How to Play

Dead Heat II is a browser-based thoroughbred horse racing simulation. You own and manage a stable of racehorses, enter them in races, and compete against other players for prize money and leaderboard points.

Everything happens through your browser — no downloads, no installs. Races are scheduled and run by the admin team, and results are based on each horse's hidden stats combined with a healthy dose of racing luck.

The goal is simple: build the best stable you can through smart racing, strategic breeding, and good management of your finances.

When you register you'll receive a starting balance of $100,000 and 10 Creation Tokens. Here's what to do first:

1. Go to My Stable → Add a Horse and create your first thoroughbred. Choose a name, gender, coat colour and birth year. Each horse costs one Creation Token.
2. Visit your new horse's profile page to read the Trainer Notes. These give you clues about your horse's strengths — pay attention to them.
3. Head to the Races page and find a race that suits your horse. Look at the distance, surface, and any age or gender restrictions.
4. Enter your horse from its profile page and wait for race day!

Each horse has a set of hidden racing stats that determine how they perform. You'll never see the numbers directly — instead your trainer writes notes describing what they've observed. Read these carefully.

Each horse also has a preferred racing surface (Grass, Dirt, or Both) and a natural racing style — Front runner, Close stalker, or Steady closer. Running a horse on the wrong surface costs performance.

Races are created and scheduled by the admin team. They appear on the Race Calendar page grouped by month. Each race has a distance, surface, and sometimes restrictions on age or gender.

1. Browse the calendar — find races that suit your horse's distance range and preferred surface.
2. Enter from the horse profile — go to your horse's page, click Enter a Race, and you'll be taken to the race entry page.
3. Entries close 24 hours before race day — make sure you're entered in time.
4. The race is run by an admin — results are simulated and commentary streams live on screen. Check back on race day!
5. Prize money is paid automatically — winnings go straight to your stable balance.

Races pay out to the top 6 finishers. An entry fee of 10% of the purse (split between all runners) is charged at race time — not when you enter.

Every new horse you register costs one Creation Token. You start with 10 tokens, which is enough to build a solid stable. Your token count is shown in the top bar at all times.

When you create a horse, you choose:

1. Name — pick something memorable. Horse names must use letters only.
2. Gender — Stallions and Mares can breed. Geldings cannot, but can race just as well.
3. Coat Colour — purely cosmetic, but it's yours to choose. Rarer colours like Cremello can only appear through breeding.
4. Birth Year — determines which age-restricted races your horse qualifies for.

Everything else — stats, height, genetics — is generated by the system. You won't know exactly what you've got until your trainer files their notes.

Breeding is how you develop your bloodlines over time. A well-bred foal can inherit the best traits of both parents — and sometimes exceed them.

To breed, go to the Breeding page, select your mare and a stallion (from any stable), give your foal a name and choose a birth year, then submit the request. If the stallion belongs to another player, they'll need to approve it first.

Foal stats are inherited from both parents, weighted by each parent's Blood Potency. A small random mutation applies to each stat — some foals will exceed their parents, others won't. Coat colour follows real equine genetics across six inheritance loci, so rare colours like Sabino or Cremello are possible outcomes.

You start with $100,000 in your stable account. Money comes in through prize winnings and stud fees, and goes out through entry fees and horse purchases.

You can send money directly to other players via the Banking page — useful for paying for privately agreed horse deals. Horse transfers between players are free and handled separately.

Your full transaction history is available on the Banking page so you can track every movement in and out of your account.

The Leaderboard ranks all stables by total points earned. Points are awarded to the top 6 finishers in every race, with bigger races carrying more points.

The leaderboard has three views — Stables (overall ranking), Horses (individual career records), and Recent Winners. You can visit any stable's public profile to see their horses and racing history.