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FIRST PLAYABLE RULES


While the Lando Calrissian Adventures introduced the principle features of Sabacc into the expanded lore of the Star Wars Universe, the first actually playable Sabacc game was published by West End Games as part of their Star Wars Tabletop Roleplaying Game. Although based on the game in the Lando novels, it made some peculiar changes to the cards and deck. This version would be the most influential source for depictions of the game in and beyond the EU era.

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  • Crisis on Cloud City, West End Games RPG Supplement (1984)

- First playable rules for Sabacc, designed to be used as part of a tabletop roleplaying adventure.

- Based loosely on the gane depicted in the Lando Calrissian Adventures.
 

Crisis on Cloud City

Crisis on Cloud City

West End Games (1988)

​​​Sabacc Rules Booklet

Cut Out

Card Fold

APPEARANCES IN EXPANDED UNIVERSE NOVELS & LORE (1991-2012)


The West End Games version of Sabacc would go on to shape the depiction of Sabacc through-out the lore of the Expanded Universe era, in novels and lore tie-ins.  Noteworthy depictions of the game include Rebel Dawn (1997) in which Han Solo wins the Millenium Falcon from Lando, and Path of Destruction (2006) in which the man who would become Darth Bane plays Sabacc. ​

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​​Adventures of a Jedi Prince: Zorba the Hutt's Revenge (1992)

- In which Lando Calrissian loses a rigged game of Sabacc to Zorba the Hutt, and (temporarily) loses ownership of Cloud City.​

Star Wars: Rebel Dawn (1998)

- Han Solo wins the Millenium Falcon from Lando Calrissian in the Cloud City Sabacc Tournament.​​

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​Star Wars Tales (Vol.3) - Lady Luck (2000)

- In which Lando wins Cloud City from Baron Dominic Raynor in a Sabacc game - with a little outside help!​

Star Wars Underworld: The Yavin Vasilika (2000-2001)

- In which Lando skips out on a losing hand on Nar Shadaa.

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The Star Wars Fact Files (2000-2005)

- Sabacc Cards & Dealer Droid Datafiles, Artwork depicting Sabacc Cards.​​

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Darth Bane: Path of Destruction (2006)

- In which the man who would become Darth Bane plays Sabacc on the cortosis mining world of Atropos, seeking to pay off his company debts to the Outer Rim Oreworks Corporation.

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​Star Wars Edge of the Empire: The Jewel of Yavin Adventure Module (2014)

- Artwork depicting Sabacc Cards​

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APPEARANCES IN NEW DISNEY CANON (2012-PRESENT)


The West End Games version of Sabacc would go on to shapethe depiction of Sabacc through-out the lore of the Expanded Universe era, in novels and lore tie-ins.  Noteworthy depictions of the game include Rebel Dawn (1997) in which Han Solo wins the Millenium Falcon from Lando, and Path of Destruction (2006) in which the man who would become Darth Bane plays Sabacc. ​

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New Card Designs seen in Star Wars: Rebels, Season 1 Episode 11 (January 12, 2015)​

  • Video Link

  • Screenshots​

Star Wars Landing Bay - Disney Hollywood Studios (2015) - Cantina Area - Sabacc Rules Wall Inscription

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  • Photographs and Aurebesh Translation by Shane Henderson on Bluesky​

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​Star Wars: Bloodlines (2016)

Leia Organa shows off her sabacc skills during a diplomatic mission. Anomalous attribution of the value 10 to ‘The Star’ card.

Star Wars: The Living Force (2024)

In which a pirate leader’s outlook is heavily influenced by Sabacc and the divinatory functions of the Classic deck.

FAN-MADE RULES FOR CLASSIC SABACC


The West End Games version of Sabacc was a singular publication that could be hard to get hold of.  The rules also featured a few pecularities stemming from the fact they were designed for use in a tabletop roleplaying scenario. From 1990-2015, fans shared the WEG rules on the internet, but also modified and re-interpreted them to make them more suitable for card play.  The card history website Pagat.com documents and archives these fan version, and graciously gave us permission to link their resources.

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CLASSIC/TRADITIONAL SABACC ON PAGAT.COM (1990-2015)​

​​Pagat.com is an archive of card game rules for real-world card games and included a section on fictional card games. For a significant amount of time it was one of the only sources that stored rules for Sabacc, sourced from Star Wars community groups like Usenet and Google groups. 

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​​Ryan B. Rules​

Original Source: Pagat.com

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M.Brent Rules
Original Source: rec.arts.sf.starwars on Google groups

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Marc JS. Rules

Original Source: Star Wars Usenet E-Mail Group)

Peter Kerton Rules
Original Source: Star Wars Usenet E-Mail Group)

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CURRENT RULESETS FOR CLASSIC SABACC


With the explosion of interest in Sabacc, modern fans continue to play the Classic game as depicted in Rebels and the Expanded Universe novels. The rulesets in use are still modified versions of the West End Game rules, adapted to filter out some of their pecularities. Rules for the Classic game are maintained for the Sabacc Cantina App and Hyperspace Props. 

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 'Traditional Sabacc' by Hyperspace Props
Rules for 'Traditional Sabacc' by Hyperspace Props. 

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