The players include a thrower and many
catchers. The thrower will decide if points will be awarded if the ball is caught directly ('alive'), if the ball must be picked up after it hits the ground ('dead'), or either. The thrower also has the responsibility to determine the number of
points that should be distributed. For example, a thrower calls out, "100, dead!" and throws the ball straight up in the air. All the catchers must wait until the ball touches the ground before they pick it up in order to receive the 100 points at stake. If a catcher's score goes over 500 (or in different variations of the game, 1,000), that person will revert to 0 and will become the thrower, and the thrower will in turn become a catcher.{{Cite book ==Variations==