Barrell - a Card Game
Start with a 54 card deck including jokers and two to four players. The area in front of you is called the battlefield (or field). Additionally players share a Queen zone that is in the middle. The first player is determined at the start of each battle by rolling dice. Highest roll wins, and ties are played out.
Setup:
Shuffle the card and deal 10 cards to each player. Before a battle a player may discard up to 3 cards and redraw that many. Reshuffle this discard pile back into the deck. At the end of the battle, you keep only the number of cards in your hand. You do not draw more unless you are the winner, in which case, you draw one card.
Gameplay:
Scoring
The player with the highest score at the end of a battle wins. Your score is determined by adding up the numbered (non-heart) cards in your battlefield. Add up the heart numbered cards and subtract them from your total. Now look at the face cards in the Queen Zone see how the effects of the cards effect your total score. You may have to re-score your cards at this point.
Face Cards and Special Effects:
Setup:
Shuffle the card and deal 10 cards to each player. Before a battle a player may discard up to 3 cards and redraw that many. Reshuffle this discard pile back into the deck. At the end of the battle, you keep only the number of cards in your hand. You do not draw more unless you are the winner, in which case, you draw one card.
Gameplay:
- On your turn, play one card face down in your field. Only Jacks are played face-up and take effect immediately.
- You may choose to pass at any point, but doing so means you are finished for the round. You may not play cards until the next battle.
- A battle is ends when all players have passed.
- Reveal all cards at the end of the battle.
- If you have any hearts, you give them to an opponent of your choice. (These will be subtracted from their score)
- All Queens (and the King of Diamonds) are placed in the center of the table in the Queen Zone. Determine their effects as you place them in the zone.
- Kings remain in your battlefield and only effect you (The King of Diamonds is moved to the center of the table and effects everyone)
- Add up your score. (As detailed below)
- After a battle has ended all cards are placed in the discard pile.
- A game is played until one player has won 2 battles. If you win the battle, draw 1 card. No one else draws additional cards.
Scoring
The player with the highest score at the end of a battle wins. Your score is determined by adding up the numbered (non-heart) cards in your battlefield. Add up the heart numbered cards and subtract them from your total. Now look at the face cards in the Queen Zone see how the effects of the cards effect your total score. You may have to re-score your cards at this point.
Face Cards and Special Effects:
- The king of clubs doubles all numbers on his player’s field.
- The king of diamonds destroys the biggest card (or all the cards that share the highest value).
- The king of spades returns a card from the discard pile to your roster (hand) after all cards are discarded.
- The king of hearts returns a card to that player’s roster from his or her field.
- Queens reduce the each card’s value to 1 on their respective suits.
- The jack of clubs ends the current battle immediately.
- The jack of spades causes players to trade fields immediately. You may not look at your face-down cards if you are forced to trade.
- The jack of hearts causes you to draw 2 cards.
- The jack of diamonds prevents the effects of all other face cards that haven’t already taken effect.
- When the joker is revealed either return the joker to your roster or all your other cards from your battlefield. Re-score as necessary.
- Aces are valued at 1 point unless a face card of that suit is in play. Then that ace is worth 11 points.