Rapscallion
Rapscallion Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Object
Score the most points by creating the best poker hands from playing cards obtained through bidding.
Components
1 deck of 52 playing cards, 1 12-card deck of general bidding cards, 6 6-card sets of colored bidding cards (3 number bidding cards, 2 Rapscallion bidding cards and 1 reference card), 1 scorepad and 1 set of rules.
Setup
Give one randomly-chosen colored 6-card set to each player, placing any unused colored sets back in the box. Shuffle the 12 card deck of general bidding cards and place it face down near the playing area.
Shuffle the playing card deck and deal one face down playing card to each player, placing the rest of the cards in the playing card deck face-down next to the bidding deck.
Gameplay
Rapscallion takes place over a few hands, each hand consisting of several rounds in which you try to form the best poker hand from cards obtained via bidding. The structure of the rounds is as follows:
- Players place one bidding card in the Side Bet.
- Players bid for 2 playing cards, one at a time, using their bidding cards.
- Players bid for a new bidding card, using a playing card. Players return all played bidding cards to their hands.
- Players bid for 3 more playing cards, one at a time, using their bidding cards.
- Players bid for a new bidding card, using a playing card. Players return all played bidding cards to their hands.
- Players bid for 4 more playing cards (bringing their total to 8), one at a time, using their bidding cards.
Everyone then displays the best 5-card poker hand they can make, and the side bet is revealed. The hand is then scored, and if no one has reached 100 points, another hand is played, and each player passes their colored set of bidding cards to the left.
Side Bet
At the beginning of each hand, each player takes one of their bidding cards and places it face down in a pile called the Side Bet, which is then placed under the game box. At the end of the hand, after everyone has displayed their hands, the Side Bet is revealed; the player who placed the highest card (including a Rapscallion) in it wins the Side Bet (worth 15 points). If more than one player played a Rapscallion, all Rapscallions are cancelled, and the next highest number wins the Side Bet.
Bidding for Playing Cards
Put a number of playing cards in the center of the table equal to the number of players, turning all but one face up.
Each player places one of his bidding cards face down in front of him. When all players have done this, the bidding cards are revealed, and the player displaying the highest value bidding card chooses from the available playing cards. Then the player with the next-highest bidding card chooses a playing card, etc. until all players have taken a playing card. Each player slides his used bidding card under his reference card.
Rapscallions
A player may use one of their two Rapscallions instead of a numerical bidding card. A Rapscallion beats all numbered bidding cards. However, if 2 or more players play their Rapscallions at the same time, they cancel each other out, and those players must then simultaneously choose another bidding card (which may be their other Rapscallion). Rapscallions are removed from the game when used (even if cancelled) until the next hand. Unused Rapscallions are worth 5 points each at the end of the hand.
Bidding for Bidding Cards
Put a number of bidding cards in the center of the table equal to the number of players, turning all but one face up.
Each player places one of his playing cards face down in front of him. When all players have done this, the playing cards are revealed, and the player who has the highest value playing card (aces are high in this round) chooses from the available bidding cards. Then the player with the next-highest playing card chooses a bidding card, etc. until all players have taken a bidding card. If two or more playing cards with the same value are played, order is determined by suit ranking: (the printed rulebook shows four suit icons in rank order, highest first: [icon] > [icon] > [icon] > [icon]; the icons are not reproducible in text, so the order is given here as the printed sequence of four suit symbols and should be checked against the source sheet)
The playing cards used to bid are removed from the game, and players pick up all their bidding cards for the next round.
Scoring Each Hand
Determine who has the best hand and who has the worst hand (ties are broken by suit rank), and then reveal the side bet and determine the winner of that side bet. Each player tallies up their score for their hand on a space on the scoresheet as follows:
| Hand | Points |
|---|---|
| Straight Flush | 20 |
| Four of a Kind | 20 |
| Full House | 15 |
| Flush | 10 |
| Straight | 5 |
| Three of a Kind | 0 |
| Two Pair | 0 |
| One Pair | 0 |
| High Card | 0 |
| Best Hand | 20 |
| Worst Hand | -10 |
| Side Bet | 15 |
Ending the Game
If one or more players has a total of 100 or more points following a hand, the game is over. The player with the highest score wins. If more than one player is tied for the highest score at the end of the game, the tied player who scored the most on the last hand wins (additional ties are resolved by comparing the previous hands in order).
Special Rules for 2 Players and 6 Players
In a 2 player game, place one additional face up card in the center of the table when bidding for both playing cards and bidding cards (so there will be two face up cards and one face down card).
In a 6 player game, after each player has six playing cards, there will only be four playing cards remaining in the playing card deck. Shuffle those four playing cards with the 12 previously-discarded playing cards (that were used to bid for bidding cards) right before the round where players bid for their 7th playing card.