A game by Wolfgang Panning
Published by Abacus Spiel
English Rules Translation by John Webley
Typed, Edited and Distributed from The Sumo Rules Bank by Mike Siggins
Editor's Notes and Queries are in [square brackets].
Version 1.0 3/11/96
3-8 players, 8 years or older
56 cards
18 chips
1 set of rule
The players attempt to get rid of all their cards, or if they can't manage that, to minimise the number of minus points that they incur. To do this they need to play cards with a higher value than those already there, if they manage to do this they may also have started a series, and so be able to discard more cards. If a player is not able to discard however, they have to take a penalty chip. The player with the least minus points at the end of the game wins. In this way the lead changes constantly during this fiery card game.
The cards: The back of the cards show one red half and one yellow half. The faces of the cards show a number , from 1-15 in Green and Blue or from 1 - 13 in Red and Yellow. The lines above and below the numbers, show the order of the four colours, thus at the beginning of the game the colours are always ranked. RED, BLUE, GREEN, YELLOW. Later in the game however, using the loser's privilege, the order of the colours may be reversed so that Yellow becomes the top colour and the order is YELLOW, GREEN, BLUE, RED.
The player who has had the most minus points in the previous round has the right, after examining their cards, to reverse the order of colours as above. If two or more players have had an equally bad result in the previous round, then the one with the worst overall total may choose. Once the decision has been made, all players should turn their cards round so that the colour of the top half of the back of the cards matches the colour chosen as best.
Players will need a pen and pencil to keep score. The cards used depends on the number of players and can be determined from the following table:
| Number of Players | Colour | Total Cards | Cards per Player | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Red | Blue | Green | Yellow | |||
| 3 Players | 1 - 8 | 1 - 10 | 1 - 10 | 1 - 8 | 36 | 12 |
| 4 Players | 1 - 8 | 1 - 10 | 1 - 10 | 1 - 8 | 36 | 9 |
| 5 Players | 1 - 9 | 1 - 11 | 1 - 11 | 1 - 9 | 40 | 8 |
| 6 Players | 1 - 11 | 1 - 13 | 1 - 13 | 1 - 11 | 48 | 8 |
| 7 Players | 1 - 13 | 1 - 15 | 1 - 15 | 1 - 13 | 56 | 8 |
| 8 Players | 1 - 13 | 1 - 15 | 1 - 15 | 1 - 13 | 56 | 7 |
Choose a dealer. They shuffle the cards and deals them out equally to all players. Players should arrange their cards so that all the red/yellow sides face in the same direction, red uppermost. In the first round Red is always the most valuable colour.
Players must always hold their cards so that the other players can see how many they have got left. The player with the lowest value card starts. They place it face up on the table and so start a discard pile. Since Red is the highest colour in the first round, the lowest card is the Yellow "1". All other cards discarded are placed on this pile. Now the dealer chooses one of their cards and discards it, then the player to their left takes their turn. If during a later round the loser chooses to reverse the suit order, then the lowest card will be the Red "1".
Whenever a player takes their turn they must either discard a card or take a penalty chip. Each penalty chip counts as 5 minus points at the end of the round. The choice of card to discard is determined by the uppermost card on the discard pile, ( the "table" card). The card played must always rank higher than this card.
Three Rules determine which cards rank higher. (In all examples we assume that the colour order is Red highest, then Blue, Green, Yellow.)
The colour of the card played ranks higher than the colour of the table card, and the number on it is equal or lower than that on the table card. In this case the player's turn ends there and the player to their left takes the next turn. Example, if the table card were Yellow "7"; then Green "4", or Blue "7" or Red "1" would rank higher and so would be a legal discard.
The number on the card played is higher, but it's colour ranks lower or is the same as that of the table card. The player finishes their turn and the next player plays.
Example: The table card is the Red "5", In this case a Yellow "6", a Blue "9" or a Red "6" would be a legal play.
Both the number on the card and it's colour are higher than the table card. This is the start of a series. A series may allow a player to discard up to five cards in their turn. The player takes another turn, they must play another card or take a penalty chip. Example. The Yellow "3" is the table card. A player then lays a Green "4" on it, followed by a Blue "6" and the Red "8". If they then have no card higher than an "8", they must then take a penalty chip. If however they had, for example, Yellow "9", then they could play that and so finish their turn. Important, Rule 3 is not valid on the first turn! ( that of laying the lowest card.)
The round ends, either when one player discards their last card, or when no player has a legal card to play, leading to a round where all players take a penalty chip.
Each player collects minus points equal to the sum of the numbers on the cards left in their hand, plus 5 minus points for each penalty chip they have taken. The player with the least minus points wins. Players ought to play as many rounds as there are players and add the points for each round so as to determine an overall winner.
It is a good idea to play a few rounds with Red as the top colour before changing, things, so as to allow the players to get used to the order of the colours. Also, it is always easier if you arrange the cards into their colours and rank them by number within the suit.
High number cards in high rank suits are easier to get rid of, and often force the next player(s) to take penalty chips. Also they score more minus points than lower numbered cards if you are left with them.
Lower valued cards on the other hand are harder to get rid of and often make things easy for the next player.
A card from the top suit will only allow the next player to get rid of, at most, one card. Getting rid of several cards in a series improves your chances of going out first, but may also mean having to pick up penalty chips.
If the penalty chips run out during a round, players should make a note on paper of their minus points.