Gamma Waves (longer/difficult games)
Games on this page:
TIC Rummy
Team TIC
Sequences
Games on this page:
TIC Rummy
Team TIC
Sequences
TIC Rummy
Number of players: 2 to 4
Age range: 12 and up
Length: To play all rounds takes ~2 hours
Point Tallying: yes
Please refer to ‘TIC Card Principles’ to understand the concept of ‘Commonness’ and ‘Sequences’
Objective: Build two or three collections of cards required by a pre-determined list, laydown the cards and then be the first to ‘go out’ by discarding your last card. Each round the collections get more difficult to build. When the first person goes out on the last round, the points are tallied and the person with the lowest number wins.
Round 1: Dealt 9 cards. Achieve 4 cards that Single and 4 cards with a Mono sequence.
Round 2: Dealt 8 cards. Achieve 3 cards that Tic and 3 cards that Nic.
Round 3: Dealt 8 cards. Achieve 3 cards that Tic and 3 cards with a Duo sequence.
Round 4: Dealt 9 cards. Achieve 4 cards that Tic and 4 cards that Nic.
Round 5: Dealt 9 cards. Achieve 4 cards that Tic and 4 cards with a Duo sequence.
Round 6: Dealt 11 cards. Achieve 3 cards that Tic, 3 cards that Nic and 3 cards with a Duo sequence.
Round 7: Dealt 8 cards. Achieve 3 cards that Tic and 3 cards with a Tripo sequence.
Round 8: Dealt 13 cards. Achieve 4 cards that Tic, 4 cards that Nic and 3 cards with a Tripo sequence.
Setup: To start, all players are dealt 9 cards for round 1. The remaining cards are placed face-down in the middle. The top card is flipped over face-up and placed beside the deck (the discard pile). On subsequent rounds, a given player is dealt the number of cards dictated by round they need to complete. For example, one player could be on round 5 (9 cards) and another player on round 6 (11 cards).
Play: The player to the left of the dealer starts (or the youngest person). Play moves clockwise. To start a turn, a player picks up a card either from the discard pile (face-up card) or from the face-down deck. To end a turn or to end a round and ‘go out’, a player must discard one card to the discard pile. Once a player completes the required collections, they are now able to lay down but do not have to. If laying down, all collections must be laid down at the same time. As the number of cards held is always greater than that required by the collections, a player must integrate these ‘extra cards’ into either their own collection or an opponent’s collection (i.e. it must Tic with a Tic collection or it must be in sequence with a sequence collection etc.). The extra card integration can be done at the same time a player lays down their collections, or afterwards, but not before they laydown.
To ‘go out’ a player must have laid down their completed collections and discard their last card to the discard pile. If a player goes out, they get to progress to the next round. If a player has laid down their collections but is not the one to go out, they still get to move on the next round, but the value of remaining card held counts against them: add up the number, shape and color value. However, if a player has not laid down their collections when someone goes out, the player does not get to move on to the next round and must repeat the same round. Furthermore, all the cards held must be added up and count against them.
Laydown rules: On the initial laydown of a sequence collection, one cannot repeat or wrap the sequence around going in the reverse or forward direction after the top or bottom end of the sequence is met. For example, one can laydown the sequence collection 1,2,3,4,5 but cannot laydown the sequence, 2,3,4,5,1 or 5,1,2,3,4 (repeating); OR 2,1,2,3,4 or 2,3,4,5,4 (wrapping). However, when adding an ‘extra card’ to a sequence collection that is already on the table, wrapping the sequence is allowed. This concept applies to all three properties, the numbers, shapes and colors. Importantly, all properties can wrap independent of each other. For example, in a sequence where all three properties are ascending, the shapes may start to wrap and descend at a certain card (i.e. triangle, square, star, square, whereas the number and color are still ascending at that card (2,3,4,5 and violet, cyan, yellow, orange) etc.
On the more difficult rounds, it is possible that no one completes the collections and goes out before the deck is exhausted. Repeat the round if this happens.
Number of players: 2 to 4
Age range: 12 and up
Length: To play all rounds takes ~2 hours
Point Tallying: yes
Please refer to ‘TIC Card Principles’ to understand the concept of ‘Commonness’ and ‘Sequences’
Objective: Build two or three collections of cards required by a pre-determined list, laydown the cards and then be the first to ‘go out’ by discarding your last card. Each round the collections get more difficult to build. When the first person goes out on the last round, the points are tallied and the person with the lowest number wins.
Round 1: Dealt 9 cards. Achieve 4 cards that Single and 4 cards with a Mono sequence.
Round 2: Dealt 8 cards. Achieve 3 cards that Tic and 3 cards that Nic.
Round 3: Dealt 8 cards. Achieve 3 cards that Tic and 3 cards with a Duo sequence.
Round 4: Dealt 9 cards. Achieve 4 cards that Tic and 4 cards that Nic.
Round 5: Dealt 9 cards. Achieve 4 cards that Tic and 4 cards with a Duo sequence.
Round 6: Dealt 11 cards. Achieve 3 cards that Tic, 3 cards that Nic and 3 cards with a Duo sequence.
Round 7: Dealt 8 cards. Achieve 3 cards that Tic and 3 cards with a Tripo sequence.
Round 8: Dealt 13 cards. Achieve 4 cards that Tic, 4 cards that Nic and 3 cards with a Tripo sequence.
Setup: To start, all players are dealt 9 cards for round 1. The remaining cards are placed face-down in the middle. The top card is flipped over face-up and placed beside the deck (the discard pile). On subsequent rounds, a given player is dealt the number of cards dictated by round they need to complete. For example, one player could be on round 5 (9 cards) and another player on round 6 (11 cards).
Play: The player to the left of the dealer starts (or the youngest person). Play moves clockwise. To start a turn, a player picks up a card either from the discard pile (face-up card) or from the face-down deck. To end a turn or to end a round and ‘go out’, a player must discard one card to the discard pile. Once a player completes the required collections, they are now able to lay down but do not have to. If laying down, all collections must be laid down at the same time. As the number of cards held is always greater than that required by the collections, a player must integrate these ‘extra cards’ into either their own collection or an opponent’s collection (i.e. it must Tic with a Tic collection or it must be in sequence with a sequence collection etc.). The extra card integration can be done at the same time a player lays down their collections, or afterwards, but not before they laydown.
To ‘go out’ a player must have laid down their completed collections and discard their last card to the discard pile. If a player goes out, they get to progress to the next round. If a player has laid down their collections but is not the one to go out, they still get to move on the next round, but the value of remaining card held counts against them: add up the number, shape and color value. However, if a player has not laid down their collections when someone goes out, the player does not get to move on to the next round and must repeat the same round. Furthermore, all the cards held must be added up and count against them.
Laydown rules: On the initial laydown of a sequence collection, one cannot repeat or wrap the sequence around going in the reverse or forward direction after the top or bottom end of the sequence is met. For example, one can laydown the sequence collection 1,2,3,4,5 but cannot laydown the sequence, 2,3,4,5,1 or 5,1,2,3,4 (repeating); OR 2,1,2,3,4 or 2,3,4,5,4 (wrapping). However, when adding an ‘extra card’ to a sequence collection that is already on the table, wrapping the sequence is allowed. This concept applies to all three properties, the numbers, shapes and colors. Importantly, all properties can wrap independent of each other. For example, in a sequence where all three properties are ascending, the shapes may start to wrap and descend at a certain card (i.e. triangle, square, star, square, whereas the number and color are still ascending at that card (2,3,4,5 and violet, cyan, yellow, orange) etc.
On the more difficult rounds, it is possible that no one completes the collections and goes out before the deck is exhausted. Repeat the round if this happens.
TIC Rummy Examples
TIC Rummy extra card laydown examples for sequences
Team TIC updated and improved Dec 12 2020
Number of players: 2, 4 or 6. For 4 or 6 players, have teams of two. The two player game is head to head.
Age range: 12 and up
Length: 25min to 1.5hrs
Point Tallying: Yes
Objective: Working alone (2 person game) or in teams of two (4 or 6 person game), lay down the most three, four and five-card Tic sets face-up on the table to earn the most points. Getting rid of all your cards by laying down and/or discarding, is also worth points. The round (or the game if playing only once) ends when the first person goes out of cards or the full deck is exhausted. Cards left in hand count against the final score.
Setup: For two teams of two, teammates sit across from each other, with the opposing team in the alternate/interleaving position. For three teams of two, ensure a player from each team gets to play before the first team gets their second play.
Each player is dealt 12 cards (2 person game) or 8 cards (team game). The deck is placed in the middle of the table, face-down. Flip the top card over and place beside the deck to start the "discard chain". As cards are discarded here during the game, they get placed side by side in an overlapping way so that all can be seen in a line.
Play: The player to the left of the dealer starts. Play moves clockwise. To start a turn, a player picks up the top card from the deck, or can pick up one or more cards from the discard chain. If picking up from the deck, a player can lay down any 3, 4 or 5 cards Tics they have in their hand or that were created by the pick up. The player ends their turn by laying one card on the discard chain (so that all cards in the chain are visible). Pick one person on each team to manage the Tic sets. If picking up from the discard chain, one can only pick up if it allows them to make a 3, 4 or 5 card Tic. Here, the player picks up all the cards in the chain up to the point where the last card is located that will be laid down to make the Tic. This Tic must be laid down immediately. Otherwise, laying down Tics in hand can be done as desired (does not have to be immediately). Again, the turn ends by discarding one card to the discard chain. During a player's turn, they can also add one or two cards to any existing three or four card Tic they or their teammate have previously laid down (turning a three card Tic into a four card Tic for example). Note that one cannot add to an existing five card Tic because it is already complete. A player can also lay down up to two cards that Tic with an existing Tic set on the table laid down by opponent(s). This type of lay down does not score points, but it can get a player (or team) closer to going out of cards, or reducing the count against with cards remaining in hand at the end of the game/round. A player can 'go out' of all their cards at any time by laying down their own Tic sets, laying down card(s) that Tic with opponent Tic sets, and/or discarding at the end of their turn. When the first player goes out, the round (or the game) ends and points are tallied. In the team game, only one member of the team needs to go out of cards to end it. If no player goes out this way and the deck is fully exhausted, players attempt to play down their remaining cards taking turns. Here, discards and pick ups from the discard chain can still occur, but the game ends when the first player cannot pick up from the discard chain. Points are then tallied.
The key play elements are: 1) be careful what you discard to avoid giving opponent(s) what they need; 2) track what Tic sets are played, as laying down your own sets can hamper the ability of your opponent(s) to increase the size of their Tics; and 3) keep watch of the entire discard chain for cards that allow you to make new three, four or five card Tic sets.
Scoring: Each team (or each player in the two player version) tallies their points.
Three card Tics are worth 3 points
Four card Tics are worth 8 points
Five card Tics are worth 20 points
The person or team that goes out of cards first earns 10 points
*Special score: The 5-star-red is the top card in the TIC deck. For any Tic set incorporating this card, the score gets multiplied by 3.
*Any cards still held in hand at the end of the game by each team count against. Each card in hand is valued at -2 points (except for the 5-star-red which is -10). Subtract this total from the Tic set score. For example, if Team A had 86 points in Tic sets, but between both players they still held 8 cards at the end, the final score is 70.
Variation: Instead of playing with Tics, this game can be to play with trying to lay down Duo Sequences (Tripo Sequences are allowed too but much less likely to occur). All other rules and game elements are the same as above. In this game the sequence is allowed to “wrap” around. This means that when a sequence hits the top or the bottom end, the next card can begin the sequence again moving in the opposite direction. For example, if there is the number sequence 3-4-5, the next card be a 2 on the left, or it could be a 4 on the right: 3-4-5-4...This concept applies to any property. Recall that all properties can sequence independent of each other. You could begin to wrap the numbers while the shapes are still ascending linearly etc.
Number of players: 2, 4 or 6. For 4 or 6 players, have teams of two. The two player game is head to head.
Age range: 12 and up
Length: 25min to 1.5hrs
Point Tallying: Yes
Objective: Working alone (2 person game) or in teams of two (4 or 6 person game), lay down the most three, four and five-card Tic sets face-up on the table to earn the most points. Getting rid of all your cards by laying down and/or discarding, is also worth points. The round (or the game if playing only once) ends when the first person goes out of cards or the full deck is exhausted. Cards left in hand count against the final score.
Setup: For two teams of two, teammates sit across from each other, with the opposing team in the alternate/interleaving position. For three teams of two, ensure a player from each team gets to play before the first team gets their second play.
Each player is dealt 12 cards (2 person game) or 8 cards (team game). The deck is placed in the middle of the table, face-down. Flip the top card over and place beside the deck to start the "discard chain". As cards are discarded here during the game, they get placed side by side in an overlapping way so that all can be seen in a line.
Play: The player to the left of the dealer starts. Play moves clockwise. To start a turn, a player picks up the top card from the deck, or can pick up one or more cards from the discard chain. If picking up from the deck, a player can lay down any 3, 4 or 5 cards Tics they have in their hand or that were created by the pick up. The player ends their turn by laying one card on the discard chain (so that all cards in the chain are visible). Pick one person on each team to manage the Tic sets. If picking up from the discard chain, one can only pick up if it allows them to make a 3, 4 or 5 card Tic. Here, the player picks up all the cards in the chain up to the point where the last card is located that will be laid down to make the Tic. This Tic must be laid down immediately. Otherwise, laying down Tics in hand can be done as desired (does not have to be immediately). Again, the turn ends by discarding one card to the discard chain. During a player's turn, they can also add one or two cards to any existing three or four card Tic they or their teammate have previously laid down (turning a three card Tic into a four card Tic for example). Note that one cannot add to an existing five card Tic because it is already complete. A player can also lay down up to two cards that Tic with an existing Tic set on the table laid down by opponent(s). This type of lay down does not score points, but it can get a player (or team) closer to going out of cards, or reducing the count against with cards remaining in hand at the end of the game/round. A player can 'go out' of all their cards at any time by laying down their own Tic sets, laying down card(s) that Tic with opponent Tic sets, and/or discarding at the end of their turn. When the first player goes out, the round (or the game) ends and points are tallied. In the team game, only one member of the team needs to go out of cards to end it. If no player goes out this way and the deck is fully exhausted, players attempt to play down their remaining cards taking turns. Here, discards and pick ups from the discard chain can still occur, but the game ends when the first player cannot pick up from the discard chain. Points are then tallied.
The key play elements are: 1) be careful what you discard to avoid giving opponent(s) what they need; 2) track what Tic sets are played, as laying down your own sets can hamper the ability of your opponent(s) to increase the size of their Tics; and 3) keep watch of the entire discard chain for cards that allow you to make new three, four or five card Tic sets.
Scoring: Each team (or each player in the two player version) tallies their points.
Three card Tics are worth 3 points
Four card Tics are worth 8 points
Five card Tics are worth 20 points
The person or team that goes out of cards first earns 10 points
*Special score: The 5-star-red is the top card in the TIC deck. For any Tic set incorporating this card, the score gets multiplied by 3.
*Any cards still held in hand at the end of the game by each team count against. Each card in hand is valued at -2 points (except for the 5-star-red which is -10). Subtract this total from the Tic set score. For example, if Team A had 86 points in Tic sets, but between both players they still held 8 cards at the end, the final score is 70.
Variation: Instead of playing with Tics, this game can be to play with trying to lay down Duo Sequences (Tripo Sequences are allowed too but much less likely to occur). All other rules and game elements are the same as above. In this game the sequence is allowed to “wrap” around. This means that when a sequence hits the top or the bottom end, the next card can begin the sequence again moving in the opposite direction. For example, if there is the number sequence 3-4-5, the next card be a 2 on the left, or it could be a 4 on the right: 3-4-5-4...This concept applies to any property. Recall that all properties can sequence independent of each other. You could begin to wrap the numbers while the shapes are still ascending linearly etc.
Sequences
Difficulty: Hard
Number of players: 2 to 8
Age range: 12 and up
Length: 2-10 min per round.
Point Tallying: No
Refer to TIC Card Principles to understand the concept of ‘Sequences’ between TIC cards.
Objective: Build a 6 card hand with the highest rank. One is trying to achieve the best single sequence or best two short sequences. Longer sequences (more cards) and more difficult sequences (Tripos over Duos over Monos) are of higher rank. See the different hands in the list and picture examples.
Setup: All players are dealt three cards. Two cards are placed face-up in the middle. The middle cards are common and used by all players. The remaining deck is kept with the dealer.
Play: To start, all players choose one card to discard (if they want) in exchange for a new card form the dealer. Exchanges move in the clockwise direction around the table. To finish the round, a new card is added to the center face-up beside the existing common cards. All players again choose a single card they want to discard in exchange for a new card from the dealer and afterwards a new card is added to the center face-up. This repeats until there are 6 cards in the center. Now all players lay down their hands and try to make the best 6 card hand from their cards and the cards in the middle. A single card cannot be used in more than one way to make the best hand.
At any point if a player thinks they have a winning hand, they can ‘call’ instead of exchanging a card. All other players that still need to play in the round have one more opportunity to improve their hand with an exchange. Then, one final card is added to the center before everyone lays down.
The best hand wins. If multiple players have the same type of hand, use the ‘value’ of highest card held in hand to determine the winner (count-up the number, shape and color). If the totals are the same, number trumps shape, shape trumps color.
How to win the game: Have the number of possible points won by a player on a given round equal the number of players. If playing with four players, the winner receives 4 points, the next best hand wins 3 points, the next best hand wins 2 points etc. Play a predetermined number of rounds like 5 or 10 and see who has the most points at the end.
Variation 1: Instead of having players exclusively exchange their own cards with the dealer, each player takes a turn either swapping one of the common cards in the middle with one card from the dealer, or exchanging one of their own cards with one from the dealer. In this game, it is advantageous to be the last to exchange a common card; thus, everyone needs to have equal opportunity to deal, and be the last to exchange a card. Rotate clockwise around the table accordingly.
Variation 2: Instead of having common cards in the middle, players are dealt 6 cards. Each round players are allowed to exchange up to two cards with the dealer. Play a pre-determine number of exchanges, such as 3, 4 or 5. All other rules are the same as above.
Variation 3: Use betting following standard poker rules. Even when playing with the family, it is fun to use worthless poker chips. Only with betting does bluffing become an important aspect of the game.
Hand rank order (lowest to highest):
1) Highest value card (add number, shape and color value)
2) Four cards with one property in sequence
3) Five cards with one property in sequence
4) Three cards with two properties in sequence i.e. simultaneously linearly ascending or descending.
5) Four cards with two properties sequencing
6) Two groups of three cards, each with two properties sequencing
7) Five cards with two properties sequencing
8) Three cards with three properties sequencing
9) Three cards with three properties sequencing plus three cards with two properties sequencing
10) Four cards with three properties sequencing
11) Two groups of three cards, each with three properties sequencing
12) Five cards with three properties sequencing
Part of the skill in this game is knowing what hand you have; thus, each player is responsible for stating the rank of their own hand.
Difficulty: Hard
Number of players: 2 to 8
Age range: 12 and up
Length: 2-10 min per round.
Point Tallying: No
Refer to TIC Card Principles to understand the concept of ‘Sequences’ between TIC cards.
Objective: Build a 6 card hand with the highest rank. One is trying to achieve the best single sequence or best two short sequences. Longer sequences (more cards) and more difficult sequences (Tripos over Duos over Monos) are of higher rank. See the different hands in the list and picture examples.
Setup: All players are dealt three cards. Two cards are placed face-up in the middle. The middle cards are common and used by all players. The remaining deck is kept with the dealer.
Play: To start, all players choose one card to discard (if they want) in exchange for a new card form the dealer. Exchanges move in the clockwise direction around the table. To finish the round, a new card is added to the center face-up beside the existing common cards. All players again choose a single card they want to discard in exchange for a new card from the dealer and afterwards a new card is added to the center face-up. This repeats until there are 6 cards in the center. Now all players lay down their hands and try to make the best 6 card hand from their cards and the cards in the middle. A single card cannot be used in more than one way to make the best hand.
At any point if a player thinks they have a winning hand, they can ‘call’ instead of exchanging a card. All other players that still need to play in the round have one more opportunity to improve their hand with an exchange. Then, one final card is added to the center before everyone lays down.
The best hand wins. If multiple players have the same type of hand, use the ‘value’ of highest card held in hand to determine the winner (count-up the number, shape and color). If the totals are the same, number trumps shape, shape trumps color.
How to win the game: Have the number of possible points won by a player on a given round equal the number of players. If playing with four players, the winner receives 4 points, the next best hand wins 3 points, the next best hand wins 2 points etc. Play a predetermined number of rounds like 5 or 10 and see who has the most points at the end.
Variation 1: Instead of having players exclusively exchange their own cards with the dealer, each player takes a turn either swapping one of the common cards in the middle with one card from the dealer, or exchanging one of their own cards with one from the dealer. In this game, it is advantageous to be the last to exchange a common card; thus, everyone needs to have equal opportunity to deal, and be the last to exchange a card. Rotate clockwise around the table accordingly.
Variation 2: Instead of having common cards in the middle, players are dealt 6 cards. Each round players are allowed to exchange up to two cards with the dealer. Play a pre-determine number of exchanges, such as 3, 4 or 5. All other rules are the same as above.
Variation 3: Use betting following standard poker rules. Even when playing with the family, it is fun to use worthless poker chips. Only with betting does bluffing become an important aspect of the game.
Hand rank order (lowest to highest):
1) Highest value card (add number, shape and color value)
2) Four cards with one property in sequence
3) Five cards with one property in sequence
4) Three cards with two properties in sequence i.e. simultaneously linearly ascending or descending.
5) Four cards with two properties sequencing
6) Two groups of three cards, each with two properties sequencing
7) Five cards with two properties sequencing
8) Three cards with three properties sequencing
9) Three cards with three properties sequencing plus three cards with two properties sequencing
10) Four cards with three properties sequencing
11) Two groups of three cards, each with three properties sequencing
12) Five cards with three properties sequencing
Part of the skill in this game is knowing what hand you have; thus, each player is responsible for stating the rank of their own hand.
