No Thanks
Some card games are about themes and stories. This isn’t the case with the No Thanks card game.
No Thanks is a pure and simple game about numbers. In this game, 3 to 5 players compete to have the lowest score after the last card on the deck is claimed.
Objective
In the game of No Thanks, one card lies in the center of the table, face-up. Players have to choose between two options: to play one of their chips to avoid picking up a face-up card from the middle of the play area or picking up the face-up card and then turning- over the next card.
Every card has a certain number of points on it. A player adds points to their hand by picking cards from the middle.
The objective of the game is to have the lowest score at the end of the game. Therefore, a player must strive to keep their total points low.
Components
The game consists of 33 cards. The cards are numbered 3 through 35 and have a total of 55 playing chips. Every card in front of a player counts points depending on the number it shows.
Therefore, 8-card counts as eight points, 15-card has fifteen points, and 27 card counts as 27 points, and so on.
If there is an unbroken number sequence, the sequence will count according to the lowest number in the sequence. For instance, if a player has cards 8 and 9 in front of them, the two cards will count as 8 points.
In a sequence of 18, 19, and 20, all the cards will count as 18 points.
Therefore, getting an unbroken number sequence is favorable than getting single cards.
Set-Up
To play No Thanks, ever play is dealt 11 chips, and the other chips are returned to the box.
The next step involves shuffling the cards and picking 9 cards from the box without looking at them.
How to play
The game of No Thanks needs 3 to 7 players, a No Thanks card set, and chips. After removing 9 cards from the box, the remaining 24 cards are placed in the middle of the playing area.
The top card is placed face-up. The player can choose to No Thanks or pass on taking the card and place a chip next to the card.
A player could also pick the card and take the chips next to it. The game continues until one of the players decides to take a card.
After claiming a card, the player who takes the card flips over the next card, and the game continues. If a player has no chips left, he must take the card in play.
After all the 24 cards have been taken, each player adds up their card total, and less the number of chips, they have to get the total points. All the chips a player possesses at the end of the game are worth 1 point each.
The player with the lowest score is the winner.
The rules of No Thanks
The rules of the No Thanks card game are simple and straightforward. At the start of the game, a player gets 11 chips; a chip is required to pass on a card. If a player runs out of chips, they have to accept any card passed on to them.
The other rule is that every card is worth its point value at the end of the game.
Therefore, if a card is number 9, it’s worth nine points. However, cards grouped in an unbroken sequence are worth the lowest card. For instance, if you have 20 and 21, you will have 20 points.
Winning strategy
Players can implement two basic winning strategies in a No Thanks card game. If possible, avoid all the high cards. By doing this, you will have an advantage when you run out of chips, and you have to pick the flipped-up card.
You may also choose to pick the high-value cards but ensure that you pick chips to counteract these cards’ high value.
Even if these two strategies can give you an advantage, they don’t always guarantee a win. The strategies should only act as a guide and help determine the right move when you are not sure.
The best thing about the No Thanks game is that it doesn’t have complicated steps. You do not have to think much while playing the game. It’s easy to play, and its rules are simple.
The fact that the game does not involve all the cards means that players can’t card count because they do not know which cards are in the box out of play or in the deck.
The fun aspect of the game is that you can drive play around the player with no chips left, making them take the card.
You can pick a card to prevent a person who needs it for a sequence from picking it. You can also pick a card to prevent another player from getting the needed chips.
All these tactics add more fun and thrill to the game!