Welcome to Twenty Two!

Twenty Two is a super cool card game where we try our best to avoid capturing the very last trick of the round. Trust me, you don’t want to be the one stuck with that final trick – it’s not good! If you do end up taking it, though, don’t worry, you get to keep the card as a point card.

Here’s the deal: as we play, we want to steer clear of accumulating 22 points or more. Once a player reaches that limit, they’re out of the game. So, stay on your toes and try not to pile up those points!

Let’s Talk Cards and Dealing

To play Twenty Two, we need a standard 52 card deck. Before we get started, though, let’s determine who the first dealer will be. Each player draws a card, and the person with the highest card gets the honor of dealing the first round. Nice!

For the upcoming rounds, things work a bit differently. The person who lost the previous round becomes the dealer. And get this – the number of cards to be dealt is determined by the card that loser played to the last trick. If there aren’t enough cards left in the deck to deal the correct number, we simply divide up the remaining cards evenly. Don’t worry, though, those extra cards will come in handy later for the discard.

When we’re starting out, let’s deal seven cards to each player. Got it? Great, let’s dive in!

The Discard

Starting with the person sitting to my left, each of us gets a chance to get rid of some cards from our hand and replace them with new ones from the deck. But we don’t have to get rid of any cards if we don’t want to. Keep in mind that I can only discard as many cards as there are left in the deck. So if the deck is all used up, I might not be able to discard any cards at all.

HOW TO PLAY

THE FIRST ROUND

In a game of cards, the player sitting next to the dealer gets to start the first round. They can choose to play any single card or a set of cards that have the same value. For instance, they could play a 7 or they could play two Queens. The other players have to play the same number of cards that were led, and they have two options. First, they can play a card or a set of cards that have a higher value than the highest card or set of cards in the round. Alternatively, they can play the lowest card or set of cards from their hand. When playing a set of cards, only the player who started the round has to match the cards. The other players can play any cards as long as they meet the requirements for their turn.

Let’s Look at an Example Round

So, here’s what happened. I’m Player 1, and I start the trick with a 7. Player 2 decides to match me with a 7. Then Player 3 comes in with a 10, taking the trick. Player 4, unfortunately, doesn’t have a card higher than 10, so they play their lowest card, a 2. But Player 3 still steals the trick with that 10 and takes the lead.

Now it’s Player 3’s turn to lead the trick. They start off with two 6s. Player 4, being clever, plays a 6 and a 7, because the 6 matches one of the 6s and the 7 beats the second 6. Player 4 is in a tight spot now, since they have to beat the 6 and 7. But they can’t, so they have no choice but to play their two lowest cards, a 4 and a 5. That’s when I swoop in with an 8 and a 9 to capture the trick.

Alright, let’s move on to the next trick. This time, it’s Player 1’s turn to lead. I play three Js, feeling pretty good about my strong hand. But Player 2 throws in a J and two Qs. Player 3 joins the party with two 2s and a 3. But Player 4 steals the show by playing a Q, K, and an A to capture the trick.

SPECIAL NOTES

When leading a trick, I must make sure to always leave at least one card in my hand. For example, if my hand only has three 5 cards, I can only play two of them to lead the trick. I must always have one card available for the final trick.

THE FINAL TRICK

During the final trick, each player will play their last card. The player with the highest card wins the trick and gets to keep it, adding it to their score pile. If there is a tie for the highest card, all players get to keep their cards. The remaining cards are then shuffled back into the deck. The winner of the final trick becomes the dealer for the next hand.

SCORING

When we play the game, we collect score cards whenever we capture the final trick. These cards go into our score pile. Once we have 22 points or more, we’re out of the game. We deal the next hand and then we leave the table.

The value of Aces is 11 points.

The value of Jacks, Queens, and Kings is 10 points each.

The value of cards numbered 2 through 10 is the same as the number on the card.

WINNING

We keep playing until only one player is left. That player is the winner. If all players end up with more than 22 points, the player with the lowest score wins the game.