Tile Poker

Death Match 3: Tile Poker

Summary:

Somebody at the printing company had a big mix up! Instead of printing a standard deck of 52 playing cards, they've gone and printed 52 playing tiles! Although, I suppose this gives a new perspective on things. Players will take turns arranging tiles in a way that is suitable for forming poker hands and will score each time they form a new hand.

Gameplay:

Players begin the game with 7 random tiles. Both player’s hands will be public during this game. The DMO will select who goes first. The game begins with the Ace of Spades as the starting tile.

During each player’s turn, they may choose one of the following five actions:

1. Place a tile and evaluate both the row and column it is in for score
2. Draw 3 random tiles from the bag
3. Return 3 tiles to the bag to obtain a specific tile from the bag
4. Return 5 tiles to the bag to obtain a specific tile from your opponent’s hand
5. Can only be used when you have no tiles in hand, the bag is empty, and your opponent has more than 1 tile in hand - Obtain a specific tile from your opponent’s hand

If a player is not able to complete any of the four actions, their turn is skipped.

During tile placement, the tile being placed must be connected to existing tiles on the board. A tile placement is not allowed to create a 2x2 square of tiles.

The tile that is placed on the board will score the hand that it connects to immediately. However, a row or column that is greater than 5 tiles in length will not score at all. The points earned will be based on the following formula:

A high card or a pair will obtain 2 point

A 2 pair or a 3 of a kind will obtain 3 points

A straight or a flush will obtain 5 points

A full house or a 4 of a kind will obtain 8 points

A straight flush or a royal flush will obtain 13 points

Only the highest ranking hand will be evaluated for a row or column. A hand will only score if the most recent tile played to it contributes to the hand being made. In the case of a high card, the card being played must be higher ranking than the rest of the tiles in the hand.

The game will end once all 52 tiles have been placed.

Results:

The player with the most points is the winner.

If there is a tie for most points, the player who has made the highest ranking hand will be the winner (Note that suits and high card are not a tiebreaker in this).

If there is still a tie, the player who has placed the most aces on the board will be the winner.

Time Controls:

Each player will have 1 minute to take their turn. If a player does not take their turn within 1 minute, then the turn will pass to the opponent. If a player is skipped 5 times in this manner then they will forfeit the Death Match.

Clarification: A hand always requires the standard amount of cards to be formed that it would in standard poker rules. This means a pair could be as few as 2 cards, while a flush or a straight exclusively requires 5 cards and cannot be formed any other way

Clarification: Per the rules which state only highest ranking hand present are evaluated, and only a hand featuring the most recent tile is considered, this means that a row or column can only increase in value over time. A hand which has a pair initially, then a high card added to it will not score any points. This is because high card is not higher ranked than a pair. Additionally, because the card being added is not part of a pair or any other higher hand, no points would be earned from that etiher.

Clarification: A row or a column is constituted by having 2 or more elements which are connected together. A single element does not constitute a row or column by itself. Nearby rows or columns of cards which are separated by a space are not the same row or column. The space denotes that on either side is a different row or column