I grew up playing versions of the card game Rummy, mainly a variant of Shanghai Rummy (with the buys, but no jokers) and Canadian Rummy (which may be a form of Continental Rummy). We still play lots of it as an extended family (on my side), and it led on to games like Canasta, Bolivia, Samba, and others which required you to ‘meld. Shanghai is a card game similar to rummy, but should not be confused with the game Shanghai rummy. The game is typically played with three to five players but can be played with only two people as well.
GoCampingAmerica.com | Posted March 4th, 2013
Card-Game-Favorite: Shanghai Rummy
Happy Camper Blog
First, Shanghai Rummy has one of the longest rule descriptions of any of the games we feature on Go Camping America. However, it's one of our favorites for a reason and think it's worth the few extra minutes to get through the rules. Second, there are many different variations of Rummy, with Contract Rummy as the general name given for a whole class of Rummy games. All rummy games share two specific characterisitics:
- A specfic number of deals comprise a game
- In each deal a 'contract' or a particular, predtermined pattern of melds, are required to lay down any cards. Melding is the act of laying down or declaring (a combination of cards) in order to score points.
With all that, Shanghai Rummy is a version with more contracts and wilder scoring. Number of Players 3 to 8 players, each plays for themselves. No partnerships. Decks
- For 3 to 4 players: use two decks of cards, 52 cards each plus one joker for a total of 105 cards.
- For 5 or more players: use three decks of 52 cardseach, plus two jokers, for a total of 158 cards.
Card Values
- The cards are ranked (high) K-Q-J-10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2 (low)
- An ace may be ranked either high or low.
- Jokers are wild
Starting a Game To determine who deals first, the deck is shuffled and cut and each player draws a card. The player drawing the lowest card delas first. Thereafter, the deal passes from player to player to the left. Cards are dealt clockwise, starting with the player on the dealers left. After dealing, the top card is turned as the upcard, and the remainder of the deck is turned face-down to form the stock. How to Play
- There are ten rounds
- 11 cards are dealt to each player in every deal
- Each player's turn consists of a draw, possible melding and a discard. Each player's turn must end in a discard, placed face up on the discard pile
- Each meld consists of either a set, consisting of three or more cards of the same value, or a sequence consisting of four or more cards of the same rank and consecutive value
- An ace may rank either high (A-K-Q) or low (3-2-A), but sequences may not extend 'round the corner' (K-A-2)
- Jokers are wild and can be played for any card value
- When two or more sequences are required, they must be in different suits, or in the same suit. They cannot be in consecutive order and must be separated by at least one card.
- The game uses the term 'buying' for when an out-of-turn player takes an upcard.
- There is a limit to the number of buys allowed.
- There is a limit to the number of jokers used in a set or sequence.
- If you 'go out blind' (discard all your cards in one play), you earn a bonus of 25 points (50 if you haven't used a joker). Note that a bonus subtracts points from your score, not adds them.
- Number cards count as 5 points each for scoring, rather than the face value of the card.
Book Of Hoyle Rummy
Contracts: Each deal has a different contract, which consists of some combination of sets and sequences:
- DN 1, C: Two Sets of 3
- DN 2, C: One set of 3 and one sequence of 4
- DN 3, C: Two sequences of 4
- DN 4, C: Three sets of 3
- DN 5, C: One set of 3 and one sequence of 7
- DN 6, C: Two sets of 3 and one sequence of 5
- DN 7, C: Three sequences of 4
- DN 8, C: One set of 3 and one sequence of 10
- DN 9, C: Three sets of 3 and one sequence of 5
- DN 10, C: Three sequences of 5
Buying: A 'buy' is when an out-of-turn players takes the upcard. It works basically the same as it does in Contract Rummy. The player has to draw an extra card from the stock, and cannot play the cards immediately, but must wait for his turn. If more than one player wants it, the one closest to the dealer's left has precedence. There is a limit to the number of buys allowed. In contracts 1 through 8, each player is only allowed 3 buys per hand. Java for mac os x 10.4 release 9.7. In contracts 9 and 10, each player is allowed 4 buys per hand. Jokers: There is a limit to the number of jokers used in a set or sequence:
- 1 joker may be used in a set of 3, or a sequence of 4
- 2 jokers may be used in a sequence of 5
- 3 jokers may be used in a sequence of 7
- 4 jokers may be used in a sequence of 10
The Draw: The player in turn may draw either the top card of the discard pile, or the top card of the stock. If he does not want the discard, he may decline it, and any other player may take it. The right to take it passes to the palyer's left (clockwise around the table). If an out-of-turn player takes the top of the discard pile, he must also draw the top card of the stock (as a penalty), but he may not yet meld, lay off, or discard, since it is not yet his turn. Once the fate of the discard has been decided, the in-turn player must take the top card of the stock. Since he has refused the discard, he cannot take the top of the discard pile, even if a new card has been revealed. Fulfilling the Contract: Once an in-turn player has drawn a card, he may fulfill the contract by laying down the appropriate melds. He may only lay down the precise melds as called for in the contract. He may not lay off any additional cards at this time. Laying Off: In the subsequent turns after a player's contract has been met, he may lay off additional cards to any meld on the table, whether his own or his opponents. However, he may not create any new melds of his own. A player may not lay off any cards until he himself has met the contract. Jokers: A joker is a wild card, an may be used to in place of any other card as part of a meld. When doing so, the player must state its suit and rank. Any player in turn (providing he's already fulfilled his contract) may later trade the actual card for the joker, and may then either use the joker immediately, or hold it in his hand. Going Out: When a player has discarded his last card, the hand is over, and scored. If the stock is exhausted before any player has gone out, the discard pile is shuffled by the original dealer and turned face-down to form a new stock. Scoring: At the end of a hand, each player scores the sum of all cards in his hand. For purposes of scoring, the cards remaining in the players hand have the following values: 3-9=5 points 10-K=10 points Aces and Dueces=20 points The player with the fewest points at the end of the seven deals wins the game.
Zioncheck is a card game. It is similar to shanghai rummy, contract rummy, or phase 10. Hoyle's book of common card games describes several games as being based upon it, and Contract Rummy is believed to have originated from it.
Play
Basics
Zioncheck is played with multiple decks of 54 standard playing cards, including the Joker (playing card) Wilds. Aces can be high (above a King) or low (below a 2), and Jokers are wild. The number of decks varies from 2 to 4, and is based on the number of players (see chart). Each game is based on six hands, and the rules for each hand are unique. One person begins as dealer for the first hand, and then the person to the dealer's left becomes dealer for the next hand, and so on. For the first 4 hands each player is dealt 10 cards, on the fifth hand each player is dealt 11 cards and on the last hand each player is dealt 14 cards. The rest of the deck is then placed face down in the middle of the players; this is referred to as the draw pile, or if you're familiar with similar card games, it may be referred to as the stock.
The first player to play is the player to the dealer's left, unlike the other players, the first to play in each round gets to go twice. Play always progresses in this clockwise direction. Each player has a choice at the beginning of their turn. They can either pick up the discarded card from the previous person's discard, or they may draw a new card from the draw pile. Once a player sees the card from the draw pile they forfeit their right to pick up a card from the discard pile. After each player draws a card for their turn, they must discard a card from their hand, forming the discard pile previously mentioned. The reason why the first player gets to go twice is that he/she does not have the option to pick up a discarded card. Any player besides the person who discarded the card, may pick up discarded cards regardless of whose turn it is, following that the player who goes before them (the player in front of them) has the right to pick up the card before they do.
Going Down
The object of each hand is to come up with the correct combination of cards to be able to Go Down, or 'lay out'. The combination for each hand is different (see chart), and they become more difficult with each subsequent hand. The combinations for each hand are either group also called sets or runs or a combination of both. A set is a combination of three or more of a specific number of cards of the same rank, and the suit is not important. An example of a set is three cards that are all 8's, and the 8's can all be of different suits. A run is a combination of four cards in the same suit that have consecutive ranks. An example of a run is the 3 of clubs, 4 of clubs, 5 of clubs, and the 6 of clubs. As previously stated, an ace can be high or low, but it cannot be in between, a few examples. Ace of clubs, 2 of clubs, 3 of clubs, and 4 of clubs is a run, and Jack of clubs, Queen of clubs, King of clubs, Ace of clubs is a run, but King of clubs, Ace of clubs, 2 of clubs, 3 of clubs is not a run. Jokers are wild cards and can be any card in the deck. In hands that require two runs, a player may chose to play the same suit for both runs, however connecting runs must have either a gap, and extra card or nine cards. Examples: Ace of clubs, 2 of clubs, 3 of clubs, and 4 of clubs, 6 of clubs, 7 of clubs, 8 of clubs, and 9 of clubs counts as two runs. Ace of clubs, 2 of clubs, 3 of clubs, and 4 of clubs, 4 of clubs, 5 of clubs, 6 of clubs, and 7 of clubs counts as two runs, but in order for Ace of clubs, 2 of clubs, 3 of clubs, 4 of clubs, 5 of clubs, 6 of clubs, 7 of clubs, and 8 of clubs to be a run, the player must also have the 9 of clubs (played as part of the higher run).
A player can go down only when it is his turn. As always, he must start his hand by drawing a card, then when he has the correct sequence of cards, he can go down or 'meld.' He does so by laying his down cards face up on the table in their correct sequence. He can only lay out his down cards and no additional cards. After going down, a player can then play on the downs of other players. When done, he must then discard. If the player has no more cards in his hand after discarding, he is declared the winner.
When a player is 'down', he still takes his turn in turn with the other players, and he still must draw a card and discard. A player who is down can play his/her cards on the downs that have been completed either by himself or by other players. For example, if a player has lain down a group of 8's, and on a subsequent turn he then draws another 8, he can play this 8 on his group of 8's. He does this by placing the 8 with the set of 8's. If he has a card that he would like to play on a run, he must be sure to keep the order of the run. For example, if there is a run consisting of 4-5-6-7-8 of clubs, the player can play a 3 of clubs or a 9 of clubs. If a run has a wild card in it, any player can replace the wild card with the appropriate card (the wild card is covered by the replacing card). Any player with the appropriate card to replace a joker in any players's down, can replace it at any time and pick the joker up for their own use. If two players are seeking to 'take' the joker from a down, the person who lays their replacing card down first gets the joker. For example, if the run had 5-6-Joker-8-9 of clubs and he had a 7 of clubs, he could replace the Joker with the 7 of clubs. If two players had the 7 of clubs, whoever lays their 7 of clubs on the table first receives the joker. Joker cards can only be taken out of runs that are down, however they can be used in groups as well, but a joker can not be taken from a group. A player should only put a joker in a group unless it is absolutely necessary. This game is an old parlour game, and it is considered rude or cruel to play a joker in a group.
Winning the game
Play progresses until one of the players 'goes out,' meaning he is able to discard the last card in his hand. That player is then the winner of that hand, and the hand is then over. The winner for the hand gets zero points, and the other players count their cards to determine their score for the hand. Aces and jokers are 15 points, 10s, Jacks, Queens, and Kings are 10 points and all other cards 2-9 are 5 points. If a player goes out, and another player has yet to go down, that player is 'stuck'.
After all six hands are played, the winner is the player with the lowest score.
Sequence of Hands
Hand | Sequence |
---|---|
1 | 2 Sets |
2 | 1 set and 1 run |
3 | 2 runs |
4 | 1 run and 2 sets |
5 | 2 runs and 1 set (remember there are 11 cards in this hand instead of 10) |
6 | 2 runs and 2 sets (remember there are 14 cards in this hand) |
Rule charts
Shanghai Rummy Rules Hoyle
Number of decks required
Hoyle Rummy 500
- 2 decks: up to 5 people
- 3 decks: 6-8 people
- 4 decks: 9+ people
Poison girls songs of praise. can increase the number of decks beyond 4 to allow more players
Contract Rummy Hoyle
COMMENTS