This page is based on a contribution from Harrie Wiering, who describes the Dutch version of this game.
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To play, click on up to four of the cards in your hand, then select a card value from the drop-down menu. On the first turn of the game (and when someone has been accused of cheating on the turn before yours), you will be able to select any value from the drop-down. At any other time, you will have only three choices: the same value as the last. Start play with the first player; she lays down one of her cards face up next to the stock pile and states the total. For example, she lays down a six and states that the total is six. After she plays she immediately draws a card from the stock pile.
Samba is Canasta variation. In some places it is known as Samba-Canasta; one Dutch book also calls it Straat-Canasta (Sequence-Canasta). It is recommended that you understand the basics of Canasta before you play this variation.
Piatnik or Bicycle Canasta cards (marked with point values) can also be used for Samba. They come as a double pack (108 cards) so you would need two of these for a three-deck samba game. These canasta cards can be ordered from amazon.com. A range of Card Trays is also available. |
- Melds
Players
Samba is a three pack card game that can be played with 2, 3, 4, 5 or even 6 players! When you're playing with two, three or five players, everyone plays his or her own game; when you're playing with 4 or 6 players, you play with a partner. When there are four players you and your partners are placed opposite at the table. In the event of 6 players, all partners are always separated by two other players.
Cards
Samba is played with 162 cards, three decks of 52 cards and 6 jokers. The values of the individual cards are as follows:
The twos and jokers are wild cards. The 4s to aces inclusive are natural cards. The threes have special uses, described later.
Deal
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When there are 2, 3, 4, or 5 players, 15 cards are dealt to each player. When there are 6 players, everyone receives 13 cards.
The next card is placed face up on the table to start the discard pile, and the remaining cards are stacked face down beside it, to form the stock.
Melds
The objective of the game is to score points for melds, which are sets of cards which you display face up on the table. In partnership versions of the game, melds belong to a partnership, not an individual. If you begin a meld, you partner can later add cards to it, and vice versa. The value of a meld is the sum of the values of the individual cards in it.
There are two types of meld: groups and sequences. A group of seven or more equal cards is a canasta, and a sequence of seven cards is caled a samba. To end the game by going out, your team must have melded at least two sambas or two canastas or one of each.
Groups and Canastas
A group is a set of three or more natural cards of the same rank, for example three kings, or five eights. Wild cards can be used to substitute for some of the cards of a group, with the following restrictions:
- there must be at least twice as many natural cards as wild cards;
- there must not be more than two wild cards in a group.
A group of seven or more cards is called a canasta. If all the cards in it are natural, it is a pure canasta, indicated by stacking the cards together with a red card on top. If it contains one or more wild cards, it is a mixed canasta, indicated by stacking the cards with a black card on top.
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Further cards, beyond seven, can be added to a canasta, but if you add wild cards to a pure canasta, this degrades it to a mixed canasta.
It is also possible to meld a group, or even a canasta of black threes, but black threes can only be melded on the turn in which the player who melds them goes out.
In Samba, it is legal to have more than one group of the same rank of cards and keep them separate. So if I have melded two aces and a joker, I can later start a separate meld consisting entirely of real aces, hoping to make a pure canasta.
Sequences and Sambas
The novelty in this game, compared to Canasta, is the fact that you can build sequences. A sequence is a set of at least three natural cards of the same suit which are consecutive in rank. Sequences can be extended to a maximum of seven cards; a complete sequence of seven cards is called a samba. No further cards can be added to a samba.
Wild cards and threes cannot be used in a samba. Therefore only five different sambas are possible in a suit, consisting of the ranks: 4-10; 5-jack; 6-queen; 7-king; 8-ace.
Red Threes
You may meld a red three as a single card, to be eligible for a bonus, but you don't have to. Every melded red three is worth 100 bonus points, but only when you have the required two sambas or canastas necessary to end the game. When you are lucky enough to have melded all 6 red threes (or you and your partner together in a 4 or 6 game) you receive a bonus of 1000 points instead of 600 points.
If you do not have the necessary sambas or canastas to end the game, for every melded red three you receive 100 penalty points.
If the round is finished and you have one or more red threes in your hand, you will be penalized with 750 points, regardless of the number of red threes that you hold.
You may also use the red threes to block the discard pile, in the same manner as you would do with the black threes or the wild cards.
Black Threes
These can be melded in groups (following the normal rules for groups), but only on the turn on which you go out. They also block the discard pile for the opponents when discarded.
Play
The play begins with the player to dealer's left and continues clockwise. A turn normally consists of:
- drawing two cards from the stock;
- melding some cards from your hand if you wish to;
- discarding one card.
If your team has not yet melded, then the first time that you meld, the value of the cards that you meld must be at least the minimum value shown in the following table. The minimum depends on your team's score to date:
Scores for red threes and bonuses for a samba or canasta do not count towards meeting the minimum meld.
Instead of drawing two cards from the stock, you may draw from the discard pile in two situations:
- if you have in your hand two natural cards which match the top card of the discard pile in rank, you may take the pile, provided that you first meld the top card together with the two cards from your hand. If you have not yet melded, you can only take the pile if you meet the initial meld requirements using the top card of the discard pile plus cards from your hand. The procedure is:
- take the top card from the discard pile;
- meld this card together with the two matching cards from your hand;
- if this is your first meld, meld further cards from your hand so as to meet the minimum requirement;
- take whole of the rest of the discard pile;
- make any further melds you wish;
- discard one card.
- if you already have on table a sequence meld of less than seven cards, and the top card of the discard pile fits on one end of the sequence, you may take this one card only from the discard pile and add it to your sequence, instead of drawing two cards.
It follows from the above, that it is impossible to take the pile or its top card when the top card is a three (red or black), a two or a joker. Discarding one of these cards therefore in effect blocks the next player from taking the pile.
Canasta players should note that in this game there is no concept of freezing the discard pile. In fact, the pile is effectively frozen all the time. You may never take the pile to add the top card to an existing group, unless you can produce two more natural cards of that rank from your hand.
Also note that you cannot take the pile or its top card to make a new sequence meld. The top card can only be taken if it fits onto the end of a sequence that is already on the table. For example:
- if I have 6-7-8-9 melded and 10 is discarded by the player before me, I can take the discard;
- if I have 6-7-8-9 in my hand and 10 is discarded by the player before me, I cannot take the discard;
- if I have 6-7-8 melded and 9 in my hand 10 is discarded by the player before me, I cannot take the discard.
Two sequences of three cards already on the table cannot be merged into a samba when you meld the connecting card. However, you are allowed to merge two group melds of the same rank on your turn if you wish.
Going Out
When a player goes out, by playing so as to have no cards left in their hand, the play ends and the hand is scored. You may go out either by melding all your cards or by melding all but one and discarding the last one. However, you are only allowed to go out if your team has melded two sambas, or two canastas (pure or mixed ones), or one samba and one canasta.
If you do not yet have the required sambas or canastas, you must play in such a way as to retain at least one card in your hand. This means that you are not allowed to meld all the cards in your hand. If you meld all your cards except one, then instead of discarding it you must end your turn by saying pass, and keep the card. This is the only case in which you are allowed to pass instead of discarding.
If you are able to go out, you may if you wish first ask your partner for permission to end the game, by saying 'partner, may I go out?'. Partner says 'yes' or 'no' and you must abide by the answer. Alternatively, you are allowed to go out without consulting your partner.
If no one goes out, eventually the stock will run out of cards. If there is just one card left in the stock, the next player who draws from the stock takes just that one card rather than the usual two, and completes his turn, melding and discarding in the usual way. When the stock is empty, play continues until the next time someone wants to draw cards from the stock (this will generally be at the beginning of the next player's turn, unless that player prefers to take the discard pile). As soon as a player wishes to draw from the stock but no cards are available, the play ends and the hand is scored, with no one getting the bonus for going out.
Scoring
When a player goes out, each team scores plus the total value of the individual cards it has melded, minus the value of the cards left in their hands, plus any of the following bonuses that apply:
- any special bonuses or penalties for red threes;
- each samba is worth 1500 bonus points;
- each pure canasta (without wild cards) is worth 500 bonus points;
- each mixed canasta (with a maximum of two wild cards ) is worth 300 bonus points;
- the side that goes out scores 200 bonus points.
The object of the game is to reach a score of 10,000 points. The first team that reaches or exceeds this score at the end of a hand wins the game. If more than one team reaches this score at the same time, the team with the shighest score wins.
Strategy hints
It is wise to keep in mind that every samba always contains an 8, 9 or 10. If you're trying to reach a samba of spades for example, and a player has a canasta with 2 eights, nines or tens of spades, the chance that you will succeed in forming a samba is small. Perhaps you would do better to rearrange your hand to form true canastas.
When you have a sequence consisting of 8, 9, and 10, it is wise to meld them. Your partner may have the missing cards.
Remember, red threes are only bonus points when you have the two required sets to go out.
In samba wild cards are not so important as in canasta. Since they also block the discard pile, you may use them to stop the opponents obtaining the discard pile, especially if the discard pile contains cards you need to form your own samba(s).
At the start of your turn you take 2 cards of the stock. You discard only 1 card! Thus the number of cards in you hand thus grows steadily. Some players make separate piles of their black threes, twos and jokers to avoid cramp.
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Another description can be found on the Samba page of Randy Rasa's Rummy-Games.com web site.
Bolivia is a game similar to Samba, but allowing melds consisting entirely of wild cards. A meld of 7 wild cards (twos and/or jokers) is called a bolivia and is normally worth 2500 points. To go out, two 7-card melds are needed, of which at least one must be a sequence meld (escalera).
In his book The Canasta Collection, David Mallen has published rules for Sambola, a variant incorporating features of the New Zealand Canasta variant Jonola - and Black Samba, a variant in which a wild card can be used in a sequence meld, as well as simplified rules for Bolivia and Samba.
Peter Jakeman, Canasta Advisor of U3A (UK) has published rules for Trey, a form of Bolivia that can be played by 4 players using 3 decks, and Quad, a 6-player version using 4 decks (Microsoft Word documents).
Antonin Jaun's German language site canasta.ch has rules and information for Samba and Bolivia and their variants.
Ronald Magazzu's book Royal Canasta describes a three-pack Bolivia variation incorporating melds of red and black threes ('Royal Canastas').
Card games are all about cunning and skill, but the game of 'Bullshit' also adds lying and deception into the mix. Your aim in the game is to get rid of your cards before the other players, by making great use of your poker face and trickery skills. Since all cards are discarded face down, anyone can lie about what they just placed on the table. The only thing you have to avoid is being caught. In this article, we're going to go over how to play Bullshit, as well as offer some tips and strategies that will help you best your opponents.
The BS card game involves players doing their best to get rid of their cards as fast as possible. In short, it's a game of trickery. Cards are placed face down when discarded, so no one really knows if the player who got rid of them actually played by the rules. This allows players to bluff about the cards they place down. If you think another player is lying, you can call Bullshit. If you’re right, said player will have to take back his cards, along with all the others that have already been discarded. If you’re wrong, you’ll have to add the discarded cards to your pile.
Bullshit is a great game for three or more players. As with most card games, it has a rich history, so people from all around the world play it under different names. The great Edmond Hoyle calls it 'I Doubt it' while in other parts of the United States it is known as 'Bologna.'
To start a session of the game Bullshit, you will need two to ten players and a standard deck of cards with the Jokers discarded. The dealer distributes cards until there are none left, which may leave some players with additional cards. However, this rarely increases their shot of winning.
The player who is holding the two of clubs begins the game by laying the card down on the table along with any other twos they may have in their grasp (face down). For instance, a player will set down three cards and say “three twos.” The next will have to set down threes, as many as he’s got, the following will claim to put down a specific number of fours, and so on. After reaching Aces, you start again with twos. Pretty straightforward so far.
Obviously, this is where the deception comes in. A player can discard whatever cards he or she wants and lie through their teeth about it. The only issue arises when another player challenges the claim by calling 'Bullshit.' When this happens, the person who just played is required to show everyone the cards they just put down. If they were indeed lying, they will take all the cards from the pile and add them to their hand. If they were telling the truth, the player who made the Bullshit accusation has to add all the cards from the pile to their hand. When two or more people call out a player and it turns out they were wrong, the pile will be divided among them. After Bullshit is called, the next person in line will start another round.
The game gets increasingly more difficult towards the end, so winning usually comes down to luck. Most of the fun lies in faking it, though, so you’ll be in for a treat. The winner of the game is the player who manages to get rid of all their cards first. After that, the game can continue among the other players.
Eager to get ahead? Here are some tactics you can use when playing Bullshit to increase your chances of winning:
While this game is all about deception, being honest pays off every now and then. If it’s your turn to lay down nines and you choose to play fours instead, you may regret it the next time you need to lay down fours. You’ll get the gist of it after a few rounds.
If an opponent is on their last card, calling Bullshit is usually a smart way to go. If you don’t, they’ll win and basking in all the glory. They can end up winning anyway, but at least you took a shot.
It's always a great idea to keep your cards stacked together, so the other players can never be certain about how many cards you have left. If they believe you have fewer cards, they are more susceptible to call Bullshit on you.
When the pile is getting big and you suspect that someone else is about to call Bullshit on you, call it on someone else first. If they are cheating, that's a lot less of the pile to worry about. It doesn’t always work, but it’s better than nothing.
Work on your poker face. Never show your feelings, as being cunning will help you intimidate the competition. You can either keep a straight face all throughout the game or choose to smile as often as possible to throw off your competition. If you feel like being extra, wear a pair of sunglasses all the way through.
Never lose sight of what cards you are playing. You don't want to be the person who calls out something they didn't mean to say.
The best thing you can do in this game is to closely monitor your opponents and their changing moods. As long as you pay attention to their facial expressions, you will drastically increase your chances of winning.
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While these general guidelines on how to play Bullshit are great to get started, you can always mix it up by making your own rules or choosing one of the other variations of the game. Here are a few ideas:
If there are more than five players, consider shuffling two decks of cards instead of one, or even more. You can keep the Jokers in and use them as wild cards – a stand-in for any other card a player might need at a certain moment.
Consider changing the sequence of ranks. For example, play the cards in descending order of rank instead of ascending. That means that you will start with twos, then move back to aces, kings, queens, etc. Alternatively, you can also play by going with the next highest or the lowest rank of the person who went before you. For example, if one player puts down sixes, the next can go with either sevens or fives.
Take cheating to the next level. Allow players to try and put down more cards than they declare, as long as they think they can get away with it. Or let players discard cards at any time if they feel like the player whose turn it is takes too long to place theirs down.
The BS card game is played all around the world and many people change it to better fit their culture. Here are some examples.
In England, Bullshit is called Cheat and has a very different gameplay. It mainly involves more opportunities to lie. For instance, the dealer can give themselves fewer cards than every other player, as long as they’re careful and don't get caught in the act. If they’re figured out, they need to deal the cards again. Likewise, players can hide cards up their sleeve and dispose them as needed. Players can also lie that there was their turn immediately after someone is called out for lying, since being the first to put down your cards comes as an advantage.
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Canadian, Spanish, Australian
In Canada and Spain, the game is known as Bluff instead of Bullshit. Australians call it 'Fours hit' when playing with a single deck and 'Eights hit' with two decks. Jokers can also be used – this is usually up for the players to decide. Dealers can give more cards to specific players, and the first player to set down their cards is picked by another player who they choose in the Canadian game. In Spain, the individual with the highest card will be the first to play. The main aim in these countries is not necessarily to win, but to not be the person who is left with the most cards when the game is over.
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More Bullshit Variants
In the Hawaiian version of Bullshit, a player can challenge another player regardless of whose turn it currently is. On the same note, players can take their bluffing to the extreme, by claiming that there are 14 Jokers on the table, for example. In other words, they can lie about the number of cards they are playing if they feel confident that other players aren’t paying attention. Granted, that doesn’t really work, but it makes the game a whole lot of fun.
Indian Bluff is similar to the US version, but it’s called Bluff/Challenge. In Russia, the Bullshit card game is known as “Verish' Ne Verish,” which translates to 'Trust, don't trust.' In the Chinese version of the game, there is no restriction on the rank that may be called each turn. This makes it easier for a player to get rid of all their cards without lying once.
Card games are excellent for family gatherings and to break the ice in social situations. Playing cards can help you establish a rapport with people you might not otherwise interact with, grow closer to your relatives, and improve your social skills in a fun manner. The more you do it, the better you'll get at it. With Bullshit, there’s an extra layer of entertainment involved as you have to watch the other players closely and determine whether they’re lying or not. So, next time you‘re looking to get loved ones to relax, suggest a round of Bullshit and brace yourself for a couple of hours of non-stop hilarity.
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