Chains (card game)

Chains is a shedding card game that originated in northern Minnesota. Though little known, it is very popular among people of the northen Minnesota region.

Set Up

The dealer deals one card facedown to all participating players in a clockwise fashion, starting with the person to the dealer’s immediate left. The dealer continues dealing the card in this way until all players have five cards in his/her hand. The remaining cards are placed facedown in the middle of the playing area, with the top card flipped face up and placed next to the deck.

Gameplay

The player to the left of the dealer starts the game by playing a legal on the card flipped face up by the dealer. The next player plays a legal card on top of the card played by the last player. If a player cannot play a card, and it is not that player’s first turn of the game, he/she must draw one card from the top of the deck and that player’s turn is over. If a player cannot play a card and it is the first turn of the game, the player simply passes without drawing a card. The hand is over when a player has discarded all cards in his/her hand and the dealer shifts to the player to the left of the player that dealt the hand.

Playing Cards

A legal play is any card that is one higher/lower in sequence (playing the run) or any card of the same suit (playing the flush). If a played card is one higher/lower and of the same suit (playing the royal) as the top card of the discard pile, the player that played the card may play another, if he/she cannot he/she does not draw a card. Any other card of the same value is not a legal move.

Scoring

After a player runs out of cards in his/her hand, the other players count the points in his/her hand with scoring as follows: Ten points for Twos, Threes, Fours, Fives, Sixes, Sevens, Eights, and Nines; Fifteen points for Tens, Jacks, and Queens; Twenty points for Kings; and Twenty-five points for an Ace. A player’s score the current hand is added to the player’s game score.

Playing With Multiple Decks

If the number of players gets to be to an amount that the game requires more than one deck, playing the exact same card on itself is a legal play (i.e. a two of hearts on a two of hearts is legal), but any other card of the same value is still not a legal move (i.e. a two of clubs on a two of hearts is illegal).

Winning the Game

Each game is ten hands long. The player with the lowest total score of the game is the winner.

Variations

Some variations of the game do not allow the extra card to be played when playing the royal, or the player must draw a card if he/she cannot play another card. Others allow that a card of equal value may played, like a king on a king.