The Game of 49
The Game of 49 Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Equipment
- 49 game board
- 60 number cards (48 standard cards, numbered 1–48; and 12 Wild/Payoff cards)
- Card tray
- Chips in 5 colors
- Paper money: $1s, $5s, $10s, $20s
- Money tray
- Starting player token
- Current auction token
- Rules
- Two-player quick reference cards (2); see "Two-player Game Rules" below
The number card deck contains 60 cards: 48 standard cards, numbered 1–48; and 12 Wild/Payoff cards.
- Standard cards 1–24: minimum bid $2 (3x this range's minimum-bid card)
- Standard cards 25–40: minimum bid $4 (2x this range's minimum-bid card)
- Standard cards 41–48: minimum bid $7 (2x this range's minimum-bid card)
- Wild/Payoff card, range 1–24: minimum bid $3
- Wild/Payoff card, range 25–40: minimum bid $5
- Wild/Payoff card, range 41–48: minimum bid $7
- Wild 49/Payoff card: minimum bid $1 (5x)
Object
To win, place four of your chips in a row on the board, horizontally, vertically, or diagonally. The chips must be in a straight line, with no empty spaces in between. In a 5-player game, three in a row wins.
Setup
Place the 49 game board in the center of the table.
Shuffle the number cards and place them facedown in the card tray. Place the card tray where all players can reach it.
Choose a player to play first and give that player the starting player token and the current auction token.
Place the money in the money tray to form the bank and choose a player to be banker.
Give each player a set of chips of one color. (Chips are unlimited. If a player runs out of chips during the game, substitute coins or other objects.) Give each player $49—three $10, three $5, and four $1. During the game players should not allow opponents to see how much money they have.
Play
The player with the starting player token draws the top card from the card tray, displays it for all players to see, and places the current auction token on the space matching the card. The player then either starts an auction for the card or passes.
If the starting player passes, the next player clockwise either starts an auction or passes. Play continues in this way until either one player starts an auction or all players pass. If all players pass, the number card is removed from play for the remainder of the game.
When one player makes an opening bid to start an auction, the other players, in clockwise order, must either raise the previous bid or pass. A player who passes may not later reenter bidding for the card, and a player who passed rather than making an opening bid for the card may not take part in the auction. All bids must be in whole dollar amounts.
When all players but one have passed, the winning bidder pays the bank the amount of his or her bid, claims the card that was auctioned, removes the current auction token from the board, and places his or her chip on the space.
After a card has been auctioned—or removed from play because no player bid on it—the starting player token and current auction token pass clockwise. The player receiving the tokens draws the top number card to begin a new auction.
Draw and auction the top number card from the deck. The winning bidder places a chip on the board space that matches the number on the card, after paying the bank the amount of his or her winning bid.
Minimum Bid (Optional)
A minimum starting bid is shown on each card. Players should agree before starting the game whether they will use the minimum bid or allow a $1 minimum bid for all cards. Players may always begin an auction with a bid higher than the minimum.
Wild/Payoff Cards
Two events occur when a Wild/Payoff card is drawn: first an auction, then a payoff.
Auction
A Wild/Payoff card is auctioned the same as a standard number card. There are two types of Wild/Payoff cards, and each has special rules for where the winning bidder for the card may place his or her chip.
A Wild/Payoff card that shows a number range (for example, 25–40) allows the player who wins the card to place his or her chip on any vacant space within the range. The deck contains seven Wild/Payoff cards of this type. NOTE: The current auction token is not placed on the board when a Wild/Payoff card of this type is drawn.
Win a Wild/Payoff card and place a chip on any available space within the number range shown. Bumping an opponent's chip is allowed only on the 49 space.
A Wild 49/Payoff card corresponds to the center space on the game board. Winning the auction for a Wild 49/Payoff card is the only way to place a chip on the 49 space. The deck contains five Wild 49/Payoff cards. These cards are auctioned the same as other cards.
Players are allowed to bump an opposing player's chip from the 49 board space. It is the only space that can change hands during the game.
The player who wins the auction for a Wild 49/Payoff card does one of the following:
- If the 49 space is vacant, the winning bidder places his or her chip on the 49 space.
- If another player's chip occupies the 49 space (as the result of an earlier auction for a 49 card), the winning bidder removes the opponent's chip and replaces it with his or her own chip.
- If the winning bidder already has a chip on the 49 space (as the result of winning an earlier auction for a 49 card), that player keeps the 49 space and also places one of his or her chips on any vacant space on the board.
Payoff
After a Wild/Payoff card has been auctioned and a chip has been placed, players receive a payoff from the bank, according to the following rules:
- Every player who has one or more chips on the board receives a payoff.
- A player receives $7 for each chip he or she has on the board. NOTE: The payoff is always $7 per chip. The minimum bid amount shown on the card does not affect the payoff.
- Chips located everywhere on the board count toward the payoff, not only chips located within a specific area or number range.
- The maximum payoff a player may receive is $49, even if he or she has more than seven chips on the board.
After a Wild/Payoff card is auctioned, the bank pays each player $7 for each chip he or she has on the board, up to a maximum payoff of $49.
- A player may accumulate more than $49 cash during the game but may not receive more than $49 in a single payoff.
- A player with no chips on the board receives no payoff.
- A player who wins the auction for a Wild/Payoff card must pay the full amount of his or her winning bid before placing a chip on the board and collecting a payoff. The player may not use money from the payoff to buy the card.
If all players pass when a Wild/Payoff card is drawn—whether by choice or because they have no money—the card goes out of play without a chip being placed, but players still receive their payoff.
The deck contains a total of twelve Wild/Payoff cards, so there will usually be multiple payoffs in the course of a game.
Unplayable Cards
If a player draws the number card for a board space that is already covered by a chip—because the space was claimed previously using a Wild/Payoff card—the number card is removed from play and the player draws again.
If a Wild/Payoff card that shows a number range is drawn and every space within the range is already covered by a chip, the card is removed from play. Players still receive their payoff.
Winning
The player who places four chips in a row on the board, horizontally, vertically, or diagonally, with no empty spaces in between, wins the game. (More than four in a row also wins.) In a 5-player game, three chips in a row wins.
If the deck is exhausted with no player having four chips in a row, the player with the most chips on the board wins. If two or more players are tied for most chips, the player with the most money wins the tiebreaker. If money also is tied, the tied player with a chip on the higher numbered board space wins.
Winning requires four chips in a row, with no empty spaces in between. These are not winning combinations.
Illegal Bid Penalty
Players may not deliberately bid more money than they have in order to drive up the cost of a number card. (Players are on their honor to abide by this rule because money is held in secret.)
If the player who wins an auction has mistakenly bid more than he or she can pay, a second auction is held for the number card. All players, including the player who made the illegal bid, may participate in the second auction.
Before the second auction, however, the player who made the illegal bid must remove one of his or her chips from the board as a penalty. Gather all of the number cards that the player has won in auctions, shuffle them upside down, and select one card at random. Remove the card from play for the remainder of the game, and also remove the player's chip from the matching board space.
A player who cannot pay for his or her bid must remove 1 chip from the board. Players may not deliberately bid more money than they have.
"Check" Rule (Optional, But Recommended)
After drawing a number card, a player may announce "check" instead of making an opening bid or passing. A player who checks declines to start the auction for a card but reserves the right to bid later if another player starts the auction.
When a player checks, each of the other players, in clockwise order, may either start the auction, pass, or check. If all players check, the card is removed from play for the remainder of the game and the starting player token and current auction token pass clockwise.
If any player opens the bidding, the auction proceeds in clockwise order, as usual. Once a bid has been made, players may no longer check but must either raise the previous bid or pass. Players who previously checked rather than make an opening bid may participate in the auction; players who previously passed may not.
If all players check when a Wild/Payoff card is drawn, the card goes out of play without a chip being placed, but players still receive their payoff.
Players may check instead of passing, but only when no player has yet made an opening bid.
Two-Player Game Rules
Rules are the same as for three or four players except that:
The Minimum Bid applies; it is not optional.
After a Wild/Payoff card is auctioned, payoffs are as follows:
- For 1–7 chips on the board: $7 per chip ($49 maximum)
- For 8 chips on the board: $42 payoff
- For 9 chips on the board: $35 payoff
- For 10 or more chips on the board: $28 payoff