CampDraft: The Board Game

Saddle Up for fun!

HOLD YOUR HORSES!

Campdraft [Queensland Edition] is …

still in development!

The good news is that you can be the first in line when this incredibly fantastic, soon-to-be-a-classic, not overly-hyped board game is released by registering your deets below.

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Limber up, fuel up, then saddle up!

Campdraft [Queensland Edition] is the board game you’ve been waiting for.

To compete and win in Queensland’s toughest Campdraft arenas, players must first face the many hazards of an outback road trip.

Play time 60+ Mins
Recommended Ages 8+
Number of Players: 2-4 players (optional 5)

Game Design: Steve Hawe
Graphic Design and Illustration: Leith Walton (Nurtured Creations)

Saddle Up!

… for Campdraft [Queensland Edition] … an Aussie rodeo road trip to adventure! 

Towing your best horses from showgrounds to stables, shacking up in outback hotels or campgrounds, all while dodging the unexpected hazards nature throws at you (and those pesky speeding fines), 2-5 players race to win the most prize money on the Campdraft circuit.  

Just like their real-life counterparts competing in the big Campdraft arenas, competitors ‘travel’ the backroads of Queensland in pursuit of fame and prize money, all from the comfort of home. 

Along the way it’s a race to secure the best horses and hotly contested real estate in the form of showgrounds, roadhouses, stables, outback hotels, vet clinics and more. 

This new and exciting Aussie board game will test your equestrian skills, endurance and brinkmanship in your bid to win the title of Campdraft champion! You can practically smell the sweat, spit the dust, and swat the flies as you bank a motza of cash, and unleash your inner larrikin as you bankrupt your rivals. 

Mirroring the real-world Campdraft rules, players perform duel roles of competitors and committee office bearers (someone has to deal out the cash and settle the arguments).

To begin, a roll of the dice determines committee roles and the order of play. 

As they travel the board, buying and selling horses and property, players face wild cards, spanners thrown into the works to influence players’ performance, reflecting the highs and lows of the reality of elite competition. 

‘Winners’ Pool’ offers a much need pick-me-up while ‘Storm and Tempest’, ‘Disqualification / Cracked Off’, and ‘Police’ keep players grounded when fame and fortune seem just around the corner. 

When all bases are loaded with hay bales, a simple roll of the dice can dictate who rides into the sunset with empty pockets, and who holds the winner’s trophy aloft.   

Campdrafting is a true-blue Aussie equestrian sport loved by families throughout this country’s beating heart.

Its origins are as steeped in Aussie folklore as The Man from Snowy River, with campdrafting being shaped in outback Queensland by drovers and stockmen as a friendly competition to show off their horse riding and cattle rustling skills.

The first official draft took place at the 1885 Tenterfield Show, and from that the official rules took shape; until now in the 21st Century where there’s over 30,000 campdrafts (horses) registered nationally, and even more riders competing.

A quality campdraft horse will set you back at least $50,000. The board game is much cheaper – and just as much fun.

While both rodeo sports pit skilled riders and their horses against unbridled bovine, Campdrafting stands alone in its ability to showcase our iconic Australian Stock horse.

The Aussie sport showcases the speed, versatility, and endurance of Australian Stock Horses, being less structured and style-focussed than the American Cutting events. 

You gotta hand it to us Aussies. Less structure, more style, more speed. Of course it makes Campdrafting much more explosive. 

So how does Campdrafting actually work – why is it done? Well ever since Banjo Patterson’s era, skilled stockmen and women have been ‘drafting’ (sorting/grading) their cattle on an ‘open camp’. 

With the mob held in a tight circle, the head-stockman (or boss drover) on a specialist ‘camp horse’ selects a beast, then with deft footwork and precision timing, cuts it from the mob. 

At this critical point, team members take charge, riding hell-for-leather to separate the animal from the main mob, with the aim of settling it with its mates in the nearby ‘cut’. 

That’s how it works in the real world – out on the farm. When you get to the campdraft arena, it gets tougher. Competitors no longer have the luxury of a back-up team. 

After first demonstrating to the judge their cutting skills in the ‘camp’, competitors burst from the ‘cut-out pen’ into the main arena. To the cheers of the crowd and the thunder of hooves, riders then steer the animal through a figure-eight pattern, and with luck, through a ‘gate’ at the end of the course. For every achievement completed they receive a score, which when tallied up, puts them in the draft for a shot at the winners’ trophy. 

At the tail end of the campdraft season, competitors gather for a crack at the holy grail of competition, Queensland’s Warwick Gold Cup Open Draft.  

Only time will tell if real-life campdrafting disappears forever from the Australian pastoral scene. 

Meanwhile, current trends suggest the sport shows no sign of slowing down. Inspired by its practical origins, this official national sport continues to grow and flourish, spreading the spirit of mate-ship and friendly competition with the support of hundreds of dedicated campdraft committees and thousands of competitors of all ages.

Game Board 

  • Horse tokens
  • Trucks (Player Tokens)
  • Hay Bale Tokens
  • 4 x Office Bearer Cards/items
  • Money
  • Storm and Tempest Cards
  • Winners Pool Cards
  • Police Cards
  • Cracked Off (Disqualified) Cards
  • Deed Cards
  • 2 x 6-Sided Dice
  • Rules

Setting Up:
  • After unfolding the board, place the wild cards into their marked spaces.
  • Rolling both die, each player is assigned their committee role and play position by highest score to lowest.
    • Highest goes first and becomes Secretary (looks after the bank and deed cards)
    • 2nd highest becomes Judge (moderates disputes)
    • 3rd highest roll becomes Timekeeper (declares game over)
    • 4th highest roll becomes Auctioneer (runs any auctions)
    • 5th highest roll gets the snacks and waits for their name to come over the loudspeaker to have their turn.
    • If only two players, the higher scorer takes Timekeeper and the other adds Auctioneer to their roles. If only three players, the higher scorer assigns Auctioneer role as they please. 
  • To begin the game, each player is assigned 1 (one) horse and $500 in sponsorship.
  • They then choose their token (Ram-Truck/Gooseneck combo) and places it on the Camooweal Town Common.
  • Every circuit of the arena thereafter earns them a top-up of $200 in sponsorship. 
Game Play:
  • In order, players roll both dice to determine number of spaces moved.
  • The player must then follow the instructions of the space landed on:
    • Property. Upon landing on vacant property, competitors may purchase at valuation. If they buy, no rent is due. However if a property is available for purchase, but the player doesn’t wish to buy, rent still must be paid (to the Secretary). Them’s the rules. Cough up and move on.  
    • Horse Auction. Competitors must land on ‘horse auctions’ to buy horses. No more than two can be purchased at a time.
    • Fees. Well the rodeo isn’t going to run itself is it? Pay fees to the Secretary. Stop whining. 
    • Wild cards (Storm and Tempest, Winners Pool, Police, Cracked Off). Unless stated, the actions instructed on the card must happen immediately.
  • Once a player owns four or more horses, hay bales may be purchased from the secretary (at $100 per bale) at any time during the game. The player can choose which owned property they would like to add their bale/s to, which will increase the rent due. One bale doubles the rent, two triples the rent, etc.
  • If a player needs cash, the secretary can extend credit to $100. Beyond that, competitors must sell assets to stay in the game. 
  • Horses, property, and hay-bales may be surrendered to the secretary for 50% of their value. Alternatively, they may be offered up for auction. 
  • In the case of an auction, the winning bid must equal or surpass the surrender value (reserve price) at the fall of the auctioneer’s hammer. 
  • ‘Outside’ (extra) trading of ‘existing’ horses is acceptable provided any sales are conducted by the auctioneer, therefore allowing all competitors (if they wish) to bid. These transactions must be completed before play resumes. 
  • The Warwick Gold Cup concession cardholder (a Winner’s Pool bonus) is entitled to free nominations, 50% off farrier’s fee, and free camping at Thompson River and Condamine River Van Parks.
  • The game ends when only one player remains, or the Timekeeper declares a winner from the remaining competitors.  

MAY THE BEST DRAFTER WIN!

Cut out pen: Where the competitor selects a beast

Dave Rogan Saddle: highly prized saddle 

Ram Truck/Gooseneck combo: Horse Trailer and truck

Cracked off: disqualified

Mule: horse/donkey cross. 

Hocking: a dangerous clash of horse and cow hooves. 

Beast: cattle

To the quick: sensitive tissue/bone 

Goes bush: comes loose, rolls away: 

Grey Nomads: travelling retirees 

Little poppet: parental endearment

Flogged: sold

Stay in touch

Here at Horse V CowSport we’re still in development of our first board game, CampDraft [Queensland Edition], but our Beta testers are loving it! We’d be happy to keep you in the loop – only contacting you for major developments of course. 

… for Campdraft [Queensland Edition] … an Aussie rodeo road trip to adventure!


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