OBJECTIVE OF LIAR’S POKER: Be the last player with cards in hand!
NUMBER OF PLAYERS: 2-8 players
NUMBER OF CARDS: Standard 52 card deck (add more decks as desired for large groups)
RANK OF CARDS: A (high), K, Q, J, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2
TYPE OF GAME: Bluffing
AUDIENCE: All Ages
INTRODUCTION TO LIAR’S POKER
Liar’s Poker is a unique game of bluffing. It is a simple game, but its avenues to form coalitions and spy makes it both exciting and a social game. Despite the name, unlike typical poker games, no wagering is involved. The nature of the game makes it great for get-togethers, bars, and road trips.
THE DEAL
The first dealer is chosen randomly, there after the deal passes to the left. Players get a certain number of cards depending on the number of players.
2 Players: 9 cards
3 Players: 7 cards
4 Players: 6 cards
5 Players: 5 cards
6 Players: 4 cards
7+ Players: 3 cards
The player who lost the deal previously gets one less card in the next round, however, everyone else retains their same number of cards. So, each deal has one less card dealt than the one before it.
THE PLAY
In the first round, the dealer starts. However, if in any other round, the player who lost the last deal begins. Each player, moving to the left, names either a poker hand or a challenge to the previous player. The poker hand must be either (in ascending order):
- High card/Single card
- A pair
- Two pairs
- Three of a Kind
- Straight
- Full House
- Four of a Kind
- Straight Flush
- Five of a card
- Six of a Kind
- etc
Deuces (twos) are wild cards.
When naming a hand, provide relevant details to the group. For example, “Four Kings,” or “5 to 10 of Hearts.” If announcing a straight, it is not necessary to name every card in between. Typical Poker Hand Rankings apply.
The declaring of hands ends when one player directly challenges the previous person to name a higher ranking poker hand. At this point, all players lay their hands down on the table.
If, after examining all the cards on the table, the poker hand that the challenged player named is there, the challenger loses that deal. However, if the hand is not there, the challenged player loses the deal.
Note, the hand must be exact. For instance, if the declared hand was a pair of aces, and someone had a hand of three aces, that does not count.
This game encourages cheating and trickery! Get dirty!
Just don’t touch other player’s cards.
THE SCORING
The loser of the previous deal receives one less card in the next deal. Once a player has no more cards, they are out of the game! Players on their last card may choose their card. The dealer must fan out the deck and allow that player to blindly choose their card.
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