Crazy Eights is a shedding-type card game for two to seven players and the best known American member of the Eights Group which also includes Pig and Spoons . The object of the game is to be the first player to discard all of their cards. The game is similar to Switch , Mau Mau or Whot! .
41-619: Originally this was played primarily by children with the left over cards not used in Euchre . Now a standard 52-card deck is used when there are five or fewer players. When there are more than five players, two decks are shuffled together and all 104 cards are used. The game first appeared as Eights in the 1930s, and the name Crazy Eights dates to the 1940s, derived from the United States military designation for discharge of mentally unstable soldiers, Section 8 . It may have derived from
82-438: A club again unless spades are again named as trump during a subsequent hand. A player who fixes the trump suit may announce "alone" and play without the aid of a partner. The partner's hand cards are laid face down and the partner takes no part in the game. Play is as before: the eldest leads and players must follow suit if able, otherwise may play any card. The first team to score the target number of points (5, 7 or 10) wins
123-544: A common expression in German card games; "cards away" from Karten weg or Kart' ab , an expression in games from the Palatinate/Saarland region for the same announcement, "bridge" possibly from Pritsche , a plank bed, hence a place of safety. The earliest known treatise is a 1839 lost book called Game of Euchre and Its Laws , by an unknown author. The earliest surviving rules appeared in 1844, in which there
164-510: A confused memory of Écarté , which then developed into Euchre. Yet another theory is that Euchre may have been introduced to America by immigrants from the counties of Cornwall or Devon in southwest England, where it remains a hugely popular game. Euchre was introduced into Devon in turn by French prisoners of The Napoleonic Wars , imprisoned in Dartmoor Prison between 1805 and 1816. American prisoners were also housed there after
205-425: A second packet making the hands up to 5 cards. The next card is turned as a potential trump. Often, it is customary to offer a cut of the deck to the player on the dealer's right before passing out the cards. The process of making trump is as follows: As soon as someone makes trump (instead of passing) that player's team become the makers and their opponents are the defenders. Should either opponent order it up or
246-406: A two-player game). The remaining cards of the deck are placed face down at the center of the table as the stock pile. The top card is then turned face up to start the game as the first card in the discard pile. Players discard by matching rank or suit with the top card of the discard pile, starting with the player left of the dealer. They can also play any 8 at any time, which allows them to declare
287-588: A variant called "Euchre with the Joker" in which the blank card ranked above all the rest. It must have been in use even earlier, since the term "Best Bower" appears in a satirical 1861 piece about the American Civil War. Later, the Joker was embellished with a motif and specifically intended for use as the top trump. It was later transferred to the game of Poker and initially called the Mistigris. In
328-512: Is "march", which is the literal translation of Marsch , itself an abbreviation of Durchmarsch and the German for a slam in many card games. Other words or phrases that reflect a German origin are: "maker" from Macher , short for Spielmacher i.e. "game maker", the person who determines the type of game to be played; "euchred" from gejuckert ; "having a dog from every county" from aus jedem Dorf ein Köter i.e. "a mongrel from every village",
369-460: Is a four-player game using a pack of 25 cards with a joker and four suits comprising AKQJT9. Card ranking is as per the 1844 rules with the exception that the top trump is the Benny or Best Bower represented by the joker or ♠ 2. Deal and play are clockwise. The first dealer can be chosen by any random method. The dealer shuffles and deals each player a packet of 2 or 3 cards in any order and then
410-608: Is briefly mentioned as early as 1810, being played in a gaming house alongside all fours , loo , cribbage , and whist . In 1829, uker was being played with bowers on a steamboat in the American Midwest. The earliest written rules appeared in 1844. The mode of play and terminology of Euchre have resulted in several theories which suggest that it has an origin in Spanish Trionfo, French Ecarté or Triomphe , or Alsatian Jucker. An early American theory
451-538: Is no Joker. 32 cards are used. The Right Bower , the trump Jack, is the "commanding card" with the Left Bower , the Jack of the same color, as the second-highest card. According to Parlett, the Joker was added to a 32-card pack in the 1850s specifically for the game of Euchre and is first mentioned in a set of rules in 1868 where it turns out to be a blank specimen card not intended for actual play. This gave rise to
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#1732780070074492-511: Is played slightly differently in North America and there are numerous variations. The following account is a summary of the typical rules for the four-hand game. Four players play in two teams, the partners sitting opposite one another. A 24-card pack is used with cards ranking as before with a right bower and left bower as the top two cards of the trump suit. A pack of 32 cards (AKQJ10987) or 28 cards (no 7s) may also be used, but 24 cards
533-654: Is still played as a social game in the US Midwest, the Canadian province of Ontario, Australia, New Zealand, and Great Britain, especially Cornwall. The earliest surviving rules were published in America by Thomas Mathews in his 1844 work, The Whist Player's Hand-book , in which a four-hand version of Euchre is described right at the end. The following is a summary: Euchre is played by two to five persons, but most often by two or four. A 32-card French-suited Piquet pack
574-401: Is the standard. Deal and play are clockwise. The face-down pack is spread on the table and players draw a card each. The players with the two lowest cards playing together against the others and the player with the lowest card dealing first. For this purpose only, suits are irrelevant, aces rank low and jacks rank immediately below the queens. The dealer then shuffles the pack and offers it to
615-449: Is used and cards rank in the trump suit as follows: Right Bower (trump knave ), Left Bower (knave of same color), A > K > Q > 10 > 9 > 8 > 7. The side suits rank in their natural order . Deal and play are clockwise. The pack is shuffled and four cards distributed. The players with two higher cards become partners and play the other two. The dealer deals five cards each in packets of two and three and turns
656-483: The War of 1812 . Card game historian David Parlett believes that Euchre is derived from an eighteenth-century Alsatian card game named Jucker or Juckerspiel, pronounced "yooker". Clues to a possible German origin are the names of the trump Jacks. Bower is phonetically identical with the German word Bauer which normally means farmer, but also refers to the Jack in playing cards. Another word probably derived from German
697-479: The German game of Mau-Mau . There are many variations of the basic game, under names including Craits , Last Card , Switch , and Black Jack . Bartok , Mao , Taki , and Uno add further elements to the game. David Parlett describes Crazy Eights as "not so much a game as a basic pattern of play on which a wide variety of changes can be rung," noting that players can easily invent and explore new rules. Five cards are dealt to each player (or seven in
738-549: The United States in the early 19th century. There are several theories regarding its origin, but the most likely is that it is derived from an old Alsatian game called Jucker or Juckerspiel . Euchre was responsible for introducing the joker into the modern deck of cards, first appearing in Euchre packs in the 1850s. Euchre has a large number of variants and has been described as "an excellent social game". Eucre
779-503: The cards are thrown in and the next dealer deals. If anyone orders up, the dealer picks up the upcard and discards a card in return. The dealer's partner may bid "assist", in which case the dealer takes up trump and they become the makers. A player confident of taking 5 tricks single-handed may say "cards away" to the partner and play alone against the opponents. The eldest leads to the first trick . Players must follow suit if able; otherwise may play any card. The highest trump takes
820-417: The cards remaining in that opponent's hand. 8s score 50, court cards 10 and all other cards face value. If the players run out of cards in the deck, the player with the lowest point score in their hand scores the difference between that hand and each opponent's hand. The winner of the game is the first player to reach a specific number of points. The number of points needed to win is calculated by multiplying
861-418: The center of the table and its top card flipped. The eldest hand opens the bidding by passing (saying "pass") or accepting the suit of the upcard as trump by saying: "I order it up" (or "pick it up"). If the eldest passes, the second hand, the dealer's partner, may pass or accept by saying: "I assist" (or "I'll help you"). If the second hand passes, the third hand may pass or accept. If the first three pass,
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#1732780070074902-399: The dealer may accept the turnup by discarding a card (called "taking it up") or turn it down by placing the upcard, face up, half under the kitty (called "turning it down"). If the dealer acquires the top card, either by being ordered to pick it up or choosing to pick it up, it becomes part of the dealer's hand. It is left in place until played, and the dealer discards a card to the bottom of
943-482: The dealer take it up, the suit of the upcard becomes trump. The dealer picks it up and discards a card face down. Note that the dealer's partner cannot make trumps and play with the dealer, but can only pass or play alone by turning it down. This does not apply to the second choice in which the player may choose any suit. If the upcard is the Benny, the dealer must announce trumps before picking up their own hand cards and
984-427: The dealer's team are the makers (a "blind shout"). Before the first trick any player may announce they are going "alone", whereupon the partner of the lone player puts their cards face down on the table and drops out of that hand. A maker and a defender may both go alone in which case it is one against one. Play and scoring are as in the 1844 rules, except that: The following rule variations are recorded: Euchre
1025-479: The game in the United States is Crazy Eights Countdown , where players start with a score of 8. A player's score determines how many cards they are dealt at the start of each round, and which rank of card is wild for them. (So initially, all players are dealt eight cards and 8s are wild for everyone; after one round, one player will be dealt seven cards and 7s will be wild for them, but 8s will be wild for everyone else.) The first player to reduce their score to zero wins
1066-475: The game is considered cheating. Unacceptable table talk may include code words, secret gestures, bidding out of turn or suggesting what the partner should play. Depending on the local rules, such infringements may incur a penalty. A player who does not follow suit when able has revoked . Sometimes this is called "reneging" but, strictly speaking, a renege refers to a situation in other card games when you may legally not follow suit when you can. If discovered,
1107-550: The game. Euchre Euchre or eucre ( / ˈ juː k ər / YU -kər ) is a trick-taking card game commonly played in Australia, Canada, Great Britain, New Zealand, and the Midwestern United States. It is played with a deck of 24, 25, 28, or 32 standard playing cards. There are normally four players, two on each team, although there are variations for two to nine players. Euchre emerged in
1148-403: The game. In Columbus, the target is 10. Scores can be kept by using two otherwise unused cards as markers, with each team often using cards of the same color. Scoring begins using one card face up, covered by the other card face down. Upon winning points, the top card is moved to reveal the appropriate number of suit symbols on the bottom card. After all points are revealed on the lower card,
1189-420: The kitty, face down. If no one orders up the top card and the dealer chooses not to take it up, each player is then given the opportunity, in turn, to pass again or call a different suit as trump. If no trump is selected, the hand is discarded and the deal passes to the left. When trumps are chosen, the trump jack becomes the top card or right bower. The jack of the same color is the second-highest trump, known as
1230-402: The late 19th century, Euchre was regarded as the national card game of the United States. It has since declined in popularity, although it retains a strong following in regions such as the Midwestern United States. Euchre has also been described as Canada's national card game. With the rise of 20th century games such as Contract Bridge and Spades , Euchre has declined in popularity, though it
1271-399: The left bower. Example: Spades are trump. In this case, the trump cards rank as follows (highest first): The J ♣ effectively becomes a spade during the playing of this hand. This expands the suit of spades to the seven cards above and reduces the suit of clubs by one card, its jack being seconded to the trump suit. Once the hand is over, the J ♣ ceases to be a spade and becomes
Crazy Eights - Misplaced Pages Continue
1312-484: The next for trump. The eldest hand (to the left of the dealer) opens the auction and may either 'order it up' (= accept the turnup as trump) or 'turn it down' (= pass ), in which case the next player in turn has the same options and so on. The team that order it up are the 'makers'. If all pass, the dealer does not exchange , and another round of bidding begins with eldest who may make trump of any other suit. If all pass again and dealer does not want to make trump,
1353-424: The number of players by 50. So, for two players it is 100 points, three players 150, four 200, five 250, six 300 and for seven players 350. Card game historian John McLeod describes Crazy Eights as "one of the easiest games to modify by adding variations", and many variant rules exist. Common rules applied to cards include: If the game ends on a special card, that card's rule is not applied. A popular variant of
1394-452: The number of suit symbols showing and adding them to the 5 when the cards are crossed. In Canada and Michigan, it is common for each team to use two 5 s of the same color to keep score, with one team red and the other black. The 5 s are usually referred to as "counting cards" in this situation. Euchre does not require silence as in some other games; some table talk is acceptable. However, communicating with one's partner to influence
1435-403: The right for cutting. Five cards are dealt in two rounds. In the first, the dealer may deal either 2 or 3 cards each, in turn and in clockwise order beginning with the eldest hand. This is followed by a second round to bring each player's hand to 5 cards. Whichever system is used initially, it must not subsequently be changed. The remaining four cards, called the kitty , are placed face down in
1476-402: The stock pile at any time, even when holding one or more playable cards. As an example: If the top card on the discard pile is 6♣ , the next player can: If the stock pile runs out, all played cards except for the top one are reshuffled to form a new stock. The game ends as soon as one player has emptied their hand. That player collects a payment from each opponent equal to the point score of
1517-456: The suit that the next player is to play; that player must then follow the named suit or play another 8. If a player is unable to play, that player draws cards from the stock pile until a play can be made, or until the stock pile is exhausted. If the player cannot play when the stock pile is exhausted, that player must pass the turn to the player on the left. Other variations have players limit the maximum number of cards drawn. A player may draw from
1558-536: The top card is flipped over, adding pips on both cards to indicate the score. In Columbus, score is kept with a 4 and a 6 . A variation of scorekeeping in Western New York and Ontario involves each side using the 2 and 3 of one suit. Scoring starts with counting the symbols on the cards, for points 1 to 4; at 5, the cards are turned over and crossed. Crossing the cards indicates 5 points. Points 6 to 9 are counted similarly by counting
1599-416: The trick or the highest card of the led suit if no trumps were played. The trick winner leads to the next trick. The makers must take at least 3 tricks to win and score 1 point. Otherwise they are euchred , i.e. have lost and their opponents score 2 points. Winning all 5 tricks is a march which earns 2 points. Announcing "cards away" and winning all 5 tricks alone scores 4 points. Points are tallied using
1640-488: The unused Deuce and Trey cards, or counters . Game is 5 points. The following terms were used by Mathews. Many continue to be used today: In Britain, euchre is played in southwestern England, especially Cornwall , Devon and Guernsey , as well as in coastal East Anglia . A key feature is that a joker, called the Benny , is the highest trump. The following is a summary of modern British rules by John McLeod , supplemented by other sources where indicated. Euchre
1681-403: Was that Euchre was brought into the United States by the German settlers of Pennsylvania , and from that region it was disseminated throughout the nation. The 1864 edition of The American Hoyle disputes its alleged German heritage, tracing the game's origin to Pennsylvania itself in the 1820s. It goes on to surmise that a "rich German farmer's daughter" had visited Philadelphia and carried home