Baby Got Back

Baby Got Back can be played with 2 or more people.

The game starts by assembling 8 small rocks (babies) approximately one to two inches in diameter.

Each baby should have an obvious “back” side and “belly” side that all players agree on.

A game consists of 1 or more rounds. Every player has 1 turn per round.

Each player’s turn consists of two rolls (slides) where the player rolls all babies on the ground. Babies are then sorted into two piles - backs and bellies - depending on which side of the baby is facing upwards.

One belly is -1 point, and one back is +1 point. Point totals for back and belly piles are combined, and the resulting number is that player’s score for their slide. Score values can be negative.

If there are an equal number of babies in the back and belly piles, the awarded score is 0. This is called a ”neutral” or a “neutch” for short.

If a player’s slide is almost all backs, and therefore worth a lot of points, it’s called a “Landslide”.

If a player’s slide is almost all bellies, and therefore subtracts a lot of points from the player’s score, it’s called a ”Slip”

If a player’s slide is all backs, with no bellies, that player can declare “Baby got Back!” and they win the game instantly.

If a baby lands on it’s side (neither it’s back or it’s belly) it’s called a “side lier”

Side liers take a tumble, meaning they are re-rolled.

However, if there are three or more side liers, or side liers that are re-rolled land on their sides again summing to a total of 3 or more it is called a ”Side Slap”. The rest of that player’s turn is forfeit, and no points for that player’s slide are counted.

The game then moves on to the next player’s turn.

If both a player’s slides are neutral) it’s called a “double neutch” and that player can choose one other player to punish. The player they choose will only get to slide the babies once on their next turn, instead of twice.

If babies end up on top of each other (or are leaning on each other) at the end of a slide, the players must identify the orientation of the babies without moving them, as there are different rules for different orientations.

Back on Belly:

If the top baby has its back facing up, and the bottom baby has its belly facing up, it’s a “Back on Belly”, and two new babies must be chosen from nearby rocks and added to the game.

Belly on Back:

If the top baby has its belly facing up, and the bottom baby has its back facing up, it’s a “Belly on Back”, and two babies must be removed from play.

Back on Back:

If both the top and bottom babies have their backs facing up, it’s a “Back on Back”.

Back on Back puts you back on track because your score will be doubled (if it’s positive) for the current slide.

Belly on Belly:

If both the top and bottom babies have their bellies facing up, it’s a “Belly on Belly”.

Belly on Belly is smelly, and so the player’s total score for that slide is automatically set to -2. Other babies are not counted in that slide’s score.

Three or more:

If three or more babies are leaning on each other in one cohesive pile at the end of a slide, it’s called a “Baby Jamble” or “Jamble” - and all of the involved jamble babies take a tumble (are re-rolled).

An ideal playing field for Baby Got Back is hard and level, without serious bumps or cracks.

Smooth pavement / asphalt, or well-packed dirt work well, but you can play on a towel at the beach if you level the sand prior.

Generally, Baby Got Back is meant to be played anywhere and everywhere you can find a handful of rocks!

Every game of Baby Got Back is started with 8 rocks that the players choose from their surroundings.

(From the beach, from your yard, anywhere!)

Ideal rocks are around 1-1.5 inches in diameter, so that a player can comfortably hold all 8 in their hands when they roll (slide) them - but large enough that they’re easy to see and observe on the playing field.

Each rock should have a relatively obvious “back” and “belly” - this distinction is based purely off personal preference, but we’ve found that, to many, the which side is which is fairly obvious to most people (based purely off vibes)

After learning the rules of the game, choosing different sizes and shapes of rocks will affect how the game is played, and how often certain unique events occur during gameplay (see Official Ruleset for examples)

So choose whatever rocks you want, and have fun!