Rhino Hero

Overview

Rhino Hero is a dexterity-based 3D card-stacking game for 2-5 players (ages 5-99). Players cooperatively build a tower of cards, floor by floor, using wall cards and roof cards. Each player tries to be the first to play all of their roof cards onto the growing structure. Roof cards act as action cards that can reverse play direction, skip players, force card draws, allow double plays, or require moving the Rhino Hero figure – which adds weight and instability to the tower. The game ends when a player empties their hand, the tower collapses, or all walls are used up.

Components

Component	Quantity	Description
Roof cards (action cards)	31	Cards placed as ceilings/roofs; some have special symbols
Walls	28	Foldable cards used to build vertical supports between floors
Foundation (starting card)	1	Double-sided card placed at the base of the tower
Rhino Hero figure	1	Wooden rhinoceros figure that must be moved during play
Game instructions	1	Multilingual rulebook

Foundation Card

The foundation card is double-sided:

• Front: Easy variation (simpler wall placement marks)
• Back: Expert variation (more challenging wall placement marks)

Both sides show marks indicating where walls must be placed for the first floor.

Roof Cards

Roof cards display two types of information:

1. Wall placement marks – indicate the number (1 or 2) and position/angle of walls required for the next floor
2. Special symbols (on some cards) – trigger building conditions that affect gameplay

Walls

Walls are rectangular cards that must be folded/bent to match the angle shown on the marks. They form the vertical supports between floors.

Setup

1. Place the foundation card in the center of the table with either side face up (front for easy, back for expert).
2. Shuffle all 31 roof cards.
3. Deal roof cards to each player:

Players	Roof Cards per Player
2 players	7 cards each
3-5 players	5 cards each

1. Place remaining roof cards face down as a provision pile (draw pile), set away from the foundation.
2. Place the walls and Rhino Hero figure within reach of all players.

Turn Structure

Play proceeds clockwise. The starting player is whoever most recently performed a good deed. If players cannot agree, the youngest player starts.

On each turn, a player performs these steps in order:

1. Build walls – Look at the marks on the foundation (first turn) or the topmost roof card. Take the required number of walls (1 or 2) and bend them to the indicated angle. Position them on the marks as precisely as possible.
2. Place a roof card – Place one roof card from your hand on top of the walls. The roof card must be oriented the same way as the foundation card.
3. Resolve special symbol (if any) – If the placed roof card has a special symbol, its effect applies (see Actions below).
4. Next player’s turn – Play passes to the next player (clockwise, unless reversed).

Actions

Five special symbols can appear on roof cards. When a player places a roof card with a symbol, that symbol’s effect is triggered:

Change of Direction

Symbol	Effect
Change of Direction	Play immediately reverses direction (clockwise becomes counterclockwise, or vice versa). In a 2-player game, this symbol has no effect.

Take a Breather (Skip)

Symbol	Effect
Take a Breather	The next player is skipped and loses their turn. The player after the skipped player takes the next turn. In a 2-player game, the current player immediately takes another turn.

Additional Card (Draw)

Symbol	Effect
Additional Card	The next player must draw one roof card from the provision pile before starting to build on their turn.

Double Roof

Symbol	Effect
Double Roof	The current player must place a second roof card on top of this one immediately.

Double Roof restrictions and edge cases:

• The second roof card placed may not be another Double Roof card.
• If the player has no eligible (non-Double Roof) cards to place as the second card, they must ask their neighbor to the left to pass them one of their roof cards to use. This helps the neighbor get rid of a card.
• Strategic tip: Ideally, play the Double Roof as your second-to-last card so your last card serves as the required second placement. If the Double Roof is your very last card, you still win, but you must take a card from your left neighbor to place on top, which helps that neighbor.

Rhino Hero

Symbol	Effect
Rhino Hero	The next player must pick up the Rhino Hero figure from its current location and move it to the new Rhino Hero mark on the card that was just placed. Only after placing Rhino Hero may that player proceed to build walls and place their own roof card.

Note: On the very first appearance of Rhino Hero, the figure is simply placed on the indicated mark (it starts off the tower).

Scoring / Victory Conditions

The game ends when any of the following three conditions occur:

Victory Condition 1: A Player Empties Their Hand

If a player successfully places their last roof card, that player wins immediately. They have “super house building powers.”

Victory Condition 2: The Tower Collapses

If the tower collapses during a player’s turn:

1. The player who caused the collapse loses the game and cannot win.
2. Among remaining players, the player with the fewest roof cards left in hand wins.
3. Tiebreaker: If tied for fewest cards, the player with the most special symbols on their remaining roof cards wins.
4. Second tiebreaker: If still tied after counting symbols, those players share the victory.

Victory Condition 3: All Walls Are Used

If all 28 walls have been built into the tower (an extremely unlikely scenario), all players win together as “super heroes.”

Special Rules & Edge Cases

Tower Building Rules

• Players may use both hands when stacking walls and roof cards.
• Players may only touch the wall or roof card they are currently placing – do not touch previously placed pieces.
• Walls must be positioned as exactly as possible on the marks indicated by the roof card below.
• Roof cards must be oriented the same way as the foundation card (same alignment/rotation).

Double Roof – No Chaining

A Double Roof card cannot be placed as the second card on top of another Double Roof card. This prevents infinite chaining.

Double Roof – No Eligible Cards

If a player plays a Double Roof but has no non-Double Roof cards remaining, their left neighbor must give them one of their roof cards to place. This benefits the neighbor by reducing their hand size.

Double Roof as Last Card

If a player’s last card is a Double Roof, they still win the game upon placing it, but they must still complete the double roof action (taking a card from the left neighbor to place on top).

Change of Direction in 2-Player Game

The Change of Direction symbol has no effect in a 2-player game, since reversing direction between two players changes nothing.

Take a Breather in 2-Player Game

In a 2-player game, the Take a Breather (skip) symbol means the current player immediately takes another turn, since the only other player is skipped.

Foundation Card Orientation

Players choose which side of the foundation card to use before the game begins:

• Front side = easier game (simpler wall configurations)
• Back side = expert/harder game (more complex wall configurations)

Provision Pile Exhaustion

If the provision pile runs out, the Additional Card symbol has no further effect (no cards remain to draw).

Rhino Hero Placement Order

When the Rhino Hero symbol is active, the next player must move Rhino Hero before building their own walls and placing their roof card. The sequence is: (1) move Rhino Hero, (2) build walls, (3) place roof card.

Player Reference

Quick Setup

Item	Detail
Foundation	Center of table, either side up
Roof cards dealt	5 per player (7 in 2-player game)
Remaining roof cards	Face-down provision pile
Walls & Rhino Hero	Within reach
First player	Most recent good deed, or youngest
Play direction	Clockwise (can be reversed)

Turn Sequence

1. Build 1-2 walls (per marks on topmost card)
2. Place 1 roof card from hand
3. Resolve any special symbol
4. Next player’s turn

Special Symbols Quick Reference

Symbol	Effect	2-Player Exception
Change of Direction	Reverse play direction	No effect
Take a Breather	Next player skips their turn	Current player goes again
Additional Card	Next player draws 1 card from provision pile	–
Double Roof	Current player places a 2nd roof card (not another Double Roof)	–
Rhino Hero	Next player must move Rhino Hero before building	–

Game End Conditions

Condition	Result
Player places last roof card	That player wins
Tower collapses	Collapsing player loses; fewest cards remaining wins
All 28 walls used	All players win together

Key Numbers

• Total roof cards: 31
• Total walls: 28
• Hand size: 5 cards (3-5 players) / 7 cards (2 players)
• Player count: 2-5
• Play time: approximately 5-15 minutes
• Collapse tiebreaker: fewest cards, then most special symbols, then shared victory