How To Play Ghosts Love Candy Too

Ghosts Love Candy Too is an awesome game from designer Danny Devine and you can see why I like it so much in my review here. This blog has been written to help you learn the game, so get your best spooky ghost voice ready as we go candy hunting.

Set Up

Each player is dealt a set of ghosts cards (9 cards in the same colour). Then all players are dealt 1 cravings card. This tells you how many points per type of candy you will receive at the end of the game. Keep this a secret from the other players. Shuffle the Kids cards and form a face down stack in the middle of the table. Then deal a number of kids cards face up in a line in the middle of the table (for a 2 to 4 player game deal 6 kids, for a 5 to 6 player game deal 8 kids).

Place all treats in the bag (treats are candy and junk) then depending on the number of players everyone draws treats, keeps some in a stash in front of them and discards the rest (2 players draw 6, keep 3 and discard 3, 3 players draw 4, keep 2 and discard 2, 4 to 6 players draw 3, keep 2 and discard 1). Also place 1 treat above each kid in the display. If the treat you draw for a kid is junk place it and then draw another until each kid has 1 candy.

How To Play

At the start of each round add a new treat to each kid, if it is junk add a new one until you add a candy. This doesn't need to be done in the first round as it was taken care of in the set up.

This is a simultaneous card game so the order of play is resolved each turn which is determined by the ghost card each player plays from their hand. Everyone chooses 1 card and places it face down on the table. Then at the same time these ghost cards are revealed. The player with the highest value ghost goes first and then the order proceeds to the next highest ghost and so on. If there is a tie the tied players draw a kid card each from the stack and the player who drew a card with the highest number on the bottom left wins.

Now in turn order players will take the following actions (completing all of them) before the next player takes a turn.

1. Place your ghost. You need to grab that candy and the best way to do that is to haunt the kids. Look at the kids to see which one has the candy you need and place your ghost just below them (if another ghost was haunting the same kid from a previous round you place your ghost on top of the other one but slightly below it so you can still see both ghost numbers).

2. Take all of the treats from above the kid (unless the kids ability directs otherwise) and place them in your stash.

3. Resolve the kids ability. Read the text on the kid and carry out the instructions. There are symbols on each card which correspond with the colour of the background behind the kids writing.

• Blue is carried out immediately you haunt the kid
• Green is a continuous bonus
• Red is an end game action / bonus
• Purple affects kids neighbouring this kid
• Yellow is resolved when this kid gets scared

All of the instructions on the cards supersede the main rules so if ever it is contrary to the basic rules follow the instructions on the card.

4. The ghost number is not just used to determine turn order it is also the amount you will haunt a kid by. All of the kids have a courage level (number written in the middle of the card between 1 and 20) and when the total number of ghost hauntings equals or exceeds the kids courage they get scared and leave the street.

When this occurs discard all of the ghosts below the kid and place the kid in the stash of the last ghost to haunt them (also discard any treats that are left above this kid). A new kid is revealed and placed in the space left. You then check to see if any other kids have been scared and resolve them.

The next player then takes their 4 actions as above. After all players have had their turn add new treats (adding treats until all kids get 1 new candy) to each kid in the street and a new round commences.