Vertical Scramble, the card game for climbing walls. A turn sounds like: Heel Hook. Blue.
A card deck for the climbing wall. One player is the reader: they flip an action and a hold color and call it out. You make the move, and the game goes on until you fall.
How a turn works
One person reads. Everyone else climbs.
- Start
Pick your start
Take out any colors your wall doesn't have. The reader turns over 4 color cards, and you pick 2 hand and 2 foot holds in those colors.
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The call
The reader flips an action card and a color card and reads them out loud:
Left hand. Pink.
The reader sets the pace. -
Make the move
Move that hand or foot to a new hold of that color, even if it's already on one. Smearing is allowed.
-
Keep going until you fall
Every call you hold on to is a point. Fall off, and your turn count is your score. Then swap readers.
House rules are encouraged! Climbing is inherently dangerous. Play at your own risk.
From the Etsy reviews
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I got this for a friend as a unique gift and she absolutely loves it! She said the deck is fun to use at the rock gym and that the cards are well made.
Brianna · Etsy, Dec 2025
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Such a fun climbing gift! We love pulling it out to switch things up and make our sessions more fun!
jessi · Etsy, Mar 2026
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Fun game for climbers to change up practice.
Robin · Etsy, Mar 2026
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This game is super cute and it was a great gift for my dad who loves climbing and games!
kiki · Etsy, Dec 2025
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Great game and has been really fun! Great gift for climbers!
Jessie · Etsy, Aug 2026
7 moves. 10 colors.
Action cards tell you what to move. Color cards tell you where. Wild cards leave it up to you.
The deck and all of its card art were made without generative AI.
Action cards
Color cards
At the wall
For gyms, shops and coaches
Run it as a gym night, sell it at your front desk, or use it to train a youth team. Ask us about bulk pricing.
Bulk orders and gym nights
No deck in your bag?
The Vertical Scramble app plays the same game on your phone. It draws the cards, can read each one out loud, and can draw on a timer so the reader gets to climb too. $2.99 on the App Store.
Ready to play?
