How to Play Carrooka

Objective

Score points by pocketing pieces with the striker. You’ll go between pocketing a red piece, then nominating a colour piece to pocket. The game ends when everything has been scored.

Set Up and Points

Put the 15 red pieces in the centre triangle – these are worth 1 point each.

Put the 6 colour pieces in their matching colour spots. These have varying point values:

Yellow = 2 points
Green = 3 points
Brown = 4 points
Blue = 5 points
Pink = 6 points
Black = 7 points

Shooting

You’ll shoot by flicking the striker with a singular finger, hitting the side of the striker. The first shot goes from the break line (the inner circle around the triangle) – after that, shoot from wherever the striker is on the board.

Turns

On the first shot of your turn, your goal is to pocket a red. You MUST hit a red piece with the striker first. If successful, leave the red(s) in the pocket, and tally up your points.

You get to shoot again, this time calling one of the 6 colour pieces. Whichever one you call, you must hit that piece first, and you must pocket only that piece. If successful, count your points, then return the colour piece to its matching colour spot.

If the appropriate spot is covered, put the piece in the highest value spot available.

Your turn continues (pocket a red, call and pocket a colour) until you miss. Then it’s your opponents turn, starting with red.

Whoever pockets the last red will call one last colour (return it to the board if pocketed), then: the goal is to sink the remaining colour pieces in order, from lowest to highest value. This time they stay in the pocket. Once the black is pocketed, see who has won the game!

Margin Line

If the striker lands over the margin line, you are allowed to move it the shortest distance out from the railing / pocket, to where it is still touching the margin, to give yourself space to shoot.

Fouls

Fouls include:

Not hitting anything
Hitting the wrong piece first
Pocketing the wrong piece
Pocketing the striker
Removing pieces from the board (flying out of play)
Interference (shaking the board excessively, hitting pieces with your hand)

If you foul: your turn ends immediately, and you gain no points for a foul shot.

Return pieces to the board as needed: reds stay out of play – colour pieces go back to their spot – the striker is returned to the break line.

And, your opponent gets a bonus shot. They play as normal, but once they miss, they get to shoot again at whatever they were just trying to pocket. If they score on a bonus shot, their turn continues. Some notes:

You must stick to your nomination with your bonus shot
If you foul, your turn ends immediately – lose your bonus shot

Carrooka Situations from Fouls

When you don’t have a clear line at what you are supposed to hit, this is called being Carrooka’d. In normal play, it’s on the player to get out of the situation.

If a Carrooka situation occurs as the result of a foul, the shooting player has three options:

Return to Break Line: Move the striker to the break line to where you have a line at the appropriate piece. NOTE that you keep your bonus shot.
Free Counter: Nominate any piece to act as the “colour on”. Hitting this piece counts as a valid shot, and pocketing this piece counts for as many points as whatever you were supposed to hit. NOTE that you keep your bonus shot.

- The free counter only applies for that shot – however, it does carry over into your bonus shot, if you end up using it immediately.

Skip your Turn: Pass the situation to your opponent, who has to play the shot as it is (no bonus shots for them).

Questions? Let us Know!

If you’re unsure about any of the rules, or have come across a situation not covered here, let us know. And, if you don’t have a board yet, visit our shop and get started on your carrooka journey. For now – happy flicking!