Rules for THREE CARD SPIKE

(as played on the Sabacc Cantina App)

​

​

GOAL

​

In the 3-Card Spike (Yarith Bespin) Corellian Spike variant, the objective is to assemble a hand (always consisting of 3 cards) with a total value of zero or as close to zero as possible.

​

The variant uses a Spike Card, a face up card placed in front of each player, acting as the third card of the hand. The game incorporates both positive and negative cards, and involves strategic betting and card selection to achieve the optimal hand.

​

 

CARDS

​

The deck comprises 62 cards divided into three suits: Circles, Triangles, and Squares. Each suit contains:

​

• 10 positive cards: valued from +1 to +10.

• 10 negative cards: valued from -1 to -10.

​

Additionally, there are 2 special Sylop cards with a value of zero.

​

 

SPIKE DICE

​​

The game utilizes two six-sided dice known as spike dice. These dice are rolled during the game to introduce an element of unpredictability. 

 

If the dice display matching symbols, a Sabacc Shift occurs, causing all players to discard their hands and draw an amount of cards equal to the previous hand size.

​

If the matching values are two spikes (1), all Spike Cards are shuffled as well.

​

 

ROUND SETUP

​

1. Determine starting player: The starting player rotates clockwise each round.
    

2. Ante: Each player contributes an ante to the hand pot and the Sabacc pot.
    

3. Deal: Each player is dealt two cards face down.
    

4. Draw and Discard Piles: The remaining cards form the draw pile. The top card is placed face up to start the discard pile.
    

5. Initial Bet: Players play an initial bet round based on the strength of their hands.
    

6. Spike Card: Each remaining player is dealt a Spike Card face up.

 

​

ROUND SETUP

​

Each round consists of three phases:

​

 

1. CARD PHASE

​

Players can choose to:

​

• Stand — Do nothing and pass turn.
   

• Buy — Pay 2 credits to take the top card from the draw pile. The card can then either be swapped with a card in your hand or your spike card, or it can be discarded.
   

• Swap — Pay 4 credits to switch on card in hand or spike card with the top card of the discard pile.

​

​​​

2. BETTING PHASE

​

Players bet based on the strength of their hands, with options to stand, bet, call, raise, or fold.

​

​

2. SPIKE DICE PHASE

​

The dealer rolls the spike dice. If the symbols match, a Sabacc Shift occurs, and all players discard their hands and draw new ones. If the matching values are two Spikes (Value = 1), all Spike Cards are shuffled as well.

​

 

WINNING THE ROUND

​

After three rounds, remaining players reveal their hands. The player with a hand total closest to zero wins the hand pot. If a player achieves a hand total of exactly zero, they win both the hand pot and the Sabacc pot.

​

In case of a tie, there are several special winning hands which are ranked in order of strength. Since there are many variations of the hand rankings depending on which part of the galaxy you are playing in, the game host can select the preferred ranking order.

​

 

WINNING THE GAME

​

The game continues for a predetermined number of rounds or until players decide to conclude. The player with the most credits at the end of the game is declared the winner.

​

​

​