Rules
Source: Cards and Player Setting :Source: Guandan uses two decks of standard international cards, plus both Jokers, for a total of 108 cards in the deck. Therefore, each player will have 27 cards in each hand. Card Ranks and Set Types For comparing cards, Guandan (generally) ignores the suit. Cards are valued in ascending order from: 2-10, J, Q, K, A, Black Joker, Red Joker. Since two decks are shuffled together, there are eight of each card type 2->Ace, two Black Jokers, and two Red Jokers. An exception to this is the Level Cards, discussed below. Leadable Set Types These sets can be led at the beginning of a trick. Other players can discard on top of this, but only if they follow with the same type of set in a higher rank. :Single card: Any single card :Pair: Two cards of the same number regardless of suit. A pair of Jokers must be of the same color. :Triple: "Three of a Kind", having the same number regardless of suit. :Plate: The plate is a combination of two consecutive triples. For example, three 4s and a three 5s. :Tube: The tube is three consecutive pairs. For example, a pair of 10s, a pair of Js and a pair of Qs. :Full House: The Full House is a triple and a pair. When comparing two Full Houses, we consider only the triplet. :Straight: Straight is five consecutive cards. Ace can be high or low. For example, the lowest-ranking straight is A, 2, 3, 4, 5 and the highest-ranking 10, J, Q, K, A. Note: Players familiar with other card games (such as Poker) may be tempted to see this as a hierarchy (e.g.: Three of a Kind beats a Pair). This does not apply for this type of set. Each trick only involves one of the above set types, so it's more accurate to see this list as a menu of options to start a trick. However, the bombs listed below do constitute a hierarchy more familiar to Poker players. Bomb Set Types On a particular trick, a player may decide to override normal play by "throwing a bomb". Once a bomb is played, any subsequent plays on this trick must be a higher-level bomb. A "higher-level" bomb is either 1) a bomb of the same type, but with higher card values, or 2) a bomb of a higher type. The bomb types, in ascending order, are: :Set of 4 or 5 matching cards: This bomb represents a set of 4 or 5 cards of the same value, regardless of suit. A set of 5 cards is always higher than one of 4 cards. :Straight Flush: Straight flush is a straight with all cards of the same suit. :Set of 6 or more matching cards: This is a set of 6 or more cards of the same value, regardless of suit. The length of set could go as high as 10 with wild cards. As above, the value of the bomb is first calculated by the number of cards, then by the rank of the cards. :Joker Bomb: The Joker Bomb is all four jokers. It is regarded as the largest bomb in the game. Level Cards and Wild Cards Source: Leveling Up After a hand, the team with the Banker will level up. The number of levels that the team gains depends on the status of the other partner: • If the partner is the Follower: the team gains 3 levels. • If the partner is the Third: the team gains 2 levels. • If the partner is the Dweller: the team gains 1 level. Subsequent Hands When starting a new hand, the Dweller from the previous hand has the lead in the new hand. Note that the Dweller can be on either team. Whichever team has the Banker from the previous hand sets the level of the new hand for determining the Level Cards. In a Double-Dweller case, the Dweller who paid the highest tribute (below) takes the lead. Tribute From the second hand onward, before play commences, the Dweller from the previous play will pay tribute to the Banker by offering the highest-ranked card in their hand (excluding hearts of the level card). The Banker will select any card from their hand with a rank not exceeding 10 to return to the Dweller. The Dweller will then open the play. If a Double-Dweller occurs in the previous hand, both Dwellers will pay tribute the previous winning team. The Banker selects the tribute payer with the higher-ranked card, while the Follower selects the lower-ranked card, with corresponding returns. If the tribute cards are of equal rank, tribute shall be paid clockwise, with corresponding returns. When returning tribute, cards must be placed face down, but both tribute-givers will reveal their tribute cards. After the tribute return, the player who paid higher tribute would open the play. If any Dweller holds both red jokers, the Dweller(s) do not have to pay tribute. In that case, the Banker would open the play. Winning Conditions A team that wins a hand after they've reached the Ace level wins the game. However, a team cannot win on a hand where one of the partners is the Dweller from the previous hand. == Governmental crackdown in 2024 ==
Governmental crackdown in 2024
According to an article published in
The Guardian on August 24, 2024, guandan now appears to have fallen out of favor with the ruling
Communist party, and it is blamed not only for encouraging a “passive attitude” towards work, but for supposedly encouraging the formation of
cliques among party cadres. The report states that «A recent run of articles in the state-run
Beijing Youth Daily described guandan as intoxicating and “decadent”, warning that it was “time to control the trend of ‘laying flat’ among all guandan players”. Laying flat (
tangping in Chinese) is the term given to a social trend among young people who are rejecting high-pressure jobs for an easier lifestyle, which has alarmed authorities.» The effectiveness of the move, though, remains unclear because of the widespread opposition to this governmental criticism of guandan. == References ==