Things You'll Need:
- Deck of cards
- Pad of paper
- Pen or pencil
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Step 1
Determine the order of play for Crazy Eights by having each player cut the deck. The card at the bottom of the cut is their card. The player with the highest cut acts as the first dealer. Subsequent deals move to the left and around the table in a clockwise direction.
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Step 2
Deal out the deck until each player has a total of five cards in her hand. After everyone has been dealt their hands, place the remaining cards towards the center of the table and flip over the top card, placing it next to the deck. This will act as the discard pile.
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Step 3
Play a card from your hand, starting with the person to the left of the dealer. The card you are able to play is based on the top card of the discard pile. You may either play a card of the same rank—ace on ace, two on two, three on three and up, or a card of the same suit—heart on heart, club on club, spade on spade and diamond on diamond. The only other card you may play is an eight, hence the name of the game.
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Step 4
Draw a card from the deck when you are unable to play a card from your hand on your turn. If you draw a card of the same rank or suit you may immediately play it. All other cards, with the exception of an eight, must be added to your hand and play moves to the next player at the table. Eights may also be played immediately. When an eight is placed on the discard pile, the player who plays it may change suit, no matter what suit is displayed on the eight. The next player is required to play this “called” suit on his turn. If he is unable to legally play a card from his hand, he must draw a card from the draw pile.
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Step 5
End the round by being the first person to rid their hand of cards. All other players will tally the points of any remaining cards in their hand. Face cards are worth 10 points, spot cards are worth 5 points and eights are worth 25 points.
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Step 6
Win the game of Crazy Eights by having the least amount of points at the end of a set number of rounds, or when one player reaches a total score of 250.
