What is the 3-13 Card Game? Rules and How to Play

 3-13 Card Game: Complete Rules & How to Play

Objective
The goal of 3-13 is to be the first player to get rid of all your cards by forming valid combinations such as sequences (runs) and sets (groups).

Setup

• Players: 2–6 players

• Decks: 2 standard decks of 52 cards, including jokers

• Deal: The number of cards dealt changes each round:

  • Round 1: 3 cards

  • Round 2: 4 cards

  • …continues increasing…

  • Round 11: 13 cards

Wild Cards
Wild cards also change each round, corresponding to the number of cards dealt:

• Round 1: 3s are wild

• Round 2: 4s are wild

• …

• Round 11: Jacks are wild (11 cards dealt)
  Jokers are always wild.

Gameplay

• Players take turns drawing and discarding to form valid melds.

• A player may lay down melds when they meet the required combinations.

• Valid melds include:

  • Set: 3 or more cards of the same rank (e.g., three Queens)

  • Run: 3 or more consecutive cards of the same suit (e.g., 5-6-7 of Hearts)

• Once a player has formed the required melds, they may declare and go out.

Going Out
To go out, a player must have:

• At least two sequences, one of which must be a pure sequence (no wild cards), and

• The remaining cards arranged in valid sets or sequences.

Scoring

• Number cards = face value

• Jack = 11, Queen = 12, King = 13

• Aces = 1

• Wild cards = 0 points

• The player with the lowest total points at the end of all rounds wins.

Additional Rules

• Players may not add cards to opponents' melds.

• The first player to rummy go out wins the round.

• Strategy involves timing your declaration and minimizing point penalties.