Card games
There are many trick-taking games and rummy games, but only one Cribbage. We can speculate what Cribbage might look like if played with a deck that is entirely different from the standard 52-card Cribbage deck. The Decktet is just such a deck, and Bhargage is a version of Cribbage played with the Decktet.
The Decktet is a six-suited deck devised and illustrated by P. D. Magnus. One of the joys of the Decktet, setting aside its unusual structure, is the whimsical artwork on each of the cards. The full Decktet consists of 45 individually illustrated cards. The alternative Capital Decktet has exactly the same structure, but with a completely different set of delightful illustrations. The images on both decks evoke a bizarre, quasi-medieval world populated by talking animals. As P. D. puts it in the The Decktet Book, "TheDecktet is the kind of tarot deck they use in the alternative universe where Charlemagne was a badger."
The Decktet has been around since 2008, and already, a great many new games have been designed for the Decktet. One of these, Quincunx, has some similarities to Cribbage, but it is a Decktet version of Cribbage Squares, rather than a Decktet version of Cribbage, per se. Although Bhargage is new to the Decktet, it borrows a uniquely Decktet scoring combination, the bharg, from the older Decktet games Bharg and Bharg Deluxe.
Cribbage is a traditional game in our world, played by most people at one time or another in Britain, where Cribbage began, and in many other English-speaking countries. We may imagine that Bhargage is just such a game in the strange Decktet universe, the kind of game played in a world where Charlemagne was a badger.
The Decktet
Before getting to the game itself, I will explain the Decktet structure, so that you can follow the rules even before acquiring the Decktet. To repeat, the Decktet has six suits, Moons, Suns, Waves, Leaves, Wyrms, and Knots:
The Decktet is a six-suited deck devised and illustrated by P. D. Magnus. One of the joys of the Decktet, setting aside its unusual structure, is the whimsical artwork on each of the cards. The full Decktet consists of 45 individually illustrated cards. The alternative Capital Decktet has exactly the same structure, but with a completely different set of delightful illustrations. The images on both decks evoke a bizarre, quasi-medieval world populated by talking animals. As P. D. puts it in the The Decktet Book, "TheDecktet is the kind of tarot deck they use in the alternative universe where Charlemagne was a badger."
The Decktet has been around since 2008, and already, a great many new games have been designed for the Decktet. One of these, Quincunx, has some similarities to Cribbage, but it is a Decktet version of Cribbage Squares, rather than a Decktet version of Cribbage, per se. Although Bhargage is new to the Decktet, it borrows a uniquely Decktet scoring combination, the bharg, from the older Decktet games Bharg and Bharg Deluxe.
Cribbage is a traditional game in our world, played by most people at one time or another in Britain, where Cribbage began, and in many other English-speaking countries. We may imagine that Bhargage is just such a game in the strange Decktet universe, the kind of game played in a world where Charlemagne was a badger.
The Decktet
Before getting to the game itself, I will explain the Decktet structure, so that you can follow the rules even before acquiring the Decktet. To repeat, the Decktet has six suits, Moons, Suns, Waves, Leaves, Wyrms, and Knots:
Each card can have one, two, three, or even zero suits. There are six Crowns, each with one suit symbol, one Crown for each suit. Similarly, there are six Aces, one for each suit.
There are three cards each for the numbers 2 to 9. Each number card has two suits. The three suit cards for any particular number contain between them all six suits:
The following image, one side of an additional card that comes with the Decktet, shows the distribution of suits between the number cards:
You can see that some suit combinations occur three times, whereas other suits do not go together on the number cards. Experienced Bhargage players are familiar with which suits go together more frequently or less frequently, and use this knowledge to maximize their chances of getting a bharg.
The Crowns, Aces, and number cards, totalling 36 cards, constitute the basic Decktet. The Extended Decktet adds four Pawns, four Courts, and an Excuse, for the total of 45 cards. Each Pawn and each Court has three suits; the Excuse has zero suits:
The Crowns, Aces, and number cards, totalling 36 cards, constitute the basic Decktet. The Extended Decktet adds four Pawns, four Courts, and an Excuse, for the total of 45 cards. Each Pawn and each Court has three suits; the Excuse has zero suits:
The following image is the reverse side of the additional card shown above, with the distribution of suits between the Pawns and Courts:
All Bhargage players should be familiar with the unique pair of cards, one Pawn and one Court, which together constitute the only two-card bharg (see below).
Lastly, each of the cards is a Character, Event, or Location, with an unobtrusive symbol on the card face that indicates the category to which the card belongs. These symbols are missing on the card images we are using here. However, for Bhargage only the Character category is significant, and the Character cards are easy to spot, with a single large image of a person (i.e., animal), somewhat like the court cards in a regular deck:
Lastly, each of the cards is a Character, Event, or Location, with an unobtrusive symbol on the card face that indicates the category to which the card belongs. These symbols are missing on the card images we are using here. However, for Bhargage only the Character category is significant, and the Character cards are easy to spot, with a single large image of a person (i.e., animal), somewhat like the court cards in a regular deck:
So there is the Decktet itself, and now for the game Bhargage, a Decktet version of Cribbage.
Introduction
Bhargage is similar to our own game of Cribbage, curiously closest to the oldest form of our game, Five-card Cribbage, rather than the now standard Six-card Cribbage. Of course, Bhargage has some different scoring combinations, because of the unusual cards of the Decktet. The linear deck of Cribbage is substituted by the fluid, interwoven deck of Bhargage. The Decktet cards and scoring combinations give Bhargage an entirely different flavour. Frequently, Bhargage presents interesting decisions that are quite alien to Cribbage thinking. Nevertheless, the Bhargage rules will be easier to follow if you have some background familiarity with Cribbage.
Players and cards
Bhargage is a game for two players. Use one Decktet set of cards with all extension cards, including Pawns, Courts, and the Excuse, making a deck of 45 cards. The cards are ranked in the following order: Excuse, Ace, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, Pawn, Court, Crown. Including the numbered cards, the Aces, Crowns, Pawns, and Courts, there are twelve ranks of cards—plus, of course, the Excuse. There are three of each numbered rank, six Aces, six Crowns, four Pawns, and four Courts. The Excuse is the single card in the the lowest rank; the Crowns are the highest rank.
Object of the game
Bhargage is usually played up to 111 points, “eleventy-one,” in the game's vernacular. The first to accumulate 111 points wins immediately. [Tolkien aficionados may recognize "eleventy-one" as Bilbo's birthday from the beginning of The Lord of the Rings.]
Board and pegs
Bhargage players usually use something like a Cribbage board to record scores. The image below shows a traditional Bhargage board design, which is similar to the old-style 61-point Cribbage board—a single circuit of the Bhargage board is 56 points. The 61-point Cribbage board originated with the oldest form of our game, Five-card Cribbage, which is lower scoring than the standard Six-card game. Five-card Cribbage is played up to 61 points, a single circuit of the board, whereas Six-card Cribbage uses two circuits, up to 121 points. Bhargage is higher scoring than Five-card Cribbage, and is generally played over two circuits of the Bhargage board, up to 111 points.
Introduction
Bhargage is similar to our own game of Cribbage, curiously closest to the oldest form of our game, Five-card Cribbage, rather than the now standard Six-card Cribbage. Of course, Bhargage has some different scoring combinations, because of the unusual cards of the Decktet. The linear deck of Cribbage is substituted by the fluid, interwoven deck of Bhargage. The Decktet cards and scoring combinations give Bhargage an entirely different flavour. Frequently, Bhargage presents interesting decisions that are quite alien to Cribbage thinking. Nevertheless, the Bhargage rules will be easier to follow if you have some background familiarity with Cribbage.
Players and cards
Bhargage is a game for two players. Use one Decktet set of cards with all extension cards, including Pawns, Courts, and the Excuse, making a deck of 45 cards. The cards are ranked in the following order: Excuse, Ace, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, Pawn, Court, Crown. Including the numbered cards, the Aces, Crowns, Pawns, and Courts, there are twelve ranks of cards—plus, of course, the Excuse. There are three of each numbered rank, six Aces, six Crowns, four Pawns, and four Courts. The Excuse is the single card in the the lowest rank; the Crowns are the highest rank.
Object of the game
Bhargage is usually played up to 111 points, “eleventy-one,” in the game's vernacular. The first to accumulate 111 points wins immediately. [Tolkien aficionados may recognize "eleventy-one" as Bilbo's birthday from the beginning of The Lord of the Rings.]
Board and pegs
Bhargage players usually use something like a Cribbage board to record scores. The image below shows a traditional Bhargage board design, which is similar to the old-style 61-point Cribbage board—a single circuit of the Bhargage board is 56 points. The 61-point Cribbage board originated with the oldest form of our game, Five-card Cribbage, which is lower scoring than the standard Six-card game. Five-card Cribbage is played up to 61 points, a single circuit of the board, whereas Six-card Cribbage uses two circuits, up to 121 points. Bhargage is higher scoring than Five-card Cribbage, and is generally played over two circuits of the Bhargage board, up to 111 points.
The single hole at the end of both sets of tracks is Home. Just as in Cribbage, the first point scored is on the outside track closest to Home. The players score with pegs, “up the outside and down the inside," finishing the second circuit in Home, to score 111 points. Again, just as with Cribbage, the players use two pegs each, where the peg behind counts the number of points from the peg in front each time a player scores.
Without a Bhargage board, a Cribbage board will do. Play up to 121 points, as for a game of Cribbage, but start the scoring with 10 points for each player.
Solitaire Bhargage uses both tracks, but plays only a single circuit.
Deal
The two players cut for deal, and the player cutting the lowest rank of card becomes the dealer. If the two cuts have equal rank, the players cut again. The deal rotates between the players. The mechanism for choosing dealer is identical with that of Cribbage. The dealer shuffles the deck and offers it to the other player to cut. The dealer deals 5 cards face down and one at a time to each player, and places the remainder of the deck face down between the two players.
Discard
The players look at their cards. Each player discards two cards face down to the bhargage. The bhargage belongs to the dealer and is scored by the dealer at the end of the deal, as with the crib in Cribbage. Ownership of the bhargage rotates with the deal, and only the dealer ever counts the bhargage, again, the same as in Cribbage.
Up-card
After players have discarded their two cards to the bhargage, non-dealer lifts a portion of the remainder of the deck. Dealer takes the top card and places it face up on top of the deck once the non-dealer has restored together the two portions of the deck—just as the players do in Cribbage.
If the up-card is a Character, the dealer immediately scores 2 points, “2 for the Chief.”
The upcard plays no further part in the game until the players score their hands. In this respect, it is the fourth card in each player's hand and the fifth card in the bhargage.
Play of the cards
The cards have the following values: 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, and 9 have their number value; Ace has value 1; Crown 10; Court 0; Pawn 0; Excuse 0. The zero-valued cards are an unusual feature of Bhargage, with huge implications for the play of the cards and scoring the hand and bhargage. Note that the Excuse has no suits in addition to no value, which also is significant for scoring.
After each player has discarded two cards face down to the dealer's bhargage, non-dealer leads a card by playing it face up. Play alternates, with each player placing her played cards face up in a pile in front of her, splayed slightly so that the values and any suit(s) of previously played cards can be seen, as in Cribbage.
When a player plays a card, that player must state the running total of values of all cards played so far. The running total of values can never exceed 23. Players must play cards if they are able, including zero-value cards, while keeping the total no greater than 23. If one player has no cards left which will keep the total count no greater than 23, that player must pass, and then the opponent must continue, if possible, with more cards played, one by one, while maintaining the total no greater than 23.
The play of the cards in Bhargage finishes after the first count to 23, even if the players have cards left in their hands, just as the play of the cards in Five-card Cribbage finishes after the first count up to 31. Six-card Cribbage, of course, can continue with a second and even third count up to 31. The lower count of 23 in Bhargage seems reasonable, given that the average value of a card in Bhargage is 4.4, whereas the average value of a card in Cribbage is 6.5.
Players should keep the cards from their two hands separate. Neither the bhargage nor the up-card has any role in the play of the cards.
Scoring during the play of the cards
Combinations of cards played can be scored. The collection of the last few cards actually played in the count up to 23 is considered for scoring, whoever played them, exactly as in Cribbage. A player who plays a card to make the following combinations scores them immediately.
Last card
When no more cards can be played, the player who played the last card scores 1 point (“1 for last"), unless the total is 11, which scores 2 points (“11 for 2”), or 23, which scores 3 points (“23 for 3”).
11
If a player plays a card to make the total value of cards played so far equal to 11, that player scores 2 points (“11 for 2”). If the other player now plays a zero-value card (i.e., Court, Pawn, or Excuse), the score is again “11 for 2.” The original player can now play a second zero-value card for another score of 2. The players may continue with third and fourth zero-value cards, each time scoring "11 for 2."
23
If a player plays a card to make the total value of cards played so far equal to 23, that player scores 3 points (“23 for 3”). If the other player now plays a zero-value card (i.e., Court, Pawn, or Excuse), the score is again “23 for 3,” and so on, just as with the score for 11.
Pair
If the last two cards played by both players have the same rank, the player who played the second scores 2 (“2 for a pair”).
Three of a kind
If the last three cards played by both players have the same rank, the player who played the third scores 6 (“6 for three”).
Four of a kind
If the last four cards played by both players have the same rank, the player who played the fourth scores 12 (“12 for four”). There are only three of each numbered card rank, so numbered cards cannot be used to score four of a kind—nor can four Crowns, for example, because the count would be taken over 23.
Five of a kind
Five of a kind, likewise, scores 20 (“20 for five”).
Six of a kind
The only possible six of a kind is six Aces. The player who plays the sixth Ace immediately wins (“Game!”).
The combinations of cards of the same rank are called sets.
Bharg
If the last several cards played contain between them exactly one copy of each suit, then the player who played the last card scores 6 points ("6 for bharg"). The Excuse can be one of the last few cards played included in the bharg. In particular, if one player scores for bharg, the opponent can put down the Excuse and score "6 for bharg" himself.
Note that several different scoring combinations can be made with the play of a single card. For example, a single card can simultaneously count to 11, form a pair, and form a bharg. If play of a single card simultaneously creates several different scoring combinations, then all are scored immediately.
Here is an example of the scoring in the play of the cards:
Without a Bhargage board, a Cribbage board will do. Play up to 121 points, as for a game of Cribbage, but start the scoring with 10 points for each player.
Solitaire Bhargage uses both tracks, but plays only a single circuit.
Deal
The two players cut for deal, and the player cutting the lowest rank of card becomes the dealer. If the two cuts have equal rank, the players cut again. The deal rotates between the players. The mechanism for choosing dealer is identical with that of Cribbage. The dealer shuffles the deck and offers it to the other player to cut. The dealer deals 5 cards face down and one at a time to each player, and places the remainder of the deck face down between the two players.
Discard
The players look at their cards. Each player discards two cards face down to the bhargage. The bhargage belongs to the dealer and is scored by the dealer at the end of the deal, as with the crib in Cribbage. Ownership of the bhargage rotates with the deal, and only the dealer ever counts the bhargage, again, the same as in Cribbage.
Up-card
After players have discarded their two cards to the bhargage, non-dealer lifts a portion of the remainder of the deck. Dealer takes the top card and places it face up on top of the deck once the non-dealer has restored together the two portions of the deck—just as the players do in Cribbage.
If the up-card is a Character, the dealer immediately scores 2 points, “2 for the Chief.”
The upcard plays no further part in the game until the players score their hands. In this respect, it is the fourth card in each player's hand and the fifth card in the bhargage.
Play of the cards
The cards have the following values: 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, and 9 have their number value; Ace has value 1; Crown 10; Court 0; Pawn 0; Excuse 0. The zero-valued cards are an unusual feature of Bhargage, with huge implications for the play of the cards and scoring the hand and bhargage. Note that the Excuse has no suits in addition to no value, which also is significant for scoring.
After each player has discarded two cards face down to the dealer's bhargage, non-dealer leads a card by playing it face up. Play alternates, with each player placing her played cards face up in a pile in front of her, splayed slightly so that the values and any suit(s) of previously played cards can be seen, as in Cribbage.
When a player plays a card, that player must state the running total of values of all cards played so far. The running total of values can never exceed 23. Players must play cards if they are able, including zero-value cards, while keeping the total no greater than 23. If one player has no cards left which will keep the total count no greater than 23, that player must pass, and then the opponent must continue, if possible, with more cards played, one by one, while maintaining the total no greater than 23.
The play of the cards in Bhargage finishes after the first count to 23, even if the players have cards left in their hands, just as the play of the cards in Five-card Cribbage finishes after the first count up to 31. Six-card Cribbage, of course, can continue with a second and even third count up to 31. The lower count of 23 in Bhargage seems reasonable, given that the average value of a card in Bhargage is 4.4, whereas the average value of a card in Cribbage is 6.5.
Players should keep the cards from their two hands separate. Neither the bhargage nor the up-card has any role in the play of the cards.
Scoring during the play of the cards
Combinations of cards played can be scored. The collection of the last few cards actually played in the count up to 23 is considered for scoring, whoever played them, exactly as in Cribbage. A player who plays a card to make the following combinations scores them immediately.
Last card
When no more cards can be played, the player who played the last card scores 1 point (“1 for last"), unless the total is 11, which scores 2 points (“11 for 2”), or 23, which scores 3 points (“23 for 3”).
11
If a player plays a card to make the total value of cards played so far equal to 11, that player scores 2 points (“11 for 2”). If the other player now plays a zero-value card (i.e., Court, Pawn, or Excuse), the score is again “11 for 2.” The original player can now play a second zero-value card for another score of 2. The players may continue with third and fourth zero-value cards, each time scoring "11 for 2."
23
If a player plays a card to make the total value of cards played so far equal to 23, that player scores 3 points (“23 for 3”). If the other player now plays a zero-value card (i.e., Court, Pawn, or Excuse), the score is again “23 for 3,” and so on, just as with the score for 11.
Pair
If the last two cards played by both players have the same rank, the player who played the second scores 2 (“2 for a pair”).
Three of a kind
If the last three cards played by both players have the same rank, the player who played the third scores 6 (“6 for three”).
Four of a kind
If the last four cards played by both players have the same rank, the player who played the fourth scores 12 (“12 for four”). There are only three of each numbered card rank, so numbered cards cannot be used to score four of a kind—nor can four Crowns, for example, because the count would be taken over 23.
Five of a kind
Five of a kind, likewise, scores 20 (“20 for five”).
Six of a kind
The only possible six of a kind is six Aces. The player who plays the sixth Ace immediately wins (“Game!”).
The combinations of cards of the same rank are called sets.
Bharg
If the last several cards played contain between them exactly one copy of each suit, then the player who played the last card scores 6 points ("6 for bharg"). The Excuse can be one of the last few cards played included in the bharg. In particular, if one player scores for bharg, the opponent can put down the Excuse and score "6 for bharg" himself.
Note that several different scoring combinations can be made with the play of a single card. For example, a single card can simultaneously count to 11, form a pair, and form a bharg. If play of a single card simultaneously creates several different scoring combinations, then all are scored immediately.
Here is an example of the scoring in the play of the cards:
The non-dealer (top) plays an Ace, and the dealer responds with a Crown, saying, "11 for 2." Non-dealer responds with a zero-valued Pawn, also to say, "11 for 2." Again, dealer plays the Excuse for another "11 for 2." Lastly, non-dealer plays the 8, to say "19 for 6" (scoring for bharg). The last four cards played, the 8, the Excuse, the Pawn, and the Crown contain between them exactly one copy of each suit. It does not matter that the Excuse is in the middle, because the Excuse has no suits. The dealer has another 8 remaining, and would like to score for the pair, but cannot play it because it would take the count over 23. The dealer says, "Go!" and the non-dealer says, "1 for last" to finish the play of the cards.
The Bhargage patter during play is very similar to that of Cribbage, and Cribbage players will soon get used to the differences.
Scoring the hand and bhargage
When the play of the cards has finished, by making the total of cards played as close to 23 as possible, but not greater then 23, both players pick up the cards they have played and score their hands. The non-dealer scores first, followed by the dealer, and then lastly the dealer scores the bhargage. The order of scoring is the same as in Cribbage. Both players effectively have hands of four cards, their original three cards plus the up-card. The dealer's bhargage effectively consists of five cards, including the up card. The following combinations are scored.
Two combinations may differ only by one card. Every distinct combination scores. This understanding of distinct scoring combinations is just the same as in Cribbage.
11
A collection of cards whose total value is 11 scores 2 (“11 for 2”).
The most common 11 combination is Crown-Ace. The hand Crown-Crown-Ace scores 4 points for 11’s, two Crown-Ace combinations, which differ by one card and share the Ace. If the up-card is a Pawn, say, there are now four 11 combinations, scoring two each. Each of the Crown-Ace combinations can be with or without the zero-value Pawn. The total score is 4 x 2 = 8.
With zero-value cards, the scoring of 11’s may appear complex, although it is not really difficult. The best way to make the calculation is to evaluate how many points you score for 11, first without any zero-valued cards. Then, with one zero-valued card, multiply the score by 2, because the zero-value card can be included or not with each combination. With two zero-valued cards, neither can be included in each count combination, or either one, or both. Therefore, with two zero-valued cards, multiply the score by 4. Likewise, with three zero-valued cards, there are eight possibilities for making new distinct combinations with zero-valued cards, so multiply the score by 8. At least two non-zero-valued cards are needed to make a count of 11. Therefore, even in the five-card bhargage, we do not need to consider the multiplier with four zero-valued cards.
Sets
Sets score the same as in the play of the cards. A pair scores 2, three of a kind scores 6, four of a kind scores 12, and five of a kind scores 20. Even the bhargage has only five cards, so six of a kind is impossible in scoring of hand or bhargage.
Bharg
A bharg is a combination of cards that together have each of the six suits once and only once. Bhargs are relatively uncommon, even in the bhargage. A bharg scores 6 points. A bharg can consist of as few as two cards. In fact there is only one possible two-card bharg:
The Bhargage patter during play is very similar to that of Cribbage, and Cribbage players will soon get used to the differences.
Scoring the hand and bhargage
When the play of the cards has finished, by making the total of cards played as close to 23 as possible, but not greater then 23, both players pick up the cards they have played and score their hands. The non-dealer scores first, followed by the dealer, and then lastly the dealer scores the bhargage. The order of scoring is the same as in Cribbage. Both players effectively have hands of four cards, their original three cards plus the up-card. The dealer's bhargage effectively consists of five cards, including the up card. The following combinations are scored.
Two combinations may differ only by one card. Every distinct combination scores. This understanding of distinct scoring combinations is just the same as in Cribbage.
11
A collection of cards whose total value is 11 scores 2 (“11 for 2”).
The most common 11 combination is Crown-Ace. The hand Crown-Crown-Ace scores 4 points for 11’s, two Crown-Ace combinations, which differ by one card and share the Ace. If the up-card is a Pawn, say, there are now four 11 combinations, scoring two each. Each of the Crown-Ace combinations can be with or without the zero-value Pawn. The total score is 4 x 2 = 8.
With zero-value cards, the scoring of 11’s may appear complex, although it is not really difficult. The best way to make the calculation is to evaluate how many points you score for 11, first without any zero-valued cards. Then, with one zero-valued card, multiply the score by 2, because the zero-value card can be included or not with each combination. With two zero-valued cards, neither can be included in each count combination, or either one, or both. Therefore, with two zero-valued cards, multiply the score by 4. Likewise, with three zero-valued cards, there are eight possibilities for making new distinct combinations with zero-valued cards, so multiply the score by 8. At least two non-zero-valued cards are needed to make a count of 11. Therefore, even in the five-card bhargage, we do not need to consider the multiplier with four zero-valued cards.
Sets
Sets score the same as in the play of the cards. A pair scores 2, three of a kind scores 6, four of a kind scores 12, and five of a kind scores 20. Even the bhargage has only five cards, so six of a kind is impossible in scoring of hand or bhargage.
Bharg
A bharg is a combination of cards that together have each of the six suits once and only once. Bhargs are relatively uncommon, even in the bhargage. A bharg scores 6 points. A bharg can consist of as few as two cards. In fact there is only one possible two-card bharg:
Theoretically, a bharg can consist of as many as six cards. The six Aces in suits or the six Crowns in suits, for example, are two theoretical bhargs with six cards. However, in the hand, the largest bharg would have four cards, and in the bhargage five cards. Most bhargs consist of three or four cards. Here are two three-card bhargs:
An lastly, one example of a four-card bharg:
Note that the set of all three of a particular number-value is always a bharg. See, for example, the three 8's above.
As with 11’s, a card can be in more than one scoring bharg combination. Every distinct bharg combination is scored, where distinct scoring combinations may differ by only one card.
Any of the 45 cards can contribute to a bharg, even the Excuse, which has no suit. If a player has one or more bhargs in the hand, together with the Excuse, these bhargs can either be with our without the Excuse, each possibility constituting a distinct scoring combination. An Excuse in the hand or bhargage effectively doubles the scores for bhargs in the hand or bhargage, respectively.
Friends of the Chief
If the up-card is a Character, the dealer has already scored “2 for the Chief.” If the up-card is a Character, then any Character card in the players' hands also scores 1 point, “1 for the Chief’s Friend." Friends of the Chief are not scored in the bhargage. A Friend need not share a suit with the Chief.
A “Chief’s hand,” with a Chief up-card, occurs about a third of the time. There are usually a few more points scored, for the Friends as well as for the Chief itself, during a Chief's hand.
Sequences are scored in Cribbage, but not in Bhargage, neither in the play of the cards, nor in the scoring of hand or bhargage.
In the hand or bhargage, players usually evaluate their hands in the following order: any 11’s s (with multiplier for zero-valued cards), any sets, any bhargs (with multiplier for Excuse), and lastly any Friends of the Chief.
The players usually add up total scores in hand or bhargage before recording the score on the board.
Here is an examples of scoring in hand and bhargage, with the up-card on the right:
As with 11’s, a card can be in more than one scoring bharg combination. Every distinct bharg combination is scored, where distinct scoring combinations may differ by only one card.
Any of the 45 cards can contribute to a bharg, even the Excuse, which has no suit. If a player has one or more bhargs in the hand, together with the Excuse, these bhargs can either be with our without the Excuse, each possibility constituting a distinct scoring combination. An Excuse in the hand or bhargage effectively doubles the scores for bhargs in the hand or bhargage, respectively.
Friends of the Chief
If the up-card is a Character, the dealer has already scored “2 for the Chief.” If the up-card is a Character, then any Character card in the players' hands also scores 1 point, “1 for the Chief’s Friend." Friends of the Chief are not scored in the bhargage. A Friend need not share a suit with the Chief.
A “Chief’s hand,” with a Chief up-card, occurs about a third of the time. There are usually a few more points scored, for the Friends as well as for the Chief itself, during a Chief's hand.
Sequences are scored in Cribbage, but not in Bhargage, neither in the play of the cards, nor in the scoring of hand or bhargage.
In the hand or bhargage, players usually evaluate their hands in the following order: any 11’s s (with multiplier for zero-valued cards), any sets, any bhargs (with multiplier for Excuse), and lastly any Friends of the Chief.
The players usually add up total scores in hand or bhargage before recording the score on the board.
Here is an examples of scoring in hand and bhargage, with the up-card on the right:
The player will say, "11 for 6 [i.e., three 11's], a bharg is 12, and one for the Chief's Friend is 13." The total score is 13, usually kept as a running total, as in Cribbage, and then the 13 points are marked on the board.
The player will say, "11 for 2, times 8 is 16 [i.e., for three zero-valued multipliers], 12 for bhargs is 28 [i.e., the unique Pawn and Court two-card bharg, times 2 for the Excuse]." The Chief's Friend does not score in the bhargage.
Shortage
After either player has scored their hand, or after the dealer has scored the bhargage, the opponent may claim shortage points. Points are scored for every suit that is lacking in the hand or the bhargage, respectively:
No hand or bhargage can be composed entirely of one suit, even with the Excuse, so 4 suits lacking is the maximum.
The up-card belongs to the hand or bhargage, and the suit(s) of the up-card are included when determining shortage.
Winning
The order of scoring is non-dealer’s hand followed by shortage, dealer’s hand followed by shortage, and lastly bhargage followed by shortage.
Whenever a player reaches 111 (“eleventy-one”) or more, either in the play of the cards or scoring of the hand or bhargage, including scoring for shortage or scoring 2 for the Chief, that player wins immediately. Just as in Cribbage, Bhargage players do not bother to complete a hand if one of the two players has reached the winning score.
A loss by shortage is often accompanied by shouts of “Muggins!” A loss by shortage counts double.
Below is a table that summarizes all the scoring opportunities in Bhargage.
Shortage
After either player has scored their hand, or after the dealer has scored the bhargage, the opponent may claim shortage points. Points are scored for every suit that is lacking in the hand or the bhargage, respectively:
- 1 suit lacking scores 1 point
- 2 suits lacking scores 3 points
- 3 suits lacking scores 6 points
- 4 suits lacking scores 10 points
No hand or bhargage can be composed entirely of one suit, even with the Excuse, so 4 suits lacking is the maximum.
The up-card belongs to the hand or bhargage, and the suit(s) of the up-card are included when determining shortage.
Winning
The order of scoring is non-dealer’s hand followed by shortage, dealer’s hand followed by shortage, and lastly bhargage followed by shortage.
Whenever a player reaches 111 (“eleventy-one”) or more, either in the play of the cards or scoring of the hand or bhargage, including scoring for shortage or scoring 2 for the Chief, that player wins immediately. Just as in Cribbage, Bhargage players do not bother to complete a hand if one of the two players has reached the winning score.
A loss by shortage is often accompanied by shouts of “Muggins!” A loss by shortage counts double.
Below is a table that summarizes all the scoring opportunities in Bhargage.
Combination |
Turn-up |
Play of the cards |
Hand |
Bhargage |
Chief |
2 (dealer only) |
-- |
-- |
-- |
11 |
-- |
2 |
2 |
2 |
23 |
-- |
3 |
-- |
-- |
Pair |
-- |
2 |
2 |
2 |
Three of a kind |
-- |
6 |
6 |
6 |
Four of a kind |
-- |
12 |
12 |
12 |
Five of a kind |
-- |
20 |
-- |
20 |
Six Aces |
-- |
Game |
-- |
-- |
Bharg |
-- |
6 |
6 |
6 |
Friend of the Chief |
-- |
-- |
1 |
-- |
Shortage of 1 |
-- |
-- |
-1 |
-1 |
Shortage of 2 |
-- |
-- |
-3 |
-3 |
Shortage of 3 |
-- |
-- |
-6 |
-6 |
Shortage of 4 |
-- |
-- |
-10 |
-10 |
Variant
The rules above are complete. Cribbage players, when first learning Bhargage, may feel the impulse to score sequences. Sequences may be used in Bhargage and scored exactly as they are scored in Cribbage. On the other hand, players may find sequences too much to keep track of along with bhargs and shortage, neither of which exist in Cribbage. Not scoring for sequences probably is the better game.
A more promising variant option is to score “23 for 3” in the hand and bhargage, as well as during the play of the cards. This was the original rule, although I felt eventually that it was too much to keep track of, along with the 11’s, sets, bhargs, and Friends—and, anyway, Cribbage does not count 31 in the hand or crib. On the other hand, Cribbage would need a minimum of four cards to make 31, whereas Bhargage can reach 23 with only three cards, so the extra scoring opportunity might make more sense in Bhargage than in Cribbage. Feel free to use “23 for 3” more widely.
Notes
For players new to Bhargage, the bhargs may be difficult to keep track of, both during the play of the cards and in scoring the hand and bhargage. Experienced players may develop an intuition for bhargs—not "card sense," but "bharg sense." Nevertheless, a few suggestions may be useful for those just starting to play Bhargage.
To check for bhargs in the hand or bhargage, a tip is to look for shortage first. If you are missing a suit in hand or bhargage, obviously a bharg is impossible. A second tip for spotting bhargs is that the cards of a bharg must contain exactly six suit symbols. Setting aside the Aces and Crowns, which have one suit each, the only possibilities are 3-3 (i.e., the unique two-card bharg), 2-2-2, or 3-2-1. Two or three Aces or Crowns can replace the two-suit or three-suit cards, respectively.
Beginners will find it difficult to know how to discard to increase the chance of scoring a bharg in their hand or bhargage, or conversely to decrease the chance of the opponent scoring a bharg in the opponent's bhargage. However, new players should focus on improving the shortage position with an appropriate discard: you should aim to put more suits in your own bhargage and fewer suits in your opponent's bhargage, while keeping as many suits in your hand as possible. You will find that this focus on shortage will naturally provide more bhargs, approximating the “bharg sense” of an experienced player.
A simple defense against a bharg in the play of the cards is to play a card that shares a suit with the previously played card. Then, no card the opponent can play will make a bharg, because the last three cards played obviously must have at least two copies of one of the suits. The exception is if the opponent can make a two-card bharg. However, the two-card bharg is rare. As long as you do not play one of the two cards that make up the unique two-card bharg, your opponent cannot score bharg if your played card shares a suit with the opponent's last played card.
A bharg in the play of the cards is quite a rare occurrence. However, the type of defensive thinking discussed in the previous paragraph is quite common: Match a suit of the previously played card to eliminate the possibility that your opponent can complete a bharg. The possibility of a bharg significantly affects the play of the cards, even though bhargs are rarely scored
Because there are six Aces and six Crowns, it is far easier to collect sets of Aces or Crowns than it is to collect sets of the numbered cards. Three Aces, for example, scores 6, as does three 5’s, which seems to be unfair, because three 5’s is far harder to achieve. However, a set of three of any numbered card is also a bharg, and so the three 5’s score another 6 for being a bharg—which helps balance the apparent disparity.
Again, because there are so many Aces and Crowns, it is easy to collect sets of them, but also it is easy to put them together to make 11’s. One might suppose that it were always good to keep Aces and Crowns in the hand, instead of putting them in the opponent’s bhargage. A second balancing factor, however, is the score for bharg, and more commonly the losing of shortage points. Aces and Crowns have only one suit, and getting rid of them may reduce the risk of shortage. Moreover, putting them in the opponent's bhargage may put the bhargage at greater risk of shortage.
The Excuse is often a difficult choice to discard to an opponent's bhargage, even though it has zero suits and may give you shortage points from the bhargage. However, it may be useful in your own hand as a multiplier for 11’s. While it rare to see the Excuse as a multiplier for bhargs in the hand, it is more commonly used for this purpose in the bhargage, which is another consideration.
The zero-valued cards are very useful to go with 11's, and in this respect they play a similar role in Bhargage as the 5's do in Cribbage. However, there are nine of them in total, one fifth of the deck, so they are more prevalent than the 5's in Cribbage. You will want to keep zero-valued cards in your hand if you have 11's, or a good chance of 11's, or discard them to your own bhargage if you think your hand has a low probability of 11's. Of course, you will want to keep zero-valued cards out of your opponent's bhargage, especially with the fairly high probability that your opponent will put one or even two zero-valued cards in his own bhargage—with any 11's in the bhargage it could result in a disastrously high score for your opponent.
The zero-valued cards are also good for the play of the cards. The lead of any card other than a zero-valued card offers your opponent the chance to score 11 for 2 immediately. The lead of a zero-valued card precludes this possibility. You may think it better to hold on to the zero-valued card, to bounce back with your own 11 for 2 if your opponent reaches 11. However, your opponent may also hold a zero-valued card to play in turn. The use of zero-valued cards in this respect is close to the role of the Ace to 4 cards in Cribbage, as leading an Ace to 4 in Cribbage prevents your opponent from scoring 15 for 2 right away.
Playing a matching numbered card to score 2 for a pair may seem risky. Your opponent may be able play the third to score 6 for three of a kind and also 6 for the bharg—12 points in total. However, there will be only one card of that rank left in the deck, and you can expect to gain rather than lose in the long run by taking these pairs. A similar argument is made in Cribbage for taking a pair during the play of the cards.
Bhargage thinking, as we have seen, is sometimes similar to Cribbage thinking. Nevertheless, the zero-valued cards and the unusual bharg combination both offer something quite new.
Solitaire
Solitaire Bhargage uses both tracks of the board. The player uses one track, and the "opponent" uses the other track for shortage.
Shuffle the cards, and deal three to yourself, two face down to the bhargage, and then two more to yourself. Look at your cards and then discard two to the bhargage. Turn up the top card of the deck.
Score your hand and then the bhargage. Each time, if there is shortage, the “opponent" scores it on the other track.
Deal the second hand, using the up card as the first of the three cards you receive initially. Continue in this way for six hands. Finally, including the last turn-up card, there will be three cards left in the deck. Score these three cards, but do not score shortage for them.
You win if you have completed one circuit of the track and scored enough additional points to overtake the “opponent’s” shortage score.
Play without scoring for the Chief and Friends of the Chief, or for an easier game score for the Chief and his Friends.◾️
The rules above are complete. Cribbage players, when first learning Bhargage, may feel the impulse to score sequences. Sequences may be used in Bhargage and scored exactly as they are scored in Cribbage. On the other hand, players may find sequences too much to keep track of along with bhargs and shortage, neither of which exist in Cribbage. Not scoring for sequences probably is the better game.
A more promising variant option is to score “23 for 3” in the hand and bhargage, as well as during the play of the cards. This was the original rule, although I felt eventually that it was too much to keep track of, along with the 11’s, sets, bhargs, and Friends—and, anyway, Cribbage does not count 31 in the hand or crib. On the other hand, Cribbage would need a minimum of four cards to make 31, whereas Bhargage can reach 23 with only three cards, so the extra scoring opportunity might make more sense in Bhargage than in Cribbage. Feel free to use “23 for 3” more widely.
Notes
For players new to Bhargage, the bhargs may be difficult to keep track of, both during the play of the cards and in scoring the hand and bhargage. Experienced players may develop an intuition for bhargs—not "card sense," but "bharg sense." Nevertheless, a few suggestions may be useful for those just starting to play Bhargage.
To check for bhargs in the hand or bhargage, a tip is to look for shortage first. If you are missing a suit in hand or bhargage, obviously a bharg is impossible. A second tip for spotting bhargs is that the cards of a bharg must contain exactly six suit symbols. Setting aside the Aces and Crowns, which have one suit each, the only possibilities are 3-3 (i.e., the unique two-card bharg), 2-2-2, or 3-2-1. Two or three Aces or Crowns can replace the two-suit or three-suit cards, respectively.
Beginners will find it difficult to know how to discard to increase the chance of scoring a bharg in their hand or bhargage, or conversely to decrease the chance of the opponent scoring a bharg in the opponent's bhargage. However, new players should focus on improving the shortage position with an appropriate discard: you should aim to put more suits in your own bhargage and fewer suits in your opponent's bhargage, while keeping as many suits in your hand as possible. You will find that this focus on shortage will naturally provide more bhargs, approximating the “bharg sense” of an experienced player.
A simple defense against a bharg in the play of the cards is to play a card that shares a suit with the previously played card. Then, no card the opponent can play will make a bharg, because the last three cards played obviously must have at least two copies of one of the suits. The exception is if the opponent can make a two-card bharg. However, the two-card bharg is rare. As long as you do not play one of the two cards that make up the unique two-card bharg, your opponent cannot score bharg if your played card shares a suit with the opponent's last played card.
A bharg in the play of the cards is quite a rare occurrence. However, the type of defensive thinking discussed in the previous paragraph is quite common: Match a suit of the previously played card to eliminate the possibility that your opponent can complete a bharg. The possibility of a bharg significantly affects the play of the cards, even though bhargs are rarely scored
Because there are six Aces and six Crowns, it is far easier to collect sets of Aces or Crowns than it is to collect sets of the numbered cards. Three Aces, for example, scores 6, as does three 5’s, which seems to be unfair, because three 5’s is far harder to achieve. However, a set of three of any numbered card is also a bharg, and so the three 5’s score another 6 for being a bharg—which helps balance the apparent disparity.
Again, because there are so many Aces and Crowns, it is easy to collect sets of them, but also it is easy to put them together to make 11’s. One might suppose that it were always good to keep Aces and Crowns in the hand, instead of putting them in the opponent’s bhargage. A second balancing factor, however, is the score for bharg, and more commonly the losing of shortage points. Aces and Crowns have only one suit, and getting rid of them may reduce the risk of shortage. Moreover, putting them in the opponent's bhargage may put the bhargage at greater risk of shortage.
The Excuse is often a difficult choice to discard to an opponent's bhargage, even though it has zero suits and may give you shortage points from the bhargage. However, it may be useful in your own hand as a multiplier for 11’s. While it rare to see the Excuse as a multiplier for bhargs in the hand, it is more commonly used for this purpose in the bhargage, which is another consideration.
The zero-valued cards are very useful to go with 11's, and in this respect they play a similar role in Bhargage as the 5's do in Cribbage. However, there are nine of them in total, one fifth of the deck, so they are more prevalent than the 5's in Cribbage. You will want to keep zero-valued cards in your hand if you have 11's, or a good chance of 11's, or discard them to your own bhargage if you think your hand has a low probability of 11's. Of course, you will want to keep zero-valued cards out of your opponent's bhargage, especially with the fairly high probability that your opponent will put one or even two zero-valued cards in his own bhargage—with any 11's in the bhargage it could result in a disastrously high score for your opponent.
The zero-valued cards are also good for the play of the cards. The lead of any card other than a zero-valued card offers your opponent the chance to score 11 for 2 immediately. The lead of a zero-valued card precludes this possibility. You may think it better to hold on to the zero-valued card, to bounce back with your own 11 for 2 if your opponent reaches 11. However, your opponent may also hold a zero-valued card to play in turn. The use of zero-valued cards in this respect is close to the role of the Ace to 4 cards in Cribbage, as leading an Ace to 4 in Cribbage prevents your opponent from scoring 15 for 2 right away.
Playing a matching numbered card to score 2 for a pair may seem risky. Your opponent may be able play the third to score 6 for three of a kind and also 6 for the bharg—12 points in total. However, there will be only one card of that rank left in the deck, and you can expect to gain rather than lose in the long run by taking these pairs. A similar argument is made in Cribbage for taking a pair during the play of the cards.
Bhargage thinking, as we have seen, is sometimes similar to Cribbage thinking. Nevertheless, the zero-valued cards and the unusual bharg combination both offer something quite new.
Solitaire
Solitaire Bhargage uses both tracks of the board. The player uses one track, and the "opponent" uses the other track for shortage.
Shuffle the cards, and deal three to yourself, two face down to the bhargage, and then two more to yourself. Look at your cards and then discard two to the bhargage. Turn up the top card of the deck.
Score your hand and then the bhargage. Each time, if there is shortage, the “opponent" scores it on the other track.
Deal the second hand, using the up card as the first of the three cards you receive initially. Continue in this way for six hands. Finally, including the last turn-up card, there will be three cards left in the deck. Score these three cards, but do not score shortage for them.
You win if you have completed one circuit of the track and scored enough additional points to overtake the “opponent’s” shortage score.
Play without scoring for the Chief and Friends of the Chief, or for an easier game score for the Chief and his Friends.◾️
Acknowledgements
The Decktet images were created by P. D. Magnus and are used by permission; images were downloaded from the GitHub site kept by M. C. De Marco; borders were added for this article.
A Double Decktet consists of the standard Decktet and the newer Capital Decktet. The decks have different artwork, while both belong to the Decktet universe. You may choose whichever deck you prefer to play Bhargage, or use both with one player shuffling while the other deals. However, the Spider solitaire variant Myrmex, also covered in this issue, needs two decks. Bharg Deluxe also needs two decks, a game that in my opinion is comparable to, and perhaps better than, two-player Canasta. Both decks together, and other Decktet designs, can be purchased from Drive Thru Cards.
The "traditional" Bhargage board shown was custom made by The Cribbage Guy for a reasonable price. Of course, you can play with a Cribbage board, as discussed, but some players may want to use the "real thing."
The Decktet images were created by P. D. Magnus and are used by permission; images were downloaded from the GitHub site kept by M. C. De Marco; borders were added for this article.
A Double Decktet consists of the standard Decktet and the newer Capital Decktet. The decks have different artwork, while both belong to the Decktet universe. You may choose whichever deck you prefer to play Bhargage, or use both with one player shuffling while the other deals. However, the Spider solitaire variant Myrmex, also covered in this issue, needs two decks. Bharg Deluxe also needs two decks, a game that in my opinion is comparable to, and perhaps better than, two-player Canasta. Both decks together, and other Decktet designs, can be purchased from Drive Thru Cards.
The "traditional" Bhargage board shown was custom made by The Cribbage Guy for a reasonable price. Of course, you can play with a Cribbage board, as discussed, but some players may want to use the "real thing."