Circle the Wagons - Essential Collection
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Fifteen minutes, a hand of cards, and your boomtown to build. The Wild West has never been so portable.
What it's about
Your boomtown, card by card, in the heart of the Wild West
Circle the Wagons was born in 2017 as a wallet game by Steven Aramini, Danny Devine, and Paul Kluka — 18 cards, two players, fifteen minutes. One thing to do: build the most prosperous boomtown in the West. It sounds simple. It's not.
The cards are arranged in a circle. Choose which one to take, starting from the point your opponent assigned you. Do you want to skip some cards to get the one you really need? You can — but every skipped card goes directly to your rival. Every decision is a silent negotiation between what you want and what you don't want to give away.
The Essential Collection brings everything together in one box: the base game, the standalone expansion Second Shot, and the solo set Lone Cowboy. With three objective cards drawn each game from over 800 combinations, you never play the same game twice.
What they say abroad
"Meaty, beautiful, streamlined, and pure fun to play."
Substantial, beautiful, streamlined, and pure fun to play.
— Meeple Mountain
"Simply put, Circle The Wagons belongs in your collection."
Simply put: Circle the Wagons belongs in your collection.
— Gameosity
Circle the Wagons: Essential Collection
18 scenario cards with rules for an artificial opponent: each game is a different puzzle. An authentic solo experience, not a fallback.
FrogScore · FroGames editorial rating · based on rules, international reviews and game sessionsWhat's in the box
Three games. One box. The entire Wild West.
Base game
18 double-sided cards, over 800 objective combinations. The original formula that won the 2016 Button Shy Design Contest.
Second Shot
Standalone expansion: new 18 cards and the Newfangled Mode that mixes all 36 elements into a single two-act challenge.
Lone Cowboy
18 scenario cards for solo play: an artificial opponent with its own rules. It's not a fallback — it's a puzzle that changes every time.
The skipping mechanic
You can skip cards to get the one you want — but every skipped card goes to your opponent. The game's main dilemma in one rule.
In your pocket, on a cafe table, waiting for others to arrive. Circle the Wagons always finds a moment to be played.
🎲
Components4 types · 44 total cards + scorepad
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RulebookEnglish · Official PDF
A game in five moments
What happens at the table
Not the rules. The experience.
Cards come out, tension already begins
You shuffle, arrange the fifteen cards in a circle, and reveal the three objective cards in the center. In thirty seconds, the battlefield is ready. Both of you see the same cards — but each is already planning a different boomtown.
Your opponent tells you where to start
The second player chooses which card the first player must start from. It doesn't seem like much. Then you realize they've positioned your turn exactly away from the cards you need. The mind game has already begun — and you haven't even taken anything yet.
You skip a card — and immediately regret it
You decide to skip three cards to get that perfect mountain. The skipped cards go to your opponent. They place them, complete a huge desert area, and get closer to two objectives in one go. You should have taken the first card. Or maybe not. You rethink it.
Your boomtown takes shape — and so does theirs
Cards pile up, territories merge, objectives begin to make sense. You check their cards. Then you look at yours. There's one card left in the circle that could turn everything around — but it's their turn to choose first. Time slows down.
Counting begins. Someone cheers, someone asks for a rematch.
The last card is placed. Territory points are counted, then objectives. Sometimes the advantage is clear. Sometimes three points decide everything. In both cases, the deck is already shuffled before you finish calculating. It starts again.
How to play
The flow of each game
Four phases. You learn in five minutes, master in ten games.
Shuffle the 18 cards. Three are flipped over to show bonus conditions — these are the objectives for that game. The remaining 15 are arranged in a circle, with territories visible.
The second player chooses which card in the circle becomes the starting point for the first player. It's a tactical advantage: good positioning can put the first player in trouble from turn one.
The active player takes the first available card or skips ahead to take the one they prefer — but every skipped card immediately goes to the opponent. The card is placed in one's boomtown, strategically oriented.
When cards run out, points are counted: 1 point for each territory in the largest group of each terrain type, plus objective bonuses. The highest score wins. Reshuffle and start again.
Why it's different from others
Six mechanics that make a difference
The skip mechanic
You can always take the card you want — but every skipped card goes to your opponent for free. This is the heart of the game: every choice is also an involuntary gift.
Three ever-changing objectives
Each game has three bonus conditions drawn from over 800 possible combinations. There is no "always right" strategy — you have to re-evaluate the situation every time.
Overlapping maps
Cards can overlap previous ones. Covering a wrong opponent's territory or correcting your own layout is one of the most satisfying moves in the game.
Everything is visible from the start
All cards are face up from the first turn. There is no luck in drawing — victory goes to whoever best reads the situation and anticipates the opponent's moves.
Solitaire with artificial opponent
Lone Cowboy includes 18 scenario cards: each card describes the rules of a different virtual opponent. It's not a compromise — it's a completely different way to play the same game.
Three games in one box
The base game, Second Shot (standalone expansion with Newfangled Mode) and the solo set. You carry them all together, choosing on the fly. There is no wasted space.
How it ends
Building better or losing less
The player who built the boomtown with the most points wins — larger territories and better utilized objectives. But often it's a slim margin.
Victory
- You have the highest score when cards run out
- You maximized territory groups and utilized at least two bonus objectives
- You gave the opponent the right cards at the wrong time for them
Defeat
- You skipped too many cards, giving away valuable opportunities
- You ignored an objective that the opponent fully exploited
- You built well, but the opponent built better — try again, change strategy
Circle the Wagons: Essential Collection is the definitive microgame for those who want something pocket-sized but not trivial. Fifteen minutes that last just right.
Frequently asked questions
FAQ about Circle the Wagons: Essential Collection
With only 18 cards, can you really make a strategic choice?
Yes, and much more than it seems. All cards are visible from the start — there is no random draw. Every skip you make is a conscious decision: you get the card you want but give away those you skipped. In fifteen minutes, more decision analysis is concentrated than in many two-hour games.
Is it only suitable for two players? Does it not work in a group?
Circle the Wagons is specifically designed for 1-2 players — and in this context it excels. The skip mechanic requires a single opponent to work well. It's not a game for group night: it's the game to pull out with two people while waiting for others, or to take on a trip.
What does Second Shot add compared to the base game?
Second Shot is a standalone expansion with 8 new cards that introduces the Newfangled Mode: all 36 cards are shuffled and divided into two sets of 18 to play a game in two acts. The first act only counts bonus objectives, the second also adds territorial scoring. More depth with the same simplicity.
Is the Lone Cowboy solitaire satisfying or is it just a makeshift solution?
It's a genuine solitaire, not an improvised adaptation. The 18 scenario cards each include specific rules to simulate an artificial opponent with different behavior. It's played in two rounds following the same rules as multiplayer. Many even find it richer than head-to-head due to the level of planning required.
Can you really play it at a bar or while traveling?
Yes, but you need some flat space to arrange the cards in a circle — a bar table or an airplane tray works. It's not really for playing standing up, but it was designed to be carried anywhere. The box is as small and light as a deck of cards.
Is it available in Italian?
This is the English edition. The text on the cards is minimal — territory cards are read visually, while objective cards have short text. With the rules in front of you, it's not necessary to know English well to play, but keep in mind that all material is in English.
Circle the Wagons: Essential Collection is a card drafting and map-building board game for 1–2 players (ages 8+, duration 15 minutes). Designed by Steven Aramini, Danny Devine, and Paul Kluka, artwork by Beth Sobel, published by Button Shy. Main mechanics: circular open drafting with overlapping card placement and variable objectives. The box includes the base game (18 cards), the standalone Second Shot expansion (8 cards), and the Lone Cowboy solo expansion (18 cards). Over 800 objective combinations guarantee maximum replayability. Winner of the Button Shy Wallet Design Contest 2016. English edition. Available on FroGames.it.
Circle the Wagons - Essential Collection
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