NORTH CAROLINA PEGS AND JOKERS

WHAT IS NORTH CAROLINA PEGS AND JOKERS?

North Carolina Pegs and Jokers is a thrilling card and board game designed for 4, 6, or 8 players. The objective of the game is to race against your opponents and bring all your team’s pegs back home.

This amazing game is played in teams. This means that you’ll be partnered up with a teammate, creating two teams consisting of 2, 3, or 4 players, depending on how many people are playing. Each teammate sits between two opponents, which adds an extra layer of excitement to the game.

HOW TO SET UP THE GAME

Depending on the number of players, you’ll use a specific board configuration. If you have a versatile board, it will feature a designated section for each player count. In a 4-player game, a 4-sided board is used. For a 6-player game, a 6-sided board is employed. Finally, for an 8-player game, an 8-sided board takes the spotlight.

When playing an 8-player game, we use 4 decks and 8 jokers. But for all other games, 3 decks and 6 jokers are enough.

First, we each choose our color and set up our colored side of the board. We make sure all our pegs are in the starting area, which usually has a colored circle.

To decide who deals first, we pick a random dealer. Then, for each new deal, the dealer passes to the left. Before dealing, the dealer shuffles the deck, and the player on their right can cut the deck if they want.

The dealer gives each player a hand of 5 cards, and the remaining deck becomes the draw pile, placed in the center.

What the Cards Mean

In this game, the cards have special meanings. They are used to move your pieces, and each card moves your piece in a different way.

If you want to move your pegs out of the starting area, you’ll need either an Ace or a face card.

When I use an ace to move along the track, I can either move one of my pegs on the track one space backward or move it forward 11 spaces.

If I have a King, Queen, or Jack and want to move my peg along the track, it will move 10 spaces.

For cards with a value of 3, 4, 5, or 6, I can use them to move my piece along the track. The number of spaces I move will correspond to the numeric value of the card.

When I have a 2, I have the option to move forward 2 spaces or exchange the positions of any two different colored pegs on the track. However, I cannot use a 2 card when my peg is in the starting or home area.

If I have a 7 card, I can choose to either move one of my pieces forward 7 spaces or move two pieces a total of 7 spaces.

Using an 8 card allows me to move one of my pieces backward 8 spots along the track.

Lastly, if I have a 9 card, I can use it in the same way as a 7 card. I can either move my piece forward 9 spaces or split the 9 spaces between two pegs of my color.

In this game, you have to divide your 10 seconds of time between two pegs. It doesn’t matter who the pegs belong to – they can be yours, your teammate’s, or even your opponent’s. You have the freedom to move your piece forward or backward. But be careful! If you hit an opponent’s peg while aligning it with one of their own, they are sent back to the starting area. Similarly, if you hit one of your team’s pegs while it’s aligned with an opponent’s peg, you send their piece to their “in-spot”.

Now, let’s talk about the jokers. Jokers are special cards that can be used to move any of your pegs, including the ones in the starting area, to a spot occupied by another player. This player can be either an opponent or a teammate. So, the jokers give you the power to strategically position your pegs and influence the game.

GAMEPLAY

The game begins with the player to the left of the dealer, and then it continues clockwise. Each player starts their turn by drawing up to 6 cards. From this hand, they need to play one card, which goes into the discard pile. Finally, they can move their piece along the track. Remember, the key to winning is using your cards wisely and making strategic moves!

If I have a card that can legally move my peg along the track (excluding the joker), I must play it. If I don’t have a card to make a move, I can discard one card into the discard pile and draw a new one from the draw pile. This means my turn is over and it’s called counting. If this happens to me for three consecutive turns, I have to move one of my starting pegs to the “come out” spot.

To get out of my start area, I need to play an ace, king, queen, jack, or joker. All of these cards, except the joker, will move one peg from my start area to the peg hole just outside of it called the “come out” space.

When playing this game, there are certain rules you need to keep in mind. First, you cannot pass over or land on your own peg. However, you can pass over and land on another player’s pegs. Passing over a peg doesn’t do anything, but if you land on another player’s peg, you get to move it.

If it’s an opponent’s peg, you send it back to their starting area. But if it’s a teammate’s peg, you send it to their “in-spot,” which I’ll explain later. However, if the “in-spot” is already occupied with a peg of that player’s color, then you can’t move it.

Another important rule is that you’re never required to play a joker peg. But if you do choose to play one, you still have to follow the same rules for landing in another player’s spot.

Moving Pegs Home

So, here’s the deal. When I move my peg around the board and get close to my home area, there’s this spot called the “in-spot.” It’s right in front of my colored home area, just off the track. Now, here’s the thing – if I’m forced to pass my “in-spot,” I have two choices. I can either go all the way around the board again, or I can use a special card to back up and land behind my “in-spot.”

Now, to actually move into my home area, I need a card that will take me past my “in-spot” and onto the track. But here’s the catch – if I don’t move all the way to the back of my home area, other pegs can’t pass it.

Once I’ve successfully moved all my pegs into my home area, I’m done. But here’s the cool part – on my future turns, I can help move the pegs of my teammates who are sitting to my left and still have pegs to move home.

The Exciting Conclusion

Alright, let’s talk about the end of the game. It’s all about getting all of our pegs into our home areas. And when we achieve this incredible feat, we are declared the winners! So, let’s get those pegs home and bring home the victory!