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Continental Rummy is a popular contract rummy card game that is played in a series of seven rounds. Each round has its own rules, where players must form specific sets (trios) and runs (sequences) to complete the contract. The game is fun, challenging, and requires both skill and strategy.
Unlike other rummy games, Continental Rummy changes its requirements every round, which makes it more exciting. Let’s look at how the game is played, the rules for each hand, and how scoring works.
Cards and Setup
To play Continental Rummy, you need two standard decks of cards plus two jokers. Shuffle them well and place the pile at the center of the table. The player with the lowest card after a cut becomes the dealer.
The dealer shuffles and distributes cards depending on the round being played. After the deal, the remaining cards form the draw pile, and the top card is turned over to start the discard pile.
The Contracts
Each round (or hand) has a fixed contract that tells players what combinations they need to form. These contracts increase in difficulty as the game goes on.
| Hand | Contract | Cards Dealt |
| 1st | Two Trios | 7 cards |
| 2nd | One Trio + One Run | 8 cards |
| 3rd | Two Runs | 9 cards |
| 4th | Three Trios | 10 cards |
| 5th | Two Trios + One Run | 11 cards |
| 6th | One Trio + Two Runs | 12 cards |
| 7th | Three Runs | 13 cards |
- Trio = three cards of the same rank (e.g., 5♥ 5♠ 5♦). A trio can even contain two cards of the same suit.
- Run = a sequence of four or more cards of the same suit (e.g., 6♣ 7♣ 8♣ 9♣).
Aces can be used either high (J-Q-K-A) or low (A-2-3-4), but players cannot go “around the corner” (Q-K-A-2-3).
How to Play
- The game begins with the player to the dealer’s left.
- On each turn, a player must draw one card (either from the draw pile or the discard pile).
- After drawing, the player must discard one card to end their turn.
If a player does not take the top discard, another player may take it- but they must also draw a penalty card from the draw pile.
Once a player has the required sets or runs for that round, they can “drop” them on the table. Extra cards can be added to their own combinations or to other players’ dropped cards.
The round ends when a player has completed their contract and discarded their last card.
Using Jokers
Jokers are very powerful in Continental Rummy. They can be used as substitutes in both trios and runs. For example:
- A trio like (10, Joker, Joker) is counted as three 10s.
- In runs, players may later replace the Joker with the real card and shift it to another position or run.
However, a Joker cannot be moved if the run would be left with only three cards.
Scoring System
At the end of each round, points are counted based on the cards left in players’ hands. The winner of the round (the player who went out first) scores 0 points. Others must add up their remaining cards:
- Joker = 50 points
- Ace = 11 points
- King, Queen, Jack, 10 = 10 points each
- Cards 9–2 = Face value
Special Rule: If a player finishes in one turn by dropping all their cards and discarding at once, they can subtract 10 points from their score.
The player with the lowest total score after all seven rounds is the winner.
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