Burn Rate Rule Summary

Burn Rate Rule Summary 
(2002)

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1. Overview

• Genre: Strategic card game with a satirical business theme
• Players: 2–6 players
• Play Time: ~45 minutes
• Difficulty: ★★★☆☆ (Requires understanding card interactions)
• Highlights:
  • Satire of dot-com era startup life 💻
  • Survive by managing cash, staff, and investors 💰
  • Strategic sabotage and resource balancing ⚖️

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2. Objective 🎯

• Be the last surviving startup!
• Once you run out of money, you’re out of the game 💸

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3. Components & Theme 🧩

• 235 unique cards (employees, items, actions, investors, etc.)
• Each player operates a startup company
• Burn Rate (operating cost) applies every round 🔥

📌 Theme:
You are the CEO of a Silicon Valley startup.
Hire staff, launch products, and court investors —
just don’t run out of money before everyone else!

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4. Gameplay Flow 🔄

1️⃣ Start with equal funds for all players
2️⃣ Each turn consists of:

• Drawing cards
• Playing staff, items, actions
• Paying Burn Rate
• Gaining investments or sabotaging others
  3️⃣ Players who run out of funds are eliminated
  4️⃣ The game ends when one startup remains 🏁

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5. Card Types 🎴

• Employee Cards: Developers, PR, CEO, each with skills 👨‍💻
• Item Cards: Patents, products — generate income 💡
• Action Cards: Disrupt rivals or trigger random events 🔧
• Investor Cards: Secure short-term funding with risk 📈

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6. Win Condition 🏆

• Last remaining player who hasn’t gone bankrupt wins 🏆
• Requires efficient money use, clever card play, and timing 🧠

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7. Tips 💡

✅ Hiring is helpful, but comes with costs — balance wisely 💼
✅ Manage your burn rate — reckless spending ends careers! 🔥
✅ Sabotage actions can shift the balance — use them smartly 🎯
✅ Some investors are lifesavers, others are ticking bombs 💣