Spank!
Created by Noby Nobriga and Rusty Spell, 1999

Setup

• Multiple packs of poker playing cards. Number depends on the number of participants to play (2 – 5 players = 3 Packs. 6 – 9 players = 4 Packs).
• Remove all card ranks from 2 through 8, and shuffle all of the remaining cards (9 through Ace) into a Deck.
• Deal 5 cards to each player from the Deck.
• Deal 5 cards face-up in front of each player (the Stacks) from the Deck.
• All remaining cards in the Deck are set aside in a face-down pile known as the Stock.
• An empty space refered to as the Discard is reserved for cards that may be removed from the game during the course of play.
• First player to reach 1,000 points wins.
• Player with highest ranked card in the left-most stack begins play.
• Play continues clockwise.

Rules on Stacks

• Stacks can be expanded on either end of the stack, not just on the top of the stack. For example: If a stack currently has 9, 10, J, the legal plays on this stack are only an Ace (on the 9) or a Queen (on the Jack).
• There can be no more than one copy of a card in a stack. For example: If a stack currently has 9, 10, J, Q, playing a 10 (on the 9) or playing a Jack (on the Queen) is illegal, because that would break the natural sequence of the cards.
• The card sequence loops. That is to say, 9 plays on 10, 10 plays on Jack, Jack plays on Queen, Queen plays on King, King plays on Ace, Ace plays on 9, 9 plays on 10, 10 plays on Jack, etc.
• No stack can contain more than five cards at any time. If performing an action would violate this rule, then that action is illegal, is not an option to the player, and must be ignored.

Sequence of Play

Score

• The current player scores points for each stack containing more than one card. (0 cards = no points scored. 1 card = no points scored. 2 cards = 20 points. 3 cards = 40 points. 4 cards = 80 points. 5 cards = 250 points.)
• If any stack contains five cards, remove that stack to the Discard.

Upkeep

• If player chooses to, he may discard any number of cards from his hand to the Discard and skip to step Draw.
• Else, if player has an empty stack, player must skip to step Play.

Spank

• If a player does not wish to Spank, proceed to step Move.
• If player, in his hand, holds a card that will play legally on one of his opponent's stacks (i.e. follows the stack's sequence), he may choose to Spank! his opponent.  To do this, the player plays a card from his hand, turned perpendicular, onto the opponent's stack. This is usually performed with a slapping down of the card and the
  exclamation "Spank!"
• Remove the opponent’s stack, along with the player’s card, to the Discard.

Move

• If able to move, player may move any one of his stacks onto any other one of his own stacks as long as the destination stack’s sequence is maintained if one has already been established and the resulting stack contains no more than five cards total.
• Only if unable to move, player may remove any one stack to Discard.

Play

• If at least one empty stack exists, player must place one card from his hand into any one of his empty stacks.
• Only one empty stack may be filled per turn.

Draw

• Player draws as many cards from the Stock as needed until he has five cards in his hand.

Repeat

• Player to the left becomes the current player and begins with step Score.

Spank! Variations

Non-Sequence Variation/Base Variation

This variation of Spank! is the base version. When playing cards in order of rank, the suit of the cards are ignored. See Sequence Variation for the variation that takes suits into account.

Sequence Variation

The regular Non-Sequence Variation of Spank! is not concerned with the suit of the cards. This version requires that a Sequence of suit or color order must be maintained when moving or playing cards as described below.

• A stack gains one of the following established patterns once it contains at least two cards. All cards played on this stack must match this established pattern.
• Two cards of the same suit/color = same suit/color sequence. (Ex: The Sequence is Kind-Ordered if a stack contains Q, K. The next card must be one of the following: J or A. So, all of the cards in the stack must be ’s.)
• Two cards of different suits or colors = two suit/color alternating sequence. The next card played will determine whether the order is color or suit ordered. (Ex: A stack contains 9, 10. The next card must be one of the following: A or A, or J or J.)
• The Sequence is Suit-Ordered if the new stack is A, 9, 10. So, the pattern of alternating between the two established suits (here, ’s and ‘s).
• The Sequence is Color-Ordered if the new stack is A, 9, 10. So, only a pattern or alternating colors need be maintained. The suit type itself is irrelevant.
• When a card(s) is played in the Spank, Move, or Play step on a stack that has an established sequence, that card(s) must be a card whose rank and suit or rank and color must fit the established sequence, else the play is invalid.

Two-Set Deck Variation (Full and Half)

This variation provides players with two Sets of cards to play on Stacks. This variation can be played with most other variations (e.g. Sequence Variation) as it basicly only changes the number of cards in the deck.

• Unlike the Basic game which contains only cards consisting of 9’s through Ace’s, the Deck is composed of all cards (2’s through A’s) except for the 8’s. Remove all 8’s from the game.
• There are two sets that cards can be played in. (Set 1: 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7. Set 2: 9, 10, J, Q, K, A. Cards from Set 1 cannot be played with cards from Set 2, and vice-versa, as this would be playing cards out of their natural numbering sequence.)
• There are two sub-variations:
• Full Two-Set Deck Variation: Use the same number of decks as you would in a usual game of Spank! (2 – 5 players = 3 Packs. 6+ players = 4 Packs.)
• Half Two-Set Deck Variation: Use the following number of packs of cards to compose your Deck. (2 – 4 players = 1 Deck. 5 – 7 players = 2 Decks. 8+ players = 3 Decks.)

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  Other card games you might want to play.
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  Copyright (c) Apr 2003 - Jun 2011 by Noby and Rusty's Games