Cubic Cards rule book

Cubic Cards is a set of six card games played with the A.M.I.C. creature deck: Solitaire, War, Poker, Blackjack, Gin and Crazy 8. Play any of them solo against computer players, or open an online room for up to 4 players. ▶ Play Cubic Cards

The creature deck

• 52 creature cards: 4 suits (♠ Spades, ♥ Hearts, ♦ Diamonds, ♣ Clubs) of 13 cards each: A, 2-10, J, Q, K, just like a regular deck.
• Creatures: the 2-10, J, Q and K of every suit star the 48 A.M.I.C. creatures, one per card.
• The shadowy Aces: each Ace shows a shadow version of its suit's King creature, a dark alt monster glowing in violet. They play exactly like any Ace.
• 2 jokers: both show the A.M.I.C. logo. They're used in War (a joker beats every card) and Poker (jokers are wild). Solitaire, Blackjack, Gin and Crazy 8 use the 52 creature cards only.

Who's on which card:

🂡 Solitaire (Klondike, 1 player)

• Goal: move all 52 cards onto the 4 foundations, one per suit, building up from A to K.
• The layout: 7 columns with 1 to 7 cards, the top card of each face up. The rest of the deck is the stock.
• Columns: build down in alternating colours (a red 8 on a black 9, a black 10 on a red J). Move a face-up card together with the cards on top of it. Only a K can go into an empty column. When you uncover a face-down card it turns over.
• Stock: tap it to turn 1 card (or 3, if you choose "Draw 3") onto the waste. When the stock is empty, tap it to turn the waste back over. You can go through the stock as often as you like.
• Controls: tap a card, then tap where it should go. Double-tap a card to send it to its foundation (or the best column). Undo takes back moves, and Finish appears when every card is face up.

⚔️ War (2-4 players)

• All 54 cards (jokers included) are dealt evenly face down. With 4 players, the 2 leftover cards are set aside.
• Every round, everyone flips their top card. The highest card wins all the flipped cards, which go to the bottom of the winner's pile.
• Card order: 2 is lowest, then 3 up to 10, J, Q, K, A. A joker beats everything.
• WAR: when the highest cards tie, the tied players each lay 1 card face down and flip again. The winner takes the whole pot. A player who runs out of cards during a war is out.
• Run out of cards and you're out. The last player with cards wins (after 400 rounds, the biggest pile wins).
• Tap Flip (or press Space), or tick Auto-flip to let your cards flip themselves.

🃏 Poker (5-card draw, jokers wild, 2-4 players)

• Everyone starts with 100 chips and antes 2 chips per hand. Each player gets 5 cards.
• First betting round: check, call, raise (by 5) or fold.
• Hold, pick and draw: pick the cards you want to keep and tap HOLD under each one (tap again to let it go). Press Draw and every card you didn't hold is replaced from the deck: draw 1 to 5 new cards, or hold all 5 and stand pat. 💡 Suggest holds picks a sensible set for you.
• Second betting round: raises are 10. Up to 3 raises per round.
• To keep things simple there are no side pots: in each hand the total bet can't go above the smallest stack at the table.
• Showdown: the best hand wins the pot (ties split it). If everyone else folds, the last player in wins without showing.
• Jokers are wild: each joker becomes whatever card makes your hand best.
• Hands, best to worst: Five of a kind (only possible with a joker) · Straight flush · Four of a kind · Full house · Flush · Straight · Three of a kind · Two pair · One pair · High card. Straights are 5 cards in a row, from A-2-3-4-5 (the lowest) up to 10-J-Q-K-A (the highest).
• A player who loses all their chips is out. Last player with chips wins; then start a new game with 100 chips each.

🂱 Blackjack (1-4 players vs the dealer)

• Everyone starts with 100 chips. Bet 5, 10, 25 or 50 before each round. The shoe holds 2 creature decks (104 cards) and is reshuffled when it runs low.
• Card values: 2-10 are worth their number, J, Q and K are worth 10, and an A is worth 1 or 11.
• Your turn: Hit to draw a card, Hold (stand) to keep your total, or Double on your first two cards to double your bet and take exactly one more card. Go over 21 and you bust.
• Blackjack: an A with a 10, J, Q or K as your first two cards pays 3 to 2.
• The dealer draws to 17 and stands on 17 or more. Beat the dealer's total (or have the dealer bust) to win your bet back plus the same again. A tie is a push: you get your bet back.

🎴 Gin (Gin Rummy, 2 players, first to 100)

• Each player gets 10 cards and one card starts the discard pile.
• Your turn: draw the top card of the stock or pick up the top card of the discard pile, then discard one card. You can't throw back the card you just took from the discard pile.
• Melds: sets of 3 or 4 cards of the same rank, and runs of 3 or more cards in a row in the same suit (A-2-3 up to J-Q-K; A is low). Cards that aren't in a meld are deadwood.
• Deadwood points: A = 1, 2-10 = face value, J, Q, K = 10. The game shows your deadwood and lights up your melds in green.
• Knock: when your deadwood after discarding is 10 or less, you can knock to end the hand. Your opponent then lays off any deadwood that fits your melds. If your deadwood is lower, you score the difference.
• Gin: knock with 0 deadwood for a 25-point bonus plus your opponent's deadwood (no laying off).
• Undercut: if your opponent ends with deadwood equal to or lower than yours, they score the difference plus 25.
• If the stock runs down to 2 cards, the hand is a draw and is dealt again. The first player to 100 points wins.

🎱 Crazy 8 (2-4 players)

• Each player gets 7 cards (5 cards with 3 or 4 players). The rest is the draw pile, and its top card starts the discard pile. Jokers aren't used.
• Your turn: play one card that matches the suit or the rank of the top discard (a 6 on a 6, a ♥ on a ♥).
• 8s are wild: play an 8 on anything, then call the suit the next player must follow.
• Can't play? Draw one card. If it fits you can play it (or any card that fits); otherwise Pass. When the draw pile runs out, the discards are shuffled back in.
• Winning: the first player to get rid of every card wins the round. If nobody can play at all, the player with the fewest cards wins. Your wins are counted next to your name.
• Playable cards glow when it's your turn. Tap a card to play it; tap an 8 and pick a suit.

Playing online (1-4 players)

• Press Create to open a room, then share the 5-letter code. Friends type it and press Join (up to 4 players in a room).
• The player who created the room picks a game (War, Poker, Blackjack, Gin or Crazy 8) and presses Start game. Back to lobby lets them switch games.
• War, Poker and Crazy 8: 2-4 players. Blackjack: 1-4 players against the dealer. Gin: 2 players; anyone else watches. If you're alone in a room, a computer player joins so the game can start. Solitaire is solo only.
• If a player leaves mid-game, a computer player takes over their seat. Close the page and come back, and you rejoin your room automatically.
• Rooms are for friendly games: no real money, and chips reset whenever you start a new game.

▶ Play Cubic Cards · Meet all 48 monsters