The first dealer is chosen at random, and thereafter the turn to deal rotates clockwise after each hand. The same happens in the unusual case where a player draws two red threes as the last two cards of the stock. If any of the teams menage to go out, In this situation a player must take the discard if the pile is not frozen and if the discard matches any previous meld of that player's side. an extra 100 points, making 200 for going out. Therefore, after either you or your partner have made a meld that meets the requirement, both of you can meld freely for the rest of that hand. They are kept face up in front of one of the partners. It's not allowed to go out without discarding a 3 or a wild card. There is considerable variation in the special hands that are allowed and how they are scored: Some groups allow players to keep as many threes in their hand as they wish rather than putting them face up on the table and drawing replacements. The next player is not allowed to take the pile (since there are no natural cards that can match your discard). A meld of aces begun after your team has put down its initial meld cannot include any wild cards. 13 cards The game is for four players in partnerships, but it can also be played head to head. Each turn must be ended by discarding one card face-up on top of the discard pile. When one or both teams achieve this, the game is over and the team with the higher score has won. You immediately draw an equal number of replacement cards from the top of the stock, and if any of these are threes you lay them out and replace them in the same way, until you have no threes among your 13 cards. Wild cards in hand are a liability at the end game, but they c… Black threes are worth 5 points each. At the end of a hand of Canasta, as soon as one player goes out, the scoring starts. Each turn must be ended by discarding one card face-up on top of the discard pile. Game Colony offers two-player Canasta games and multi-player tournaments, which can be played free or for cash prizes. The modifications to the rules are as follows. Even with this older rule, it is still the case that the pile can only be taken if the player has in hand two natural cards matching its top card. It often happens that the end of the stock is reached before anyone has gone out. other cards, following the rules. If it is your partner who lays down the initial meld this will be at the start of your next turn: you lay down your three before drawing from the stock, and as usual you must draw a replacement card for the three. This final discard is made face-down, and this is the only case in which a wild card can be discarded. Note that although there is a large bonus for completing a canasta of sevens, if you start a meld of sevens but fail to complete your sevens canasta you incur a penalty at the end of the play. If you are able to go out but unsure whether to do so, you may if you wish ask your partner "may I go out?". Threes cannot be melded in the normal way. In case (b) although you discard the last card of your original hand, making the initial meld entitles you to draw three or four bonus cards from the deck and use those to continue play. By around 1950 it had become a hugely popular game across the world and as such, the Classic Canasta rules were formulated in the United States. Both players take turns in drawing one card from the stock, and discarding one card on the discard pile (in that order). As with other natural melds, a dirty ace meld begun with one wild card cannot have a second wild card added until it contains five real aces. If the stock is exhausted, and the discard pile is never taken, each player scores for himself (no partnership). A meld of wild cards consists of from three to seven twos and jokers in any combination. This software is available at www.specialksoftware.com. Official Rule Book and Supplies. If your team starts a meld of wild cards, you cannot add any wild cards to any of your other melds until your wild card canasta is complete. The ninth card from the bottom of the draw pile is turned at right angles to the pile. At the end of the play, each team reckons its score for the hand. Another way that play can end is when there are no more cards left in the face-down stock. In this case, the player who draws it is considered to have made a complete draw and must complete that turn as though two cards had been drawn. This version of Canasta is widespread, especially in the United States, and it was the official tournament version used by the (possibly defunct) American Canasta Association. The following Canadian four-player variation was described to me by Barb Dejesus. 2s and jokers can be used as substitutes for Other rules are the same as in Classic Canasta. If it is allowed, a meld of eight or more cards is still regarded as a canasta. Note that if a team has at least one completed canasta, the values of their melded cards (item 4) are always added to their score, even if these cards form part of an incomplete canasta of aces, sevens or wild cards (item 2) for which the team is to be penalised. Some players do not allow the player making the initial meld for their team to take the discard pile, even if they have an additional pair with which to take it. It is not allowed for one partnership to have two separate melds of the same rank. If the play ends because the stock runs out, and no one has taken the discard pile by then, each player scores separately for that hand. After drawing, but before discarding, you may sometimes be able to play some cards from your hand face up on the table. The smallest meld, as usual, consists of three cards, which could be three natural cards (such as 8-8-8) or two natural cards and a wild card (such as Q-Q-2). A player may always opt to draw the top card of the face down pile. Melds of three or more wild cards (any mixture of twos and jokers) are allowed; a wild card canasta gives a 2,000 point bonus, but a team that starts a wild card meld but fails to complete the canasta before the game ends incurs a 2000 point penalty. When the discard pile is empty (on the first turn of the game, or when you have taken the pile at the start of your turn), it is illegal to discard an ace or a seven, unless these are the only natural cards you have in your hand at the time you discard. the cards in order to reach at least the minimum count. 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