KerPlunk Rules: How to Play and Who Wins

By Disha Barot

Published Oct 28, 20266 min read

In KerPlunk, players take turns pulling one stick at a time out of a tube full of marbles. Any marbles that fall during your turn are yours. When all the marbles have fallen, everyone counts their marbles, and the player with the fewest marbles wins. The first stick you touch is the one you must pull, and your turn only ends when the next player touches the tube or a stick.

KerPlunk is a game for 2 to 4 players aged 5 and up. The rules below come from Mattel’s own instruction sheets for the classic game (item 37092) and two other editions. We also answer the questions that cause arguments at the table.

What’s in the KerPlunk box?

The classic KerPlunk game (Mattel 37092) comes with:

• A game base with 4 numbered trays, one for each player
• A clear tube in two parts (top and bottom) plus a tube connector with holes
• 30 sticks in three colours (10 each of purple, yellow and pink)
• 32 marbles

You play with 25 sticks. Mattel’s sheet says to set 5 sticks aside as spares in case any break or get lost.

Other editions have fewer pieces, and the marble counts differ:

How to set up KerPlunk

1. Cut out the sticks (first game only). Cut the plastic sticks off their frame. Mattel says to use safety scissors.
2. Build the tube. Stand the bottom part of the tube on a flat surface. Snap the connector onto it, then snap the top part (the one with the opening) onto the connector. Pull both ends to check it is firm.
3. Stand the tube in the base.
4. Add the sticks. Push each stick through a hole on one side and out through a hole on the other side. Place them at random so they crisscross in different directions and form a web.
5. Add the marbles. Drop all the marbles in through the opening at the top. They rest on the web of sticks. If any fall through to the base, put them back in until every marble sits on the sticks.

How to play KerPlunk: a turn

Each player picks a numbered tray to use for the whole game. Choose who goes first, then play passes to the left. On your turn:

1. Turn the tube. Slowly rotate the tube so the window opening lines up with your tray. Try not to move the marbles.
2. Pull one stick. Choose any stick and pull it all the way out, slowly, trying not to let marbles fall.
3. Put the stick aside. Now it is the next player’s turn.

Two rules keep the game fair. First, the first stick you touch is the stick you must pull. Second, you may hold the tube steady with one hand while you pull.

When does your turn end?

Your turn ends at the moment the next player touches the tube to turn it, or touches a stick. Until then, any marbles that drop still count as yours. So if marbles roll off a second after you pull your stick, they are your marbles, not the next player’s.

In the classic game, the marbles that drop on your turn fall into your tray because you lined the window up with it. Leave them there until the game ends.

These turn steps are for the classic game. In the two-half tube edition (FPR07) there are no trays, so turn the tube to face you and keep your marbles in front of you. In the collapsible travel edition (R7041), your turn ends only when the next player touches a stick.

How do you win KerPlunk?

The game ends when all the marbles have dropped out of the tube. Each player counts the marbles in their tray (or in front of them). The player with the fewest marbles wins.

For example, in a 4-player game with 32 marbles, scores of 4, 7, 9 and 12 mean the player with 4 marbles wins. You are not trying to keep the marbles up yourself. You are trying to make sure they fall on someone else’s turn.

KerPlunk rule questions that cause arguments

• “I only brushed that stick.” Touching counts. You must pull the first stick you touch.
• “Can I hold the tube?” Yes, with one hand, to keep it steady.
• “Those marbles fell after my turn.” Not if the next player hadn’t touched the tube or a stick yet. Until they do, the marbles are yours.
• “Can I take marbles out of my tray?” Not in the classic game. Leave them in your tray until the end so the count is fair.
• “What if we tie?” Mattel’s sheets don’t cover ties. Agree before you start, for example by sharing the win or playing one more round.

KerPlunk tips

These are tips, not official rules:

• Look at the tube from the side and from above before you touch anything. Since you must pull the first stick you touch, pick first, then reach.
• Early in the game, pull sticks that are below the main pile or not touching any marble.
• Pull slowly and straight. Twisting a stick can shift the marbles above it.
• Late in the game, try to leave a stick that holds up a lot of marbles for the next player.

KerPlunk contains marbles. Mattel’s sheet warns that they are a choking hazard and the game is not for children under 3. Count the marbles when you pack the game away. Giant garden or yard versions are sold by other makers, not as Mattel KerPlunk, so check the rules in that box.

Like steady hands? Try our guides to Jenga rules and Operation game rules. For more marble fun, see Hungry Hungry Hippos rules, Mouse Trap rules and our list of board games with marbles.

Written byDisha Barot

Disha Barot has published 82 articles on Justwebworld since 2022, mostly covering Tech, Gaming and Shopping.

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