Stuck In The Mud And 15 Other Tig Games, With Rules

Tig, tag, tick, it, chase, dobby - one game, a hundred names, and about twenty genuinely different versions.

Here are the rules for the good ones, starting with the best of the lot.

Stuck in the mud

• One or two players are on. Everyone else runs.
• Anyone tagged must stand still with legs apart and arms out - stuck in the mud.
• A free player frees them by crawling between their legs, or in the gentler version by touching their outstretched hand.
• The person on wins by getting everyone stuck at the same time.
• Two catchers for more than ten players, or it never ends.
• Time limit of three minutes per catcher is the fair version, since getting everyone stuck is genuinely hard.

The classic variations

• Freeze tag: tagged players freeze on the spot and are freed by a touch from anyone free.
• Chain tag: tagged players link hands with the catcher, forming a growing line. Only the end players may tag.
• Off-ground tig: you're safe as long as no part of you touches the ground - a bench, a wall, a step. Five seconds maximum on any one safe spot.
• Shadow tag: you're tagged if the catcher steps on your shadow. Only works on a sunny day and it's wonderful.
• Bandage tag: you must hold the spot where you were tagged with one hand and keep running. Two tags and you're the catcher.
• Colour tig: shout a colour, and anyone touching that colour is safe.

Team and group versions

• Cops and robbers: half chase, half run, caught players go to a jail that teammates can raid.
• Sharks and minnows: catchers in the middle of a space, runners crossing from side to side.
• Infection tag: one catcher, and every person tagged also becomes a catcher until nobody is left.
• Fox and hounds: one runner with a head start, everyone else chasing.
• Hospital tag: tagged players lose the use of a limb until three tags puts them out.

Names for tig around the UK

• Tig - the north, Scotland and much of the Midlands.
• Tag - the south and increasingly everywhere.
• Tick - parts of the north west.
• It or 'on it' - widespread.
• Dobby - Merseyside and the north west.
• Chasey, chase, catch and had - scattered local names.

Fair play rules worth agreeing

• No tag-backs - you can't immediately tag the person who tagged you.
• Agree the boundaries out loud before you start, or the game becomes a long run to the car park.
• One-handed touch, no grabbing or pushing.
• Swap the catcher every few minutes so nobody is on for the entire lunchtime.
• Include the slowest runner deliberately: colour tig, shadow tag and off-ground tig all favour cleverness over speed.

Shop cards

How to write it so it lands

• Two catchers once you're over ten players.
• No tag-backs, agreed out loud.
• Shadow tag and colour tig give slower runners a chance.

Where to shop next

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• All guides

Frequently asked questions

What are the rules of stuck in the mud?

One or two players are on. Anyone tagged must stand still with legs apart and arms out. Free players release them by crawling between their legs or touching their hand. The catcher wins by getting everyone stuck at once.

What are the different types of tig?

Freeze tag, chain tag, off-ground tig, shadow tag, bandage tag, colour tig, infection tag, sharks and minnows, cops and robbers and hospital tag - all built on the same chase with a different catch rule.

What's the difference between tig and tag?

Nothing at all - it's the same game. Tig is the northern, Scottish and Midlands name, tag is the southern one, and tick, dobby and 'it' are used in other regions.

What is off-ground tig?

A version where you're safe from being tagged as long as no part of you is touching the ground - standing on a bench, a step or a wall. Most versions allow five seconds on any one safe spot before you must move.

Do you sell games or play equipment?

No - we make greeting cards, art prints and pin badges in the UK. Every game here needs a wall, a ball, a piece of chalk or nothing at all, and the only products on this page are our own cards.