2020 BGG rank #10524

WWE Legends Royal Rumble Card Game

2–10 players 30–45 min Ages 8+ 1.3/5 complexity 5.6/10 rating

About this game

Enter the ring as a WWE Legend and face off against your rivals in the WWE Legends Royal Rumble Card Game! Use electrifying attacks and signature finishing maneuvers to eliminate your opponents. New Legends enter the Rumble as others are thrown over the top rope! Can you survive the brawl to remain the last Legend standing? Each player starts with a randomly dealt Legend, their corresponding Signature card, and six Action cards. All players go at the same time, and the game is played in rounds. Each round consists of four steps: Plan, Reveal, Attack, and End of Turn. Place an Attack card facedown pointed at the player you plan to attack. For a particularly strong opponent, you can choose to place a Boost card facedown along with your Attack card to increase damage and speed or give added effects to your Attack. Cheap Tricks are especially powerful – they can send an opponent over the top rope or prevent Attacks from being blocked or dodged. All players reveal their Attack cards at the same time and the player with the fastest speed goes first. If the Legend you are attacking is unable to defend themselves, or if another player doesn’t intervene with a Defense, Special, or Ref card in the case of a Cheap Trick, the Attack hits! The Attack and Boost cards played are then placed next to the Legend’s placard, aligned with the damage icons. If the Legend sustains damage equal to or above his health, he is thrown over the top rope and eliminated. Draw up to six cards at the end of your turn…if you’re still standing! Wrestlers include André the Giant, “Macho Man” Randy Savage, Jake “The Snake” Roberts, The Million Dollar Man, Batista, Sting, and more! Contents: 30 WWE Legend placards, 30 Signature cards, 1 WWE Legends token, and 150 Action cards including Kicks, Strikes, Moves, Cheap Tricks, and more!

What it feels like

Simultaneous Action Selection Card Game Sports

Game intelligence

Learn the game

100% knowledge coverage

Setup

1. Count out Legend placards based on player count: 3 players = 9 Legends, 4 players = 12 Legends, 5 players = 15 Legends, 6 players = 18 Legends. (Player counts for 2, 7, 8, 9, and 10 players are not specified in the rulebook but the game supports up to 10.) 2. Gather the Signature cards that match the selected Legend placards. Return all unused Legends and Signature cards to the box. 3. Shuffle the Legend placards and randomly deal one faceup to each player. Give each player their corresponding Signature card to place next to their Legend placard. 4. Place any remaining Legend placards and Signature cards facedown to the side of the play area. 5. Shuffle all 150 Action cards together and deal six to each player. Place the remainder facedown as the Action card draw deck in the middle of the play area. 6. The player who most recently watched a WWE match receives the WWE Legends token and goes first. That player is called the "Titleholder."

Turn flow

Each round consists of four steps, executed by all players simultaneously or in a defined order: 1. PLAN – Starting with the Titleholder and going clockwise, each player secretly places one Attack card facedown, pointed at the target they are attacking. A player may also add one Boost card facedown alongside their Attack. Players without Attack cards, or who choose not to attack, may "take a breather" and discard any unwanted cards from their hand instead. 2. REVEAL – All players simultaneously flip over their Attack and Boost cards and announce their speed aloud. Each Attack card has a speed value; Boost cards may add to this total. 3. ATTACK – Players resolve their attacks from fastest to slowest. Ties are broken by Titleholder going first, then proceeding clockwise to the left. When it is your turn, state your Attack card and target. If the defending Legend cannot defend and no other player intervenes, the attack hits: all played Attack and Boost cards are placed beside the target's Legend placard with the damage symbol aligned to track damage. Defense Cards and Special Cards may be played in response. If a Legend's total damage reaches or exceeds their health, or they are thrown over the top rope by an effect, they are eliminated. 4. END OF TURN – Each player draws back up to six cards. If the draw deck is empty, shuffle the discard pile to form a new deck.

Scoring and victory

Last Legend standing wins. In case of simultaneous final eliminations, there is no winner. The player with the most eliminated Legend placards earns bragging rights. Target score: Be the last Legend standing in the ring. Scoring sources: Eliminating another player's Legend (earns the WWE Legends token and their placard), Having the most eliminated Legend placards at game end (bragging rights)

Source: Rulebook

Rules to know

The most useful rules for getting a first game right.

General

The player holding the WWE Legends token is called the Titleholder.

The WWE Legends token identifies the current Titleholder. The Titleholder has two mechanical privileges: (1) they are the first to plan their attack each round, and (2) when two or more players tie on speed, the Titleholder attacks before the tied players, followed by the player closest to the Titleholder's left. The Titleholder token passes to whoever eliminates the current Titleholder's Legend.

Turn structure

Starting with the Titleholder, each player secretly places one Attack card (and optionally one Boost card) facedown pointed at their target.

During the Plan step, the Titleholder chooses first, then players select in clockwise order. Each player places exactly one Attack card facedown on the table, oriented toward the player they are attacking. A player may optionally add one Boost card facedown alongside their Attack card. The Attack card and Boost card are revealed together in the Reveal step. A player who has no Attack cards, or who chooses not to attack, takes a breather instead.

Turn structure

A player who cannot or does not want to attack may take a breather and discard any cards from their hand.

If a player has no Attack cards in hand, or simply does not want to attack this round, they may take a breather during the Plan step. While taking a breather, the player may discard any number of cards from their hand. They will draw back up to six cards at the End of Turn step. A player taking a breather does not place any cards in front of them during the Plan step.

Turn structure

All players simultaneously flip their Attack and Boost cards and announce their speed.

Once all players have chosen their cards (or taken a breather), all players simultaneously reveal their facedown cards. Each player states their speed out loud. Speed is the number printed in the middle of the Attack card. If a Boost card adds speed, add its boost speed value to the Attack card's speed for that attack's total speed.

Turn structure

Attacks resolve from highest speed to lowest; ties broken by Titleholder first, then clockwise.

During the Attack step, the player with the highest total speed (Attack speed plus any Boost speed bonus) goes first. If two or more players share the same speed, they attack in the following order: the Titleholder goes first, then the player immediately to the Titleholder's left, continuing clockwise. After all tied players at the highest speed have resolved, players with the next-highest speed resolve, and so on.

Card play

Attack cards deal damage and come in three types: Kicks, Strikes, and Moves.

Attack cards are the primary offensive cards. Each Attack card displays: (1) a damage value (shown with the damage symbol in the upper-left corner), (2) a speed value (shown in the middle of the card), (3) a type — KICK, STRIKE, or MOVE (shown in the middle). Some Attack cards also have an effect described in the lower half of the card that triggers if the attack hits. Card type matters because certain Defense cards can only cancel specific types.

Card play

Boost cards are added to an Attack during the Plan step to increase damage, speed, or add special effects.

A player may add one Boost card facedown alongside their chosen Attack card during the Plan step. Boost cards increase the Attack's damage value, and may additionally increase its speed (boost speed value listed on the Boost card) or grant it additional effects. The Attack card gains all effects of the Boost card — for example, if the Boost card is a Cheap Trick, the entire Attack becomes a Cheap Trick. Some Boosts make attacks unblockable or cause effects like throwing a Legend over the top rope. Boost cards may NOT be applied to additional attacks generated by an Attack card's effect (i.e., if an Attack card lets you attack again on a hit, you cannot Boost that follow-up attack). The decision to play a Boost must be made during the Plan step; you cannot add a Boost after cards are revealed.

Resource management

When an attack hits, played Attack and Boost cards are placed beside the target's Legend placard with damage symbols aligned.

If an attack is not defended against, it hits and all Attack and Boost cards played for that attack are placed beside the defending Legend's placard with the damage symbol (heart/health icon) aligned to track how much damage has been accumulated. Damage is cumulative across rounds. A Legend is eliminated when their total accumulated damage equals or exceeds the health value printed on their Legend placard.

Strategy briefing

Speed as a Weapon

Higher speed attacks resolve first, meaning you can potentially eliminate a Legend before their own attack resolves. Boost cards that add speed (e.g., +2 speed) can tip a tie in your favor, especially important since Titleholder goes first in ties — holding the WWE Legends token is a meaningful tempo advantage.

Saving Boosts for the Right Moment

Boost cards must be committed during the Plan step before cards are revealed. Save unblockable Boosts for when you expect a target to have a Defense card, or when eliminating a Legend is within reach. You cannot reactively add a Boost after seeing opponents' plays.

Protecting Your Signature Card

Signature cards are powerful but single-use and go to the box after use. Only use your Signature when it will deal a decisive blow or guarantee an elimination. Because Signatures can only be played when a specific card triggers them, build your hand around Attack cards that allow Signature plays.

Damage Threshold Tracking

Because damage accumulates on Legend placards visibly, all players can see how close any Legend is to elimination. Target Legends already near their health threshold to secure eliminations and claim the WWE Legends token. Conversely, spreading damage across multiple Legends makes yourself a less immediate target.

Cheap Trick Vulnerability

Boosting an Attack with a Cheap Trick Boost turns your whole attack into a Cheap Trick, opening it to cancellation by any player's Ref card — not just your target's. Reserve Cheap Trick Boosts for situations where you're confident no opponent has a Ref card.

Take a Breather Strategically

Taking a breather lets you cull weak cards from your hand and redraw at end of turn, improving hand quality. Since a player taking a breather does not attack, opponents may ignore you for a round, making it a safe play when you have low-damage cards and a healthy Legend.

Top Rope Effects vs. Direct Damage

Some Boosts and Special cards throw Legends over the top rope regardless of their remaining health. These are extremely powerful against tanky Legends (high health) who still have many damage points to go. Holding On can counter these effects, so save top-rope effects for when opponents are unlikely to have Special cards.

Managing the Titleholder Token

The Titleholder attacks first in all speed ties, providing a persistent turn-order advantage. Since the token passes to whoever eliminates the current Titleholder's Legend, being the Titleholder makes you a target. Balance the timing advantage against the increased threat you attract.

Common questions and edge cases

A player adds a Cheap Trick Boost card to a non-Cheap-Trick Attack card. Is the whole attack now a Cheap Trick?

Yes. The Attack card gains ALL effects of the Boost card. If the Boost card is a Cheap Trick, the entire attack becomes a Cheap Trick and can be canceled by a Ref card.

A player uses a Boost card that says 'This Attack can't be blocked.' Can the target still play a Defense card?

No. The Boost card's effect makes the attack unblockable, meaning Defense cards that would cancel or block it cannot be used against it. Follow the specific text on the Boost card.

An Attack card hits and its effect says the attacker may immediately attack again. Can the player add a Boost card to this follow-up attack?

No. Boost cards may NOT be applied to additional attacks generated by an Attack card's effect. The Boost decision is locked in during the Plan step and only applies to the original Attack card.

Can a player play their Signature card at any time during the Attack step if they think it would be advantageous?

No. Signature cards can ONLY be played when another card explicitly instructs the player to play their Signature (e.g., 'If this hits, you may immediately play your Signature'). They cannot be played freely.

A player is eliminated. They still have their Signature card. What happens to it?

If the eliminated Legend still has their Signature card unused, it is placed back in the game box. The new Legend they draw comes with their own fresh Signature card.

A Legend is eliminated but had damage cards and other effects on their placard. Do any of those carry over to the new Legend the player draws?

No. Any effects or accumulated damage applied to the eliminated Legend do not carry over to the new Legend. The new Legend begins with no damage.

A Special card (Holding On) cancels a 'thrown over top rope' effect and removes one damage card. Can the Legend still be eliminated from remaining damage?

Yes. Holding On removes one damage card and cancels the throw-over-top-rope effect, but the remaining accumulated damage still counts. If the remaining damage still equals or exceeds the Legend's health, they are still eliminated.

Three players tie on speed. The Titleholder is one of them. In what order do they attack?

The Titleholder attacks first, followed by the player immediately to the Titleholder's left, then continuing clockwise among the tied players. After all tied players resolve, the next speed group proceeds.

A Legend is eliminated mid-round before they have attacked. What happens to their face-down Attack card and any attacks aimed at them?

The eliminated Legend's unplayed Attack card is discarded. All Attack cards from other players that were aimed at the now-eliminated Legend are also discarded.

A player has no Legend placard left because the reserve is empty. They play an Attack card that is not normally a Cheap Trick. Can a Ref card cancel it?

Yes. All attacks played by a player without a Legend placard are treated as Cheap Tricks, regardless of what the card normally is. They can be canceled by Ref cards.

The last two remaining Legends are both eliminated at the same time (e.g., a Double Lariat effect). Who wins?

No one wins the Royal Rumble. The player with the most eliminated Legend placards earns bragging rights as a consolation.

Two players want to play a Special card at the same time in response to the same trigger. Who goes first?

The Titleholder plays their Special card first. If the Titleholder is not involved, the player closest to the Titleholder's left goes first, proceeding clockwise.