History UsefulNotes / Mao

*** This troper's variant requires the next player to draw a card and say 'Thank you' regardless of how many sevens he has or wishes to play.

* Each player takes, or is given, five cards from the stack.

* If a player has one card left, they must say 'Last card' before the next player takes their turn. If they do not, they may be penalized with the call 'Failure to say 'last card' '.

** In some variants, calls are to follow a rigid formula, and if the accuser doesn't follow it properly he is penalized as well; for example, if the formula is 'failure to say ''x'',' then 'you failed to say ''x''[='=] would result in a penalty.

* Some variants disallow talking except when it is valid in game, or during a point of order. Talking when not valid results in a penalty card with the penalty call 'Talking'. This makes the rules more clear but is often less fun, especially for new players. This is one of the most common optional rules, but is also commonly set aside when everyone else is a newbie. Once everyone gets the basic rules down, the rule is usually introduced.

** Laughing is not talking, but often carries its own penalty. Cursing when not required to by the rules counts as talking, and is usually worth two penalty cards. Explaining the rules outside a point of order is also worth two cards, one for talking and one for explaining the rules.

* A couple of optional speech rules:

* The game may also be introduced by saying "The game of Mao has begun; no talking."

** '''Queen''' - All players must say "All hail the chairwoman."
** '''King''' - All players must say "All bow to the chairman," accompanied with a dip of the head. (If not done, the bow is penalized in the same way speech rules are, which is described below.)

** Implied X - Players may be penalised for merely implying that profanity was about to occur [[CurseCutShort ("what the f...")]] or violence, while not acted on, was threatened (shaking one's fist at another player).

** This troper prefers the awarding of five separate penalties at once - "Talking, lying, cheating, swearing, blasphemy", each punctuated by handing them a card.

That's a little tricky since there is no official version of Mao; every group of people plays differently. Also, it's a rule that one should never explain any rules, but that'd make for a pretty useless set of notes on the game. However, most variants have the same basic core rules, and those will be covered here. In short - ''this is just '''one''' way that Mao can be played''. The idea is that somebody who has never played Mao, but would like to run a game, should be able to use these rules.

* Mao is a card game for 2 or more players. It is usually played with 2-3 standard 52-card decks of playing cards (normally including jokers), although there is nothing to stop people adding cards from totally different decks if a rule exists or is made for those cards. It is not required that the cards have the same back - any standard deck is allowed. Any number of decks can be used - the more people, the more decks you'll probably need.

* There is a stack - a pile of unrevealed cards which players may not examine. This is where players take new cards or penalty cards from. It's fine to just pile the cards untidily, the only thing people will be doing is taking cards from it, and it doesn't matter where they take them from.

* In Democratic Mao, if a penalty is called wrongly, the player who called it may themselves be penalised, with the call 'Bad call'. They must take the card they were going to penalise the other player with. A penalty has to be valid to be called, and it is valid only if the victim has actually performed (or failed to perform) the action for which the penalty has been called.
* Saying 'Mao' at any point during the game except when it is required, results in a three-card penalty (often with the call 'taking the name of the great Chinese leader in vain') Calling someone on "saying Mao" or "forgetting to say Mao" also breaks this rule, and is a good way to earn yourself 3 penalty cards.

* Explaining any rule of the game, may result in a penalty (with the call 'Explaining the rules'). Generous players will sometimes knowingly explain a rule to someone who is having trouble, and take the penalty.

* If present, the Joker is equivalent to the Nine of Diamonds for ALL game purposes.

* Five cards are dealt to each player from the stack.

** Some variants require a motion to be proposed that a game of Mao be played.
* Some variants allow a few basic rules to be told for newbies: for example: 'Play goes in a clockwise direction, you may pick up a card if you don't want to play one, and the Joker is the Nine of Diamonds'. The dealer is free to declare that this round is played counterclockwise if they wish.

* If the player has no valid card to play, or does not want to play a card, they may take one card from the stack. Usually saying "pass" is allowed at this point.
* If the player has done everything required of them for their turn, their turn ends and the next player's turn begins. A player's turn does not end until they have either played a valid card or taken one from the stack.

* If, on a player's turn, the player fails to take their turn within a period of time (eg. 10 seconds) they may be penalized with the call 'failure to play within (however many) seconds'. They may be given the same penalty for every (however many) seconds that they fail to play. This does not apply during a point of order.

* If a player plays their last card, and the play is valid, and has taken any actions that were required for that turn without penalty, they must say 'Mao'. This is a win, and takes them out of the game (the turn order continues, skipping them). They now have the ability to rejoin the game and introduce a new, secret rule of their own making. While out of the game, they are not bound by the rules of Mao and can talk freely, except for the rule against explaining rules, which is binding outside of the game.

!New rules

* The only real rule for making new rules is that it must not be unfairly biased toward specific players - example: 'Jennifer can play diamonds at any time' is an unfair rule. Otherwise, any new rule or rule change that the player can enforce is allowed. Ideally, rules should be interesting or fun without being excessively complicated; players should be able to figure out the rule but it doesn't have to be trivial. Even rules that you may think are really simple can totally stump players.

** Another solution is simply to leave the "trap" in place, if possible, and just take the penalty card when necessary. For example, if on Spades you must say "I've got luck in spades, mate!" but on Aces you must be silent, the ace of spades becomes a "trap" - you can't follow both rules at once, so woe be to you if you get stuck with such a card. However, it is advisable to avoid making "traps" on purpose.

* A player who touches his cards during a point-of-order may be penalised, with the call 'touching cards during a P-of-O'. Touching the penalty card you were just given to add it to your pile on the table is a good way to get another penalty card.

* Lying - any statement said by a player which is untrue, may be penalized with the call 'Lying'. Note that saying Mao when your last play is invalid is considered lying, and so is saying last card when you are not down to your last card (because you broke a rule with the play that would have done it).

That's a little tricky since there is no official version of Mao; every group of people plays differently. Also, it's a rule that one should never explain any rules, but that'd make for a pretty useless set of notes on the game. However, most variants have the same basic core rules, and those will be covered here. In short - ''this is just '''one''' way that Mao can be played''. The idea is that somebody who has never played Mao, but would like to run a game, should be able to using these rules.

* '''Any player may call a penalty on any other player at any time'''. A penalty call must always give a reason for the penalty (example - 'failure to take a penalty card'). If the penalty is called wrongly, the player who called it may themselves be given the card that was given as a penalty, with the call 'Bad call'. A penalty is valid only if the victim has actually performed (or failed to perform) the action for which the penalty has been called.
** An alternative is to have a single person act as rules guardian ("The Mao") who has no hand and controls the pile. They keep track of all of the rules and deal out penalty cards. (This may not sound fun in text, but this person has the power to do funny things like give people penalty cards for off-topic discussion or excessive Monty Python references and it keeps others from disputing penalty calls. If this is just an outgrowth of this Troper's D&D group grafting our DM onto Mao, sorry ^^;)
*** This troper plays Mao similarly, except that the Mao Master (that is, he who calls penalties) also has a hand and plays.
* The penalty is always taking a single card from the stack into ones hand, except for the Mao penalty below, which is three cards.
* Saying 'Mao' at any point during the game except when it is required, results in a three-card penalty (often with the call 'taking the name of the great Chinese leader in vain') Calling someone on "saying Mao" or "forgetting to say Mao" is a good way to earn yourself 3 penalty cards.

** "Pointless P. of O." is a valid call, but should only be used if someone seriously abuses one.

* '''Any player may call a penalty on any other player at any time'''. A penalty call must always give a reason for the penalty (example - 'failure to take a penalty card'). If the penalty is called wrongly, the player who called it may themself be given the card that was given as a penalty, with the call 'Bad call'. A penalty is valid only if the victim has actually performed (or failed to perform) the action for which the penalty has been called.

** Laughing is not talking, but often carries it's own penalty. Cursing when not required to by the rules counts as talking, and is usually worth two penalty cards. Explaining the rules outside a point of order is also worth two cards, one for talking and one for explaining the rules.

** Another solution is simply to leave the "trap" in place, if possible, and just take the penalty card when necessary. For example, if on Spades you must say "I've got luck in spades, mate!" but on Aces you must be silent, the ace of spades becomes a "trap" - you can't follow both rules and once and woe be to you if you get stuck with such a card. However, it is advisable to avoid making "traps" on purpose.

That's a little tricky since there is no official version of Mao; every group of people plays differently. However, most variants have the same basic core rules, and those will be covered here. In short - ''this is just '''one''' way that Mao can be played''. The idea is that somebody who has never played Mao, but would like to run a game, should be able to using these rules.

This page is to explain the rules of Mao.

* A player who touches his cards during a point-of-order may be penalised, with the call 'touching cards during a P-of-O'. Touching the penalty card you were just given to add it to your pile on the table is a good way to get another penalty card. The point-of-order may be ended by any player by saying 'end of point of order'.

!Point-of-order rules

* Saying 'Point-of-order' during a Point-of-order, except to end it, will result in a penalty. The common way to refer to a point-of-order is 'P-of-O'. The penalty call is usually 'Saying P-of-O during a P-of-O'.
* A player who touches his cards during a point-of-order may be penalised, with the call 'touching cards during a P-of-O'. Touching the penalty card you were just given to add it to your pile on the table is a good way to get another penalty card. The point-of-order may be ended by any player by saying 'end of point of order'.

If you would like to see what this looks like when played, there is an [[UsefulNotes:ExampleMaoGame example Mao game]] page.

** In some variants, calls are to follow a rigid formula, and if the accuser doesn't follow it properly he is penalized as well; for example, if the formula is 'failure to say ''x'',' then 'you failed to say ''x''[='=] would result in a penalty.

* Saying 'Mao' at any point during the game except when it is required, results in a three-card penalty (often with the call 'Lying, cheating, and taking the name of the great Chinese leader in vain') Calling someone on "saying Mao" or "forgetting to say Mao" is a good way to earn yourself 3 penalty cards.
** Never heard of this rule.

** Why?

* Any player may call a penalty on any other player at any time. A penalty call must always give a reason for the penalty (example - 'failure to take a penalty card'). If the penalty is called wrongly, the player who called it may themself be given the card that was given as a penalty, with the call 'Bad call'. A penalty is valid only if the victim has actually performed (or not performed) the action for which the penalty has been called.

* Any player may call a penalty on any other player at any time. A penalty call must always give a reason for the penalty (example - 'failure to take a penalty card'). If the penalty is called wrongly, the player who called it may themself be given a penalty, with the call 'Bad call'. A penalty is valid only if the victim has actually performed (or not performed) the action for which the penalty has been called.

* Saying 'Mao' at any point during the game except when it is required, results in a three-card penalty (often with the call 'Lying, cheating, and deceiving')
* Explaining any rule of the game, except for rules that have already been revealed, may result in a penalty (with the call 'Explaining the rules'). Generous players will sometimes knowingly explain a rule to someone who is having trouble, and take the penalty.
** Some variants also penalise players who ask what the rules are.
* A 'point-of-order' may be called at any time during play, by any player, by saying 'point of order'. When this happens, the game is paused, and all players must put down their card hands. A point-of-order is normally used to discuss the game when things have gotten confusing or to take a break. Usually you are allowed to speak more freely during a point of order, though some rules may still be enforced (e.g., you still won't be allowed to openly discuss the rules). Generally players will be penalised for saying 'point of order' during a point of order (besides ending it) or touching their cards during a point of order. The point-of-order may be ended by any player by saying 'end of point of order'.
* If present, the joker is equivalent to the nine of diamonds for game purposes.

* The beginning of the game may be announced (example: 'We are playing five-card Cambridge Mao'). This allows players to distinguish between variants, for those who play different variants of Mao.
* Some variants allow a few basic rules to be told for newbies: for example: 'Play goes in a clockwise direction, you may pick up a card if you don't want to play one, and the joker is the nine of diamonds'.
* A single card is taken from the stack and placed face-up, to begin the pile onto which players will be playing their cards.
* A player, probably the player to the left or right of the dealer, goes first.

** If the card is valid to be played, the player may take any additional actions associated with that card.

* If the player has no valid card to play, or does not want to play a card, they may take one card from the stack.

* If a player plays and it is not their turn, they may be penalised with the call 'playing out of turn'. They must take back the card that they played.
* If, on a player's turn, the player fails to take their turn within a period of time (eg. 10 seconds) they may be penalised with the call 'failure to play within (however many) seconds'. They may be given the same penalty for every (however many) seconds that they fail to play. This does not apply during a point of order.
* If a player has one card left, they must say 'Last card' before the next player takes their turn. If they do not, they may be penalised with the call 'Failure to say 'last card' '.
* If a player plays their last card, and the play is valid, and has taken any actions that were required for that turn without penalty, they must say 'Mao'. This is a win, and takes them out of the game (the turn order continues, skipping them). They now have the ability to rejoin the game and introduce a new, secret rule of their own making. While out of the game, they are not bound by the rules of Mao and can talk freely.

* A player who fails to say a phrase when it is required (e.g. '5 of spades') may be penalised with the call 'failure to say (whatever needs to be said)'. For example, 'failure to say '5 of spades' '. The penalty does not relieve them of the action; they must still say the phrase, or they can be penalised again for 'continued failure to say (whatever needs to be said)', until they do so. In some variants, calls are to follow a rigid formula, and if the accuser doesn't follow it properly he is penalised as well; for example, if the formula is 'failure to say ''x'',' then 'you failed to say ''x''[='=] would result in a penalty.
* If a card is played for which more than one phrase has to be said, all phrases must be said, or the player may be penalised for whatever they didn't say. For example, playing the 7 of spades needs the player to say 'seven of spades, have a nice day'. The ordering of the phrases does not matter. If the player only said 'seven of spades', they can be penalised for failing to say 'Have a nice day'. If they said nothing, they can be penalised twice, once for each phrase.

** Example - if the rule is 'odd-numbered cards must not be played on even-numbered cards', the call should simply be 'bad card', since they can later deduce that rule by trial and error.

* A player who believes they have deduced your rule may also enforce it on players who break it (including the player who made the rule!). However, if they get the rule wrong, you (or someone else) can penalise them for a bad call.

Mao never ends! Well, it does when people have decided they've played long enough - people will often drop out of the game while others continue playing. It is traditional for players who leave to explain their rules before leaving.

Sometimes, the rules just aren't enough. For example, what if someone has introduced a rule that everyone hates? If anything happens which can't be fixed by the rules, then players can fix problems democratically - by putting it to a vote. In this way, players can agree to drop a problematic rule, or change anything about the gameplay they dislike.

* Some variants disallow talking except when it is valid in game, or during a point of order. Talking when not valid results in a penalty card with the penalty call 'Talking'. This makes the rules more clear but is often less fun, especially for new players.
* Lying - any statement said by a player which is untrue, may be penalised with the call 'Lying'.

* Mao is a card game for 2 or more players. It can be played with a standard 52-card deck of playing cards, plus jokers, although there is nothing to stop people adding cards from totally different decks if a rule exists for those cards. Normally several decks of cards will be used. It is not required that the cards have the same back - any standard deck is allowed.

** An alternative is to have a single person act as rules guardian (This Troper's group calls them "The Mao" but this may not be widely recognised) who has no hand and controls the pile. They keep track of all of the rules and deal out penalty cards. (This may not sound fun in text, but this person has the power to do funny things like give people penalty cards for off-topic discussion or excessive Monty Python references and it keeps others from disputing penalty calls. If this is just an outgrowth of this Troper's D&D group grafting our DM onto Mao, sorry ^^;)

* A 'point-of-order' may be called at any time during play, by any player, by saying 'Point of order'. When this happens, the game is paused, and all players must put down their card hands. A point-of-order is normally used to discuss the game when things have gotten confusing. Except for gameplay rules, all other rules are still in effect - you still can't explain the rules, for example. The point-of-order may be ended by any player by saying 'End of point of order'.
* The joker is equivalent to the nine of diamonds for game purposes.
* Players should not show each other their card hands, although there is no rule against it.

** Spade - the player who plays a spade must say the name of the card after playing it. (example: 'the nine of spades').
** Nine of diamonds - the player must say 'That's the badger'.

* A player who fails to say a phrase when it is required (eg. '5 of spades') may be penalised with the call 'failure to say (whatever needs to be said)'. For example, 'failure to say '5 of spades' '. The penalty does not relieve them of the action; they must still say the phrase, or they can be penalised again for 'continued failure to say (whatever needs to be said)', until they do so. In some variants, calls are to follow a rigid formula, and if the accuser doesn't follow it properly he is penalised as well; for example, if the formula is 'failure to say ''x'',' then 'you failed to say ''x''[='=] would result in a penalty.

* The only real rule for making new rules is that it must not be unfairly biased toward specific players - example: 'Jennifer can play diamonds at any time'. Otherwise, any new rule or rule change that the player can enforce is allowed.

!Point-of-order rules

These rules only apply during a point-of-order.

* Players may be penalised for saying 'point of order' during a point of order, except for saying 'End of point of order' when it is over. It is common for players to abbreviate it to 'P of O', which is allowed.
* Players may be penalised for touching their cards during a point of order.

* Cambridge Mao disallows talking except when it is valid in game, or during a point of order. Talking when not valid results in a penalty card with the penalty call 'Talking'.

* Ungentlemanly conduct - any player judged to be behaving in an ungentlemanly way is penalised with the call 'Ungentlemanly conduct'. Sometimes specifically referred to; a player may be penalized for 'violence' or 'profanity.'
** Implied X - Players may be penalized for merely implying that profanity was about to occur [[CurseCutShort ("what the f...")]] or violence, while not acted on, was threatened (shaking one's fist at another player).

* A player who fails to say a phrase when it is required (eg. '5 of spades') may be penalised with the call 'failure to say (whatever needs to be said)'. For example, 'failure to say '5 of spades' '. The penalty does not relieve them of the action; they must still say the phrase, or they can be penalised again for 'continued failure to say (whatever needs to be said)', until they do so. In some variants, calls are to follow a rigid formula, and if the accuser doesn't follow it properly he is penalised as well; for example, if the formula is 'failure to say ''x''', then 'you failed to say ''x''' would result in a penalty.

* A player who fails to say a phrase when it is required (eg. '5 of spades') may be penalised with the call 'failure to say (whatever needs to be said)'. For example, 'failure to say '5 of spades' '. The penalty does not relieve them of the action; they must still say the phrase, or they can be penalised again for 'continued failure to say (whatever needs to be said)', until they do so.