Freeloader (game)
Encyclopedia
Freeloader is a game published by Cheapass Games
. The object of the game is to mooch as much free stuff as possible off of your friends and neighbours.
Freeloader comes with a set of 6 cardboard board pieces which are arranged in a circle. Each card is a house around the neighborhood. The houses belong to a doctor, a gambler, a hippie
, an artist
, a lawyer
, and a waitress. Players move around the neighborhood by rolling dice
. On any turn they can also choose to do a favor for someone - this is noted by them placing one of their token
s on that person's house. They can also choose at any time to draw a card instead of moving. The cards in their hand represent the things which they have their eye on. On their turn a player may also choose to trade
in some of their favors for an item in their hand, playing it down onto the table into their "stuff". Each item costs a certain number of favors, and there are discounts depending on the house they borrow from and if they are the best friend of its owner. For example the silk
tie costs less if you are the lawyers best friend, while the leftover pork costs less if you are at the waitresses house.
The game ends when the last card is drawn. At this time only those players who have mooched food, clothing, and shelter can win. Amongst those the player with the most points win (each item is worth a certain number of points). This can lead to cutthroat strategy
. For example, your opponent may have 20 more points than you, but if you can take away his only shelter item he does not qualify to win.
Each card in the deck is illustrated, and most contain humorous diary entries about them.
The game itself is published under the Cheapass Games
philosophy of not including unnecessary pieces. This means you will need to provide your own playing pieces, tokens and dice (which can usually be borrowed from other games).
A typical game of Freeloader takes 1 to 1.5 hours to play.
Cheapass Games
Cheapass Games is a game company founded and run by game designer James Ernest, based in Seattle, Washington. Cheapass Games operates on the philosophy that most game owners have plenty of dice, counters, play money, etc., so there is no need to bundle all of these components with every game that...
. The object of the game is to mooch as much free stuff as possible off of your friends and neighbours.
Freeloader comes with a set of 6 cardboard board pieces which are arranged in a circle. Each card is a house around the neighborhood. The houses belong to a doctor, a gambler, a hippie
Hippie
The hippie subculture was originally a youth movement that arose in the United States during the mid-1960s and spread to other countries around the world. The etymology of the term 'hippie' is from hipster, and was initially used to describe beatniks who had moved into San Francisco's...
, an artist
Artist
An artist is a person engaged in one or more of any of a broad spectrum of activities related to creating art, practicing the arts and/or demonstrating an art. The common usage in both everyday speech and academic discourse is a practitioner in the visual arts only...
, a lawyer
Lawyer
A lawyer, according to Black's Law Dictionary, is "a person learned in the law; as an attorney, counsel or solicitor; a person who is practicing law." Law is the system of rules of conduct established by the sovereign government of a society to correct wrongs, maintain the stability of political...
, and a waitress. Players move around the neighborhood by rolling dice
Dice
A die is a small throwable object with multiple resting positions, used for generating random numbers...
. On any turn they can also choose to do a favor for someone - this is noted by them placing one of their token
Token
A token is an object of value, and may refer to:* In logic, computational linguistics, and information retrieval, a token is an instance of a type; see Type-token distinction...
s on that person's house. They can also choose at any time to draw a card instead of moving. The cards in their hand represent the things which they have their eye on. On their turn a player may also choose to trade
Trade
Trade is the transfer of ownership of goods and services from one person or entity to another. Trade is sometimes loosely called commerce or financial transaction or barter. A network that allows trade is called a market. The original form of trade was barter, the direct exchange of goods and...
in some of their favors for an item in their hand, playing it down onto the table into their "stuff". Each item costs a certain number of favors, and there are discounts depending on the house they borrow from and if they are the best friend of its owner. For example the silk
Silk
Silk is a natural protein fiber, some forms of which can be woven into textiles. The best-known type of silk is obtained from the cocoons of the larvae of the mulberry silkworm Bombyx mori reared in captivity...
tie costs less if you are the lawyers best friend, while the leftover pork costs less if you are at the waitresses house.
The game ends when the last card is drawn. At this time only those players who have mooched food, clothing, and shelter can win. Amongst those the player with the most points win (each item is worth a certain number of points). This can lead to cutthroat strategy
Strategy
Strategy, a word of military origin, refers to a plan of action designed to achieve a particular goal. In military usage strategy is distinct from tactics, which are concerned with the conduct of an engagement, while strategy is concerned with how different engagements are linked...
. For example, your opponent may have 20 more points than you, but if you can take away his only shelter item he does not qualify to win.
Each card in the deck is illustrated, and most contain humorous diary entries about them.
The game itself is published under the Cheapass Games
Cheapass Games
Cheapass Games is a game company founded and run by game designer James Ernest, based in Seattle, Washington. Cheapass Games operates on the philosophy that most game owners have plenty of dice, counters, play money, etc., so there is no need to bundle all of these components with every game that...
philosophy of not including unnecessary pieces. This means you will need to provide your own playing pieces, tokens and dice (which can usually be borrowed from other games).
A typical game of Freeloader takes 1 to 1.5 hours to play.