OBJECTIVE OF SEEP: Capture cards and earn points!
NUMBER OF PLAYERS: 4 players (fixed partnerships)
NUMBER OF CARDS: 52 card deck
RANK OF CARDS: K (high), Q, J, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, A
TYPE OF GAME: Fishing
AUDIENCE: All Ages
INTRODUCTION TO SEEP
Seep, which is also commonly referred to as Sip, Sweep, Shiv, and Siv, is a game with many similarities to Casino. The four-player version of Seep, as described below, is played in Northern India.
The game is played with 4 players in partnerships. Partners should sit across from each other during play.
THE OBJECTIVE
The goal of Seep is to collect or capture valuable cards in the layout which is on the game table (or the floor). The play ends once a team has reached a 100+ point lead on the other teams, this is referred to as a bazzi. Prior to play, the teams can decide on how many games or bazzis they wish to play.
How to Capture
To capture cards, play one card from hand and pick up 1+ cards, or group of cards, with a capture value that is equivalent to the card in hand. So, the card in hand allows you to capture cards of equal rank from the layout.
Capture Values:
A: 1
2-10: Face value
J: 11
Q: 12
K: 13
While capturing cards, players can build them into piles or houses. Houses can be captured only as a unit. Cards that are on the floor and not in a house are called loose cards.
Once the game has finished, the value of the captured cards is summed:
- Cards that are Spades have point values equal to their capture value.
- Aces in the other suits also have a value of 1 point.
- The Ten of Diamonds has a value of 6 points.
The remaining 35 cards in the deck have no point value, if captured, they are worthless. There is a total of 100 points in the deck.
There is also the option to score for a sweep. A sweep happens if a player can capture all the cards in the layout in one turn. Typically, a sweep is worth a flat 50 points. However, if a successful sweep occurs at the beginning of play it is worth only 25 points. Sweeps on the last play have no point value.
THE DEAL & THE BID
The first dealer is chosen randomly, by whatever mechanisms players wish to employ. After, hands are dealt by one member of the losing team. If teams are neck and neck, the original dealer resumes their post. Once a game has concluded, or a baazi, the deal passes to the partner of the player who had the next turn, if the game had not ended.
The Bidding
The dealer shuffles the deck and lets the player to their right cut. After, the dealer gives the player to their right 4 cards and deals 4 cards to the floor or table.
That player, the player to the dealer’s right, examines the cards dealt to the table. If possible, they “bid for a house” based on those four cards. To bid, it must be between 9 and 13 and correspond to a capture value of a card in hand. However, if the player cannot bid because they have no cards higher ranking than 8, they reveal their hand, throw in their cards, and the deal and bid are repeated. This continues until they are able to make a legal bid.
Once the player to the right of the dealer has bid, the 4 cards on the floor are revealed, by being turned face-up for all players to see. Now, the player who bid must do one of these three things (see below under the subtitles play and houses for further explanation):
- Form a house with a value equal to their bid by capturing cards from the floor with one in hand.
- Play a card that’s equal to the bid value. Capture cards on the floor of equal value.
- Throw down your card equal to the bid value. This card remains loose, on the floor.
Once this has been completed, the dealer finishes the deal by dealing out the remaining cards in sets of four, moving from right to left. The player to the dealer’s right will have a hand of 11 cards (since they already played one) and the other players will have 12.
THE PLAY OF SEEP
Real play begins after the deal and bid are completed, and it starts with the player to the right of the bidder (or the dealer’s partner). Play continues moving to the right or counterclockwise. Turns include playing a single card in hand, so each player has 12 turns. A single game continues until players have empty hands.
Basic moves during a turn:
- Creating or adding on to a house. The card used in play either constructs a new house or is added to a house that already exists.
- Capturing cards and houses. If the card that is played is the same capture value as a house or any number of cards on the table, all those cards may be captured in a single play. Captured cards should be stored collectively between partners, and piled in front of one member.
- Throwing down a loose card. Cards played which are unable to capture any other cards or cannot be incorporated into a house remains on the floor, it is a loose card.
Loose cards and cards in houses should be face-up so they may be readily seen by all players. All players reserve the right to thumb through houses and check their contents. Captured cards can also be examined within the turn they are captured. However, once the next player has initiated their turn, the card can no longer be inspected.
THE HOUSES
Houses or ghar (Hindi) are piles with 2 or more cards in them. Houses can only be captured in a single unit. The smallest capture value of a house is 9 and the largest is 13 (king). Players can only create houses if they have a card in hand equal to its capture value, since that card is required to pick it up later and earn points.
Each house on the floor must have 1 owner (at least). The owner is the player who created or established the house unless the house was broken, which is described below. If a house is broken, the last player who broke it is the new owner. Cemented houses can have more than one owner. This occurs if it is cemented by an opponent of the original owner. Players who own a house should always keep the capture card of equal value in their hand unless the house is captured or broken.
A house (uncemented) has a pile of cards which when summed equal the capture value. For example, a 5 and a 6 have a capture value of 11 (Jack).
A cemented house has more than 1 card or sets of card equal to the capture value. For example, a K cemented house could contain the following:
- 3, 10
- 5, 4, 4
- K
- A, 6, 2, 2
Houses can be broken if a player adds a card to it that increases its capture value. The card must come from the player’s hand and not the floor. However, houses that are cemented can’t be broken.
There cannot be multiple houses with an equal capture value on the floor at once, they must be combined into a cemented house. Loose cards with an equal capture value to a house must automatically be consolidated into the house. If the house exists first, the loose card may capture it or be added to it.
Creating a House
To create a normal house, play a card from hand and add it to 1+ loose cards in a pile. These cards must add to the capture value of the house. Houses capture values must be either 9, 10, 11, 12, 13. Players must also have a card equal to the capture value in hand in order to create the house. You can only establish a house for yourself, never your teammate.
Houses are broken by adding a card from hand to it thereby increasing the value of the house. In order to do so, players must have a card in hand equal to the house’s new capture value. You are not permitted to break houses you own.
Cemented Houses
Houses can be turned into cemented houses in one of three ways:
- Adding a card to the house of equal capture value.
- Capturing multiple cards from the floor, including other houses, which are equal to the capture value of a card in hand.
- Break an ordinary house owned by another player to make its new capture value equal to a house you own/are cementing.
Loose cards from the floor which equal or sum the capture value of a house you own can also be captured and added to cement an ordinary house.
Players can add cards to cemented houses during their turn which are of equal value. At least one card must come from your hand. If the house is owned by an opponent, you must have a card in hand equal the capture value of the house to add to it. However, if the house is owned by your partner you may freely add to it.
THE END GAME & SCORING
The game ends once everyone has played all their cards in hand. All houses should have been captured, since players must capture them with the capture card of equal value they are required to hold on to. Loose cards may still be on the floor at end game, however they are added to the capture pile of the team who last picked up cards from the floor.
Scoring Cards
Each team score their captured cards (Spades, 10 of Diamonds, and all aces) as outlined above as well as bonus points for sweeps that may have occurred. Granted both teams scored at least 9, the difference between the scores is calculated.
The differences are recorded and accumulate throughout successive deals. Once a team has a 100 point lead they have won a Bazzi. After, the difference goes back to zero and the bazzi repeats.
If a team scores less than 9 points they automatically lose the bass and the next deal resets the difference.
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Really great effort in explaining the game.
However in The Objective there are 35 cards have no value instead of 17 cards as in this line, “The remaining 17 cards in the deck have no point value, if captured, they are worthless. There is a total of 100 points in the deck.”
Thanks again
Hi Navjot, thanks for pointing that out. It has been corrected.
Hi.. thanks for the information on the overall game
I have a question for a situation
If there is an uncemented 11 (9+2) one 12(Q) and and ace on the floor.. can the opponent do a seep if he has Q in his hand?
Hi Vaibhav, in short no. An uncemented house cannot be broken (AKA added to) by cards on the floor or loose cards. The only way to break a house is to play a card from your hand. This means you would have to create a situation where both the 11 and Ace were in uncemented houses equal to the queen and then play your queen to sweep. Since only one card can be played in a turn this is impossible to complete in a single turn.
Good one
Thanks so much Sandeep!
Example
If there have 3 cards combine (10/2/1)=K
ON THE OTHER SIDE its 2 combine cards (J/A)=12
Now other player throw card (A ) aside these two combination
Can other player now have Chance of seep i.e
10+2+1=k
(J+A)+A= K
Hi Rahul, Not sure if this was a question, but yes you are correct. If there is an uncemented house containing 10/2/1 and another uncemented house containing jack/ace and you add another ace to it (also known as breaking the house) to also equal king (13). You can now collect both into a cemented house
Hi sir can it is possible to double/ make pukka house if on floor available house(8+2)10 and also available 8 and 4 loose than in situation some body can make Q(12) by just adding 2 on 10 house and also add loose card 8and 4to double Q(12)
Hi Surender, Yes that is in fact considered a good move as it binds the loos cards on the floor.
Hey
First of all thanks for the rules of the game.
I just wanted to ask that in the last hand when all the houses are picked up and loose cards are left. The loose cards equal to a no. like 10 and I have 10 in my hand …then is there a possibility of seep?
Hi Sumegha, thanks for the question. So in order to capture loose cards from the table, they have to be added to a house. with the example you have given the seep is not possible, because in order to create a house you would have to add your ten to a loose card on the table. this would make the house’s value more than 10 and the remaining loose cards’ value less than 10. I hope this helps.
No, the last hand pick of all cards will not be equated to a seep.
Minimum points required to validate two seeps ?
Hi Sourabh, I am not exactly sure what your question is. Could you elaborate further and I would be happy to help you.
My question is when there are 4 people playing and there is a situation of seep on the floor can the other partner tell him that or is he not allowed to do that?
Hi Rajeev, while I do not believe there are any official rules against this, I would recommend not having table talk between players. If you were interested in trying to play in this manner I would discuss it with all players before you actually start the game, so no issues arise.
If there is a 13 house ..and a 12 loose house on the floor …and the person put “A” on the floor
Is it a seep or not ??
Hi Ramandeep, so no that is not a seep. You will be creating a house using the ace and the cards that have a value of 12. This will then be cemented with the already formed 13 value house. You must in order to perform this play hold a king in hand (this has a capture value of 13). If you then on your next turn play the King you may then capture the cemented house. If these are the only cards in the center layout then it is a seep. I hope this helps.
Just a bit confused.
If there is Queen on the table. And I have two queen in hand. Can I place my one queen card and make it a cemented house or will I have to pick it up?
Hi Eshan, you would play your queen to the table to cement the other queen in the layout. You can do this because you have a secondary queen in your hand remaining.
How many houses can one player make on the floor?
How many houses in total are allowed on the floor?
Hi Arijit, there are 5 possible houses that can be made. One for each value of 9 through 13 can be out at a time. a player is not limited to how many they can make or take over of these 5 possible houses. I hope this helps.
Hey
I want to ask when we play 2 player sweep and in the second round you don’t get any number above 8 then what will happen? Should we end the game or continue Playing?
Hi Nikita, in this instance I would personally redeal for round 2, and play from there.
Hello,
Basic question.
Say there is a house on the floor (doesn’t matter cemented or not), along with, say 4 loose cards, say 2, 6, 3, and 5. Can I pick up 2 and 6 with an 8? Will I have to pick 3 and 5 too? Can I just choose to drop the 8 alongside with the 4 loose cards?
Generally speaking, can MORE than 1 loose card totaling less than 9 (sum totals of 2 through 8) be picked up by a single card whose face value is equal to the sum?
Thanks!
Hi Samir, you must pick up/capture all cards/sets of cards/houses possible when playing a card to capture. You cannot choose to have your 8 remain a loose card either, you must capture if possible. I hope this helps.
Sir my question is.
Suppose I have done (8+2) ten a house not cemented on the floor. And one ace also kept on the floor. And now turn of second player, then tell pls that is second player can break my uncemented house by own ace and one on the ace floor to make my house 12 or not
Hi Pramod, If I understand your question correctly you are asking if a player can use the ace in the layout to break your uncemented house? An uncemented house may only be broken by adding a card to it from a player’s hand. That player must also hold a card that has the same capture value as the new value of the house. For the example you gave the player could add an ace from their hand to make the capture value 12, but only if they held a queen in their hand. This would also not affect the ace on the table at all. I hope this helps. Please let me know if you have any further questions.
Hello,
So if I made a cemented house, can my opponent pick it up with a face value card. For example: I have a 12point cemented house and my opponent has a queen. Can he/she pick it up?
Hi Sohni, yes your opponent can capture your cemented house by having the card of the same capture value in hand.
Suppose i have a cemented house of 12 and a loose ace is on ground if i throw a jack will the jack and the ace automatically go on the 12 cemented house?
Hi Suraj, no the jack and ace will not be automatically added to the house but you could play the jack with the ace to add to the cemented house. The only time loose cards are automatically added to an established house if is they equal the capture value on their own. So any loose queen would automatically be added to the house. I hope this helps.
What will happen to previous scores if both team got 50-50 points. Does the game got tie? Or the previous points count?
Please answer.
Hi, if you tie in a round then no points are scored for that round and the next round begins. The new dealer will be the same dealer as the last round. I hope this helps.
Can One player break an uncemented house of his own team-mate?
For example, I made a
house of 9 and its uncemented. If my team mate has a 10, can he add an Ace to make it house of 10?
Hi Amit, yes a player may break any uncemented house that does not belong to him, this includes his partner’s. I hope this helps.
When there is a 6,9,4 on the floor and the player throws a king, does the player have to pick up the 9,4 or can he play the king as a loose card?
Hello Mridul, You would have to capture the 9 and 4. You cannot choose to leave a card loose it can only be a loose card if there is no cards of equivalent value to capture.
When there is a house of queen with 9,2,1 and a king house, when a player throws an ace can the next player pick up all the cards with king?
Hi Aryan, the only thing you could capture would be the King’s house which you could then cement. I believe your intention was to break the queen house with the ace on the table and then collect all. However, this does not work for a number of reasons. Houses can be broken if a player adds a card to it that increases its capture value. The card must come from the player’s hand and not the floor. However, houses that are cemented can’t be broken. I hope this helps.
Can a player make a queen house with a 6 on the floor and a 6 from his hand?
You may do this only if you have a queen in your hand. To create a normal house, play a card from hand and add it to 1+ loose cards in a pile. These cards must add to the capture value of the house. Houses capture values must be either 9, 10, 11, 12, 13. Players must also have a card equal to the capture value in hand in order to create the house. You can only establish a house for yourself, never your teammate. I hope this helps!
When there is a queen house with 9,2 and an ace and a king house and a play throws and ace. Can the next person pick up all the cards with king?
Hi Shivansh, someone else asked a very similar question. below is the answer I provided.
The only thing you could capture would be the King’s house which you could then cement. I believe your intention was to break the queen house with the ace on the table and then collect all. However, this does not work for a number of reasons. Houses can be broken if a player adds a card to it that increases its capture value. The card must come from the player’s hand and not the floor. However, houses that are cemented can’t be broken. I hope this helps.
At the starting of the game when the dealer deals 4 cards to the player to the right, if that player says Queen and the 4 cards in the floor also sum up to be equal to 12 and the player pick all the cards on the floor in the starting is that a valid seep?
Hi Saumya, In order to sweep with this description the player would need to have two queens in hand. They would need to play one to capture the cards on the table that equal 12. This would form a cemented house with a value of 12. The sweep value would be 25 instead of the usual 50 because it was executed on the first turn. I hope this helps!
When everyone have 3 cards and the player right to the dealer play and is left with 2 cards, but when he played the card he swept the floor. Is the seep valid
Hi Shivansh, the amount of cards in hand does not invalidate a sweep. To know if it was a legal sweep i would have to know the full layout of the board. If the player was able to play one card and capture all cards legally in the layout in a single turn then that would be a valid sweep.