…Just for fun, I want to try designing my own deck – strictly for personal use.

A: The most basic formula is simply 25% of each of the 4 card types, but Fluxx is a very flexible game engine and you can push any of those numbers as needed. Indeed, it usually ends up being closer to 20 Keepers and 30 Goals. Just to give you an idea of the range of variability for the numbers, you can check out the card ratios for every version of Fluxx on the right side of this chart.

If you decide to include Creepers, they will take the place of some of your Keepers. But be careful about Creepers… don’t add too many, and don’t use them at all unless the subject matter really demands it. If so, be sure to include plenty of ways of to get rid of them.

Always use all of the usual Draw and Play rules, and at least a couple of Hand Limits (they may not seem fun but they are important for preventing out-of-control hand growth). Start with basically all of the Actions from basic Fluxx, then replace whichever of those you think don’t fit and replace them with as many on-theme new Actions and Rules as you can imagine.

As for the Keepers and Goals, the important thing there is to make sure every Keeper has at least 2 uses, i.e. it appears on at least 2 Goals. Obviously, the more uses the better.

We call the most useful Keeper in the set the Chocolate (since that’s the one most used in the original non-themed versions). If your theme has a main character or primary focus, such as Dorothy in Oz Fluxx or Alice in Wonderland Fluxx, then that Keeper should be your Chocolate. Have fun!

For some more practical tips about designing your own custom Fluxx deck see: Q: What do I need to make a fully-custom Fluxx version?…