PEGS AND JOKERS

OBJECT OF PEGS AND JOKERS: The objective of Pegs and Jokers is to be the first team to have all their pegs home.

NUMBER OF PLAYERS: 4,6, or 8 players

MATERIALS: 3 to 4 Standard decks of 52 cards, 2 jokers for each deck, a Pegs and Jokers board for their number of players, and a flat surface.

TYPE OF GAME: Racing Card/Board Game

AUDIENCE: Adult

OVERVIEW OF PEGS AND JOKERS

Pegs and Jokers is a racing card/board game for 4, 6, or 8 players. The goal of the game is to get all your team’s pegs home before your opponents.

This game is played in partnerships. So, there will be two teams of 2, 3, or 4 depending on the number of players. Each teammate sits between two opponents.

SETUP

For each number of players, a slightly different board is used. If you have a board that allows all player numbers there will be a specified part of the board for you to use. In a 4-player game, you use a 4-sided board. In a 6-player game, a 6-sided board is used, and for an 8-player game, an 8-sided board is used.

For an 8-player game, 4 decks and 8 jokers are used. For all other games, 3 decks, and 6 jokers are used.

Each player will pick their color. They will then set up their colored side of the board. All their pegs must be in the starting area, marked by a colored circle usually.

The first dealer is chosen randomly and passes to the left for each new deal. The deck is shuffled and the player to the dealer’s right may cut the deck.

The dealer then deals each player a hand of 5 cards. The remaining deck is placed centrally as a draw pile.

Card Meanings

The cards in this game are used to move your pieces and all move your piece differently.

To move your pegs from the starting area you need either an Ace or a face card.

When using an ace to move along the track, it can be used to move one of your out pegs one space.

A King, Queen, and Jack when used to move a peg along the track, it moves the piece 10 spaces.

Cards valued 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 9, and 10 are all used to move a piece along the track and move a number of spaces that correspond with their numeric value.

7s can be used to either move one piece forward 7 spaces or move 2 pieces up to a cumulative 7 spaces.

8s move a piece backward 8 spots along the track.

Jokers can be used to any of your pegs (even ones in the starting area) into any spot occupied by another player (either an opponent or a teammate).

GAMEPLAY

The game starts with the player to the left of the dealer and continues clockwise. On a player’s turn, they will draw up to 6 cards in hand. They will play one card from hand to the discard pile, and move their piece along the track.

If a player has a card that can move their peg along the track legally, (except for a joker) it must be played. If you do not have a card to play to move, you may discard one card into the discard pile and draw another from the draw pile; this ends your turn.

To move out of your start area you’ll need to play an ace, King, Queen, Jack, or Joker. all these, except the joker, will move one peg from your start area to the peg hole just outside of it called the “come out” space.

You cannot pass over or land on your own peg. You can pass over and land on another player’s pegs. Passing over does nothing but if you land on another player’s peg you move it. If it’s an opponent’s peg it is sent back to their starting area, but if it’s a teammate’s peg it is sent to their “in-spot” (discussed later). If this spot is already occupied with a peg of that player’s color, then it cannot be move. The move altogether cannot be performed.

You never have to play a joker. If you do however you follow the same rules above for landing in another player’s spot.

Moving Pieces Home

Once a player has moved their peg around the board you will approach your “in-spot” and your home area. The “in-spot” is a hole right in front of the colored home area just of the track. If you are forced to move past your “in-spot” you must go around the entire board again or use a card to back up behind it.

To move into your home area you must have a card that will move you past your ”in-spot” a number of spaces to move you onto the track. Remember though if you don’t move it all the way into the back of the home area other pegs cannot move past it.

Once you move all your pegs into the home area you are done. On your future turns, you may help move the pegs of the teammates closes to your left that still has pegs to move home.

END OF GAME

The game ends when a team gets all their pegs into their home areas. This team is the winner.

Amber Crook
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