Cribbage is a two-player card game using a traditional deck of 52 cards and a wooden cribbage board. Players use two pegs to keep track of points. The game involves drawing, discarding, and playing cards to reach a total of 31 points. Scoring includes combinations of cards that add up to 15, pairs, sequences, and more. The game continues until one player reaches the end of their row.
There are only two players in the game of cribbage and a traditional deck of 52 cards is used. The game requires the use of a cribbage board, wooden and rectangular with rows of holes. This is the game’s scoring device, and players each use two pegs to keep track of points, stepping one peg on top of the other from turn to turn.
The point values of the cards are: Aces, 1 point; K, Q, J, 10 points each; all other cards, index value.
The first step in cribbage is the draw, and the player who draws the lowest card deals first. The dealer shuffles and six cards are dealt to each player. After viewing their hand, each player puts away two cards face down. The four cards set aside form what is referred to as the cradle, which will later belong to the dealer.
Once both cribbage players have put away their cards, the non-dealer cuts the deck. The dealer draws the top card from the cut and places it face up on the entire face down pile. This card is called the starter, and if it’s a Jack, the dealer immediately bets two points.
The next stage of cribbage is play. The non-dealer begins by laying down a card and calling its value. The dealer then spreads a card, adding the value of his card to that of the first. The game continues in this way until the number reaches the highest possible, up to 31 points. If a player lays down a card that brings the total to exactly 31, that player scores two points. If a player cannot play another card without going over 31, he must say “Go” to his opponent, who then snaps a point.
Before establishing this “go” point, the opponent must lay down all possible cards without exceeding 31. After a “go”, the opponent of the player who laid down the last card restarts the game with one of his remaining cards . Play continues in this fashion until both players have played all eight cards. Playing the last card also scores a point. During the game, these additional melds must be fixed accordingly: two points for making exactly 15, two points for making a pair, six points for making three of a kind, and 12 points for making three of a kind in a row.
Now the show is over and it’s time to move on to the show. The non-dealer starts and shows his four cards, and does the calculations including the starter. Thus, each player counts as having a hand of five cards. Scoring is as follows: each different combination of cards that make a total of 15 is worth two docked points; each pair is worth two points; each sequence of cards is counted as one point for each card; four suited cards in the hand count for four, and all five suited cards count for five; three of a kind counts six; three of a kind counts 12; a jack in the hand that matches the starter’s suit counts one point; a double turn of three, or a turn with a duplicate card, counts eight; a double round of four counts ten; a treble point, or a point with a trebled card, counts as 15; and a quadruple turn of three with two duplicate cards counts as 16.
Once the non-dealer has finished, the dealer counts his hand and then the crib. Rounds continue in this way until one player wins the game by snapping to the end of his row.
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