You Don't Want Points!

Cards add points to your score. Tokens take points off your score. You want to maximize tokens received while minimizing points taken as cards.

Pay Tokens to Avoid Cards

At the start of a game, a deck of cards numbered 3 to 35 will be shuffled and 9 cards will be removed at random. The top card will be shown.

Each player will also be dealt a number of tokens depending on how many people are playing.

On your turn you'll choose to either take a card or place a token on it. You cannot choose to place a token if you have no tokens remaining. If you run out of tokens you may end up with a card you don't want.

If you choose to take the card, you will also receive any tokens on it. The next card will be made visible, and you'll have the option to take that card or place a token on it.

Your turn only ends when you place a token on a card. The game finishes when the last card is taken.

Only the Lowest Card in a Series Counts

If you have a series of consecutive cards, only the lowest will count as points towards your score. If, for example, you had the cards 11, 12, 15, 16, 17, and 20, only the 11, 15, and 20 would count towards your score.

This means a card's true cost depends on what you have in your hand. Players with cards adjacent to the current card can choose to take the card before other players since they incur a lower cost. Or they can gamble and keep sending the card around; the more tokens the better. However, someone else may decide the card is now worth taking, or they may run out of tokens and not have a choice.

Typically players that go for low cards don't have many tokens; they can end up taking cards they don't want. Players that take high cards with plenty of tokens usually have tokens aplenty; however, they may end up with a lot of points if they can't connect their cards in a continuous series. Remember: 9 cards were removed at the beginning of the game, so you can't be sure the card you're looking for will be available.

Scoreboard

After the last card is taken, players will be taken immediately to the scoreboard, with the scores listed is ascending order. The player with the lowest score wins!

Players may choose to play again or leave. Players who opt to play again will receive checkmarks next to their names. Players who leave will have their names struck through and faded on the scoreboard. Once everyone has made their choice, the remaining players will be returned to the lobby where they can await new players if desired and start a new game.