So you've been hearing about this whole Thunderdisc thing and wondering if it's for you? Well, it is.
Thunderdisc is basically Ultimate [Frisbee] except the name is cooler and the rules are way better. In Thunderdisc, the goal is to have the most fun and do the best that you can do without all the annoying parts of formal Ultimate play. Your pride is the limit.
Your team is in the lead whenever you stop playing.
Both teams are mostly evenly matched.
You have a great time playing.
You focus on doing your best with what you have.
The points are in the endzones. You get 1 point when your team catches it in the defending team's endzone.
You can't run with the disc (think basketball after you've stopped dribbling).
If your team doesn't complete a pass, then the other team goes on offense where the disc lies.
If the change of possession is in your team's endzone, you may take the disc to the beginning of the endzone by any path and any speed you want. What if you never actually make it to the line? I don't care.
Contact is allowed but collision is bad. Think basketball rules (a defender can use a hand to keep in touch with the person that they're covering, but you can't run into someone or otherwise take some action that would risk obvious injury to another person).
The "kick off" is performed by the newly-defending team throwing the disc to the newly-attacking team. You usually want to throw the disc as far as you can, but you don't have to. Remember, if you throw it into the other team's endzone, they can bring it up to the line.
Don't "double cover" the thrower. Give the dude some space, man. Also, the thrower really shouldn't try to hurt you by chucking the disc at your body. If it's that kind of game, then maybe you need to all calm down and/or eject some players.
The field is a rectangle that wraps the entire planet, but you'll probably only be playing in a relatively small area, maybe a hundred feet wide.
On either end of the field is an endzone. That's where the points are.
Pick a field length that works for your players, how much time you have, the conditions on-site, etc.
There are no "out of bounds". Do not look at your feet while you play; that's boring. If you need to set up some practical restrictions (fences, neighbor's yards, etc.), then you may do so.
Each team has an endzone that they are defending and an endzone that they are attacking, and this switches after each scoring event.
If the change of possession happens way outside of the general area of play, then you may kinda bring the disc back toward the area of play; you shouldn't be penalized for the other team making a terrible throw. But don't get too exact about it.
The score is kept as a single, signed integer value. It represents the total difference in points between the two teams. This number should be as close to zero as possible. If it becomes wildly out of tune, then you may need to mix up the teams. It's not fun to have a blowout.
Each team, when kicking off, should shout the score from their point of view. This should be either "Zero!" (indicating a tie), "Up X!" (indicating that the throwing team is up X points), or "Down X!" (indicating that the throwing team is down X points).
"Pick Six:" If you are on defense and you intercept the disc, you may run with the disc to opposing team's endzone.
If you are touched by a member of the other team ("one hand touch", but the slightest contact is fine), then you must drop the disc. It is still your team's possession, but someone else from your team has to pick up the disc. You should go for it and continue to run to the endzone so that you can still get a point of out your run.
If you are not touched by a member of the other team and you make it to the endzone, then it it is worth 3 points.
"Endzone to Endzone:" If you are standing in your own (defending) endzone and you throw the disc to the defending team's endzone and you announce "Seven!" and your team catches it in the defending team's endzone, then it is worth 7 points.
Under Mario Cart Rules (standard), you may only do this if you are behind. Otherwise, it is the same as a normal throw into the endzone, just cooler because it's a farther throw.
If you exclude Mario Cart Rules, then you may use this to run up the score arbitrarily, and that's generally not fun, but it's up to you and how evenly matched your teams are.
If, instead of someone from your team, a member of the defending team catches it in their endzone and they successfully run it back to your endzone, then it is also worth 7 points. Awesome.
Similar to tennis, there will be an "odd" side and an "even" side. Whatever side you're on when the game starts ("Zero!") will be the "even" side. No matter what happens, when the score is even (for example, "0", "Up 2", "Down 2", "Up 6", etc.), you will be in that same endzone. You can use it as a simple check to make sure that you generally have the score correct.
Pick Six is awesome and will tire you out, but that's why it's worth 3 points. This really makes the defending team pay attention and the attacking team avoid making stupid mistakes. If you can't run, then walk. If you don't want any part of it, then just drop the disc immediately after catching it and let someone else from your team pick it up. The general point is that if you're going to intercept it, that's awesome, and you should run it back for more points. If at any time during your run you want to abort the run, then just drop the disc and that's the equivalent of someone touching you.
Endzone to Endzone should, by definition, be achievable but not trivial. It's worth a lot of points, so you can only use it to catch up. You must shout "Seven!" so that everyone on the field knows what's up. This'll give your team the extra motivation that it needs to catch the disc, and it'll give the defending team the heads-up that they need to get to the endzone and stop you. And if it backfires, you could be down seven points afterward. If you don't want the risk, don't shout "Seven!". In that case, it's just a normal throw that happens to be long-distance.
You'll note that I didn't mention a "stall count". Eff that, no one cares. Nobody's a professional here; we're all having fun. If you don't want to wait around to the throw the disc, then don't—throw it quickly. If someone's annoying you with how long they're taking to throw, then maybe back off a bit and give them some space. Typically, it's the less-skilled players that tend to freeze up. And if someone's being a real jerk about it, then kick 'em out of the game; I don't care. We're all here to have fun.
What about if someone hits the disc out of your hand before you throw it? Well, I did say that your pride is the limit. If it were me, I'd take it as a reminder that I need to keep my hand firmly on the disc at all times, and I'd turn over possession. But some people aren't as badass, and they might not like that. If they want to pick the disc up because you were being a jerk, then that's up to them and everyone else in general. The point is to have fun.
This isn't golf. Make noise. Shout. Scream.
Did I say anything about throwing it to yourself? Well, go for it. Especially if you're like 2 feet from the endzone and there's no one there to stop you. Ditto if your team is covered but no one is covering you. Make them work. Obviously, the disk should actually leave your hands and actually do disc stuff in the air (someone should be able to stop you).