Hey, here's a game I've been working on. It's based on Cripple Mr. Onion, but much simpler. I've given it a DF-themed name.
UPDATED THE RULES
Bloody Murder
A betting game for 2-8 players.
Bloody Murder is traditionally played with an 8-suit, 20-rank deck, a refrence to its history, but may be played with one or two standard decks.
Bloody Murder is best played with 8 suit decks. The extra suits are swords (red spades), cups (black hearts), wands (red clubs), and coins (black diamonds), named after the tarot versions of each suit. In order, the cards run; Spades, Swords, Cups, Hearts, Clubs, Wands, Coins, and Diamonds. These decks also have 20 ranks, as follows; Ace, 2-15, Page, Jack, Bishop, Queen, King. Taken together, this gives a 160 card deck. Of course, two standard decks or, for small games, merely one standard deck can be used.
Playing the game
Players sit in a circle and someone is selected to be the dealer. Play proceeds thusly:
-All players Pay. Unlike other gambling games, All Payments are the same for each player and continuous thrugh the hand. Payments go to the Pot.
-Each player is dealt cards equal to 4x the number of players in the game- two players each recieve 8 cards, 4 players each recieve 16 cards.
-Each player may discard up to half of their cards and have them replaced. If the deck runs out, discards will be shuffled and used as the deck; otherwise they are removed from play until the next round.
-Starting on the dealer's left, continuing clockwise, each player may either Pay or fold. The dealer is last.
-Starting on the dealer's left, each player may display a set of cards, or fold. A set is any number of cards from 1-5, and is graded as a poker hand. I.E.; a 3 of swords counts as a high card 3. Each player must display a better set than the previous player.
-If there are remaining players, they must Pay or fold again, and then repeat the "display" cycle.
-When one player is left, they have won the hand and the pot.
-Dealership moves one position to the right. In some games, the payment increases by $1 or a similar amount for the next hand.
Variants:
Some face cards can have special effects when played. Some are played alone, some are played as part of a set, and some are played before a set is displayed. One may choose to play such a card normally instead of using it's ability. These cards are:
Ace of Spades - Champion: Played alone; You may display this card instead of folding or showing a set. (Art: the trademark card)
King of Swords - Death: Played before; "Kills" the last displayed set. Your set must be better than the set before that. (Art: wields a red-stained sword, unlike other kings.)
Page of Cups - The Squire: Played before a set; you may return a face card from your set to your hand. (Art: Holds sword in sheath.)
Queen of Hearts - The Lady: Played as part of a set; played as a wild card of any suit and value. (Art: Holds a Die or a hand of cards.)
Jack of Clubs - The Hammer-Man: Played before a set; Queens, Bishops and Jacks may be played as Kings(Art: Wields a hammer, unlike standard set.)
Queen of Wands - The Crone: Played before a set; "transforms" a face card from the previous set into a 2 of the same suit; this set must beat new value.(Art:A hag.)
Bishop of Coins - The Merchant: Played alone; remaining players split pot.(Art: Surrounded by coins.)
King of Diamonds - The Gemcutter: Played as part of a set; Diamonds in this set trump Spades. (Art: examines Diamond mark on card.)
Naturally, there are four fools or jokers to go with the expanded deck; they are:
Fool of Law: (Swords and Spades) Played before a set: Swords and Spades are considered the same suit. May instead be played as a wild number card of either suit.
Fool of Saints: (Hearts and Cups) Played before a set: Hearts and Cups are considered the same suit. May instead be played as a wild number card of either suit.
Fool of Trades: (Coins and Diamonds) Played before a set: Coins and Diamonds are considered the same suit. May instead be played as a wild number card of either suit.
Fool of Mages: (Clubs and Wands) Played before a set: Clubs and Wands are considered the same suit. May instead be played as a wild number card of either suit.