OBJECTIVE OF REMIGIO: Be the last player remaining in the game
NUMBER OF PLAYERS: 2 – 6 players
NUMBER OF CARDS: 108 cards
RANK OF CARDS: (low) Ace, 2 – King, Ace (high)
TYPE OF GAME: Rummy Card Game
AUDIENCE: Adults
INTRODUCTION OF REMIGIO
Remigio is a rummy card game for 2 – 6 players that is played in Spanish speaking countries. Although the game is often played with two 52 card decks, Spanish pattern decks can be used as well.
In this game, players are trying to be the first to go out by melding all of the cards in their hand. All the players with unmelded cards earn penalty points based on what is left in their hand. Once players hit a certain point threshold, they are eliminated from the game. The last player remaining in the game is the winner.
THE CARDS & THE DEAL
Two 52 card decks and four Jokers are required for Remigio. Before setting up the game, determine how many points a player must earn before being eliminated from the game. If it is your first time playing, start with 100 points.
Shuffle and deal 10 cards to each player. The rest of the cards are put face down to form the stock. Turn the top card over to begin the discard pile.
THE PLAY
Each player’s turn consists of three parts: draw, meld, and discard.
DRAW
At the beginning of a player’s turn, they must draw one card. They can either take the top card from the stock or the top card from the discard pile.
MELD
Before discarding, a player should look at their hand and see what melds they can build (if any). Players keep all of their cards in their hands throughout the game. Melds should not be placed on the table until the end of the round. There are five possible melds that can be built:
Run – A run is a group of three or more cards of the same suit in sequential order. Aces can be low (as in Ace, 2, 3…) or high (as in …Queen, King, Ace).
Set – A set is a group of three or more cards of the same rank.
Flush – A flush is a 10 card hand in which every card is the same suit.
Straight Flush – A straight flush is a 10 card run in which every card is of the same suit
Remigio – A remigio is a 10 card hand in which every card is the same rank. This requires the use of both Jokers as there are only eight cards in each rank.
JOKERS
Jokers are wild, and they can be used as any card needed to complete a meld. Melds may contain more than one Joker.
DISCARD
Once a player has drawn a card and formed any possible melds, they must discard one card from their hand. That card is placed face up on the discard pile. Play then passes to the left.
Play continues until a player has melded every card in their hand. Once a player has done so, they are ready to end the round. At the end of their turn, they place their final discard face down on the discard pile. This signals the end of the round. Then, the player lays down their hand for the table to see.
SCORING
Each player at the table lays down their cards organized by meld. Any cards that are not part of a meld will earn that player penalty points. The player that melded their whole hand earns zero points for the round.
Aces = 1 point
2’s – 10’s = points equal to the number on the card
Jacks, Queens, and Kings = 10 points each
Jokers = 20 points each
It is possible for the player who ended the round to multiply the number of points their opponents earn.
No Jokers: multiply the score by 2
Flush: x3
Flush with no Jokers: x4
Straight flush: x5
Straight flush with no Jokers: x6
Remigio: x10
WINNING
The last player remaining in the game is the winner. If desired, the game can also be played until only two players remain. At that point, the player with the lowest score wins.
VARIATION
At the end of the round, points earned go to the player who melded all of their cards. In this variation, the first player to reach the agreed upon total number of points wins the game. There are no players eliminated in this version.
- TRIPLE SNAKES - February 15, 2021