Mike's Rules To Other Poker-Like Games

General Rules

1. Blackjack value means that cards having the following values:
   • Aces: 1 or 11
   • Kings, Queens, Jacks: 10
   • All other cards: pip (face) value
   A hand's value is the sum of the values of the cards it contains.
2. The board is a group of cards in the middle of the table that are shared by all players.

333

• Maximum Number of Players: 15
• Wild Cards: None
• High-Low Split
• The Game:
  1. Cards have blackjack values.
  2. The object of the game is to be closest to 3 (low) or 33 (high) or get rid of all of your cards. If there's a tie between hands of different values, then the lower one wins (e.g. a 2 beats a 4 for low).
  3. Deal 3 cards to each player, then put 4 cards face-down and the deck on the board.
  4. Bet, then flip the first card, any players who have a card that matches this card must discard it now (e.g. if a King is flipped over, then all players who have Kings in their hands must discard them).
  5. Bet, then flip the next card on the board. If it matches any other card on the board, slide all of the cards down, replacing the last with a fresh one from the deck, and flip over the card now in that position (if it matches, slide them down again... and consider shuffling better next time). Any player who has a card that has the same rank as the card flipped over must discard it now.
  6. Bet, flip the next card on the board. If it matches any other card on the board, follow the "sliding" instructions above. Any player who has a card that has the same rank as the card flipped over must discard it now.
  7. Bet, flip the next card on the board. If it matches any other card on the board, follow the "sliding" instructions above. Any player who has a card that has the same rank as the card flipped over must discard it now.
  8. Bet, flip the card on top of the deck. If it matches any other card on the board, flip over a fresh card. Any player who has a card that has the same rank as the card flipped over must discard it now. In the end, there should be 5 unique discard piles on the board.
  9. Bet, declare, show, and split.
  10. If at any time a player has no cards, then he wins the entire pot automatically when he discards his last one. If more than one player discards all of their cards, then they split the pot.
• Variants:
  • Jew Rules 333: If more than one player discards all of their cards, then the first one to the pot wins it all. This is fine for less than 5 people -- sober people.

727

• Maximum Number of Players: 10
• Wild Cards: None
• High-Low Split
• The Game:
  1. Kings, Queens, and Jacks are worth half (1/2, 0.5) a point, all other cards have blackjack values.
  2. The object of the game is to be closest to 7 (low) or 27 (high). If there's a tie between hands of different values, then the lower one wins (e.g. 6.5 beats a 7.5 and a 26 beats a 28).
  3. Players are dealt 1 down and 1 up.
  4. Bet, then the dealer offers each player, starting with the player on the left, an additional card. If a player declines a card 3 times in a row, then they are locked and cannot take a card later.
  5. Continue betting then offering cards until a round in which no player takes a card.
  6. Bet, declare, and show. High and low split the pot. Remember, lower values beat higher values that are equidistant from the target value.
• Variants:
  • Price Is Right 727: All hands less than the target beat those greater than the target (e.g. a 1 beats a 7.5 for low and a 7 beats a 27.5 for high). This can be fun and really opens the door for pigging -- as seen in the last example: a 7 beating a 27.5.
  • Strict Price Is Right 727: Players who have more than 7 cannot win low and players who have more than 27 cannot win high or low.
  • 727 With Options: Players who decline a card 3 times become locked, not 3 times in a row. Also, players may discard one card from their hand for $1.00 instead of taking a card, this does not count as declining a card, and players may only do this once. If there is a tie, then the player with the most cards wins (e.g. a 6.5 with 3 cards beats a 6.5 with 2 cards, but a 6.5 still beats a 7.5 no matter how many cards each player has). Consider combining with Price Is Right 727 or Strict Price Is Right 727.
  • 7 And 1/2, 27 And 1/2: Same as 727, but the targets are 7 1/2 and 27 1/2.
  • 828: Same as 727, but the targets are 8 and 28.
  • Chilcoot's 727: Deal 2 down and one up. The player to the dealer's left is the first lead player, with the lead rotating each round. Each round, the lead player may take one additional card. After everyone has had the option of taking a card that round, the lead then starts a round of betting. This continues until a round where no one takes an additional card. Declare. Bet. Showdown.
  • Moore's 727: No ante; instead, at the beginning of the game, each player puts $0.75 in front of them in three piles of $0.25 each. Each time a player declines a card, a $0.25 stack is put in the pot. Players become locked when they have put in all of their stacks. If a player folds, then they must put in their remaining stacks. Price Is Right rules apply (see above).
  • 222: Dealt and played like 727, but Tens are also worth half (1/2, 0.5) a point, and in order to be eligible for either high or low, a player's hand must be between 2 and 22 inclusive; i.e. a player with 1.5 or less or a player with 22.5 or more cannot win the pot. While I have not done the calculations, I am pretty sure that this changes the maximum number of players to 8. Your results may vary.
  • 333 (727 Style): Same as 222, but 3 and 33 are the target numbers, and players must have hands with values between 3 and 33, inclusive, to be eligible. While I have not done the calculations, I am pretty sure that this changes the maximum number of players to 7. Your results may vary.
  • Black 727: Same as 727, but only black cards (clubs and spades) have point values and red cards (hearts and diamonds) are worth 0. This can be applied to any variant of 727. While I have not done the calculations, I am pretty sure that this changes the maximum number of players to 6. Your results may vary.
  • Red 727: Same as Black 727, but only red cards (hearts and diamonds) have point values and black cards (clubs and spades) are worth 0. While I have not done the calculations, I am pretty sure that this changes the maximum number of players to 6. Your results may vary.

Colored Poker (Colors)

• Maximum Number of Players: 7
• Wild Cards: None
• High-Low Split
• The Game:
  1. Black cards (clubs and spades) have blackjack values and red cards (hearts and diamonds) are worth 0.
  2. The high hand is the one with the most points, and the low hand is the one closest to 0.
  3. The game is dealt and played like High-Low Split Seven Stud, except all 7 cards are used in calculating points.
• Variants:
  • Colored Poker With A Twist: Twisting: means that players can trade one of their cards for a new card from the deck for a price. After the last betting round, the dealer asks each player, starting on his left, if they'd like to twist. If the player says yes, then he discards one card and the dealer replaces it with a fresh one from the deck, (i.e. if the player twists a down-card, then he should receive a down-card, and if he twists an up-card, then he should get an up-card). There's another betting round, declare, then show. Twisting changes the maximum number of players to 6.
    Some things to do with twisting:
    • Twisting should never be free, make players pay for their cards. Usually twisting costs $0.50.
    • Make down-cards more expensive to twist away than up-cards.
    • Make players pay more if they want their twist to be down, otherwise they get it up regardless of the card they twisted away.
  • Colored Anaconda: Use Colored Poker hands, but deal and play like Anaconda. Consider using all 7 cards.

Fuck Your Neighbor

• Maximum Number of Players: 51
• Wild Cards: None
• The Game:
  1. Cards 2 through Queen have their regular poker values, Aces are low only and Kings are special.
  2. The object of the game is to NOT have the highest card more than 3 times.
  3. Instead of anteing, each player puts 3 stacks of $0.75 in chips in front of themselves.
  4. Deal 1 card down to each player.
  5. If someone is dealt a King, then he has to show it, all other players then show their cards, and the player with the highest card (not counting Kings) must put one of his stacks of chips into the pot.
  6. If no one is dealt a King, then, starting with the player to the dealer's left, each player may keep his card or trade cards with the player to his left. Players asked to trade must trade. The dealer gets to keep his card or cut the deck for a new card. After the dealer makes his choice, players then show their cards, and the player with the highest card (not counting Kings) must put one of his stacks of chips into the pot. It is possible that the dealer cuts to a King.
  7. If there's a tie, then both players put in a stack.
  8. If a player puts in his last stack of chips, then he's out of the game and is not dealt to.
  9. The game continues until only one player is left. That player then wins the pot.
  10. The deal rotates to the left.
  11. If the last players tie and have to put in their last stack of chips, then the game is over and the pot stays for the next game.
  12. Variants:
      • There's no good reason why the 3 stacks of chips have to be $0.75 each -- the dealer can make them any amount, just expect groans if it's too low or too high.
      • Play from the same deck until all 4 Kings have come up or until there aren't enough cards in the deck to deal another hand before switching decks.
      • Chase The Ace: Instead of high card losing, low card loses. Players don't have to reveal a King unless the player to their right tries to trade, at which point, the player with the King should flip it over (while saying "Fuck you!" to the guy to his right), gets to keep his King, and the other player gets stuck with the card he was trying to trade away. The dealer has a choice of keeping his card or using the top card on the deck.

In Between (Acey-Duecey)

• Maximum Number of Players: None
• Wild Cards: None
• The Game:
  1. Each player antes -- usually larger than the standard ante. An ante of $0.50 or more is good, but it depends on the number of players.
  2. 2 cards are dealt up to the player to the dealer's left.
  3. The player bets on whether or not he thinks the next card dealt will be between these 2 cards. The bet may be up to half of what is currently in the pot. The minimum bet is either $0.05 or the minimum bet at the table, whichever is higher.
  4. The dealer deals the next card up, if it is between the other 2 cards, then the player wins his bet from the pot. If it is equal to or higher than the high card or equal to or lower than the low card, the player puts his bet into the pot. These cards are then buried.
  5. The dealer then deals cards to the next player in the same manner.
  6. Once the game has gone once around the table, players may bet up to pot.
  7. If at any time, the dealer runs out of cards, the buried cards are shuffled and used.
  8. Aces can be either high or low. If the first card dealt is an Ace, then the player must choose whether it's high or low before the second card is dealt. If the second card is an Ace, then the player must choose whether it's high or low before making his bet.
• Variants:
  • Make the minimum bet nothing.
  • Only players who have bet and won 1/2 the pot are allowed to bet pot.
  • If a player's third card is equal to either of the other 2 cards, then he has to pay double his bet.
  • Instead of allowing the player to choose the values of Aces: if an Ace is the first card it is low, and if an Ace is the second card it is high.

Red-Black

• Maximum Number of Players: 7
• Wild Cards: None
• The Game:
  1. Object: Have the highest red total or the highest black total.
  2. All cards have blackjack values. If a player is going for red, then any black cards in his hand subtract their value from the player's total. Like wise, if a player is going for black, then any red in his hand subtract their value from the player's total.
  3. Each player is dealt 7 cards down.
  4. Each player passes 3 cards to the left, then 2 cards to the right, and finally, 1 card to the left.
  5. Each player then discards 2 cards.
  6. Players put their cards face-down in front of them in a stack, such that their top card is the first card that they want exposed. Players may not re-order their cards later.
  7. The dealer says, "1-2-3-flip," and all players flip their top card.
  8. Bet, then flip. Continue betting and flipping until the top 4 cards have been exposed.
  9. Bet, declare and show. Highest red and highest black split the pot.

Russian Poker

• Maximum Number of Players: 4
• Wild Cards: None
• The Game:
  1. Each player puts an equal amount of chips, usually $1.00, into the pot.
  2. Deal 13 cards to each player.
  3. Each player makes 3 poker hands, a bottom, a middle, and a top. The bottom hand is made with 3 cards, and the other 2 hands are made of 5 cards. The order of hands for the bottom hand, from highest to lowest, is:
     • Three-of-a-kind
     • Pair
     • High card
     Additionally, the middle hand must be able to beat the bottom hand, and the top hand must be able to beat the middle hand.
  4. All players reveal their bottom hand, the highest hand wins 1/4 of the pot.
  5. All players then reveal their middle hand, the highest hand wins 1/2 of the pot.
  6. All players then reveal their top hand, the highest hand wins the last 1/4 of the pot.
• Variants:
  • Polish Poker: Same as Russian, but low only. This means that the bottom hand, the 3 card hand, must be the highest, and the top hand must be the lowest.