How to Make a Hunger Games Board Game

Last Updated: December 27, 2021

Are you a Hunger Games fan? Do you want to be able to play the Hunger Games without having to risk your life? If so, all you need are a few different materials and some time, and you can create your very own Hunger Games board game.

Method 1

Method 1 of 3:

Preparing Your Materials

1
Create your game pieces. Each player will need to have a game piece that they will use to move around the board. You can use everyday household objects as game pieces (such as coins, beads, etc.) or to get really creative, you can make your own DIY board game pieces using pictures of characters from the Hunger Games.
2
Prepare your Damage and Cornucopia tracking sheets. During the game, players will be receiving damage from attacks and receiving objects from the Cornucopia. Before the game starts, you'll want to make a chart to track both the damage and the Cornucopia objects:
- Damage: Write the name of each player down, then write down all the potential damages each player could suffer (these are listed below). When a player is hit, indicate with a check mark where the damage occurred. Note that each successful attack only counts for 1 hit. It's essential to keep track of damage, as this will indicate when a player is dead and out of the game.
- Cornucopia: Players will also be receiving different objects from the Cornucopia that will give them advantages during the game (these are also listed below). Each player can only receive 1 of each type of item from the Cornucopia, so it's important to track which player has which objects. Below each player's Damage tracker, write down the name of each object in the Cornucopia. When a player receives an object, put a check mark beside the object's name.
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3
Collect the other materials needed. To play the game, you will also need a 6-sided dice. To create the game, you will need paper, pencils, and markers/pencil crayons to color the map.

Method 2

Method 2 of 3:

Creating the Game Board

The game board for this game is a map of the Hunger Games arena that you will create yourself. This section provides a rough guide, but it is up to you to decide on the details and make them your own. You can include however many pathways, spaces, and types of terrain you'd like.

1
Pick your paper. Any size paper will work, but it's recommended to use a large piece of paper (ie. 11x17" or larger) in order to avoid a cramped playing area.
2
Draw the pathways. Using a pencil, draw a pathway that goes from the edges of your map and spirals around into the center. Because the point of the game isn't to reach the end of the pathway, make your pathway circular so that there is no start or end and players can continue moving around as much as possible.
3
Draw bridges and spaces. To make things more complex, you can draw "bridges" that link together different parts of your pathway and create many different ways to get to the same place. From there, divide your pathway up into individual spaces of about 1 inch that each player will land on during their turn.
4
Add the Cornucopia. In the center of your map, draw the Cornucopia. It plays an important role in the game, so make it fairly large so that it really stands out on the map and is easily visible for all the players.
5
Label some spaces. You can now add labels to certain spaces if you'd like. Because there is no specific "Start" and "End" points, you can label a few different spaces around the board as "Start" points, where players will begin the game. To keep things fair, ensure that your "Start" points are all equal distances away from other "Start" points as well as the Cornucopia. From there you can get creative and label other spaces with anything you'd like, for example "Invisible" (where you're safe from attack), "Miss a Turn", "Roll Again", etc.
6
Draw the terrain on the map. Once you're finished labeling your pathway and spaces, you can then get really creative and draw the terrain around the pathway. The way your map looks is up to you, but suggestions of terrain you could include are:
- Desert
- Forest
- Ocean/islands
- Tropical rainforest
- Swamps
- Abandoned city
- Mountains

Method 3

Method 3 of 3:

Creating the Rules

This section provides suggestions of rules to use during game play. Again, you can adapt and change the rules in your game depending on what works best and is the most fun for you. These rules are simply here to provide a framework to work with.

1
Understand the basic premise of the game. The goal of the game is to be the last player alive. Players roll the dice to move around the board, trying to get close enough to other players in order to attack them; run away from other players who are trying to attack them; and reach the Cornucopia, which has items to help protect themselves and to make their attacks deadlier. There is no end space, so players continue moving around the board until only one player is alive. That player is crowned the winner of the Hunger Games.
2
Figure out how players will move. Players begin at any of the "Start" spaces. To move, players roll one dice and move the number of spaces indicated by the dice.
3
Know when you're able to attack. Once a player rolls, if they're within 3 spaces of another player, they can launch an attack against them. However, the attacks aren't always successful. To attack, roll one of the dice - if the number rolled is higher than 3, you hit. If you hit, roll the dice again to indicate the damage. The damage chart is as follows:
- 1: Hand
- 2: Foot
- 2: Arm
- 3: Leg
- 4: Shoulder
- 5: Chest
- 6: Heart
4
Keep track of the damage each player gets. At the beginning of the game, nominate one player as the Director. This person will keep track of damage as well as Cornucopia items on the tracking sheets as explained above, and let players know when they have been hit enough times to die. Note that some damages are more severe than others, so players need to be hit in that place a different amount of times before they die:
- 1: Hand/Foot - 4 hits = death
- 2: Leg - 4 hits = death
- 3: Arm - 4 hits = death
- 4: Shoulder - 3 hits = death
- 5: Chest - 2 hits = death
- 6: Heart - 1 hit = death
5
Understand the role of the Cornucopia. While players are moving around the board, they're trying to get to the Cornucopia, as as it gives you items to help you in the game. When you get to Cornucopia, roll the dice to indicate what item you'll collect. The Director will then check this item off on your Cornucopia tracking sheet. Note that you can only get each item from the Cornucopia once, so if you roll a 1 for example, and you already have the item corresponding to it, you get nothing. None of the items from the Cornucopia expire, so they can be used multiple times throughout the game. Items in the Cornucopia are:
- 1: Armor - gives you the ability to block any heart and chest hits. If your opponent rolls a 5 (Chest) or a 6 (Heart), no damage will be counted against you.
- 2: Medical Kit - gives you the ability to lessen the severity of any damage against you by -1. For example, if your opponent attacks you and rolls a 5 for damage (Chest), a medical kit lessens this severity by -1, so the damage is actually a 4 (Shoulder).
- 3: Food & Water - gives you ability to move 1 extra space after each roll.
- 4: Gun - gives you the ability to increase the severity of any damage against your opponent by +1. For example, if you attack your opponent and roll a 5 for damage (Chest), arrows increase this severity by +1, so the damage is actually a 6 (Heart).
- 5: Arrows - gives you the ability to make 2 hits per attack. For example, if you roll a 3 (Arm), your opponent will get hit 2 times in the arm rather than once.
- 6: Sword - gives you the ability to counterattack. If you have a sword, you can attack your opponent immediately after they attack you.
6
Write down the above rules. You can keep the suggested rules as is, or you can adjust them to make your game unique. Once you've decided on your rules, write them down so players can reference them during the game. Once you play, you may have to make alterations to the rules depending on how smoothly gameplay went.

Community Q&A

Question

Can each tribute have special abilities for the district? Like, District 4 can cross a space filled with water?

Kittycat7

Community Answer

Sure, it's your game; these are merely guidelines. However, make sure that there is no district without an ability, as that would not be fair.
Question

Could I use a 20-sided die? For a bunch of supplies?

Community Answer

Of course! If you have access to one, the more creative and in-depth, the better! The real cornucopia had a variety of different food items, weaponry, survival gear, and more.
Question

Can there be disasters, like tracker jackers or wolf mutts?

Community Answer

Yes, disasters are allowed. It's your game, so you can do what you want with it.