The Holodex Lexicon

Apr 27
12 min read

A LIST OF TERMS AND DEFINITIONS USED IN THE HOLODEX

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The goal of the Holodex is to collect and index rules for diegetic Star Wars games, promote these rules to the fan community, and provide a base and resources for developing new games and variants, especially for games introduced into lore without existing rule sets. Part of the project is to create a consistent set of terms and definitions which creators and players can use to understand and communicate the rules of these games in a manner consistent with the tone and setting of the Star Wars Universe and setting.

These terms and concepts denote different elements of game structure, components and table layouts that are commonly used in rules for our card games, dice games and general table games.

Some of this terminology already exists in canon, some of it is difficult, inconsistent or confused. A common language is important for clarity and ease of communication. On the Holodex, we’ve done our best to create a consistent language for the presentation of diegetic rules.

On this page, you’ll find the current list of words and terms in use and their definitions. They are subject to change and revision over time.

Aspect Cards: Cards of the Fifth or Major Suit in a Sabacc deck. In the real-world tarot decks that Sabacc is based on, these are often called the Major Arcana or Arcana cards. Arcana meaning ‘Mystery’ or ‘Secret’. ‘Aspect’ is chosen for the identification of these cards with different aspects or facets of the Force, which can be depicted either as figures or entities, or different kinds of powers or virtues within on suit or deck. See Also: Major Suit, Major Aspect.

Book Token: An officially recognised and ratified Shift Token for Kessel Sabacc, recognised by all as part of the ruleset and permissible for tournament play.

Card Array: A series or sequence of cards laid down on the table, typically beside the draw pile, which players can variously score or trade with according to the rules of the game in question. The cards in an Array are typically singular, though the term may be used to denote a set of card piles as well.

Cast: To throw a dice or set of dice.

Caster: The current principle in a dice game, in charge of casting or setting the dice for that round of play.

Centran Deck: A 78 card Sabacc deck, as portrayed in the first appearance of the game in the Lando Calrissian Adventures. While this was simply a Sabacc deck in those novels, the popularisation of the Classic-style deck by West End Games meant that this deck came to be referred to as a ‘Centran’ deck - since Lando’s adventures in those novels took place in the Centrality Sector. Despite this, the Centrality is never described as the originator of Sabacc or this form of deck.

Chip: A token used in a game to denote the value of a player’s buy-in at the table, used to ante, wager and pay for moves or actions in the game.

Classic Deck: A 76 card Sabacc deck, invented in 1987 by West End Games as a somewhat lopsided interpretation of the Sabacc deck introduced in the Lando Calrissian Adventures. Nonetheless, it became the default form of Sabacc used through-out all later depictions in the Expanded Universe/Legends era canon.

Clone Card: A name for cards in Sabacc which duplicate other cards in the deck or in a player’s hand. A clone card may be a cheating device, or it might have a defined role in a game. In Kessel Sabacc, the Sylop cards act as Clone Cards, mirroring the value of the second card in the player’s hand.

Community Card: A card that has been played to the table, and is typically factored into the hands of everyone at the table. Another term for a community card.

Dealer: The current principle in a card game, responsible for shuffling and dealing the cards to other players, and secondary mechanics like rolling the dice in a Sabacc Shift phase.

Destiny Cards: In the game of Balaans, Destiny Cards are cards with special abilities and effects. Concept art calls them ‘Face Cards’, probably echoing the use of the term in Sabacc for the cards of the Major Aspect.

Discard Pile: A card pile created from cards discarded by other players in the course of play. According to the rules, the cards in this pile may either in play or out of play. Discarded cards remain in play when there are options to pick pick up, buy or trade from the discard pile.

Draw Deck: Usually denotes the principle deck of cards used for a game, from which cards are usually drawn in the course of play.

Draw Pile: Card pile or deck from which cards are draughted in the course of play.

Face Cards: Typically the high value cards in any card suit (such as the Legate, Commander, Mistress, Master & Ace), which can often have figural designs or ‘faces’. Some rules refer to Aspect or Major cards as ‘Face Cards’, but this use is discouraged due to the potential for confusing them with the high suit cards, and the fact that many of them do not use figural designs.

Flag Cards: An alternative name for the Face Cards, referencing their status as high-ranking cards by identifying them with ‘flag officers’. This correlates with the use of ‘Court Cards’ in the real world, where the face cards are often characters with feudal ranks.

Game: In Sabacc, a game begins with the buy-in that a player brings to the table, and ends when they cash out. Within a game, a player may play multiple hands.

Hand Pot (1): Pot into which players ante and bet in a card game, and claimed by the winner of the hand. It is distinct from the Sabacc pot, which can only be one with a specific hand score.

Hand Pot (2): In Kessel Sabacc, the Hand Pot is unique to each player and is where they deposit tax chips used to pay for cards, which are then lost or recovered according to the outcome of the hand. In this, it resembles the function of a Hazard Pot.

Hand: In a Sabacc game, a hand is played from the initial dealing of the player’s hand until those cards are revealed and scored, determining who wins the stake in the hand pot.

Hazard Pot: A pot paid into by an individual player, the content of which rides on the immediate outcome of a round or hand. Wagers in the hazard pot are added to the prize pot if a player loses or is knocked out.

Hedge Pot: A pot into which players place chips in their stock as a form of insurance. It is distinct from a Hand Pot, because the money is used as collateral in the event that a player cannot match another player’s move with the cards in their hand.

In Hazard: A wager or bet that is riding on the immediate outcome of a round or hand, which may be lost to the prize pot if a player loses or is knocked out.

Kessel Deck: A deck of 44 Sabacc cards, split into two families or suits of 22 cards with different colour card backs. The different card backs mark out the two different draw piles used in the game.

Lane: Part of a Card Array in which two lines of player cards are arranged facing each other across the table, creating a set of columns or ‘lanes’. Typically, the two cards facing each other in a lane are directly opposed, and immediately effect or are reckoned against one another.

Major Aspect: A name for the fifth suit and it’s cards in Classic, Centran and Oracle Sabacc decks. The equivalent of the ‘Major Arcana’ in our world, the Major Aspect is a series of cards showing figures and powers that shape the destiny of an individual in the galaxy through the Force.

Major Suit: The fifth suit in Classic, Centran and Oracle Sabacc decks containing the Aspect cards. Also known as the ‘Major Aspect’ in an Oracle deck.

Minor Aspect: A name for one of the four main suits of the Sabacc Deck and their cards, especially an Oracle Deck. In an Oracle Deck with symbolic and divinatory functions, all of the suited cards in the deck have a name, identity and meaning, and explore an ‘aspect’ of the Force or experience in the Force.

Minor Suit: Another name for a Primary Suit or Minor Aspect in the Sabacc deck, drawn from the latter designation.

Nulhrek: Corellian word meaning ‘nothing’ - it designates any hand other than a Pure Sabacc or a Trick Sabacc.

Off-Book Token: A Shift token for Kessel Sabacc that has been created usually as part of the House rules of a cantina, casino or other establishment. Not officially recognised or ratified by regulatory bodies, these tokens cannot be used at official tournament tables.

Oracle Deck: Sabacc decks designed for divinatory functions, typically 78 cards modelled on the real-world tarot. In canon and legends reference material, the 78 deck was designated as a ‘Centran’ deck, however since Sabacc has never been described as originating in the Centrality – its invention attributed to the Ryn species – it is reasonable to assume style of deck must have a broader history, identity and designation, for which an ‘Oracle Deck’ seems an appropriate description.

Phase: In the course of a round, players have the chance to play and trade cards, bet on the outcome of the hand, and are subjected to the chance of a Sabacc shift. Each of these different actions is described as a ‘phase’, at which each player gets an individual turn before the next phase begins.

Pile: General name for a pile of cards on the table. Can be used for the draw deck, but also for any other stock of cards on the table.

Player Board: A board or grid with pre-defined spaces, which a player will fill with cards in the course of the game. Getting a full board is a victory condition in Pazaak.

Player Chip Stock: The sum total of a player’s current buy-in, from which he draws to meet the ante, pay for cards and trades, and make or match a current bet. Once a player’s chip-stock is depleted, they are usually out of the game. In Kessel Sabacc, the chip-stock does not denote the value of their buy-in but is replaced with a set stock of ‘tax chips’.

Player Hand: The cards held by a player, which are available for him to play. At the end of many games, the cards held by a player are played to the table at the ‘reveal’, and receive a final score.

Player Side Deck: A stock of cards typically reserved for the use of a single player, especially in distinction from a primary, communal draw deck. Significant feature of Pazaak, where the contents of a side-deck include cards collected and selected by players rather than pre-selected for the game.

Power Cards: In the game of Balaans, ‘Power’ Cards are cards numbered 1-5 with the specific function of powering and activating cards with special attributes and abilities.

Primary Suit: One of several designators for the four suits of the Sabacc deck in distinction from the fifth suit or Major Aspect.

Prize Pot: Pot of money claimed by the winner of a game, when there are no distinctions between winnings staked on the game and on any one round.

Pure Sabacc: A hand which hits the exact score required to win a Sabacc game, whether the score is 23, 0, or the current target of Coruscant Shift.

Rank Cards: The lower value cards in any card suit, typically ranked by numbers between 1 and 11.

Round (1): In most Sabacc games, a round is completed when every player has had a chance to take card actions, make and meet bets, and check for a Sabacc shift. For this reason, a round is usually divided into ‘phases’. A hand may proceed through multiple rounds until the cards are revealed and a winner takes the hand pot.

Round (2): In Kessel Sabacc, a ‘round’ is more like a hand: it lasts from the initial deal until the reveal. The game is completed over the course of consecutive rounds until all but the winner have been eliminated.

Sabacc Pot: Either (1) The pot into which players pay a secondary ante over the course of a Sabacc game, and can only be won with a Sabacc score or Trick Sabacc, or (2) the prize pot in a Sabacc game that has only a singular pot, like Kessel Sabacc.

Sabacc Shift: A mechanism in a Sabacc game which introduces an element of random chance and a redistribution of odds. The mechanism varies according to the version of the game being played. In Classic and Centran Sabacc, Sabacc shifts are computer-triggered randomization of every card on the table. In Corellian Spike, a dice roll determines whether player hands must be discarded and re-draughted. In Coruscant Shift, the target score and high suit are determined by the dice. In Kessel Sabacc, Shift Tokens with a wide variety of effects are used by players to tip the odds.

Set (1): Used in Pazaak to denote a complete round of play, it refers to completing a set of cards on the player board.

Set (2): Used in Dice Games to denote a complete round of play, where the first action of the Caster is to ‘set’ the dice by shaking and turning over a dice cup. Once the set is made, the dice may be revealed or remain hidden according to the rules of the game.

Shift Card: A Shift Card is a playing card version of the Shift Tokens used in Kessel Sabacc, sometimes used as a cheaper and less bulky alternative.

Shift Deck: A selection of three Shift Tokens or Shift Cards used in Kessel Sabacc. A Shift deck may be pre-selected by the House, or built and selected by the player bringing it to the table.

Shift Token: A player tile or marker played as a free action in Kessel Sabacc. Each token has a unique function or ability.

Side Deck: A secondary stock of cards in distinction to a primary and communal draw deck. In Pazaak, a side deck typically reserved for the use of a single player, however it’s variation, Pazu-Pazaak, features a communal side-deck used by all players in the auction phase.

Skifter: A name for cards used as cheating devices in games of Sabacc by changing their value and appearance.

Spike Deck: A deck of 62 Sabacc cards organised into 3 suits of 20 cards, divided in positive and negative sub-suits. Used for playing Corellian Spike and Coruscant Shift.

Stasis Field: A game mechanic or table area where players may place a card so that it is protected from the effects of a Sabacc shift. This card is usually face up and visible to other players.

Stock Pile: A card pile, typically holding cards which a player can pick up, buy or trade with the cards in their hand, distinct from the draw deck or draw pile.

Sylop: Corellian word meaning ‘Idiot’. See The Idiot.

The Idiot: Card in the Sabacc deck with a value of 0. Often also a Trick Card. The equivalent of a Joker in our playing card decks, or The Fool in a Tarot deck.

Table Card: A card that has been played to the table, and is typically factored into the hands of everyone at the table. Another term for a community card.

Tableau: Term for an arrangement of cards on the table, looser and broader than a Card Array. Currently the game of Paargus includes a tableau, showing cards available to be picked up by players and added to their hand.

Tax Chip: Part of a set stock of hips issued to players in Kessel Sabacc. Rather than accumulating chips as in other Sabacc games, players lose them to attrition in every round. The size of the set determines how far players can potentially last in the game.

The (First, Second, etc.) Aspect: General descriptors for the cards of a full Major Aspect Suit. Since not all decks use the same card names or identities, it is useful to refer them generically. The zero card in the Suit is typically referred to the as the Idiot, the Sylop, or the Void card.

The Prime: Another name for the Ace in older Sabacc decks, especially Oracle Decks. Thought to reference the figure of the Jedi Prime.

Tournament Deck: A descriptor for Centran-style 78 card decks that are missing the card art and divinatory information displayed on a full Oracle Deck. They typically retain names and identities for the cards of the Major Aspect suit.

Traditional Deck: Another term for the 76 card Classic-style Sabacc deck. Unwieldy, and inaccurate in its lore implications. Discouraged.

Trick Sabacc: A winning Sabacc score achieved through the use of a Wild Card rather than a correct scoring of the cards. The Idiot’s Array is the classic type of Trick Sabacc. In Kessel, a ‘Sylop Sabacc’ or ‘Imposter Sabacc’ are both types of Trick Sabacc. In Centran, a Wild Sabacc might be considered a form of Trick Sabacc, since it ignores the other cards in the player’s hand.

Turn (1): Each player in a Sabacc game receives a turn at multiple actions during a round, typically in the card trading phase and the betting phase.

Turn (2): In Kessel Sabacc, a turn refers to a turn around the table. Each Round consists of three turns.

Wild Card: A name for cards which take on particular abilities, functions or values within a card game. They are often components of Trick Hands and of a Trick Sabacc. In Centran Sabacc, all cards with a value of 5 are wild cards, and take on the value of +5, -5 or 0. In Kessel Sabacc, Imposter and Sylop cards are Wild Cards, and can both be used to make a Trick Sabacc. In Classic Sabacc and 3 Card Spike, the Sylop is a Wild Card which makes up a Trick Hand or a Trick Sabacc.

Wild Sabacc: A Sabacc Hand made up of wild cards. In Centran, winning with the 5 wild cards scores a Wild Sabacc. Hands containing both wild cards and normal cards are called a Trick Sabacc rather than a Wild Sabacc.

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