drinking card game
Thirty-one is a mathematical drinking card game, so you might not be able to play it for long… at least you won’t be able to play it WELL for long…
It kind of resembles Blackjack, except you don’t lose your money, just your liver. So let’s see how it’s played…
What do you need?
- a deck of cards
- players
- beer, lots of beer
You can play it with other alcoholic drinks as well, but beer is by far the most appropriate choice.
How it’s played
All players are dealt 3 cards, one face up and two face down. Cards are then drawn, starting with the dealer. The point of the game is to get as close to 31 as possible without going over. When a player thinks he’s close enough, he knocks on the table and the other players get one last draw.
Card values:
- Ace = 11
- Face cards(K,Q,J )= 10
- Other cards = their face value
Possible outcomes
When someone knocks there are a few possible outcomes:
- Nothing special happened, then the player with the lowest score must drink a beer before the next time he loses. If he fails to do that, he has to drink an penalty additional beer.
- A player had the exact score of 31. Then all other players must drink a beer before they lose again(better hurry!), if anyone fails, he has to drink an additional penalty beer.
- The player that knocked had the lowest score. Then the knocking player has to drink 2 beers before he loses again, if he fails, he has to drink an additional penalty beer.
Optional rules
You can set all sorts of additional rules. I’ll just give you an example of one that I really like…
…all penalty beers must be downed immediately.
Enjoy playing Thirty-one and remember, “play” responsibly!