People in India love rummy card games. It is not surprising that there are so many variations of Indian Rummy card games. Yet, there are also people who are still not familiar with rummy games. If you are still new to rummy, there are many questions that may come to your mind while getting familiar with India’s popular card game. In this post, we hope to share the answers to those questions so that you get acquainted with rummy card games easily. It will also help you socialise easily with rummy playing folks. So, here we go:
What is an open card?
An open card is the card topmost on the deck. When the dealer completes distributing the cards to the players in rummy games, he leaves the topmost card in the remaining deck open. This card plays the role of the topmost card on the disposed pile for the first player. The first player can either pick the open card or the next card in the deck. The remaining players can either pick the card disposed by the previous player or the card topmost on the deck.
What is a disposed pile?
A disposed pile is a pile of cards formed by the cards disposed by each player during his turn. In rummy, since the players need to dispose one card when they pick a card, a disposed pile is formed. This method of gaming ensures that each player has the same number of cards in his hand till the completion of the game.
What is a sequence?
A sequence is an arrangement of cards in the ascending or descending order of their values. All the cards in a sequence need to belong to the same sign. For instance, if you make a sequence of hearts, all cards used in the sequence should be of hearts sign. Players can make different types of sequences in Indian Rummy card games. You may or may not use jokers to complete sequences in rummy card games. That is why understanding how to make proper sequences can be the key to winning in Indian Rummy.
What is a meld?
A meld or a set is an arrangement of cards of different signs but of the same value (number). For example, it is possible to make a meld using 3 of hearts, 3 of spades and 3 of clubs. It is always allowed to complete a meld using a joker. The number of melds allowed in a hand of rummy may vary based on the variant of rummy you are playing.
What is the difference between a pure sequence and a real sequence?
It is important to understand how sequences differ from each other. It will help you make the right sequences to complete a hand of rummy. A pure or natural sequence is made only by the use of actual cards. It is not allowed to use jokers to complete pure (natural) sequence. This is the reason why the word ‘pure’ is used referring to the absence of jokers.
What is a life?
A good rummy player should understand what the term life means in rummy card games. The term life implies the minimum arrangement of cards upto which a hand is regarded as a full hand. When you are playing series rummy card games, points matter a lot in each round. That is why the players first focus on life while playing their hand.
What are the different types of jokers in rummy?
Just like several other card games, rummy too as wild cards in the form of jokers. These are cards that can help to save the game when you are almost losing. There are many different types of jokers in rummy card games. Every deck includes a few joker cards. These cards can be used as jokers. Apart from these, there are blank cards present in the deck. Some players may choose to use the blanks also as jokers. The player next to the dealer pulls a random card out of the deck. Every card of the value same as the card pulled-out maybe used as a pulled-out joker. This means if the player pulled out an Ace of Hearts, all Ace cards can be used as jokers.
What is a full-hand in rummy?
When the life is not completed in rummy card games, the hand is regarded as a full hand. In series rummy card games, maximum points are considered for a full hand in rummy. It does not matter if you have less than the maximum points, it will still be counted as maximum points. This could harm your chances of winning in a series rummy card game. That is why people playing such games always focus their attention on completing the life first. Once the life is complete, they move onto completing other sequences and melds.
What is the difference between first-drop and second-drop?
Cards also decide your chances of winning or losing the rummy card games. Sometimes the cards in your hand are so bad that you may stand a high chance of losing the game. If you have poor cards right from the start, you can choose first drop in Khelplay Rummy. You can choose first drop before playing the first move in rummy card games. Minimum points are charged based on the rummy variation you are playing in case of first drop.
Sometimes, the cards at the start seem good. You choose to play your hand. As the game progresses, you realise that your chances of winning are bleak. You can quit the game even at this point. This would be referred to as second drop on Khelplay Rummy. The points charged in second drop will be double the points charged during first drop. It is still better to choose second drop in rummy rather than getting a full hand as your opponent wins the game.
What to assess from opponent moves in rummy?
A good player always has an eye on opponent moves in rummy card games. He tries to understand the cards in the opponents’ hands based on the cards he plays. There are several things one can assess based on opponent moves. Here we have listed a few of these:
- When an opponent does not pick from the disposed pile and only picks from the deck, it could mean that his life isn’t complete yet. That is why he does not want to disclose his moves to opponents.
- When an opponent picks a high point card or picture card from the disposed pile, it could mean the card completes a sequence for him.
- When an opponent disposes a joker card, either he is not paying attention to the game or he is having difficulty completing the natural sequence.
- If the opponent is disposing low point cards, it could mean that he is about to complete his hand. If your life is not complete yet, you may consider choosing first drop or second drop at this point.
There is a reason why rummy is referred to as a skills game. It is a game of observation skills and every move implies something. This could be a good reason to improve your rummy gaming skills. Install Khelplay Rummy app on your smartphone device to practice rummy online.