PLAYING PINWHEEL IN YOUR GAME
The above describes the game as the characters know it as part of the Star Wars universe. I endeavored to make the game sound like a real card game, laying notes in the description about the game's variations. Before you ask, no, I'm not quite sure how to play the Galaxy, Spiral, or Open Spiral versions of the game, but I have some ideas. I may flesh those ideas out later. For now, the standard version of Pinwheel will do for most of your games.
To simulate a game of Pinwheel, we're going to roll dice and we're going to use the character's gambling skill. Another reason I wrote all that description above is to give the GM enough detail about the game so that he may describe the events in the game as the GM would a combat round. Make it exciting. Throw some roleplaying into the mix. Make the players feel like they're sitting down to an exciting game of Pinwheel! Some of the gambler characters out there may even seek out Pinwheel games as a source of income! And, why not? They're gamblers!
TO SIMULATE PINWHEEL IN YOUR GAME
-- PREFACE --
Give each player a number, from 1-6. Then, roll 1D to determine, randomly, the first bettor. Starting with that player, and moving clockwise around the table, have each player post the Preface Beat. This simulates the action of the table droid soliciting the Preface Bet.
Remember that bets are in units. A 10 credit Pinwheel games means that one betting unit is 10 credits. The Preface Bet is one betting unit. In later phases, raises are made in whole betting units--meaning the minimum raise is to 20 credits at this betting level.
Keep track of how much money is in the pot. At the end of this phase, the pot will equal the minimum betting unit multiplied by the number of players. In this case, if six players are playing, then the pot is at 60 credits.
-- DEAL --
To simulate the deal and the player's action to discard, have each player roll 1D in secret and place keep it for later. The result on the die represents the cycle the character made from his three cards. So, a roll of 3 means the player made a Third Cycle.
Remember, the higher the cycle, the better the hand.
Here, the players bet in the established order, although no bet is required. Every player can pass. If a raise is made, it is made in whole betting units. Players can kill their hand (fold) if they want in the face of a high bet that they are not prepared to make.
Keep track of the pot.
-- DRAW ONE --
To simulate the player's discard and the new card being dealt to him in this phase, the GM rolls 1D, out in the open, for each player. This die is rolled out in the open to simulate players' guesses, odds calculations, facial reads, tells, and the like. It will also help players when to decide to fold.
The die roll, just like the card dealt in the game, can hinder or benefit a player's hand. If the die roll is odd, subtract it from the player's hidden die. If the die roll is even, add it to the player's hidden die.
The new total of the dice (- odd, + even) makes up the player's new hand. The total is the player's cycle that he's made. If a player has a 6 on his hidden die and the GM rolls a 3 in this phase, then the player's hand has been hurt, and the player now has a Third Cycle.
A Play Bet can be made, and each player can pass (if there is no bet), call, raise, or fold.
-- DRAW TWO --
This phase begins exactly like the previous one. The GM rolls another 1D for each player. Now, every player has two dice exposed on the table and one secret die. This represents the continued play of the game as another card is discarded and a new one dealt.
The character's final hand is ranked by adding up the three dice--the secret die and the two exposed dice. Remember, the cycle for the player's hand is calculated by adding even numbers on all three dice and subtracting odd numbers.
Thus, if a character's secret die was a 6, and the die he received in the Draw One phase was a 3. And, the die he recives in this phase is a 2. Then: 6 - 3 + 2 = 5. The character ends up with a Fifth Cycle hand.
The final bet is made where each player can pass (if there is no bet), call Play Bet, raise, or fold.
Now, here's where the character's Gambling skill comes into play. This simulates the skill of the player, and although a character with high Gambling skill will not win every hand (there's luck involved), skilled players will win much more often than non-skilled players.
After the final bet is made, the character can, but does not have to, make a Gambling skill roll against the total of his three dice. His difficulty is the real total of the three dice. In the example above, the target number would be 6 + 3 + 2 = 11.
If the character makes the check, then the GM rolls 1D that is added to his chain of dice to make up his cycle. Remember, when calculating cycles, add even dice and subtract odd dice. So, to continue the example, if the character rolls the Gambling task and succeeds, then the GM will roll a new die to add to his cycle chain. If a 4 is thrown, the the character's final cycle is: 6 - 3 + 2 + 4 = 9. He ends up with a hand of the Ninth Cycle.
GAMBLE DIE A Wild Die is not used on First Edition D6 Star Wars tasks, but a version of the Wild Die is used on this Gambling task roll. Throw a die of a different color, designated as the Gambling Die, when making the Gambling throw above. This die does not add to the total number of dice. It replaces one of the dice used in a normal throw. Lando Calrissian, around the time of The Empire Strikes Back, has skill of Gambling 9D+2. He's an expert gambler. No, more than that, he's one of the best gamblers in the galaxy.
When Lando throws the Gambling task above, he throws the Gamble Die with the other 8D+2. If your character hasn't improved the Gambling skill, and yo have Perception 3D, then you will throw te Gamble Die with 2D.
The Gamble Die operates just like the Wild Die in later editions of the game sans complications. If a "1" results on the Gamble Die, then the throw total is reduced by removing the Gamble Die and the highest die in the throw. If a "6" results on the Gamble Die, then keep it and throw another die. Keep throwing that die as long as you roll 6's. If the Gamble Die results in 2-5, just add it up normally.
If the player's Gamble task results in a number that is equal to or higher than twice his target number, then the GM will throw two extra dice for the player to figure his final cycle. If the Gamble task is three times or more the target number, then the GM will throw three extra dice for the final cycle, and so on.
Remember that the Gamble task must use the Gamble Die, and that the task does not have to be attempted. The player can attempt to win with what Fate (or The Force) has dealt him.
If the Gamble task is made, it is made after the final bet but before any player reveals his secret die. Players have to look at the open dice to determine whether they will throw the Gamble task or not. The Gamble task can hurt the player's hand, but it is more likely to help it.
To end the hand, players commit to the Gamble task without rolling. Every player still in the game reveals his secret die, and anyone who committed to the Gamble task rolls for his final cycle.
TIME: Playing out the above represents 15 minutes of game time. The one "hand" we play for the rpg in real life represents several hands the character has played over 15 minutes or so.
Play through the procedure four times, and a set is completed. About an hour has passed for the character in game time.
TERMINOLOGY
PREFACE BET: What we would call, in the real world, an ante. This is paid to the pot before cards are dealt. In the standard game described above, Preface Bets cannot be raised.
PLAY BET: The standard bet that happens after the Deal and during the Draw One and Draw Two phases. Play Bets are not mandatory. A person does not have to bet on these rounds. If a bet is made, the other players can call, raise, or fold to the bet.
KILL: This is the Pinwheel terminology for what we call folding. "I kill." Or, "I kill my hand," is common verbiage.
CYCLE: The ranking of a hand. It is made up of two cards, matching suits and or symbols of two cards. A First Cycle is the lowest hand. A Ninth Cycle hand wins over a Seventh Cycle hand.