What card game am I playing?
Discussion
Every so often my wife and I sit down with friends get drunk and play a card game.
It's a game she has been paying for years taught to her by her father as a child. It was taught to him years before when he was an in a band touring Germany. All we know it as is "The Big Game" it takes a while to play and you need two decks of cards.
You start with two decks shuffled.
Each player gets 10 cards.
The rest of the deck is placed in the middle with one card overturned.
When it's your turn you first pick up a card from the deck or the upturned card. Then you have to find a run of three or three of a kind then you put them down, the idea is you are the first to get rid of all your cards.
If you can't put 3 down you place one of your cards facing up on the upturned card.
If you have put down 3 you can then add to anyone else's "3" with a single card or a many as you can. Then finish your go by placing one of your cards face up on the upturned card.
After someone has won the first round by getting rid of all their cards, everyone adds up their cards and this makes the score.
All the cards get collected reshuffled and everyone gets 10 cards again, this time you're looking for two runs of three or two three of a kind.
Round 3, four of a kind or a run of four.
Round 4, 2 four of a kind or 2 runs of four.
Round 5, five of a kind or a run of five.
The final round, 2 fives of a kind or 2 runs of five.
Any point it's not your turn you can buy a card, but you have to take another card from the deck as well.
Aces can take the place of any card, so, for example, two sixes and an ace can be put down as if it was three sixes. But if you have any aces in your hand when someone wins they are counted as 20.
The aim is to finish the game with the smallest score.
But what is it called?
It's a game she has been paying for years taught to her by her father as a child. It was taught to him years before when he was an in a band touring Germany. All we know it as is "The Big Game" it takes a while to play and you need two decks of cards.
You start with two decks shuffled.
Each player gets 10 cards.
The rest of the deck is placed in the middle with one card overturned.
When it's your turn you first pick up a card from the deck or the upturned card. Then you have to find a run of three or three of a kind then you put them down, the idea is you are the first to get rid of all your cards.
If you can't put 3 down you place one of your cards facing up on the upturned card.
If you have put down 3 you can then add to anyone else's "3" with a single card or a many as you can. Then finish your go by placing one of your cards face up on the upturned card.
After someone has won the first round by getting rid of all their cards, everyone adds up their cards and this makes the score.
All the cards get collected reshuffled and everyone gets 10 cards again, this time you're looking for two runs of three or two three of a kind.
Round 3, four of a kind or a run of four.
Round 4, 2 four of a kind or 2 runs of four.
Round 5, five of a kind or a run of five.
The final round, 2 fives of a kind or 2 runs of five.
Any point it's not your turn you can buy a card, but you have to take another card from the deck as well.
Aces can take the place of any card, so, for example, two sixes and an ace can be put down as if it was three sixes. But if you have any aces in your hand when someone wins they are counted as 20.
The aim is to finish the game with the smallest score.
But what is it called?
We play a similar game, but with 13 cars each. It's called Kalooki. You need to lay down 3 sets of 3 and one set of 4, but you can't lay anything down until they add up to 40 (cards have their face value in points, picture cars are 10, ace is 1 or 11 depending on if you use it high or low.) If you pick up a card you must lay down, but you don't have to lay down the card you picked up.
So you could lay down 10, J, Q, K or spades, that's 40. But if you have 3 8s that's only 24, so you'd need another set worth 16 to lay down. Jokers are used, they are worth what card they are replacing. If someone lays down a joker, you can take it if you have the real card, but then you must use it to lay down.
When someone is out, other player get fined the points they are left holding. Then aces are 11 and jokers 15. Get to 301 points and you're out of the game.
So you could lay down 10, J, Q, K or spades, that's 40. But if you have 3 8s that's only 24, so you'd need another set worth 16 to lay down. Jokers are used, they are worth what card they are replacing. If someone lays down a joker, you can take it if you have the real card, but then you must use it to lay down.
When someone is out, other player get fined the points they are left holding. Then aces are 11 and jokers 15. Get to 301 points and you're out of the game.
TwigtheWonderkid said:
We play a similar game, but with 13 cars each. It's called Kalooki. You need to lay down 3 sets of 3 and one set of 4, but you can't lay anything down until they add up to 40 (cards have their face value in points, picture cars are 10, ace is 1 or 11 depending on if you use it high or low.) If you pick up a card you must lay down, but you don't have to lay down the card you picked up.
So you could lay down 10, J, Q, K or spades, that's 40. But if you have 3 8s that's only 24, so you'd need another set worth 16 to lay down. Jokers are used, they are worth what card they are replacing. If someone lays down a joker, you can take it if you have the real card, but then you must use it to lay down.
When someone is out, other player get fined the points they are left holding. Then aces are 11 and jokers 15. Get to 301 points and you're out of the game.
We have played this for years with the kids. If you go out in one go, you have 'Kalooki'd and zero your score. OP's game sounds like a regional variation.So you could lay down 10, J, Q, K or spades, that's 40. But if you have 3 8s that's only 24, so you'd need another set worth 16 to lay down. Jokers are used, they are worth what card they are replacing. If someone lays down a joker, you can take it if you have the real card, but then you must use it to lay down.
When someone is out, other player get fined the points they are left holding. Then aces are 11 and jokers 15. Get to 301 points and you're out of the game.
Julietbravo said:
TwigtheWonderkid said:
We play a similar game, but with 13 cars each. It's called Kalooki. You need to lay down 3 sets of 3 and one set of 4, but you can't lay anything down until they add up to 40 (cards have their face value in points, picture cars are 10, ace is 1 or 11 depending on if you use it high or low.) If you pick up a card you must lay down, but you don't have to lay down the card you picked up.
So you could lay down 10, J, Q, K or spades, that's 40. But if you have 3 8s that's only 24, so you'd need another set worth 16 to lay down. Jokers are used, they are worth what card they are replacing. If someone lays down a joker, you can take it if you have the real card, but then you must use it to lay down.
When someone is out, other player get fined the points they are left holding. Then aces are 11 and jokers 15. Get to 301 points and you're out of the game.
We have played this for years with the kids. If you go out in one go, you have 'Kalooki'd and zero your score. OP's game sounds like a regional variation.So you could lay down 10, J, Q, K or spades, that's 40. But if you have 3 8s that's only 24, so you'd need another set worth 16 to lay down. Jokers are used, they are worth what card they are replacing. If someone lays down a joker, you can take it if you have the real card, but then you must use it to lay down.
When someone is out, other player get fined the points they are left holding. Then aces are 11 and jokers 15. Get to 301 points and you're out of the game.
cbmotorsport said:
It's called Contract or Contract Rummy, although your version may have some small variations.
Great game.
ETA It's even better if you make the players who haven't achieved each round stay on that round until they do.
This is it! Great game.
ETA It's even better if you make the players who haven't achieved each round stay on that round until they do.
Edited by cbmotorsport on Monday 30th July 15:54
The contracts are slightly different but the rest of the game is exactly the same as far as I can see. Thank you!
We used to play a version of gin rummy called spoons. Except we played with kitchen implements. Whisks, spatulas, bread knives etc..etc..
When someone got a run they grabbed an implement and everyone else then had to grab something. last one got nothing and was out.
Lord knows how no-one got hurt. Perhaps cos when we played it we were all completely s
tfaced. 
When someone got a run they grabbed an implement and everyone else then had to grab something. last one got nothing and was out.
Lord knows how no-one got hurt. Perhaps cos when we played it we were all completely s
tfaced. Ace-T said:
We used to play a version of gin rummy called spoons. Except we played with kitchen implements. Whisks, spatulas, bread knives etc..etc..
When someone got a run they grabbed an implement and everyone else then had to grab something. last one got nothing and was out.
Lord knows how no-one got hurt. Perhaps cos when we played it we were all completely stfaced.
Knockout whisk?When someone got a run they grabbed an implement and everyone else then had to grab something. last one got nothing and was out.
Lord knows how no-one got hurt. Perhaps cos when we played it we were all completely s
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