How to Play Eleusis
Over four decades ago, Robert Abbott developed this unusual card game. Nowadays, other versions exist, but this one, close to the original, is one of the most inviting. Here's how to play:Number of players: At least three
Object: To get rid of as many cards as you can by discovering the rule of play governing the hand.
The cards: A regular 52-card deck.
Deal: The act of portioning out the cards to the players; also, the period of play in the game between one deal and the next. Game: A total number of points to achieve; also, what constitutes winning or ending a game. Hand: The cards dealt to a player; also, the period of play in the game between one deal and the next. For a complete listing of card terminology, click here. |
At your turn, you must play at least one card on the discard pile. Dealer says, "Right," if your play follows the rule. Then the next player goes. However, if your play is illegal, dealer says, "Wrong," and you must pick up the all of the cards in the discard pile and place them face up in front of you. These cards will become part of your hand on your next turn.
For example, with the start card the
10, dealer's rule must somehow incorporate the rank and suit of the card. Perhaps the dealer might create this rule:- if the card is even and red, play a heart
- if the card is even and black, play a diamond
- if the card is odd and red, play a spade
- if the card is odd and black, play a club (jack and king are considered odd, queen is even)
If the next player put down a
J, the dealer would say, "Right," because the dealers rule mandates the card played after the 10 (even and red) must be a heart. If the next player put down a
6, the dealer would say, "Right." Keep in mind that jacks are considered odd, and dealer's rule says that after an odd red card you must play a spade. Now if the third player put down a
5, the dealer would say, "Wrong." Again, according the dealer's rule, 6 is an even, black card, and the next player would have had to play a diamond. The third player would then have to pick up all of the cards played so far and add them to his hand (keep in mind that the object of the game is to get rid of as many cards as possible).Game is over when one player has no cards, either in hand or on the table. Game also may end when dealer affirms that no player has a legal play and the game is blocked (dealer may show the written rule at this point). The winner is the first to play out all his or her cards, or, in a blocked game, the one with the fewest cards left.
Deal rotates to the left for each new hand.
Scoring: Losers double the difference between the number of cards they hold and the number the winner has left (if any). Winner and dealer split these winnings equally. Example: In a four-player game, the winner has two cards left while first loser has three and second loser has nine. First loser scores -2 (the difference between 2 and 3 is -1, the difference is then doulbed for -2), second loser scores -14, and winner and dealer each score +8 (the combined scored for both losers is 16, which the winner and the dealer split evenly). In case two players tie for the fewest cards, dealer still receives half the losing sums, while the winners share what's left. Since dealer always wins, be sure everybody gets an equal number of deals.
Tips: Since as dealer you get your best score when one player figures out the rule and can get way ahead of the other players, use your judgment of the other players to design a rule one of them may figure out more quickly than the others.
Here are two examples of rules you can use: (1) If the card is a diamond, play any other suit; if the card is a club, play a red card; if the card is a spade, play a black card; if the card is a heart, play a card of the same rank. (2) If the sum of the last two cards played is 2-8, play a spade; if the sum of the cards is 9-12 play a club; if the sum is 13-16 play a diamond; if the sum is 17 or more, play a heart (picture cards count 10, Ace = 1).
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