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Adrian Berger
RESOURCES
Play on Sabacc Cantina App
Rules for Kessel Sabacc
(as played on the Sabacc Cantina App)
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GOAL
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In Kessel Sabacc, you invest chips to improve your hand and get a pair, a Sabacc hand. To win a round, you need to have the best hand at the end of 3 turns.
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The last player with chips in stock wins the game, and the content of the credits pot.
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CARDS
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The deck comprises 44 cards divided into two suits or families: Sand and Blood. Each suit contains:
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18 positive cards valued from 1 to 6, with 3 of each value
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3 Imposter Cards
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1 Sylop Card
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The card value is depicted by its header and central symbol which represent Corellian numeral values.
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HAND VALUE
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The goal is to minimize your hand value. You are seeking to both match the value of your cards (a pair with 0 difference between them) and to get the closest value to 0.
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A sabacc hand consisting of lower value cards is stronger, with a hand of 0/0 being the best card value, and 6 being the worst.
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SPECIAL CARDS
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Sylop Cards
When revealed, the Sylop will take the value of the other card in your hand, forming a pair and a Sabacc hand. This is known as a Sylop Sabacc. A pair of Sylops is a Pure Sabacc. There is 1 Sylop card in each suit or family.
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Imposter Cards
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When revealed, the player will throw a pair of dice and choose 1 of the values thrown. The Imposter takes on the value of the chosen dice, completing your hand. There are 3 Imposters per suit or family.
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A Sylop Sabacc or Imposter Sabacc are equivalent to a standard Sabacc hand of the same value.
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A pair of Sylops is a Pure Sabacc, and is the best hand in the game.
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SHIFT TOKENS
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Kessel Sabacc is played with 3 Shift Tokens, which are powerful game modifiers.
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A Shift Token can be played once in the game, and only at the beginning of your turn, before Standing or Drawing.
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There are 16 types of Shift Token which may be selected or randomly drafted for play (see below).
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GAMEPLAY PHASES
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Games of Kessel Sabacc proceed in the following way:
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FIRST ROUND SETUP
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Determine Starting Player: The starting player rotates clockwise each round.
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Stake: Each player contributes a stake to the Sabacc pot.
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Chip Stock: Each player receives a stock of 4-8 Tax Chips according to the intended length of the game and size of the stke.
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Deal Cards: Players are dealt 2 cards, one from the each family of Sand and Blood.
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Draw Piles: The remaining cards form separate draw piles for Sand and Blood cards. 1 Card is drawn from each to start the Discard Piles for each family.
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Assign Shift Tokens: Players either select from an available stock of Shift Tokens, are assigned a predetermined selection, or receive a random selection of tokens.
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Each game proceeds through 3 rounds. In each round, each player gets 3 turns. Each round concludes with the Reveal.
CARD TURNS
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On their turn, player may:
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Draw a Card — Invest 1 Tax Chip to draw a card from the top of any of the Draw or DIscard piles. After drawing you must discard a card from the same family, always keeping one card of each family in hand.
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Stand — Pass without drawing a card or investing any chips.
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Each round lasts 3 turns, giving you 3 opportunities to improve your hand.
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REVEAL
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After each player has played 3 times, everyone reveals their hands. If every player stands during a turn, everyone reveals their hands.
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WIN & LOSS CONDITIONS
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The player with a pair closest to zero wins the round. The player who wins a round loses no tax chips. All of their invested chips are returned to their stock.
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Players who have a Sabacc hand but do not win will lose their invested chips, and are also taxed one chip from their stock.
Without a Sabacc hand, you lose your invested chips, and are taxed an amount equal to the difference of your card values. All taxed chips are lost.
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If your chips stock is empty by the end of the reveal phase, you are eliminated from the game.
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You win the game upon being the last player with chips in stock, and collect the content of the Sabacc Pot.
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