FOOL

Hey there! I want to tell you about this awesome card game called Fool. It was created by a clever person named Friedemann Friese. The goal of the game is to get rid of all the cards in your hand before anyone else does. Sounds cool, right?

So, here’s how Fool works. In each round of the game, we take turns playing cards. The person who plays the worst card in a round becomes the Fool. They have to take possession of this special token called the Fool token. Oh no! The Fool isn’t allowed to play in the next round. Bummer!

The Fool title keeps moving around the table from player to player until someone finally wins the game. Will it be you?

MATERIALS

Now let’s talk about what you need to play Fool. You’re going to need a deck of cards with 88 cards in it. The deck has four different suits: green, red, yellow, and blue. Each suit has a different number of cards. The green suit has 26 cards, red has 22 cards, yellow has 20 cards, and blue has 14 cards. Oh, and there are also 6 wild 1 cards. Those can really shake things up!

To begin playing this game, grab a separate piece of paper and a pen so you can keep score.

Now, let’s get the game set up. Depending on how many people are playing, select the appropriate Overview card and place it in the middle of the playing area. This card will tell you how many cards and Fool discs you’ll need for the game. Just a heads up, the setup for a game with 4 players is shown in the instruction manual. If you’re not using any extra discs or cards, set them aside for now.

Next, put the Fool disc(s) in the center of the table. Give the deck of cards a good shuffle and deal out the entire deck. Each player should have 12 cards in their hand, except in an 8 player game where each player will have 11 cards.

Lastly, choose someone to be the scorekeeper for the game. They’ll keep track of everyone’s points. Now you’re all ready to start playing!

The Game

Hey there! Let me tell you all about this awesome card game I’ve been playing. It’s called ‘The Play’, and it’s super fun!

So, how does it work? Well, the goal of the game is to get rid of all the cards in your hand. Sounds simple, right? But trust me, there’s a twist!

Here’s how it goes: The dealer starts the game, and the player to their left goes first. They can play any card from their hand to start the trick. Now, here’s the trick: everyone else has to play a card of the same color, if they have one. But if they don’t, they can play any other color from their hand. Sneaky, right?

Now, pay attention to this part: the highest-ranking card of the lead color wins the trick. That means if you play the highest card of the color that was led, you win the trick! But here’s the catch: the player who played the worst card becomes the Fool. Yup, they have to take the Fool disc from the center of the table, and sit out the next trick. That’s gonna be a bummer!

Oh, and here’s an interesting tidbit: if there are 7 or 8 players, guess what? Two players become the Fool for each trick! Double the fun, double the foolishness!

So, what’s the worst card, you ask?

If all the cards played in a trick are the same color, the player with the lowest-ranking card becomes the Fool. The Fool is considered the worst position. However, if there are cards of a non-matching color played, then the player with the lowest-ranking card in that color becomes the new Fool.

In a situation where multiple cards of the same rank but different colors are played, the player who played the lowest number last becomes the Fool.

CONTINUING PLAY

After each trick, the player who won the trick leads the next one. However, the player or players who became the Fool do not participate in the trick. At the end of the next trick, the new Fool takes the Fool disc from the previous Fool, and the previous Fool rejoins the game.

WILD 1’S

When you play a 1 card, it always becomes the same color as the lead card. Even if you have other cards of the lead color, you can still play a 1. However, if you don’t have any other cards in the lead color, you don’t have to play the 1. The wild 1 card is always the lowest ranking card of the lead color.

If a 1 card is led, the next regular colored card determines the color that must be followed, if possible.

How the Round Ends

The round ends when one or more players have played all the cards from their hand. After the final trick of the round is finished, the player or players who lost the round must still take the Fool disc.

How the Game Ends

When the game is played, it goes on until a player’s score reaches -80 or lower. The game also ends when a player scores 10 or more positive points six times or more throughout the game. So, it’s important to keep track of these tallies for each player.

How Scoring Works

If a player is the one who played all their cards and emptied their hand, they add 10 points to their score. However, if that player also takes a Fool disc after playing their last card, they earn 0 points instead.

On the other hand, players who are left with cards in their hand at the end of the round will have points deducted from their score. The regular cards are worth the value of the number printed on them. But, if they have any Wild 1 cards in hand, they’ll face a 5-point deduction for each of those cards.

How to Win

Once the game is over, the player with the highest score is declared the winner.