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Taco vs. Burrito Card Game: Rules and Instructions for How to Play

Taco vs. Burrito Card Game: Rules and Instructions for How to Play

Objective of Taco vs. Burrito

The objective of Taco vs. Burrito is to have the most valuable taco/burrito at the end of the game.

Setup for Taco vs. Burrito

  • Each player takes a Taco/Burrito meal holder. You will choose which side you would like to display face up. The side you choose has no impact on the gameplay. It is just a personal preference for each player.
  • Take the two Health Inspector, and three quick start cards out of the deck.
  • Shuffle the rest of the cards and deal five cards face down to each player. You can look at your own hand, but you shouldn’t let the other players see the cards in your hand.
  • Add the two Health Inspector cards back into the deck. Shuffle the cards again. Set the deck face down on the table to form the Draw Pile. Leave space next to the Draw Pile for the Trash/Discard Pile.
  • The youngest player starts the game. Play proceeds clockwise throughout the game.

Playing Taco vs. Burrito

On your turn you will take two actions.

Drawing A Card

You will begin your turn by drawing a card. Add the card to your hand unless you draw a Health Inspector card.

Drawing a Card
The current player has drawn a Gummy Bears card. They will add the card to their hand.

If you draw a Health Inspector card, you will immediately discard all of the cards from your Taco/Burrito to the Trash Pile. Your turn will then end. See the Health Inspector Card section below for more details.

Playing A Card

After drawing a card and adding it to your hand, you will choose one of the cards from your hand to play. You can play a card in a couple different ways.

Should you choose to play a Food, Tummy Ache, or Hot Sauce Boss card, you will add it to one of the players’ Tacos/Burritos. You can place the card inside your own Taco/Burrito, or you can choose to add it to one of your opponents’ Tacos/Burritos.

When you play an Action card you will take the corresponding action immediately. You will then add the card to the Trash Pile.

Playing An Action Card
This player has decided to play an Action card on their turn. They will take the corresponding action and then add the card to the Trash Pile.

Finally you can choose to play one of your cards directly to the Trash Pile.

Discarding a Card in Taco vs. Burrito
The current player has decided to discard this card from their hand instead of playing it.

Next Turn

After you draw and play a card, your turn ends. Play will pass to the next player in clockwise order.

The Cards of Taco vs. Burrito

Food Cards in Taco vs. Burrito

Food Cards

Food cards increase the value of your meal. You want to add these cards to your own Taco/Burrito. They will add points to your meal equal to the number on the card. Food cards can range from +1 to +3.

Tummy Ache Card in Taco vs. Burrito

Tummy Aches

Tummy Ache cards reduce the value of a meal. You want to play these cards to other players’ meals. They subtract points equal to the number printed on the card from the meal you play them to. Tummy Ache cards can range from -1 to -3.

Hot Sauce Boss Card in Taco vs. Burrito

Hot Sauce Boss

Hot Sauce Boss cards add a multiplier to the meal you play them to. If one Hot Sauce Boss card is added to a meal, it doubles the value of the entire meal. Should a meal have two Hot Sauce Boss cards, they will triple the value of the entire meal.

Hot Sauce Boss Scoring
Prior to the Hot Sauce Boss card being played, this player’s meal was worth seven points. After the Hot Sauce Boss card it will be worth 14 points.
Trash Panda Card in Taco vs. Burrito

Trash Panda

The Trash Panda card allows you to take one card from the Trash Pile (your choice) and add it to your hand.

Trash Panda Example
The current player played a Trash Panda card. They can either choose the +1, +2, Health Inspector, or Crafty Crow card to add to their hand. They likely will want to choose either the +2 or Crafty Crow card.

You may use a Trash Panda once to grab another Trash Panda out of the Trash Pile. You may not use the card to take a second Trash Panda from the Trash Pile.

Should you choose to use the Trash Panda to take a Health Inspector card, you will trigger the Health Inspector’s ability immediately.

After you take the card from the Trash Pile, you will add the Trash Panda to the Trash Pile.

Crafty Crow Card Taco vs. Burrito

Crafty Crow

The Crafty Crow card allows you to take a card from another players’ Taco/Burrito and add it your own Taco/Burrito.

Crafty Crow Example
The current player has decided to play a Crafty Crow card. They want to take the Month Old Sushi +3 card from this player’s Taco. They will add the card to their own meal.

After you choose a card to take, you will add the Crafty Crow to the Trash Pile.

Order Envy Card in Taco vs. Burrito

Order Envy

When you play the Order Envy card, you will choose another player. You and the player you choose will exchange your Taco/Burrito and your hand.

Order Envy Example
The player on the left played the Order Envy card. They have decided to swap their meal and hand with the player on the right as their meal is worth more points.

Should you play Order Envy as the last card in the game, you will exchange meals and hands before the game ends.

After you exchange meals and hands, the player to your left takes the next turn. Add the Order Envy card to the Trash Pile.

Food Fight Card in Taco vs. Burrito

Food Fight

When a player plays a Food Fight, the normal gameplay temporarily stops.

Starting with the player who played the Food Fight card and moving clockwise, each player flips over the top card from the Draw Pile. If you flip over a Food Card, it is worth the value printed on the card. All other cards are worth zero points.

The player who flips over the highest valued cards wins the Food Fight.

If there is a tie, the tied players flip over another card. This continues until one of the players flip over a card more valuable than the rest. The player that flips over the highest valued cards wins the tiebreaker.

The winner of the Food Fight chooses one of the cards that were flipped over during the Food Fight. They will add the chosen card to their hand. They will also get to take the next turn.

Food Fight Example
For this Food Fight the players drew cards worth the following points: 2, 0, 0, 3. The last player drew the most valuable card so they win the Food Fight. They will choose one of the four cards to add to their hand. They will also get to take the next turn.

Discard the Food Fight card. Shuffle all of the cards used in the Food Fight, that weren’t taken by the winner, back into the Draw Pile.

If there are not enough cards in the Draw Pile to fully complete the Food Fight, you will cancel the Food Fight. Discard the Food Fight card. Shuffle all of the flipped cards into the Draw Pile.

No Bueno Card in Taco vs. Burrito

No Bueno

No Bueno cards are used to block the play of another card.

To block a card played by another player, you must play your No Bueno card immediately. You must play the card before the player uses the card’s effect. When you play the No Bueno card you will block the last played card’s effect. The No Bueno and the last played card are both added to the Trash Pile. The current player’s turn ends.

No Bueno Card Example in Taco vs. Burrito
Another player is trying to play a Tummy Ache card on this player. They decide to play a No Bueno card to block the card’s effect.

You may play a No Bueno card to block another No Bueno card. This allows the initial card to be played for its’ effect. Players can keep playing No Bueno cards until no one plays one. The outcome depends on who last played a No Bueno card.

You cannot play No Bueno cards in two situations. A No Bueno card cannot block a Health Inspector card. You also can’t use it to block the last played card in the game.

Health Inspector Card in Taco vs. Burrito

Health Inspector

When you draw a Health Inspector card, you must play it immediately.

You will remove all of the cards currently in your Taco/Burrito. The cards will be added to the Trash Pile. Your turn ends immediately.

Health Inspector Example
This player drew a Health Inspector card. They will have to discard all of the cards from their Burrito.

End of Taco vs. Burrito

As soon as the last card is drawn from the Draw Pile, the end game is triggered.

Players will keep taking turns playing a card from their hand. They will ignore drawing a card though. Once a player plays the last card from their hand, the game immediately ends.

If the final card that is played is an Action Card, you will take its effect before entering final scoring. You may not play a No Bueno card to offset the last card played in the game.

Scoring and Winning Taco vs. Burrito

To determine the winner of Taco vs. Burrito, each player counts up the value of their own Taco/Burrito.

Each food card adds one to three points to your food total.

Tummy aches remove one to three points from your final score.

If you acquire one Hot Sauce Boss card, you will double your score. If you have two Hot Sauce Boss cards, you will multiply your score by four.

The player that scores the most points wins the game.

Scoring in Taco vs. Burrito
During the game this player added Food Cards to their Burrito equal to +1, +2, +1, +3, and +2. They also had two -2 Tummy Ache cards played to their Burrito. This player scores five points from their meal.

If there is a tie, shuffle all of the cards together. The tied players will compete in a Food Fight (see the Food Fight card section below). The player that wins the Food Fight, wins the game.

Other Ways to Play Taco vs. Burrito

Secret Taco vs. Burrito

Secret Taco vs. Burrito is played mostly the same as the normal game. When you add cards to your Taco/Burrito you will place the cards face down so no one can see what card is played. You may always look at the cards in your own Taco/Burrito, but you may not look at the cards in other players’ meals.

When you play a Crafty Crow card, you must choose the card you want to take blindly without looking at the cards.

Super Secret Taco vs. Burrito

This variant is played in the same way as Secret Taco vs. Burrito. The only difference is that you also can’t look at your own Taco/Burrito.

Should a player play an Order Envy card, they are not able to look at their new meal.

Taco vs. Burrito No Show

This version of the game takes the rules from Secret Taco vs. Burrito.

Additionally players can hide their hands from other players preventing them from seeing how many cards that they have left in their hand. This is optional as players can choose to show how many cards they have left to the other players.

Taco vs. Burrito The Craftiest Crow

This variant uses the normal gameplay.

The change is that the Crafty Crow card allows you to swap two cards from any players instead of just taking a card from an opponents’ meal and adding it into your meal. For example you can take a Tummy Ache card out of your meal and add it to another player’s meal.

Taco vs. Burrito Targeted Health Inspector

This variant is played mostly the same as the main game. The one change is that when you draw a Health Inspector card, you choose who has to trash their entire meal instead of having to get rid of your own meal.

Components for Taco vs. Burrito

Year: 2018 | Publisher: Hot Taco Inc | Designer: Alex Butler | Artist: Anonymous Typing Monkey, Leslie Pierson, Kersly Potter

Genres: Card, Family, Take That

Ages: 7+ | Number of Players: 2-4 | Length of Game: 15-30 minutes

Difficulty: Light | Strategy: Light | Luck: Moderate-High

Components: 56 Cards, 4 double sided Taco/Burrito meal holders, 3 Quick Start Cards, instructions

Where to Purchase: Amazon, eBay Any purchases made through these links (including other products) help keep Geeky Hobbies running. Thank you for your support.


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