Contents
Welcome to NLK: The Last Card Game!
Objective of NLK:
The goal of NLK is to avoid being the last player with cards in hand.
Number of Players:
NLK can be played with 4 to 9 players.
Materials:
All you need to play NLK is a standard 52-card deck (or a modified deck) and a flat surface.
Type of Game:
NLK is an exciting beating card game.
Audience:
Anyone can enjoy NLK, but it’s best for adults.
Join the NLK Adventure!
Get ready for a thrilling game of NLK! You and your friends will compete to avoid being the last one left with cards. But don’t worry, it’s easier than it sounds!
NLK is played in two parts. First, you’ll collect cards to build your hand. Then, in the second phase, it’s all about speed. Try to empty your hand as quickly as possible! As long as you’re not the last one holding cards, you won’t be the loser.
So gather your friends, shuffle those cards, and let the NLK excitement begin!
Game Setup
Before we start playing, there are a few things we need to do to set up the game. The number of players determines the size of the deck. If we have four players, we use a deck of 32 cards, including Aces through 7s. But if we have more players, we add the next set in rank for each additional player. For example, in a nine-player game, we use a full 52-card deck.
Now, let’s talk about how we determine the first dealer. We randomly choose someone to be the first dealer. And for the following rounds, the dealer is the person who lost the previous round.
Once we have our dealer, it’s time to shuffle the deck. And to make sure everything is fair, we let the player to the left of the dealer cut the deck. After that, the dealer deals one card faceup to each player, going counterclockwise. The rest of the cards form a talon, which is placed facedown in the center of the play.
Understanding Card Ranking
In the game, the ranking follows a traditional order. The Ace is the highest card, followed by the King, Queen, Jack, and then the number cards in descending order from 10 to 2. This means that the Ace outranks all other cards, and the 2 is the lowest-ranking card.
How to Play
The game is divided into two phases. In the first phase, your goal is to collect and get rid of cards. The cards you collect during this phase will determine the hand you play with in the second phase. In the second phase, you’ll compete against other players to try and use your cards to beat out the cards they play, until you have no cards left in your hand.
Phase One
When the game begins, I, as the player sitting to the right of the dealer, take my turn first. The order of turns then goes counterclockwise, with each player drawing the top card from the talon and placing it face-up on their pile of face-up cards. Once I do this, my turn is over. However, before I draw a card, I have the option to give away some of my cards.
If I choose to give away cards, I can only give away the top card from my stack. In order to give it to another player, the top card of their face-up stack must be one rank lower. For example, if I have a 4 of hearts on top of my stack, I can only place it on a stack that has a 3 of any suit. I can continue to do this with the top card of my stack until I have no more cards or there is no legal place to put my top card.
So here’s what you can do with the cards you draw from the talon: give them away! Of course, there are some requirements that need to be met. Once you place a drawn card in another player’s pile, you have to draw another card from the talon.
You can keep on placing cards from the talon into other piles until either the talon is empty or there are no more legal plays. In the latter case, you have to put the card into your own pile.
Once a card makes its way into your pile, your turn is over. Simple as that!
After the final card is drawn from the talon, it’s time for phase two. This card becomes the trump suit for this phase. Everyone gets to see the card, and the player who drew it places it in their pile. And just like that, phase two begins.
Welcome to Phase Two!
Phase two starts with me and everyone else gathering our cards into our hands. Whoever draws the final card gets to go first. I can play any card to start the game. The other players have to beat it by playing a higher-ranked card of the same suit or a trump card. If I can’t or don’t want to beat the previous card, I have to take the lowest-ranked card from the trick. Then it’s someone else’s turn.
A trick can end in two ways. First, when the number of cards played to the trick is equal to the number of players in the game. Second, when all the cards from the trick have been taken. If someone wins the trick by playing cards, the last player to play sets those cards aside and starts a new trick. But if all the cards are drawn from the trick, the next player in line starts a new trick.
Game Over – You’re Out!
If you manage to get rid of all your cards, congratulations! You’re officially out of the game and in the clear. The game will keep going until there’s only one player left. And guess what? That unlucky player is the ultimate loser.