, , Fool, or Tycoon, is a Japanese shedding-type card game for three or more players, played with a standard 52-card pack. The objective of the game is to get rid of all the cards one has as fast as possible by playing progressively stronger cards than those of the previous player. The winner is called the daifugō (the grand millionaire), earning various advantages in the next round, and the last person is called the daihinmin (the grand pauper). In the following round, winners can exchange one or more of their unnecessary cards for advantageous ones that losers have.
The game is very similar to the Hong Kong climbing card game Big Two, the Chinese game Zheng Shangyou, the Vietnamese game Tien Len, and Western card games like President and The Great Dalmuti. Like those other games, there are many variations and rules.
Basic rules The rules described here are based on rules made popular in the U.S. by Tokyopop, in volume two of the manga Fruits Basket. They are fairly basic and attempt to condense the game to its core elements. Since card games like this are taught and evolve by word of mouth, the game play varies according to state of origin.
Special titles There are five special titles for players during the game, along with popular North American and European equivalents: Daifugō (大富豪 "Grand Millionaire") - winner of the previous round (President / Tycoon) Fugō (富豪 "Millionaire") - second place in the previous round (Vice President / Rich) Heimin (平民 "Commoner") - average placement in the previous round (Neutral / Commoner) Hinmin (貧民 "Poor") - second-to-last in the previous round (Dirt / Poor) Daihinmin (大貧民 "Extremely Poor") - last place in the previous round (Lowest Dirt / Beggar)
Some notes: In the first round, all players begin as heimin. Decide randomly who will be the dealer. Depending on the number of players, multiple players could be heimin, or the game might not have a heimin. In a three player game, there is no fugō or hinmin. After every hand, players must get up and switch seats so that the daihinmin deals, and everyone is seated clockwise in order of titles, with daifugō on the dealer's left, and hinmin on the right. (American variants often do not follow this rule).
Dealing The daihinmin shuffles and deals the cards. All the cards are dealt, until none are left, in clockwise rotation. Jokers, other wilds or extra 2s from another deck are used to ensure the cards can be dealt evenly. Alternately, the deal starts at the point which will allow the richest players to have the fewest cards (e.g. deal starts on the heimin for five players) and therefore be more likely to maintain their domination.
After cards are dealt and after the first hand, the daihinmin must hand over their two strongest cards to the daifugō, while the hinmin must hand over their one strongest card to the fugō. The daifugō and fugō then hand back an equal number of any "junk" cards they do not want. This process is known as zeikin (taxation).
Playing Play in Daifugō is organized into tricks, much like Spades or Bridge. However, unlike those games, each trick can involve more than one card played by each player, and players do not have to play a card in a trick.
The player on the dealer's left begins by leading any number of cards of the same rank (1-4, 5 or more are possible with wilds). The player on the left may then play an equal number of matching cards with a higher face value, or may pass. (In a few variants, it is permitted to play cards with an equal value as the last cards played. Doing so may skip the player next in order.) Note that the same number of cards as the lead must be played. If the leader starts with a pair, only pairs may be played on top of it. If three-of-a-kind is led, only three-of-a-kinds can be played on top of it. (There are notable exceptions among the variants; see below) The next player may do the same, and so on. This continues until all players pass, or until one or more 2s are played; as the 2 is the highest value, nothing can beat it. The last person to play a card leads the next trick.
Notes on game play: The ordering of the face values is a little different from most American card games - the deuce (2) is the highest value and is unbeatable. The ace is next highest, the King the next highest, etc. with the 3 being the lowest. A few variants allow a single deuce to be played on top of any other combination, but typically games require the same number of deuces to be played as were originally led. Another variant leaves one-eyed jacks (jacks of hearts and spades) higher than the deuce; the one-eyed jacks can be bested by the suicide king (king of hearts). When players pass, this does not limit them in any way from playing later, even during the same trick. In some variants, however, a player cannot play on a trick in which he or she passed previously. Players can pass anytime, even if the player has cards that could be played. The number of cards that can be led to begin any trick is only dependent on the cards in the player's hand and his/her strategy.
End of a round When one player runs out of cards, they are out of play for the rest of the round, but the other players can continue to play to figure out the titles. A few versions hold that once a player goes out, players count remaining card values to establish titles, or simply count the number of cards remaining in each player's hand.
When playing by traditional rules, once titles are decided, everyone needs to get up and move. The daihinmin is the dealer, and the players must rearrange themselves around the dealer so that they are seated in order of rank, clockwise. Most American variants do not rearrange the seating of the players, so everyone plays in the same order each hand (though the daifugō still leads the first trick).
Winning the game The winner is usually the player who is daifugō at the end of the game, but a point system can also be used, where the fugō and daifugō earn 1 and 2 points, respectively, every round.
Basic strategy The basic strategy of Daifugō is very simple; players attempt to get rid of weaker cards first so that only stronger cards are left in the players' hands near the end of a game. If a player is stuck with a low card, it will be very hard to get to play it and empty a hand. However, as winning a trick lets the player lead any card to start the next trick, one weak card can be kept to be played last.
However, when trying to prevent a player who is low on cards from emptying their hand, the player preceding him/her can elect to try to block the next player by playing a high value card or combination even if a lower value combination is available, and thus hopefully prevent the next player from playing as they are unable to top it. Additional elements of strategy can be introduced with optional rules (see below) such as skips and clears, which afford the other players more options in attempting to prevent play by a person about to empty their hand.
Optional rules
One or more house rules are usually observed when playing a game of Daifugō. Here are a few examples:
Rule No. 420 If the losing player finishes his cards first, then the 1, 2, 3, 4 order is reversed to 4, 3, 2, 1.
Strict 52-card Uneven card count in hands is allowed and the benefit (smaller hand) goes to the richest players. The deal generally starts with the richest heimin (or with the hinmin in a four-player game) and continues clockwise, that is, down the wealth rank. If there is a dummy hand (see below), it is always dealt last and therefore may change who gets the first dealt card. (If there are four players and a dummy hand, then the deal will start with the fugō so that the dummy hand and default daifugō hand both have one less card than the other hands dealt.)
Dummy Hand At the outset of every round after the first, one more hand is dealt than the number of players at the table. This last hand, the "dummy" hand, is ignored unless the daifugō decides he wants to chance swapping his dealt hand with the dummy hand. The swap must occur before taxation. The daifugō may not look at the dummy hand before the optional swap, nor may he change his mind after the swap. The dummy hand is generally taken only if the daifugō feels the cards in his dealt hand are significantly below average.
Deuce Means Clear In addition to deuces (2s) being the highest value, a single 2 beats any other combination of cards. Because it cannot be beaten, a deuce becomes a "clear" card that allows the holder to "steal" the lead play from someone who would otherwise have played first. This can be essential when attempting to keep a person who has few cards remaining from going out; playing a 2 on a pile of pairs and starting a new pile of three-of-a-kinds means a person with only two cards left is dead in the water. This is common in Western versions of the game including Asshole.
Match Means Clear If a player can match the current active play, the trick is cleared. For instance, if a 7 is played, one can play a 7 on top of this to clear. Or, if two Kings are played, one can play two Kings to clear. This is sometimes known as the Grand Palace Rule.
Jokers are Wild Can be played almost any time, as any value, but cannot beat a 2. When a joker is played by itself, it is assumed to be one higher than the card played before it; for instance, a joker played on top of a single 5 is effectively a 6. Jokers played in combination with at least one other card are the same value as the other card(s); a joker and a 7 is equivalent to a pair of 7s.
Jokers are 2s Jokers always count as 2s, meaning the number of Deuces in the game is increased.
Jokers are Trumps While jokers can be played at any time, they are considered, when played as just jokers, to be above a 2. Some variants will include a rule where one of the 3 cards are able to beat a Joker, but only a Joker.
Forbidden Last Card Players are not allowed to go out on a specific card or combination of cards. Common examples include going out on a 2, a Joker, a pair, or an 8.
Skips A player who plays the same number of cards of the same rank as the previous player skips the next person who would have played. For example, playing a 7 on top of another 7, or a pair of 4s on another pair of 4s, skips the next player. This variant is rare, though more common in American versions, and adds an extra element of strategy.
Multi-Skips If a player has more than one of the card played previously, he may play more of that card than is required in the current trick. By doing so, play skips one extra person for each extra card played. For instance, if a single 4 is played and the next player has the other three 4s in the deck, he may play two of them and skip the next two people, or play all three and skip the next three people. If two 4s are played and the next player has a 4 and two wild cards, he may play all three cards and skip the next two people (two cards required to play and skip, plus one extra).
Revolution (革命, kakumei) Playing four of a kind causes a revolution, which reverses the strength of cards for the rest of the round (or session), making 3 the highest and 2 the lowest. Counterrevolution (革命返し, kakumei-gaeshi or 反革命, han-kakumei) would restore the power. Revolution could also spark when a set of four or more sequential cards of the same suit is played such as 4-5-6-7 of spade (see kaidan below), or in a row by different players. The one who plays such sets can choose not to have a revolution. It could also make the titles of the players reversed. There even would happen counter-counterrevolution (革命返し返しkakumei-gaeshi-gaeshi or 反反革命 han-han-kakumei).
Completo, a.k.a. Completion If a player has the cards to complete a set of four of the current card, he can play them at any time, even outside of his turn. This results in a "clear", after which the player who completed the set of four leads the next trick.
Jack-Back (or Eleven Back)