Build the middle and capture Kings
Aces start the shared piles, anyone can add to them, and playing the King to finish a run captures the pile for 10 bonus points.
Aces start, Kings finish
- 1Play an Ace from your hand or a pile into the empty middle. That starts a new pile of that suit.
- 2Anyone at the table can add the next card up in the same suit: 2 on the Ace, 3 on the 2, and so on.
- 3The last card of the run is the King. Playing it completes the pile.
- 4Completing a pile captures it. The pile leaves the table, earns you 10 bonus points, and its suit can start again from a new Ace.
Why the middle matters most
- Every card you play there scores: 1 point, or 5 points for a ten, Jack, Queen or King.
- It is the fastest way to free your own piles, because a card played to the middle leaves your table.
- Aces are precious. An Ace in your hand that cannot be played yet is one of the best cards to keep within reach.
Tip
If two of your cards could both go to the middle, play the one that uncovers the more useful card underneath.
Watching the other players
The middle is shared, so a pile you were about to use can be built past by somebody else. That is the noise of the game: when you are one card away, play it before somebody else does.
Common problems
Common problems
A card will not go to the middle even though the suit matches.
Middle piles only build upwards: 10 goes on the 9, not the other way round. Check the number, not just the suit.
Can I start a middle pile with something other than an Ace?
No. Aces are the only starters, which is why the Aces are the cards everyone hunts for at the beginning of a round.
Someone captured a pile I was building.
That is the race. The 10 points go to whoever plays the King, so if you can see the King in your own cards, play it yourself.
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