The 5 Best Axe Throwing Games and How To Play

Heber HatchetsHeber's Man Blog

If you’ve never been hatchet throwing, you may be wondering if it’s a worthwhile activity for you and your friends and family. At first glance, it can appear just to be an exercise of throwing hatchets across the room and seeing if it hits something. However, there’s a lot more to it, and there are plenty of hatchet-throwing games that you can play to make it more fun. Hatchet throwing is a fun addition to any game night and gets the energy flowing for everyone with how unique and hands-on the activity is!

Target Setup

Before reviewing different games that you can play, it’s important to know the basics of the target setup. All axe throwing targets will be similar but may have small differences, like only having three rings instead of four or having additional target markings. The targets at Heber Hatchets have a unique design that include four rings, a bullseye, and the clutch (two separate circles on the target’s upper right and upper left sections). These additional designs make for fun game combinations that add additional challenges than a normal target. 

Learn more about building and setting up an axe throwing target for your games at home.

Scoring Basics

Here’s a breakdown of how scoring and points work with the target: 

  • Ring 1 = 1 point
  • Ring 2 = 2 points
  • Ring 3 = 3 points 
  • Ring 4 = 4 points
  • Bullseye = 6 points
  • Clutch = 10 points

Heber Hatchets Top 5 Axe Throwing Games

The following are the top 5 axe throwing games that are the most popular among players. Each axe throwing game can also be done with any number of other throwing objects. Depending on the Heber Hatchets location, we offer bike sprockets, throwing stars, and tomahawks. As a result, each of these games work as tomahawk or hatchet throwing games. Regardless of which object you will be throwing, you will be able to play the following games. If you are new to throwing axes, read our guide to learn more about the proper technique.

1. Around the World

Around the World can be played as either a two-player game or with equal sized teams. This game is one of the most popular games to play while axe throwing. The game’s purpose is to try and hit each section of the board in a certain order. You start from the outside of the target, work your way to the bullseye, and then go back to the first outside ring again. Another way of thinking about it is following this sequence of points: 1, 2, 3, 4, 6 (bullseye), 4, 3, 2, 1. The first person or team to complete the sequence wins!

Depending on what skill level you are, there are some other variations of rules to make this game more challenging: 

  • If you mess up the sequence or order, you have to start from the beginning. 
  • You can include the clutch in the series. (This is typically added to the very end of the standard order.)

This game is a fun, easy game which is a great party game to get started and warmed up.

2. Cornhole

Forget the bean bags—grab an axe! Cornhole can be both a two-player and a multiplayer game with teams. The goal is to be the first one to reach 21 points. The tricky part is that scoring works differently than traditional cornhole. In axe throwing cornhole, only one person or group will score each round, and they will only score the difference of points from each individual throw. For example, if your opponent scores 4 points and you score 6, you win 2 points for that round. Those 2 points will then go toward that goal of 21 points. The first player to 21 points wins.

3. Humans vs. Zombies

This game is often played with teams, making it great for people with a large group or corporate event. Hebet Hatchets offers a special group package for those who want to come in groups of ten or more. Once your teams are assembled, you will split into two groups. One team is human, while the others are zombies. The zombie team’s points are negative, while the humans have positive points. Ultimately, both teams’ points are working against each other and battling to stay in either the negatives or positives. 

A team wins when they reach either 15 points (for the humans) or negative 15 points (for the zombies). For example, if a human player scores 10 points and a zombie player scores 4, the total score at the time is 6. Since the number is positive, the human team is in the lead and 9 points away from winning.

4. Horse

Two players or teams will compete in each round for the highest scoring throw in Horse. Whoever has the lower scoring throw will then receive a letter from the word “HORSE” that round. The first person or team to spell out “HORSE” completely loses. This game does go by quicker than the others, so it’s better to play one-on-one instead of in teams which makes it the best game for an axe throwing date.

If there’s a tie in a round, the players will throw another tie-breaker throw. If you’re playing with a team and that round remains a tie, move on to the next players.

5. Landmines

In Landmines, the first person or team to reach 50 points wins. However, there are penalizing “landmines” if your total score is ever 10, 20, 30, or 40. When your total score adds up to a “landmine amount,” you automatically deduct 10 points from your score.

Landmines are only dangerous once, so if your opponent sets a landmine off at the 10 point marker, you’re safe if your total score ever hits 10 again. You can also switch this game up by changing the landmines to different amounts or by increasing the winning point value.

Where to Play

There are plenty of fun axe throwing games out there, so if you’re ready to make hatchet-throwing your new game night obsession, Heber Hatchets has locations in Idaho, Utah, and Washington. Our team is happy to help walk you through some of these games and teach you best safety practices and we have additional axe throwing games you can play while you are at one of our locations. Call Heber Hatchets today to book a time that works best for you!