Card Game 101 #3: Crazy Eights

Crazy Eights is a wonderful card game to play with your family or friends. It is similar to UNO and can be enjoyed by up to five players. Read on to learn the basics of the card game Crazy Eights.

✔ A standard 52-card deck

✔ 2-5 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, the dealer shuffles the deck and deals out five cards to each player, clockwise, starting with the player to their left.

Finally, place the remaining deck into the middle of the playing area as a draw pile. Flip up the top card and place it next to the draw pile to begin the discard pile.

The objective of Crazy Eights is to be the player with the lowest score when another player reaches or exceeds 100 points. Points are given if you have cards remaining in your hand at the end of a round.

The player to the left of the dealer is the first to play. On a player's turn, a card that matches the suit or the number of the top card of the discard pile can be played into the middle. The only exception is that you can play an 8 on any card, as 8's are wild. If an 8 is played, the player of the 8 will name a suit, and the next player must play a card in that suit or play another 8.

For example, if the top card of the discard pile is the 5 of clubs, you have the following options:

✔ Play a 5 of any suit

✔ Play a club of any number

✔ Play an 8 (then name a suit for the next player to follow)

If you cannot legally play any card from your hand on your turn, you must draw from the draw pile until you get a card that can be played. If you still cannot play after you've drawn three cards from the deck, your turn is over and play moves to the next player. If you get a card that can be played, you must play it.

A round is over when a player has emptied their hand by playing all their cards. The other players will score points for the cards remaining in their hands:

✔ Ace = 1 point

✔ 2-7, 9, 10 = face value

✔ Jack, Queen, King = 10 points

✔ 8 = 50 points

If you have no cards left in your hand, you score nothing. If no one has reached 100 points after the current round, begin a new round.

When a player reaches or surpasses 100 points, the player with the lowest score is the winner.

✔ An 8 cannot be the first card to start the discard pile. If an 8 is flipped up, return it to the middle of the deck and flip up the next card.

✔ When naming a suit after playing an 8, any suit can be named. You are not limited to the suit to which the 8 belongs.

✔ If the draw pile runs out, play continues, but if a player cannot play, they must pass. If all players cannot play, the round is over and each player receives the point value of their unplayed cards.

✔ If two or more players tie for the lowest score after a player has reached 100 points, a tiebreaker round can be played among the tying players to determine the winner.

✔ If you have multiple playable cards in your hand, play the card with the biggest point value. This will help you minimize your score if you lose.

✔ Decide when to change the active suit wisely. You don't want to change the active suit if you still have lots of cards in that suit in your hand. Also, if you see a player constantly drawing cards, it's best to keep the current suit active. This will get them to draw more cards and increase their penalty points after the round is over.

✔ You should know when to play or keep your 8's. 8's are really powerful, but an unplayed 8 translates to 50 penalty points at the end of a round! If you see a player's hand diminish quickly, play your 8's as soon as possible to minimize the penalty points you receive after the round is over. If other players still have a lot of cards in their hands, and you still have many cards in the active suit, it's best to follow suit first and save your 8's for later.

The next blog is this series will be about the card game Rummy. Expect it to come within a week.