TEX-TAC-TOE
A poker based strategic card game for two players.
Introduction: Tex-Tac-Toe is a game I designed as an exercise for a game design book I am reading, which suggested taking an existing well known game and changing it to be a different sort of game. I hope you take the time to play it with your favorite gambler and get back to me with your experiences.
Overview: Tex-Tac-Toe is played by two people with a standard deck of poker cards (you may leave jokers in as "wild" cards if you like, or leave them out). The object of the game is to win hands, just as in poker, for points. At the end of the game, the player with the highest point total wins. Point values for hands are based roughly on hand probabilities, though I chose not to use direct correlation since the higher hands would be worth so many points as to produce an auto-win result should 4 of a kind or a royal flush come up.
Setup: Situate yourselves across the table from one another and take a well shuffled poker deck. Lay out 9 cards in a 3 by 3 grid, face down, between you and deal both players 3 cards (referred to hereafter as the Stash simply for clarity in these rules). The remainder of the cards are the Draw Pile. Turn over the center card. Cut the deck to determine who goes first.
Turn Sequence: On their turn, each player has 4 options:
1) Turn over (reveal) a card on the grid that is still face down OR
2) Play a card from their Stash by placing it face up on another exposed card on the grid. Either the suit or the value of the card played must match the grid card OR
3) Discard a card from their Stash to the bottom of the Draw Pile OR
4) Call (see below)
If you lost a card (2 or 3 above) take the top card from the Draw Pile and put it in your Stash -- players should always have 3 cards in their Stash at the end of their turn.
Object: The object is to create a standard 5 card poker hand from any three cards from the grid in a row (up, down or diagonal) and two cards from your Stash.
Calling: Once a player has a hand, they may "Call" meaning that they have a poker hand to play. They take the two cards from their Stash to be used in their hand and lay them face down on the table
The other player has two options: they can "Concede" and choose two cards from their own Stash to complete a hand. Or, the other player can "Challenge" and is allowed to take one more turn before setting up their own had (3 cards from the grid and 2 from their Stash), but if the Challenger loses the Caller player gets double points for the hand. Once the choice is made, the players reveal their hands, a winner is determined and points are rewarded.
Scoring: Here's a list of values for poker hands
High Card: 0 (1 if a Challenge occurred, as above)
Pair: 1
Two Pair: 2
Three of a Kind: 5
Straight: 25
Flush: 50
Full House: 70
Four of a Kind: 150
Straight Flush: 500
Royal Flush: 1000
The Game Continues: After a hand is completed, a winner is determined and point are awarded play continues as above. First, however, the cards in the grid that were used in the winning hand (and any underneath them if Stash cards were placed on top as described in 2 above) are removed and 3 new cards are taken from the top of the Draw Pile and placed face down. The player who lost the previous hand goes first.
Victory Conditions: The game ends when there aren't enough cards in the Draw Pile to "refill" the grid (as described above). The player with the higher number of points wins.
Options: Consider betting. You can bet however often you like, and whatever you like: chips, money, M&Ms, items of clothing, whatever. Just make sure you don't count your, well, whatever when your sitting at the table.
If you have more than one person around, try it with 3 or more players and see how it stacks up.
Feedback: If you do decide to give it a whirl, please let me know how the game(s) went, particularly whether play was fun, how long it took to play a game and what the score turned out to be. Thanks!
A poker based strategic card game for two players.
Introduction: Tex-Tac-Toe is a game I designed as an exercise for a game design book I am reading, which suggested taking an existing well known game and changing it to be a different sort of game. I hope you take the time to play it with your favorite gambler and get back to me with your experiences.
Overview: Tex-Tac-Toe is played by two people with a standard deck of poker cards (you may leave jokers in as "wild" cards if you like, or leave them out). The object of the game is to win hands, just as in poker, for points. At the end of the game, the player with the highest point total wins. Point values for hands are based roughly on hand probabilities, though I chose not to use direct correlation since the higher hands would be worth so many points as to produce an auto-win result should 4 of a kind or a royal flush come up.
Setup: Situate yourselves across the table from one another and take a well shuffled poker deck. Lay out 9 cards in a 3 by 3 grid, face down, between you and deal both players 3 cards (referred to hereafter as the Stash simply for clarity in these rules). The remainder of the cards are the Draw Pile. Turn over the center card. Cut the deck to determine who goes first.
Turn Sequence: On their turn, each player has 4 options:
1) Turn over (reveal) a card on the grid that is still face down OR
2) Play a card from their Stash by placing it face up on another exposed card on the grid. Either the suit or the value of the card played must match the grid card OR
3) Discard a card from their Stash to the bottom of the Draw Pile OR
4) Call (see below)
If you lost a card (2 or 3 above) take the top card from the Draw Pile and put it in your Stash -- players should always have 3 cards in their Stash at the end of their turn.
Object: The object is to create a standard 5 card poker hand from any three cards from the grid in a row (up, down or diagonal) and two cards from your Stash.
Calling: Once a player has a hand, they may "Call" meaning that they have a poker hand to play. They take the two cards from their Stash to be used in their hand and lay them face down on the table
The other player has two options: they can "Concede" and choose two cards from their own Stash to complete a hand. Or, the other player can "Challenge" and is allowed to take one more turn before setting up their own had (3 cards from the grid and 2 from their Stash), but if the Challenger loses the Caller player gets double points for the hand. Once the choice is made, the players reveal their hands, a winner is determined and points are rewarded.
Scoring: Here's a list of values for poker hands
High Card: 0 (1 if a Challenge occurred, as above)
Pair: 1
Two Pair: 2
Three of a Kind: 5
Straight: 25
Flush: 50
Full House: 70
Four of a Kind: 150
Straight Flush: 500
Royal Flush: 1000
The Game Continues: After a hand is completed, a winner is determined and point are awarded play continues as above. First, however, the cards in the grid that were used in the winning hand (and any underneath them if Stash cards were placed on top as described in 2 above) are removed and 3 new cards are taken from the top of the Draw Pile and placed face down. The player who lost the previous hand goes first.
Victory Conditions: The game ends when there aren't enough cards in the Draw Pile to "refill" the grid (as described above). The player with the higher number of points wins.
Options: Consider betting. You can bet however often you like, and whatever you like: chips, money, M&Ms, items of clothing, whatever. Just make sure you don't count your, well, whatever when your sitting at the table.
If you have more than one person around, try it with 3 or more players and see how it stacks up.
Feedback: If you do decide to give it a whirl, please let me know how the game(s) went, particularly whether play was fun, how long it took to play a game and what the score turned out to be. Thanks!
