How to Play
The OG Game Play
With origins of the bleacher seats, we have brought Moundball to your mobile device.
Game Play
On the Mound – YOU WIN!
Ball stops on the mound and isn’t touching any grass
Off the Mound – NO WINNER!
If the ball stops off the mound or is touching any grass
Overview
Welcome to Moundball, the game that turns the most boring part of baseball—the break between innings—into an exciting competition among friends.
Here’s how it works: At the end of each half-inning, the game ball gets tossed towards the pitcher’s mound, usually by the umpire. The big question? Will it stop on the mound, or will it take off like a runaway shopping cart?
Each inning, one lucky player is “on the mound” (not literally, but you get the idea). If the ball settles on the mound without touching the grass, they win the pot of Moundbucks. If it doesn’t? Tough break! The pot grows, and the next player takes their turn.
The game keeps rolling until everyone has an equal number of turns or the GM ends the game.
Start a game, build the pot, and see if the baseball gods are on your side. Are you ready to Own the Mound?
Setup
Every great game needs a leader, and in Moundball, that’s the Game Manager (GM). The GM sets up the game, enters the results of each half inning, makes final decision if the ball is on or off and keeps the action moving.
1: Name Your Game – Be Creative
Every legendary game needs a name. Create a name that sets the tone for the showdown.
2: Set the Point Value per Half-Inning
Points are called Moundbucks! The GM determines how many Moundbucks each half-inning is worth, per player.
3: Choose the Starting Inning
A Moundball game begins no earlier than the bottom of the 1st inning but can begin in any inning the Game Manager chooses if all players get a turn. The Game Manager selects the Game Start Inning, and the app automatically adjusts turns and the pot.
4: Let the App Do the Work
The turn order is randomly assigned by the app once the game starts—no coin flips or rock-paper-scissors needed.
The app automatically tracks the score, so the GM just needs to indicate where the ball lands each half-inning. No messy scorekeeping!
5. Create the Game
Once everything’s set, hit Create Game, you will enter the game lobby, from here you can invite players via a link, PIN or QR Code, and get ready to Own the Mound! DON’T START THE GAME UNTIL ALL PLAYERS HAVE JOINED!
6: Modifying Results
The Game Manager (GM) can adjust previous ball location results if needed. When a result is modified, the app automatically recalculates the score from that inning forward.
7: End of Game Conditions
Moundball ends in one of two ways:
Innings Run Out – The game ends when all players have had an equal number of turns and there aren’t enough innings left for everyone to go again.
GM Ends the Game Early – If the Game Manager (GM) decides to call it early, the game will revert to the last inning where all players had an equal number of turns.
Any Moundbucks still in the pot go unclaimed. Since Moundball keeps a real-time score, meaning points aren’t awarded or ante deducted until the pot is won by a player, at the end of the game the pot is just emptied or zeroed out.
Lingo
Every great game has its own language, and Moundball is no different. Whether you're a rookie or a seasoned vet, here’s everything you need to know to talk the talk and (hopefully) walk away with a pile of Moundbucks.
1. Active Player
The star of the inning! This is the player currently trying to win the pot. The Active Player changes every half-inning, rotating through the Pitching Order.
2. Pitching Order
The lineup of players taking turns as the Active Player. No need for a dugout brawl over who goes first—Moundball randomly sets the order at the start of the game.
3. Moundbuck
The official currency of Moundball! Players ante up Moundbucks at the start of each half-inning, and the Active Player wins the pot if the ball stays on the mound.
4. Ante
The Moundbucks each player contributes to the pot at the start of the game and before every half-inning - even if the pot isn’t won by the Active Player. The Game Manager sets the ante before the game starts—so choose wisely!
5. Pot
The jackpot of Moundbucks! The Active Player wins the pot if the ball stops on the mound. If not, the pot rolls over, growing bigger every half-inning until someone wins it or the game ends. Once there’s a winner, the pot resets to the total base ante, and the cycle begins again!
6. Ball on the Mound
Victory! The ball is considered on the mound if it comes to a complete stop on the pitcher’s mound without touching any grass. If this happens, the Active Player wins the pot of Moundbucks, and the game keeps rolling.
7. Ball off the Mound
Heartbreak. The ball is considered off the mound if it stops on or touches the grass, never even makes it to the mound, or is either handed or thrown directly to the pitcher. If this happens, the Active Player loses, the pot carries over, everyone re-antes, and the next player in the Pitching Order takes their turn.
8. Game Manager (GM)
The commissioner of the chaos. This is the player who sets up the game, decides the ante, invites players to join, enters the results of each half-inning and has final say on the outcome of each half-inning.
9. Moundball Winner(s)
There can and likely will be more than one winner when the game ends. Anyone with a positive score wins, anyone with a negative score loses.
