time.
- 2
Face the Player Display
The big screen is the public game board. The Mac screen is the host’s private console, so please don’t peek.
- 3
Start the team card
Before the first question, each team gives its team card to one seated player. That player holds up the card when the team is ready and gives the team’s answer if called. After the team answers, pass the card to the next player on that team. Keep passing it after every answer so a different teammate represents the team next time.
The main game
Play the Hootenanny board
The team named as the chooser selects an available category tile. Each tile displays its exact point value. Question files still use familiar 100–500 levels, but the board gives every tile a playful value within that level—such as 124, 238, or 547.
Earn—or lose—points
Your team gains the value shown on the tile, the answer appears on the big screen, and your team usually chooses the next tile. Pass your team card to the next player.
Your team loses that tile’s value and the answer is revealed. The clue is finished; no other team may answer it. Pass your team card to the next player.
After every answer, pass your team card to the next seated player on your team. That person represents the team for the next clue.
Teams may be added or removed during play. A team joining late begins with 0 points.
Exactly once per game
Barnyard Hoot & Howl
Exactly once per game, after the board is more than halfway complete, a selected tile becomes a Barnyard Hoot & Howl. The game randomly chooses an active team. The host privately previews a challenge, may skip unsuitable choices, and then presents one to the room.
Give the challenge a genuine try within your own comfort and ability. The host—not the other teams—makes the decision. A genuine attempt earns the tile’s points; refusing or making no attempt earns no points. Talent and perfection are never required.
No game moment is more important than a person’s safety, mobility, dignity, or choice to pass. The host can skip a challenge or return the tile to the board.
Exactly once per game
Barnyard Boondoggle
Exactly once per game, after the board is more than halfway complete, the game interrupts at a random moment and the leading team faces a playful point transfer to another team. It is scheduled well apart from the Hoot & Howl so the game has room to breathe. The leaders may accept the Boondoggle—or try to stop it by choosing one of three hay bales in Find the Golden Horseshoe.
Find the hidden horseshoe and no points move. Miss it, and the announced transfer takes place. The host controls when every result appears on the big screen.
The last showdown
Final Challenge
The host selects a category that was not played on tonight’s board. The game draws an unused 300-level question from that topic. Eligible teams then decide whether to freeze their score or make a private bid. Teams submit an answer and bid card. The host scores each team privately, then reveals the final totals and winner celebration.
Hosting tonight? Read the Host Guide