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What Is Shanghai Rummy? How To Play?

Rummy has a lot of variants, with the card game being one of the most played card games in India! Amongst all the varieties, Shanghai Rummy is one of the most played variants given its widespread popularity.

Also known as California Rummy, this version of rummy is played between 3-8 players, which turns it into a very fun game. While it is very similar to other well-known rummy games, a few distinctions make Shanghai Rummy a completely different experience. This card game is a fun way to relax while also being extremely dynamic and interactive.

Shanghai Rummy is very simple and easy to grasp, which makes it a popular choice amongst families. Now that we know a little bit about it, let’s have a look at how to play Shanghai Rummy.

What is Shanghai Rummy?

Shanghai Rummy is an interesting version of a standard rummy game. In this version of the game, players look to shed off their cards from the hand, with the player who manages to get rid of all the cards first being declared as the winner.

While this concept may seem simple, there are quite a few subtleties that should be mastered if you want to ace the game. It is important for the players to watch the cards while also understanding that there might be a temporary drawback en route to victory. Let’s have a deeper look at the game setup and preparation alongside how to play Shanghai Rummy.

Game Setup and Preparation in Shanghai Rummy

Shanghai Rummy requires some setup and preparation for the game to begin. The number of decks required to play this game depends on the number of players featured in the single game. As mentioned above, Shanghai rummy can be played between 3-8 players, which requires 2 or 3 regular card decks depending on the number of players.

Cards needed 

3 to 4 players: Two decks of cards and one Joker.

5 to 8 players: Three decks of cards and Two Jokers.

Before the game starts, it is important to determine which player will be the dealer. To get things started, the first player shuffles the deck while every other player draws a card. The player with a card of the lowest ends up as the dealer for that first round.

The player then goes on to deal a hand of 11 cards to all players while the remaining cards are placed face down, which becomes the draw pile. Later on, the top card from the draw pile is placed face up, which goes on to become the discard pile.

Every turn begins with a player either taking the top card from the discard pile or taking a card from the draw pile. After pulling a card from either pile, the player is required to discard a card from their hand.

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The discarded card goes on the top of the discard pile, which can later be used by the player whose turn is next. It is important to note that cards below the top card in the discard pile cannot be used by other players from the middle.

However, there is a twist as a player can act outside their turn and gather the top discard card by buying it. Every player can buy a certain number of cards during a round. This allows the players to make tradeoffs and get the card needed to form a set or run. When a player buys a card in a certain round, they need to draw another card from the top of the discard pile.

How to Play Shanghai Rummy 

Shanghai Rummy has a lot of similarities to various classic rummy set games but is a little different as well. The overall goal of Shanghai Rummy is to form melds, which are a particular combination of cards.

A valid meld in Shanghai Rummy can either be a run or a set. A set is a combination of the three cards of different suits or the same suit. A run, on the other end, is cards that are in sequence and follow the same suit while being consecutive numbers. It is crucial to know that a set can have cards from any suit barring the same number while a run needs cards of the same set.

For example: A run of King, Ace, and 2 of hearts would not be legal. This is because the highest possible card in Shanghai rummy is the ace. As the ace is ranked above a king in the game, it cannot be used at the start of a run. Similarly a run of A, 2, 3 would not be legal while a run of  2, 3, 4 would work perfectly.

It is also worth noting that a player who has melded can add cards to a meld of another player to reduce his/her point tally. For example, if a different player has created a meld of 3, 4, 5 clubs, then another player can add his/ her 6 of clubs to that meld.

 Every player can meld only during their turn with each turn holding a 1 meld limit. The player can only meld if they have the cards to fulfill the winning conditions for the game.

For example: If the game requires the player to create a four-card sequence while he has five, then they need to discard that extra card before melding. It is worth remembering that players can choose to meld at any time and can also delay melding despite having all the cards needed.

Shanghai Rummy also allows the player to ‘lay off’ as many cards as they like once they are melded. However, players cannot ‘lay off’ a card in the same turn when they have melded. The game has 10 hands and follows a clockwise direction, with the game ending when one player has played every card in their hand.

The Use of Jokers

Players are given the opportunity to use a joker as a substitute for any missing card from a sequence or run in Shanghai Rummy. However, it is crucial to note that one player cannot equal or exceed the number of Jokers and non-Joker cards in a hand. 

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Example: Playing a Joker alongside a 6 of clubs as well a 6 of spades would be legal. However, playing a Joker with a 6 of clubs alone is illegal. Remember, players can substitute a Joker from any meld with a correct card during their turn.

Buying Cards in Shanghai Rummy

A player gets the option of ‘Buying Cards‘ in Shanghai Rummy. This buying occurs during the turn of other players while players make their meld during their turn stopping players from playing cards immediately.

If a situation arises where more than one player wishes to ‘buy a card’ then the player who is closest in the order of play gets to make the first pick. It should also be noted that the turn always goes in a clockwise direction. Let’s have a look at the number of cards every player is allowed to buy in each round.

Round 1 -7: Only two buys per round

Round 8-10: Three buys per round

Shanghai Rummy: Hands

The hands in Shanghai Rummy can change every round, which makes the winning conditions more difficult with each passing round. We have shared the winning conditions list in Shanghai Rummy below. Don’t forget to keep them in your mind while playing.

Round 1: Two sets with three cards

Round 2: One set of three cards alongside a sequence with four cards

Round 3: Two four-card sequences

Round 4: Three sets of 3 cards

Round 5: 1 set of three cards and a seven-card sequence.

Round 6: Two sets of three cards and a five-card sequence.

Round 7: Three sequences of four cards each

Round 8: One set of three cards and a 10-card sequence.

Round 9: 3 sets of three cards and a 5-card sequence

Round 10: Three sequences of five cards.

Shanghai Rummy: Scoring

Every player starts off the game with 0 points. Shanghai Rummy sees the scoring add up at the end of every round of play. The points are added based on every remaining card that is left in the players’ hand at the end of the round. The winner of the round who has no cards left will earn zero points. At the end of the final round, the player with the lowest point score is the winner. Here’s how the scores are tallied in Shanghai Rummy.

2 – 9 Cards: 5 points.

Ten, Jack, Queen, and King: 10 points.

Ace: 15 points.

Joker: 20 points.

While the Shanghai Rummy scoring system may seem a little complex, there are a lot of strategies that can be implemented to shed cards and win this game.

The Shanghai Rummy game requires planning skills, good strategy, as well as the ability to evaluate the opponent’s game based on the cards they discard. Players who play at a high level can make accurate predictions and manage to collect the cards needed and form the right combo and win. Despite being a challenging game, Shanghai Rummy is easy to pick up. Once you understand the fundamentals of this game, it is very easy to move the cards and get started!

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