Bomber: The Rock Climbing Game

Bomber is a rock climbing themed push your luck game where two players race to top out on their respective climb. Whilst overcoming challenging route sections, players need to deal with unforeseen events, manage their energy level and gear placement to avoid hitting the ground in case of a likely fall. If you top out first, you win. If you hit the ground when you fall you lose.

First each player decides how much energy they will have and how much gear they want to take on the climb: you can be more risky and have more energy to allow you to climb longer stretches, but the falls also become longer and more serious, whereas having more gear allows for steady progress but you will need more breaks to recover some energy.

Then players take turns deciding how to move along the route, spending energy as they go. For example, it costs no energy to climb across a ledge, but it will take a lot to surmount an overhang or a roof section. Once all energy is spent the player takes a fall. Thus one needs to place gear for protection to prevent falling to the ground (different coloured gear fit only into places with suitable colour, unless it is a bomber placement). When a player places gear, a Place card is taken and the corresponding event is resolved. Every time a player enters a new route tile a Move card is taken and a corresponding event is resolved, which may result in a fall or may replenish some of the player's energy reserves.