4 identical cards, the signal... Kem's!

Signs game rules

A team card game for 4 or 6 players with a signaling system that allows a teammate to proclaim the victory of the round.

Game description

To prepare for the game, you should know that you can play Kem’s with 4 or 6 players. The number of players must be even, as the game involves forming pairs. Each player tries to collect 4 identical cards with 4 cards in hand. The player who achieves this goal will make the agreed-upon signal to their teammate, who will then say “Kem’s!”

Of course, it’s not going to be that easy… Here is more information on how the game is played.

Preparation

To play, use a traditional deck of 54 cards. Remove the 2 jokers.
Form pairs by drawing the 2 highest or 2 lowest cards, or by playing rock-paper-scissors. The choice is yours. 🙂
Each team agrees on a signal to indicate to their partner that it’s time to say “Kem’s.”
Arrange the players from each team around the table, alternating teams:
- Team 1 – player 1,
- Team 2 – player 1,
- Team 1 – player 2,
- Team 2 – player 2.
If you are playing with 6 players, place the players from Team 3 after the players from Team 2.
Choose a dealer for the first round.
Agree on the number of points needed to win the game: 10, 15, or 20 points.

Progress

The dealer distributes, one by one, 4 cards to each player, in a clockwise direction. The remaining cards form the draw pile (face down).
Each player looks at their cards confidentially. If someone has 3 or 4 identical cards, they show their 4 cards, place them in the discard pile, and draw 4 new ones.
The dealer takes 4 cards from the draw pile and places them face up in the center. They then say the word “TOP.”
At “TOP,” all players can exchange cards from the center with one of their own cards. They must place their card down first. Each player can exchange as many cards as they wish.
When everyone has finished exchanging, the dealer sweeps the 4 center cards into the discard pile. They take 4 new cards from the draw pile and place them in the center. Then they give the “TOP.”
This continues until at least one player has 4 identical cards.
When a player has 4 identical cards, they make the agreed-upon signal to their teammate, hoping it will be noticed.

When the draw pile is empty, shuffle the discard pile and turn it into the new draw pile.

Kem’s, Counter Kem’s, and Double Kem’s

When a player notices that their teammate has 4 identical cards (thanks to the agreed-upon signal), they must say “Kem’s!” If this is correct, their team scores 1 point.
When a player notices the agreed-upon signal and also has 4 identical cards, they must say “Double Kem’s!” Their team then scores 2 points.
When a player perceives that the opposing team is about to say “Kem’s,” they say “Counter Kem’s!” If this is correct, the team that said “Counter Kem’s!” scores 1 point.
If “Counter Kem’s!” is incorrectly called, the opposing player proves they do not have 4 identical cards by showing 2 different cards. The player who made the mistake causes their team to lose 1 point, which is given to the opposing team. This player can no longer call “Counter Kem’s!” until the end of the round.

A round ends when a Kem’s or a Double Kem’s is called.

To start a new round, the dealer shuffles the cards, cuts the deck, and the player next to them (clockwise) becomes the new dealer. Resume the process from step 1.

We have a winning team when the victory score defined at the beginning of the game is reached.

Online purchases

Signs game rules

Game description

Preparation

Progress

Online purchases

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