Straight Face

How to play

3 to 6 players, with the classic deck of 52 cards: clubs, diamonds, hearts and spades, the ace to the king. Every card is dealt, one at a time, starting with the first player to lay, and the hands stay hidden. The cards each player gets:

• 3 players: 18 cards for the first player, 17 for the other two
• 4 players: 13 cards each
• 5 players: 11 cards for the first two players, 10 for the other three
• 6 players: 9 cards for the first four players, 8 for the other two

A turn

• The ranks are called in turn: aces first, then 2s, 3s… up to kings, then aces again.
• Lay 1 to 4 cards face down on the pile and say they are all of the rank called. True or not: nobody sees them.
• The next player trusts you or doubts. A doubt shows the cards: if any of them is not of the rank called, you take the whole pile into your hand; if they all are, the doubter takes it.
• Either way, the next player then lays, on the next rank.

Winning

Lay your last cards and win once the next player trusts you, or doubts and you told the truth. Caught lying, you take the pile and play goes on. After 400 lays in all, the fewest cards win.