CHINKWAY

Welcome to Chinkway, a thrilling trick-taking game designed for five players. It’s like Dungeons and Dragons, where the dealer holds the power and acts alone. In this game, even though you’re on a team, you’re still trying to win for yourself. It gets really interesting when the top two players team up. Not all tricks are equal, though, because only certain cards give you points.

THE CARDS & THE DEAL

In Chinkway, we use two decks of 52 cards each. One deck is for playing, which we call the game deck. The second deck, known as the quest deck, helps determine the target cards for the round.

Before the game starts, we randomly remove two picture cards. That leaves us with a quest deck of 50 cards.

Partnerships Change with Each Round

When we play the game, the partnerships change every round. To decide who partners with whom, we always consider the dealer as “player 1.” For the first five rounds, “players 2 & 3” will be partners, while “players 4 & 5” team up. As the rounds progress, the dealer position moves to the next player, and the partnerships change accordingly. From the sixth round to the eleventh round, “players 2 & 4” become partners, with “players 3 & 5” forming their own team.

The Deal

Here’s how the deal works: the dealer shuffles the deck of cards and starts dealing them out. Each player receives ten cards, except for the dealer, who gets twelve. After everyone has their cards, the dealer picks two from their hand to discard. Then, the dealer gets to choose a trump suit for that round. Alternatively, the dealer can also declare no trumps, which means there won’t be a specific suit to follow.

The Quest

Alright, let me break it down for you. So, first things first, we need to determine the trump suit (or no trumps) for the round. Once that’s settled, the dealer flips over five quest cards. These cards play a big role in deciding the points earned for the round. Now, let’s have a look at these quest cards and what they’re all about.

There are five categories of quest cards: Spades Ace – 10, Hearts Ace – 10, Diamonds Ace – 10, Clubs Ace – 10, and Court Cards. The Court Card category includes all of the face cards from each suit. It’s important to keep these categorizations in mind as they impact the game.

Now, let’s get to the exciting part -THE PLAY!

Here’s how it works. Player 2 takes the lead in the first trick. They have the freedom to play any card from their hand. The other players, however, must follow suit if they have a card of the same suit. But, if they don’t have a matching card, they can play any card from their hand. It’s a strategy game, you see.

Now, pay attention! The highest ranked card in the lead suit has the power to capture the trick. But wait, there’s more – the highest ranked trump card can also steal the show! So, whoever captures a trick becomes the next one to lead. It’s a thrilling chase to victory!

Now you’re ready to take on the quest and emerge victorious!

When playing the game, each quest card represents a piece of the quest that I am trying to complete. I complete a part of the quest when I capture a trick that has a card of the same category. Once I capture the trick, I can pick one card from it that matches the category of a quest card. I place that card in front of me, face up. I can’t rely on my partner to help me decide which card to choose if the trick has more than one card. I set aside the rest of the trick.

Here’s an example: Let’s say the quest cards include the 3♣, A♥, J♣, Q♦, and 9♦. If I capture a trick that has the 5♣, I can claim the 5♣ from the trick and place it in front of me.

Okay, let’s play a game! We’ll keep playing until we’ve captured all ten tricks. The goal is to capture a card for each part of the quest. For example, if we capture a numbered Club, Heart, Diamond, and two court cards, we’ve completed the entire quest.

Once we’ve finished the final trick, it’s time to tally up the score.

SCORING

When we keep score, we earn points based on the parts of the quest we completed as a team. The dealer earns points based on what they completed on their own.

1 quest card completed = 1 point

2 quest cards completed = 3 points

3 quest cards completed = 6 points

4 quest cards completed = 10 points

5 quest cards completed = 15 points

Each player in the team earns the total amount of points. The score is not split between the two.

ACHIEVING VICTORY

When the game reaches its conclusion, the person who has accumulated the highest score emerges as the triumphant player.

When the game reaches its conclusion, the person who has accumulated the highest score emerges as the triumphant player.