Card Game 101 #13: Garbage

Garbage is a great and very easy-to-learn card game for two or more players. Be the first to get your cards in sequence to win! Read on to learn the basics of the card game Garbage.

✔ 2 or more players

✔ One standard 52-card deck for two or three players; additional decks are needed for four or more players

First of all, choose the dealer. The dealer can be selected by the players themselves, or using the following method:

- Each player draws one card from the deck. The player who draws the highest number gets to deal (for this purpose, count aces as 1, jacks as 11, queens as 12, and kings as 13). If two or more players tie for the highest number drawn, have the tying players re-draw from the deck.

Next, each player is dealt 10 cards. The cards are not looked at and remain face down in two rows of five cards each. The remaining deck is placed into the middle.

The objective of Garbage is to try to get all your cards in the right order before the other players each round. If you manage to do this, you will play with one fewer card next round.

Each player's cards are numbered 1 through 10 based on their positions. The player to the left of the dealer starts play by drawing the top card of the deck.  If a numbered card is drawn, it is placed onto the corresponding card spot (e.g. a 5 is placed onto the 5 spot; the ace is low and will go onto the 1 spot) and the existing face-down card on that spot will be flipped up. This process continues until the player cannot move anymore, at which point they will discard the card and end their turn. The next player can choose to take the top card of the discard pile or take the top card of the deck.

If a king is picked up, it can go onto any card spot. If a jack or queen is picked up, it must be discarded (because jacks and queens are "garbage" in this game).

Play continues until one player has all the cards in their corresponding card spots. Then, each other player will get one more turn to try to do the same.

At the end of a round, each player who managed to finish their card sequence will go down by one card in the next round, and thus their sequence will be shorter. Each player who did not finish their current sequence will have to try that sequence again in the next round.

For example, in a three-player game, if players 1 and 2 finished their 10-card sequence but player 3 did not, then players 1 and 2 will only be dealt nine cards (and only have to complete a 9-card sequence), and player 3 will be dealt 10 cards and retry the long sequence in the next round.

The first player to flip up an ace in their last round wins the game.

✔ If a "garbage" is flipped up, the player must discard it and their turn is over.

✔ Kings may be moved to a different spot during a player's turn. For example, if a king exists on the number 3 spot and the player flips up a 3, the player can put the 3 on the 3 spot and move the king to any other vacant spot.

✔ Only one card can be placed on a card spot. For example, if there is a 5 already on the number 5 spot and the player flips up another 5, the 5 must be discarded and the player's turn is over.

The next blog in this series will be about the card game "31". Expect it to come within a week.

Thanks for reading!