[Neon2342]

[farmgirl16]

I love cribbage!!! It doesn't seem much fun to some people but I grew up playing it with my grandpa.

[Nate]

Cribbage is simply the best game ever.

[Mara's Mom]

I just said five days ago that I want to learn how to play cribbage. Anyone want to teach me?

I just learned Chinese Checkers about three years ago. I love that game!

And I need to relearn Backgammon. I liked that one, too.

[Nate]

Originally Posted by Mara's Mom

I just said five days ago that I want to learn how to play cribbage. Anyone want to teach me?

You get dealt six cards, of which you (as well as the other player) throw away two cards to a face-down pile called the "crib" which will function as an extra hand for the dealer come scoring time (don't worry about this unfair advantage; the game lasts many hands and the deal [and, thus, the possession of the crib] alternates). Then, you cut the remaining part of the deck and the dealer turns over the card you cut to, placing it on top of the deck. This card only counts for scoring purposes, so ignore it for now.

Now, the card play begins. Starting with you (the non-dealer), each player takes turns playing a single card from their hand in front of them (you need to keep the hands separate) and announcing the running total of all cards played thus far. The total may never go above 31. If a player is unable to play a card without sending the total above 31, they announce "go" and the other player has a chance to play as many of their cards as they can while keeping the total less than (or equal to) 31. Then, the total is reset and the player who called "go" plays a card, announcing the new total. This continues until each player is out of cards.

After each player has run out of cards, they pick up their hands (which were laid down in front of them) and the scoring phase begins. Non-dealer scores first, by announcing all the scoring combinations in their hand and recording that amount of points. Then, the dealer scores their own hand. Finally, the dealer turns over the crib and scores those points for theirself.

That's all there is to the gameplay; the scoring is the only semi-confusing part (which is why I haven't mentioned any specifics 'til now). You score primarily by forming special combinations of cards, either in your hand (in combination with whatever card was turned up after the cut) or during the card play phase of the game. Here are the combinations and their point values:

"Fifteen" = the most basic, two or more cards that total fifteen (face cards are always ten); this scores two points for each set of cards that total fifteen. Ex. a hand of 7-7-8-5-(K) [the K is the card cut] would score six points for fifteens; 7-8 is fifteen, [the other]7-8 is another fifteen, and 5-K is fifteen; three different fifteens is six points. (note: if at any time during the card play phase of the game the running total is brought to fifteen, the player who played the card to bring it there immediately scores two points)

"Pair" = the easiest to spot, two cards with identical rank; this scores two points for each pair. Ex. our hand of 7-7-8-5-(K) from the last example would score two points for pairs (in addition, mind you, to the six points it already scored for fifteens); 7-7 is the only pair. (note: if at any time during the card play phase of the game two cards of the same rank are played in succession [without the running total being reset in-between by a "go", which breaks the pair], the player who played the second of the two cards immediately scores two points)

"Pair Royal" = a name for something that doesn't really need a name in most cases, three cards with identical rank; this scores six points (exactly the same as it would score in "normal" pairs if you counted each individually; this is just a timesaver scoring combination). Ex. if our hand was 7-7-7-5-(K) instead, it would score six points for a pair royal (three distinct pairs of 7-7; can you see them?). (note: the reason this has a special name is that it gets counted as the full set of three pairs if it is played during the card play phase of the game, rather than just as the last pair made; if at any time during the card play phase of the game three cards of the same rank are played in succession [again, without there being a reset in-between], the player who played the last of the three cards immediately scores six points [for the pair royal; the player playing the second card still scores for the pair they made])

"Double Pair Royal" = something that rarely happens, four cards with identical rank; this scores twelve points. Otherwise, it is exactly the same as a Pair Royal

"Run" = three or more cards in successive ranks (A is low only; cannot be combined with K-Q to make a run, only 2-3); runs can be any combination of suits and score points equal to the number of cards they contain. Ex. if our hand was 7-8-9-5-(K) instead, it would score three points for the 7-8-9 run (in addition to any other points, of course). (note: if at any time during the card play phase of the game [again, barring a reset of the total] three cards of successive ranks are played in succession [they don't have to be played in the order of their rank; the play could be 4, then 6, then 5, for example], the player who played the last card of the three immediately scores three points for the run of three that they created; the next player can then play another card that continues the run [3 or 7, in this case] and score for four points for a run of four, and so on)

"Double Run" = another time-saving scoring combination, this is a set of four cards that can make two runs of the same three successive ranks (7-8-9-9, for example; there are two 7-8-9 runs); this scores eight points (six for the two runs of three, plus the pair that the double run will always contain; this [and the following triple and quadruple runs] is really the only scoring combination that combines two types of more basic scoring combinations). Make sure you don't count the pair separate from the double run, and that you still count any other points (fifteens, for example). Unlike the pair royal, a double run cannot be scored during the card play phase of the game. (note: there is also a five-card double run which makes two runs of four rather than two runs of three, and it scores ten points [eight for the two runs, plus two for the pair])

"Triple Run" = something that comes up very very rarely, this is a set of five cards that can make three runs of the same three consecutive ranks (7-8-9-9-(9), for example; there are three 7-8-9 runs); this scores fifteen points (nine for the three runs, plus the pair royal that the triple run will always contain; in addition to any other points, of course [just don't get confused and count the pair royal twice]). Again, this can't be scored during card play.

"Quadruple Run" = something that almost never occurs, this is a set of five cards that can make four runs of the same three consecutive ranks (7-7-8-9-(9), for example; there are four 7-8-9 runs [can you see them?]); this scores a whopping sixteen points (twelve for the four runs, plus four for the two pairs; again, make sure you count any other points [fifteens, for example] and you don't double-count the pairs). This also cannot be scored during card play.

"Flush" = sort of a bonus scoring combination, four (or five) cards of the same suit (their ranks do not matter); this scores points equal to the number of cards in the flush. If you're scoring a flush of four, all four cards involved must be in your hand (in other words, you can't include the card that was cut as part of a four-card flush, only as part of a five-card flush). You cannot score a flush during the card play phase of the game.

It is customary to call out both the name of the scoring combination and the points for it as you count up the points in your hand, and to generally work down this list of scoring combos in order as you count points (that is, you will usually count fifteens, then pairs, then runs, then flushes; you should not count pairs before runs if they're part of a double [or greater] run, however, you should skip them and count them with the run). So, there are your scoring combinations... let's put them to work.

A hand of 5H-6H-7H-8H-(KS) ["H" = "hearts," "S" = "spades"] would score as follows:

"Fifteen two (5-K), fifteen four (7-8) [keep the total of your points running as you count your score, that's why this is "fifteen four" instead of "fifteen two" again], a run of four for eight (5-6-7-8) [again, keep the total going up], and a four-card flush makes twelve (5H-6H-7H-8H)."

Did that make any sense? No? Ok, let's do another hand:

A hand of 4-5-6-6-(Q) would score as follows:

"Fifteen two (5-Q), fifteen four (4-5-6), fifteen six (4-5-[other]6), and a double run [that's eight, remember?] makes fourteen (4-5-6-6)." [the double run takes into account the pair of sixes, so don't count them separately]

Finally, there are a few oddities / exceptions / extras:

If at any time during the card play phase of the game a player causes the running total to reach exactly 31, that player immediately receives two points (and the total resets).

If at any time during the card play phase of the game a player calls "go" (that is, they cannot play a card without forcing the running total to exceed 31), the other player receives one point after playing any cards they can still play (unless they can bring the total up to 31, in which case they receive only the two points for 31).

The last player to play a card in the card play phase of the game immediately receives one point for "last card."

If a jack is cut, the dealer immediately receives two points (don't ask, just do it).

If during the scoring phase a player is found to have (in their hand) a jack of the same suit as whatever card was cut, that player receives an additional point (again, don't ask).

That should be about it. I'd be up for playing a game with you on Yahoo games sometime. It'll help you learn.

In His love,
Nate