STRAIGHT SHOOTER

OBJECTIVE OF STRAIGHT SHOOTER:  Be the first player to earn 32 points or more

NUMBER OF PLAYERS: 3 or 4 players

NUMBER OF CARDS: 24 cards

RANK OF CARDS: (low) 9’s – Aces (high)

TYPE OF GAME: Trick Taking

AUDIENCE: Kids, Adults

INTRODUCTION OF STRAIGHT SHOOTER

Straight Shooter is a bare bones game designed specifically to teach the basic fundamentals of trick taking.  It uses a small 24 card deck like Euchre, but it does not include any of the typical trick taking game mechanisms such as bidding and trump suits.  From this game, players will learn the basics of how to best lead a trick, how to follow suit, and how to keep track of the cards that have been played.  keonhacai

THE CARDS & THE DEAL

Straight Shooter uses a 24 card deck that includes 9’s (low) up through Aces (high).  The dealer should shuffle the cards and deal out the entire deck evenly.  In a 3 player game, each player will get eight cards.  In a 4 player game, each player will get 6 cards.  Deal passes left at the beginning of each new round.

THE PLAY

Play moves clockwise around the table beginning with the player left of the dealer.  They choose any card from their hand and play it to the table beginning the trick.  The rest of the players must follow suit if they can.  If they cannot, they may play any card they wish. 

Whoever played the highest card in the lead suit wins the trick.  They get to lead next.  Play like this continues until all of the cards have been played.    

SCORING

Each trick captured is worth 1 point.  If a player manages to capture all six tricks, they earn double the points.  In a 3 player game, they would earn 16 points.  In a 4 player game, they would earn 12 points.

WINNING

The first player to earn 32 points or more wins the game.  If a tie occurs between two or more players, the tie is broken with a shootout.

SHOOTOUT

Each player in the shootout draws a card.  Lowest card deals first.  Shuffle and deal 7 cards to each player.  Player left of the dealer gets to lead first.  Play continues as normal.  The player that takes the most tricks breaks the tie and wins.