Welcome to the Limbo Card Game!

Limbo is an exciting card game created by the talented David Parlett. He has designed numerous card games and you can find a wide selection of them on his website, Parlett Games.

In Limbo, the objective is to strategically play cards from your hand to reduce the overall count, starting at 101, to zero. Some cards have special abilities, and there’s even the option to divide instead of reducing. The player who successfully brings the count to zero wins the game!

The Cards and the Deal

To begin, grab a standard 52-card deck and thoroughly shuffle it. Deal 5 cards to each player, distributing them evenly. The remaining cards will form the stockpile.

The Gameplay

Hey there! Before we get started with the game, I wanted to let you know about an important rule. As the non-dealer, you have the chance to double the score before the round begins. If you decide to pass, the dealer then has the opportunity to double the score. But here’s the interesting part – if you, as the non-dealer, choose to double, the dealer can then redouble, making the round worth four times the points!

Time to Begin the Round!

Now that we’ve got that covered, let’s talk about how the round begins. The dealer starts by flipping over the top card of the stock. If it’s a face card, the value is zero, and the total stays at 101. If it’s any other card, we subtract its value from 101.

Now comes the fun part! Each player takes turns playing cards from their hand face up onto the pile. If you have a number card, you can either subtract or divide to reduce the total. But here’s the catch – the total has to be divided evenly. The number card you play is worth the same value as the card itself.

When playing the game, I have learned that Aces are quite special. You can choose to count them either as 1 or 11, depending on what suits you best. It’s like having a wild card in your hand!

Now, let’s talk about face cards. These ones have some cool tricks up their sleeves. When you play a Jack, it magically matches the previous card in the pile. It doesn’t matter if that card was a number card, an Ace, or another face card. And get this – if you play Jack on an Ace, you get to decide whether the Ace is worth 1 or 11. It’s like having the power to choose your fate!

But wait, there’s more. When you play a Jack on a face card, it’s like you’re cloning that card’s special ability. It’s like getting an echo of their powers! It’s making me wonder – what would it be like to have such abilities in real life?

Now, let’s talk about Queens. These ladies have a unique power too. When you play a Queen, it’s as if you’re playing a trick on the count. You see, the Queen reverses the digits of the count, making things a bit topsy-turvy. For example, if the count was 32 and you play a Queen, it becomes 23. But here’s the catch – the count must always go down, so you can’t play a Queen on a number that gets bigger when reversed. It’s like a rule of the game! For example, if you have 45 and play a Queen, it can’t become 54 because that’s not allowed. Instead, the Queen just turns it into 5.

When playing the game of Kings, I get the chance to divide the total count by any number between 1 and the total. The important thing is that the division must be even, with no remainder left.

We keep taking turns, following the same rules mentioned above, until one of us manages to bring the count down to zero or if one of us is unable to make a move. If I run out of cards, I can try to keep playing with the top card from the deck. But remember, it has to be a playable card. If not, you get to take as many turns as possible before either blocking me or winning the game.

Each round, we alternate dealing the cards. We just keep dealing from the deck without the need to shuffle the used cards back in.

SCORING

When you’re playing the game, the goal is to be the one to play the final card. That’s how you become the winner. And when you do, you earn points based on the number of cards you played to the pile, multiplied by 10. This includes the card that was turned over at the start of the round. But here’s the catch – the loser doesn’t walk away empty-handed. They actually earn points too, but it’s 10 times the final count value. And hey, it’s possible for that count to be zero, so keep that in mind. Oh, and don’t forget to take into account any doubling that may have happened at the beginning of the round.

THE ULTIMATE GOAL

Now, here’s the exciting part. The first player to accumulate 200 points is the one who wins the game. So keep your eyes on that target and give it all you’ve got!

Remember, when you’re playing, whoever plays the last card is the winner. They earn points equal to 10 times the number of cards played to the pile. This includes the turn-over card. The loser earns 10 times the final count value. It is possible for that score to be zero. Don’t forget to account for any doubling that occurred at the beginning of the round.

THE GRAND PRIZE

The first player to earn 200 points wins the game.

The first player to earn 200 points wins the game.