Four deadly diseases are spreading globally. Work together with up to 3 colleagues, using your specialized roles, to cure all four before the world is overwhelmed.
Our full review: Pandemic Review
Note: These simplified rules help you get started quickly. Read the full rulebook before play.
Setup
What is Pandemic Shuffling?
Instead of shuffling Epidemic cards directly into the full deck:
- Split the player card deck into equal piles (one per Epidemic card).
- Shuffle one Epidemic card into each pile.
- Stack all piles together without re-shuffling.
This guarantees Epidemics are spread evenly across the game — but within each section they can still cluster. You might get two back-to-back, but never three in a row.
How a Turn Works
Each player takes 4 actions per turn, then draws 2 player cards, then draws Infection cards.
Your 4 actions (spend any combination):
- Move to an adjacent city
- Direct flight to any city (discard that city card)
- Charter a flight from a city you have the card for
- Build a Research Station (discard that city card)
- Treat disease (remove one cube from your current city)
- Share knowledge (trade a city card between players in the same city)
- Discover a cure (at a Research Station, discard 5 matching-colour city cards)
After your 4 actions:
- Draw 2 player cards. If you draw an Epidemic card: increase the infection rate, then shuffle all discarded infection cards and put them on TOP of the infection deck.
- Draw Infection cards equal to the current infection rate. Add one cube of matching colour to each drawn city.
Outbreak and Chain Reactions
When a city would receive a 4th cube of the same colour, an Outbreak occurs:
- Move the Outbreak marker one space forward
- Every connected city receives one cube of that colour
- If any connected city also has 3 cubes, it chains into another Outbreak
8 outbreaks = you lose.
How to Win
Cure all 4 diseases. To cure a disease: discard 5 city cards of the same colour (4 if you’re the Scientist) while at a Research Station.
Once cured, that disease can be eradicated by removing all remaining cubes. An eradicated disease never spreads again.
How to Lose
You lose immediately if any of these happen:
- 8 outbreaks occur
- Any colour runs out of disease cubes
- The player card deck is empty and someone must draw
What's the difference between treating and curing?
Treating removes one cube from a city per action (the Medic removes all cubes for one action). Curing means the disease is officially discovered — once cured, any treated cube of that colour is immediately eradicated from the board.
Can players share their cards freely?
No — you can only share cards if both players are in the same city AND the card matches that city. The Researcher is an exception and can share any city card.
Do we have to eradicate all diseases to win?
No. You only need to cure all 4 diseases. Eradication is a bonus that prevents a cured disease from spreading further — powerful but not required to win.
