Assignment 2 concept: revised edition

Here's a version of the Ragnarok game that Cheryl blogged about, modified to use a normal deck of cards.

Number of players: 4-8

Required equipment: 1 standard 52-card deck

Game Objective: 2 teams of 2-4 players each try to collect a set of 4 cards (either 4 different-suited cards of the same number OR 4 same-suited cards with adjacent numbers- e.g. 2,3,4,5), one in each player's hand. The team to successfully collect a set and invoke a Ragnarok card wins Round 1. In round 2, the players in the winning team have to each collect a set of 3 cards (either 2 adjacent-numbered same-suit cards to the number card in their possession or 2 different-suited cards of the same number as the card in their possession).

Gameplay: At the start of the game, players divide themselves up into 2 teams and selects one player to be the dealer. The dealer then removes all non-numbered cards from the deck except for the Aces and the Jacks.

The Ace cards will be used as the Ragnarok card- in order to win Round 1 of the game, one member of a team that has collected a set of 4 cards must place the Ragnarok card down on the table. The Jack cards will be used as Exchange cards. A player who has an Exchange card in hand may place it down on the table and then tell any player from the other team to exchange their cards with him/her (the other player has no choice about this).

Once the dealer has shuffled the deck (sans King and Queen cards), he/she will deal out 2 cards to each player and leave the remaining cards on the table. The player to the left of the dealer will start play.

During his/her turn, a player may choose to either do nothing and keep his/her cards, discard one card at the bottom of the deck and take a new card from the top, or use a Ragnarok or Exchange card. Play then continues in a clockwise order until one team declares Ragnarok. Players from the same team may look at each others cards if they wish.

The second round of the game then begins. Each member of the winning team must then take 1 card from the deck (the player who declared Ragnarok must take 2) and continue play in the same way as round 1 until one player completes his set and wins the game. Exchange cards can be used on players of the same team during this round.

An optional gameplay element: During the second round, the losing team keeps their cards and may choose to help or hinder the players from the winning team by offering a player a card from their hand (without showing them what card they're offering) at the start of that player's turn. Players cannot refuse cards from a losing team player.

Remarks: This doesn't feel very social, come to think of it. Might have to re-think the whole gameplay from scratch. Another concept will be coming soon...