Post by dgreensill on Nov 10, 2016 0:39:15 GMT
Heckadeck Canasta
These rules are based on the Canasta rules as taken from Wikipedia.
Heckadeck Cards Used
These rules are based on the Canasta rules as taken from Wikipedia.
Heckadeck Cards Used
Card | Quantity | Role/Function | Point Value | Basic Canasta Equivalent | Basic Quantity | Basic Points |
0 | 8 | Cannot be picked up from discard | 5 | Black 3 | 0 | 5 |
2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 | 8 each = 48 | Used for melds | 5 | 4, 5, 6, 7 | 8 each = 32 | 5 |
8, 9, 10, 11, Beast, Jack, Queen, King | 8 each = 64 | Used for melds | 10 | 8, 9, 10, Jack, Queen, King | 8 each = 56 | 10 |
Ace | 8 each | Used for melds | 20 | Ace | 8 | 20 |
Arrows, Talismans | 8 each = 16 | Wild, can be 2 through Ace | 20 | Deuce | 8 | 20 |
Joker | 4 | Wild, can be 2 through Ace | 50 | Joker | 2 | 50 |
Watcher | 1 | Wild, can be 2 through Ace (and one player reveals their hand until end of turn) | 50 | Joker | 0 | 50 |
Omnihedron | 1 | Wild, can be 2 through Ace | 100 | Joker | 0 | 50 |
Hunter | 4 each = 8 | Bonus points, replace the card | n2 x 50 (50, 200, 450, 800, 1250 with Wheel) | Red 3 | 4 | 100, 200, 300, 800 |
Traveller | 4 each = 8 | Bonus points, replace the card | n2 x 50 (50, 200, 450, 800, 1250 with Wheel) | Red 3 | 0 | n/a |
Crone | 1 | If discarded, removes self and entire discard pile from the game | -50 (if in hand) | n/a | 0 | n/a |
Darkness | 1 | If discarded, ends the round immediately | -50 (if in hand) | n/a | 0 | n/a |
Wheel (whatever you like) | 1 | Wild, played as any card | varies (0 if in hand) | n/a | 0 | n/a |
Special Rules and Notes
[/b][/td][td style="padding:3px;"]Minimum initial meld[/td][/tr][tr][td style="text-align:center;padding:3px;"]Negative[/td][td style="text-align:center;padding:3px;"]50[/td][/tr][tr][td style="text-align:center;padding:3px;"]0 to 1495[/td][td style="text-align:center;padding:3px;"]90[/td][/tr][tr][td style="text-align:center;padding:3px;"]1500 to 2995[/td][td style="text-align:center;padding:3px;"]120[/td][/tr][tr][td style="text-align:center;padding:3px;"]3000 or more[/td][td style="text-align:center;padding:3px;"]150[/td][/tr][tr][td style="padding:3px;"]- The 8 suits are largely irrelevant.
- Minimum initial meld requirements are adjusted upwards as follows:
7000 or more
(Samba)
[/td][td style="text-align:center;padding:3px;"]200[/td][/tr][/tbody][/table][/ul][/li][li]The non-zero cards of a suit ie the number cards including 2 and 3, and face cards including Ace are all meldable cards and have no special function.[/li][li]Three or more zeroes may be melded last in the process of going out, as with black 3's in basic Canasta.[/li][li]Arrows and Talismans perform the role of Deuces, ie 20 point wilds.[/li][li]The Omnihedron is effectively just a Joker worth 100 points (and therefore likely to allow the minimum initial meld to be easily achieved).[/li][li]The Watcher is also effectively a Joker, however when it is melded or discarded, the player who did so chooses one player (most likely themselves or a teammate) to be the Viewer and one player (most likely an opponent, although in a team game it could be themselves or a teammate) to be the Viewed.[/li][li]- The Viewer puts their own hand face-down on the table. The Viewed passes their hand, face-down, to the Viewer. The Viewer has one opportunity to study the revealed hand. Notes may be taken but the Viewer may not touch or look at their own hand during the process.
- When all players are ready to resume play, the Viewer passes the Viewed's hand back to the Viewed, face-down, then takes their own hand back up, and play resumes.
- If the Watcher was discarded, the deck is frozen.
- If the Viewer fumbles the process and accidentally reveals one or more cards from the Viewed's hand to anyone other than themselves, their team is penalized -1000 points for the round, unless this fumble was due to the actions of the Viewed, the other player who saw cards, or some intervening event such as a cat leap or a chair collapse. Use common sense. Anyone who uses this rule to intentionally inflict a penalty on the Viewer is never allowed to play the game again.
- It is possible to achieve 5 Hunters or 5 Travellers (but not both) by use of the Wheel. The maximum score achieved from 4 Hunters, 4 Travellers and the Wheel (assigned as either a Traveller or a Hunter) is 2050 points.
- Unless a player or team has achieved at least one meld, points gained from Hunters and Travellers are negative.
- A player may discard the Darkness to end the round whether or not they or their team have any canastas, and whether or not they have cards left in their hand.
- A player may use the Darkness to go out concealed (for obvious reasons), meaning that if they have no cards in play except Hunters and Travellers, then proceeds to meld at least two canastas, melds as many other cards as possible, and then discard Darkness, they are not required to discard any other cards and will receive a bonus 100 points for going out concealed. The remaining cards still count for negative points.
- It is possible that a player may put themselves into the unfortunate position of only being able to discard the Darkness whether or not they want to.
- If it was discarded and a player subsequently picks it up with the discard pile, it may then be played again as something else.
- If it is played as a Hunter or Traveller, the player takes a new card from the top of the deck into their hand to replace it as with any other Hunter or Traveller.
- Normally the Wheel would be played as a Hunter or Traveller, an Omnihedron for extra points perhaps for minimum meld requirements, a Watcher to see another player's hand or show one's own hand to a teammate, a Crone to remove the discard pile, a Darkness to end the round, or to complete a natural canasta.
- Canastas with 6 natural cards and a Wheel are natural canastas unless the player chooses to play the Wheel as a wild card. Normally one would not, as the difference is 200 points plus the 5 or 10 point value of the card itself.
Variants
- American Canasta seems relatively easy to implement. The talons and wings seem like a fun and in-style rule to add in to the base Heckadeck Canasta. Special hands would need some adjustment.
- Samba is easy to implement provided that you ignore suits or limit suit requirement for sambas to color (eg planet/acorn, sword/cloud), and requires no extra cards. Samba would use the rules above except allow zeroes to be melded below Aces in sambas, and use the sequence Zero, A, 2, 3 ... 10, 11, Beast, Jack, Queen, King. Aces cannot wrap around as Zeroes are in the way, however Zeroes could wrap around.
- "Acaba" is not necessary as the Darkness and Wheel allow for early end. Players who control the discard deck, the Darkness and the Wheel are entitled to their excess of points.