Highlander: The Card Game

Highlander: The Card Game
The card back to Highlander: The Card Game
DesignersMike Sager
PublishersLa Montagnard Inc., SAEC Games, Thunder Castle Games
Players2 (or more in some variations)
Playing timeApprox 20 min
ChanceSome
SkillsCard playing
Arithmetic
Basic Reading Ability

Highlander: The Card Game is a collectible card game based on the Highlander franchise of films and television series.[1][2] It was released in March 1995.[3]: 4  The original set had 165 cards sold in 16-card booster packs.[3]: 4 

Players build decks from a 400+ card set, taking on the persona of one of the Immortals depicted in the franchise. The core of the game takes the form of a sword duel with players alternately attacking and defending. Other cards are played to affect the basic rules of the game. A player wins when the opponent is reduced to 0 ability or cannot avoid a "headshot" attack (i.e. beheading, the only way to permanently kill an Immortal within the franchise canon).

The Movie Edition was released in mid March 1996.[4] The 450-card set was sold in 55-card starter decks and 15-card booster packs.[5]

An expansion set for this edition was originally planned for release in November 1996, but the company had to delay it in order to secure licensing rights for images of Sean Connery, who was cast as Juan Sánchez-Villalobos Ramírez in the 1986 film Highlander.[6] He ultimately rejected the request, and the company planned The Ramirez Edition expansion set with alternate means of depicting the character.[7] It was released in April 1999, with cards depicting Connery using stills with backlighting or photographs of his stunt doubles.[8]

An expansion set named Watcher's Chronicle was planned for release in November 1996,[9] with its 100 cards packaged in 15-card booster packs.[6]

In January 1998, the publisher Thunder Castle Games filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.[10] It planned to release the expansion set The Gathering which contained reprinted cards from the Movie Edition and new cards.[10] The 55-card starter packs contained a mix of reprinted and new cards, and the 15-card booster packs only new cards.[10]

At the 1998 Gen Con Game Fair, the company unveiled the set Arms and Tactics, a 267-card standalone edition with improved card art and new Immortals cards from season 3 and season 4 of the television series Highlander: The Series.[11] It was released in October 1998.[12]

An expansion set named The Four Horsemen was planned for November 1998 and was primarily focused on season 5 of the television show.[12] It debuted at a fantasy-themed convention in late 1998 before its release late in the year.[13]

  1. ^ Miller, John Jackson (2003), Scrye Collectible Card Game Checklist & Price Guide, Second Edition, pp. 225–232.
  2. ^ Owens, Thomas S.; Helmer, Diana Star (1996), Inside Collectible Card Games, p. 55.
  3. ^ a b "Product news". InQuest. Wizard Entertainment. 1995. pp. 4–8.
  4. ^ Varney, Allen (May 1996), "Reports on Trading Card Games", The Duelist, no. #10, p. 9
  5. ^ Varney, Allen (December 1997). "Game news & updates". The Duelist. No. 20. Wizards of the Coast. p. 90.
  6. ^ a b "Game news & updates". The Duelist. No. 14. Wizards of the Coast. December 1996. p. 77.
  7. ^ Herndon, Cory (November 1998). "Card game news". The Duelist. No. 32. Wizards of the Coast. p. 78.
  8. ^ Herndon, Cory (April 1999). "Card game news". The Duelist. No. 36. Wizards of the Coast. p. 73.
  9. ^ "Game news & updates". The Duelist. No. 13. Wizards of the Coast. October 1996. p. 74.
  10. ^ a b c Varney, Allen (May 1998). "Game news & updates". The Duelist. No. 25. Wizards of the Coast. p. 81.
  11. ^ Herndon, Cory (October 1998). "Card game news". The Duelist. No. 30. Wizards of the Coast. p. 76.
  12. ^ a b Herndon, Cory (November 1998). "Card game news". The Duelist. No. 31. Wizards of the Coast. p. 76.
  13. ^ Herndon, Cory (January 1999). "Card game news". The Duelist. No. 33. Wizards of the Coast. p. 80.