SandLand Tactical Card Battle is a two-player duel in which each player has their own deck of cards; a deck consists of one leader and thirty asset/tactic cards. The first player to win two skirmishes wins the entire game. To win a skirmish, a player needs to:
Have the water marker on their side of the board after round #3, or
Bring the water marker to space #5 on their side of the board, or
Eliminate all assets (units and locations) in the opponent's play area.
Players start with eight cards in hand. At the start of a skirmish, each player draws four cards, then places eight cards face down in the 2x4 area on their side of the playing area and the remaining four cards in the scrap.
Players take actions until both pass. To take an action with a face-down card, reveal it, then pay its cost in scrap and take an action with it. Used tactic cards are removed from play, whereas asset cards are exhausted (turned sideways).