22 is a Trick-Taking Card Game where the goal is not to take the last trick in a hand. This game is derived from the Swedish game "Cucumber
", which itself is believed to be an adaptation of "Krypkille" to fit a 52-card deck. The game is played with a standard 52-card deck, though decks can be combined, and can have any number of players, greater than one, of course.
While obscure compared to Hearts, Spades, and Bridge, 22 is a great alternative to these games, as it accommodates groups that aren’t multiples of four. Additionally, the Player Elimination mechanic, and several optional rules, mean the landscape of the game is constantly in flux, allowing for exciting matches. Provided at least one player is familiar with the rules, the game is pretty easy for newcomers to learn quickly.
No relation to the slasher film or Taylor Swift song of the same name.
Rules of play:
Cards hold standard ranks with aces counting high, and no regard for suits. To start, seven cards are dealt to each player. Any remaining cards are left in the center as a draw pile. Starting to the dealer’s left, players trade in all, some, or none of their cards for those in the draw pile, so long as the draw pile has enough capacity to do so. Discarded cards should not return to the draw pile.Once each player gets a chance to trade, or the draw pile is exhausted, play begins to the dealer’s left. Said player selects any card, or any set of cards of the same rank (e.g. three of a kind) to begin the trick. Play continues counterclockwise, where the next player must match or beat each individual card with a card of their own. These new cards do not have to match rank. If they succeed, said card(s) set the new bar. If they cannot do so, they must play their lowest card(s), equal to the number of cards played to start the hand. The last person to successfully set (or match) the bar takes the trick. For example, if Alice leads with two 5s, Bob can follow with a 6 and a King. Charlie, thereafter, would need at least one card greater than or equal to 6, and either an Ace or a King. If Charlie’s highest card is a Jack, he would have to play his two lowest cards, even though he could beat the 6.
This process repeats until the last trick, which always has one card. This means no player can lead a trick to clear their hand, unless they are down to their last card. Whichever player takes the last trick (i.e. has the highest card) OR ties for having the highest card has lost the hand, and must take their card towards their score. For these purposes, Aces are 14, Kings are 13, Queens are 12, Jacks are 11, and number cards hold their stated value. The player who took the last trick is now the dealer, and a new round begins. If any player’s score is at or above 22 points, they are out of the game. The last player with a score less than 22 wins the game. If the last several players are eliminated in the same round, whoever has the lowest score wins, with a runoff round breaking any ties. If the player who’d otherwise deal busts, the player to their right becomes the dealer.
Common variations include:
- Hand size: Instead of dealing at a constant hand size, the size of the next hand is equal to the score taken from the previous round.
- Skip the trades: The portion where cards are traded in is ignored - what you are dealt is what you get.
- Face cards: Instead of face cards having sequential score penalties, Jacks, Queens, and Kings all net a penalty of 10 points, while Aces only inflict 11. (Order still applies for trick-taking purposes)
- Optional heading: Heading the trick is optional. This means, just because a player is able to match or beat the highest card does not mean they have to.
- Straights: If a player has a run of cards in direct ascending value, this may be used to lead a hand. A minimum length, maximum length, or requirement to match suit may or may not be imposed.
- Reshuffling the point card: Traditionally, players hold onto their point card as a way to keep score. However, if paper and pencil (or equivalent) are on hand, this may be unnecessary, and the players may agree to shuffle them back into the deck.
- Dealer: If multiple people have the highest card on the last trick, the role of dealer is decided between them through random selection. Alternatively, the role of dealer simply passes counterclockwise throughout the game.
This game contains examples of:
- Action Initiative: The player left of the dealer goes first for trading in cards and initiates the first trick. This is important, as there’s not always enough cards for everyone to trade away their junk (which can be invoked by a player trading in a lot). Additionally, the player going first can feel more comfortable holding equivalent medium-ranked cards, knowing they can use them to start a big trick instead of banking on winning another trick first.
- Death or Glory Attack: Depending what you know about the other players’ hands, playing several high-value cards at once qualifies. If you play high enough to flush out the other players’ best cards, you can set yourself up for an easy win, but in doing so, you leave yourself vulnerable to everyone else’s high cards.
- Golden Snitch: No matter who many tricks you take or evade in a hand, only the last trick matters. That being said, the setup to this trick is still vital.
- Luck Manipulation Mechanic: Provided there’s enough cards left after dealing, players get a chance to trade any cards in their hand for those in the draw pile. This means a player who got a bad hand can trade away the cards they don’t want in an attempt to stay competitive.
- No Unified Ruleset: There's no "official" 22, and there are many variations that aim to balance the game or make it more volatile. The most common ones are listed in the main article.
- Misère Game: Whoever takes the last trick in a given hand is the loser, and adds the point value of the highest card to their score. Players are eliminated when their score reaches or exceeds 22, and the last player standing is the winner.
- Obvious Rule Patch:
- If, for whatever reason, there aren’t enough cards in the deck to give all players a complete hand (either a lot of players, or landing a high card with the appropriate house rule), the dealer stops when cards cannot be dealt evenly, leaving the remainder as a trading pool.
- While not all groups allow for straights, among those that do, it’s common to require three or more cards so players can’t simply offload two adjacent cards.
- Player Elimination: Any player who accrues 22 points or greater is out of the game. This means if one player gets 22 points, while at least two others stay below, the game continues on without them.
- Tiebreaker Round: In the event the final players go bust at the same time, and there is a tie for lowest score, standard tie breaking procedure is to run one last hand between the tied players - winner takes all.
- Trick-Taking Card Game: The object of the game is not to take the final trick of each hand. To do this, players play one or more cards of the same rank, which subsequent players must beat or match, lest they be forced to play their lowest cards. Whoever plays the highest card on the final trick adds it to their score, going bust if their score reaches 22.
