2-4 players.
10-20 minutes.
Normal full 4 suit card deck, with one joker.
Arrange the 12 face cards, face up, on the table, so the Js, Qs, and Ks are near each other (in rows if space permits, otherwise in a stack).
Set aside the joker. Shuffle the remaining cards (A-10, 4 suits). Set aside the top ~1/3 of the deck. Shuffle the joker into the remaining ~2/3. Then place the 1/3 with no joker on top of the 2/3, face down - this is the draw pile.
The player who last used a computer starts, and play continues clockwise around the table until the end of the game.
On their turn, players draw 1 card and may buy 1 face card.
Take the top card from the draw pile and look at it:
- Ace:
- If all Kings have been bought: keep it in your hand, can be used to buy face cards.
- Otherwise: discard your entire hand, but keep the ace (which can be used to buy face cards).
- Joker: game over, see rules below.
- Any other card: keep it in your hand, can be used to buy face cards.
Discard a card of value equal or greater to the cost of a face card (card value is the numerical value of the card, independent of suit, A=1, 2=2, ..., 10=10).
Cost: The first of each series of face cards (Jacks, Queens, Kings) costs 1, and the price increases by 1 for each face card bought. For example, after 1 Jack and 2 Kings have been bought, the cost of the next Jack is 2, the cost of the next (first) Queen is 1, and the cost of the next King is 3).
Buying a card has the following effects:
- Jack: draw one more card on your turn for each Jack you buy.
- Queen: before drawing any cards, look at the top (1+number of queens bought) cards, change their order at will, then place back. Continue to draw as normal.
- King: no effect until all Kings have been bought. If all Kings bought, affects the consequences of Ace and Joker draws.
When the Joker is drawn the game ends.
- If all Kings have been bought, the player with the highest total sum of card values in their hand wins.
- If not all Kings have been bought, everyone loses.