PASS Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Content
• Cards
• Setup
• Game Play
• Types of Sets
• Using PASS Token
  • 1. Upgrade Card
  • 2. Augment Set
  • PASS Token Example (4 Players)
• Winning
• Variant Win Condition
• Variant Rules for Experts

Content

• Player Aids x5
• PASS Cards x65
• PASS Tokens x36 (Upgrade side and Augmented side)
• Scoring Tokens x24 (Crown, and Point tokens: 4, 2, 1)

Cards

• Upgrade sides: use the value in the yellow side as the upgraded value. Basic side: use the value in the white side as the basic value.

1. Cards' played value, in ascending order: 2 < 3 < 4 < 5 < 6 < 7 < 8 < 9 < 10 < J < Q < K < A. Repeated value such as "22" in the example will be treated as two "2".
2. The arrow pointed value is the card's upgraded value.
3. 5th player icon, indicating cards only used in a 5-player game.

Start 2: only has a basic side with "START" on it. In each game, the player that has this card is the player who plays the very first set of card(s) in that game. The first set does not have to include this card.

A > AA: this card can only be played singly if upgraded and cannot be combined with card(s).

Setup

1. Deal cards to each player according to the player count.

   • 2-4 players: use only cards without 5th player icon (52 cards). Shuffle all the cards face down. Evenly deal 4 decks. Each deck should consist of 13 cards. Each player takes one deck as their hand and takes 1 PASS token.

   In a 2-3 player game, please make sure that some player has the "START 2" card. If not, in a 2 player game, both players exchange their hand with one of the unchosen deck; in a 3 player game, randomly choose a player to exchange their hand with the unchosen deck. Then, remove all the unused cards from the game face down. These cards won't be used in the game.

   • 5 players: use all the cards (65 cards). Shuffle all the cards face down. Deal 5 hands of 13 cards. Each player takes 1 hand and 1 PASS token.

2. Put the remaining PASS tokens and scoring tokens within easy reach to all players as supplies.

Game Play

A game comprises multiple hands until one player has played all their cards. Each hand, the first player will play a set of card(s). Once a set is played, that is the set for all players for the hand, except Five/Four of a Kind. Then in clockwise order, each player takes a turn to play a higher value set of cards OR declares "PASS" to skip the rest of the round and take a PASS token.

Players who declare "PASS" are out of the round and will not play any more cards or obtain more PASS tokens.

When all but one player declares "PASS", the current hand ends. If all players still have cards, remove all played cards and start a new hand with the first player being the player who played the highest set in the last hand.

Types of Sets

Note: 22 = 2 2 (repeated value counts as two cards).

• FIVE OF A KIND (e.g. 22222) - can beat all types below.[1] Cards with five identical values. Gain one PASS token when played.
• FOUR OF A KIND (e.g. 2222) - can beat all types below.[2] Cards with four identical values.
• FULL HOUSE (e.g. 22233) - Three of a kind and a pair.
• STRAIGHT (e.g. 23456) - 5 cards with consecutive values.[3]
• THREE OF A KIND (e.g. 222) - Cards with three identical values.
• PAIR (e.g. 22) - One or two card(s) with two identical values.
• PLAIN CARD (e.g. 2) - A single card with one value.

1. A Five of a Kind set can beat any other type of set. A Five of a Kind set can only be beaten by a higher value Five of a Kind set.
2. A Four of a Kind set can beat any other type of set except a Five of a Kind set. A Four of a Kind set can only be beaten by a Five of a Kind set or a higher Four of a Kind set.
3. A/2/3/4/5 is the lowest Straight set; 10/J/Q/K/A is the highest. "A" can only be the highest or lowest value in a straight.

Using PASS Token

When playing cards, a player can spend any amount of PASS tokens to "UPGRADE CARD" and / or "AUGMENT SET". When spending tokens, each token can be used in either way with the applied side face up.

1. Upgrade Card

Spend 1 PASS token to upgrade any number of cards in a set from their white side to their yellow side. Discard the PASS token.

2. Augment Set

A player can play a set of the same type and value as the previous set and break the tie by spending the Augment side of a PASS token. Leave the Augment beside the played set for reference.

If the previous set was not augmented, a player may spend only 1 token to beat the previous set.

If the previous set was already augmented, 1 more Augment token than the previous set may be spent to beat the previous set.

PASS Token Example (4 Players)

Peter started a round with a PAIR of As.

It is Yu-cin's turn next, she declared PASS and took a PASS token.

Then Wang played a plain A card and spent 2 PASS tokens to upgrade the plain A card into a PAIR of As and to augment the PAIR of As, respectively.

Followed by AG also playing a PAIR of As by spending a PASS token to upgrade the 2 card into an A card, he then spent 2 more PASS tokens to further augment his PAIR of As.

Peter and Wang in turn declared PASS and took a PASS token. Since AG was the only player who had not yet declared PASS, the round ends. AG will start a new round by playing a new set of card(s).

Winning

When a player has played all their cards, the hand ends immediately. That player wins the hand and takes 1 Crown scoring token. Keep the crown side up to track the number of wins and whoever takes 3 Crowns first will be the winner.

If no player has earned 3 crowns, return to Setup and play another hand.

Variant Win Condition

When a player has played all their cards, the hand ends immediately. That player wins the hand and takes a 4-point scoring token, point-side up. Then the player who has the fewest cards in hand takes a 2-point scoring token and the player with the second least takes a 1-point scoring token, keeping them point-side up. If there is a tie, the points are awarded clockwise from the winning player. Play will continue and whoever gets 10 points first will be the winner.

Variant Rules for Experts

1. Lack of PASS (for those who expect more tactical and tough gaming experience). When using PASS tokens, each PASS token can only turn one card to the upgraded side.
2. Wildcard PASS (for those who expect more usages of PASS and exciting gaming experience). When playing a set, you can pay 3 PASS tokens together as a wild card used in the set. This PASS token ability can only be triggered once per turn, and cannot be used in a five of a kind set or a 4-of-a-kind set.