Overview

Chunky Fighters is a dice-based combat game originally released as a free print-and-play game in 2009 by Nick Hayes / Battlegrounds Games. Each fighter is composed of four chunky dice representing body parts (head, body, legs) and a weapon, along with a unique special ability card. Players roll their fighters to determine starting hit points and weapons, then take turns attacking each other. As fighters take damage, their body parts are rotated to show remaining hit points until destroyed. The last fighter standing wins.

Components

• Fighter dice sets (4 dice per fighter: head, body, legs, weapon)
• Special ability cards (1 per fighter, unique powers)
• Damage/hit location dice
• Reference cards

Setup

1. Each player selects a fighter (or drafts fighters if playing tournament style).
2. Each fighter consists of 4 dice (head, body, legs, weapon) and 1 special ability card.
3. Roll all 4 fighter dice to determine starting hit points for each body part and starting weapon.
4. Place fighter dice showing their rolled faces in front of each player.
5. Place the special ability card next to the fighter.

Turn Structure

On each turn, the active player chooses one action to perform:

1. Standard Attack - Roll damage and hit location dice against an opponent.
2. Change Weapon - Reroll the weapon die to get a different weapon.
3. First Aid - Attempt to heal a body part by rerolling a body part die.
4. Disarm - Attempt to force an opponent to reroll their weapon die.
5. Called Shot - Target a specific body part for increased damage.

Actions

Standard Attack: Roll the damage die and hit location die. The hit location determines which body part (head, body, or legs) takes the damage. Rotate the target’s corresponding die to show the reduced hit points. If a body part reaches zero, it is destroyed.

Change Weapon: Reroll your weapon die. The new face determines your weapon for subsequent attacks, which may modify damage or provide special effects.

First Aid: Choose one of your own body part dice and reroll it. If the new result is higher than the current value, your hit points for that body part increase to the new value. If lower or equal, no effect.

Disarm: Target an opponent’s weapon die and force them to reroll it, potentially giving them a worse weapon.

Called Shot: Declare a specific body part to target. A called shot deals increased damage if it hits, but may have a penalty to accuracy.

Scoring / Victory Conditions

The game has no point scoring system. Combat continues until only one fighter remains standing. A fighter is eliminated when all three body parts (head, body, legs) are destroyed, or when a critical body part is destroyed (varies by fighter).

The last fighter standing wins the game.

In multiplayer games (3-4 players), players take turns in clockwise order, and eliminated players are out.

Special Rules & Edge Cases

• Each fighter has a unique special ability card that provides a one-time or ongoing power during combat.
• Weapons modify attack damage and may provide special effects (reach, double strike, etc.).
• Body part destruction may have cascading effects (e.g., destroyed legs reduce mobility).
• The game was originally designed as a print-and-play title; commercial editions include pre-assembled custom dice.
• Multiple starter sets and expansion sets add new fighters with unique dice faces and abilities.
• Tournament rules support larger player counts with bracket-style elimination.

Player Reference

Action	Effect
Standard Attack	Roll damage + hit location; apply damage to target body part
Change Weapon	Reroll your weapon die
First Aid	Reroll one of your body part dice (keep if higher)
Disarm	Force opponent to reroll their weapon die
Called Shot	Target specific body part for bonus damage

Fighter Anatomy: Head die + Body die + Legs die + Weapon die + Special Ability card

Elimination: All body parts destroyed = fighter eliminated. Last one standing wins.