Game Rules
OBJECTIVE
To win the most chips at the end of multiple rounds of play by constructing words with high point values, alongside strategic bidding and bluffing.
SETUP
Before the first round, choose a player to be the dealer. Give them the Dealer Button. The dealer shuffles the deck and deals each player 5 cards.
PLAY
At the beginning of each round, all players must pay an ante of 1 chip to the central chip pile (known as the pot). If a player cannot pay the full ante, they are eliminated from play.
After paying the ante, the players may now make bids. Starting with the player to the left of the dealer, each player may bid, check, raise, fold, or call.
After the first bidding round, the dealer discards the top card from the deck facedown. Then, they flip the top 5 cards of the deck faceup in the centre of the table. These are the community cards.
A new bidding round begins. Once again, starting with the player to the left of the dealer, each player may bid, check, raise, fold, or call.
After a player calls a player's bid, any players still in the round (those players who have not folded) announce the point value of their word. The player whose word has the highest point value wins the pot.
WORDS & POINTS
In Alphabet Royal, players make words using cards in hand and community cards on the table. Each card has a letter and a number: the letters are for spelling words; the numbers represent the each card's point value.
IMPORTANT: You may not use your phone, dictionary, or any other aid to help spell your word!
EXAMPLE:
Anna has the cards R, J, K, E, W in her hand. The community cards are O, F, S, L, Z. By using the O and S from the community cards, she can make the word J-O-K-E-R-S. Since that word has the point values of #, #, #, #, #, #, Anna's word has a value of #.
Some cards in Alphabet Royal are blank. They still have a point value, but these cards may be treated as a Wild Card and can be used as any letter for a player's word. Also, it's important to remember that a Wild Card in the community cards may be used by multiple players and act as different letters from player to player.
IMPORTANT: If, after you announce your word, you cannot actually spell it using your hand and the community cards, you are out for the round.
GAME VARIANTS.
Alphabet Royal can be played in several different modes, each of which has a different game-end condition.
CASH GAME STYLE:
In this version of the game, the ante does not increase from round to round. Select a number of rounds for your group to play. The player with the most chips at the end of play is the winner.
IMPORTANT: Many word games do not allow proper names. The Standard Game does not allow proper names either. However, if you want an easier or looser feel for your game, decide at the beginning of the game whether or not to include them!
REGULAR GAME:
In this simplified version of the game, there are no bidding phases and no chips. Instead, deal 5 cards to each player, discard the top card from the deck, and lay out 5 community cards on the table. Each player then creates the highest value word they can from 10 cards available to them.
Keep track of each player's word values from round to round. The player with the most points after ten (10) rounds is the winner.
TOURNAMENT STYLE:
In this version of the game, the ante increases from round to round. In the opening round, each player must pay an ante of 1 chip. In the second round, each player must pay 2 chips, and so on. Play continues until all players but one have been eliminated (have lost all of their chips). The last player with chips is the winner of the tournament.
DEFINITIONS:
Bid:
If you are the starting player for the round – or if the previous players in this round have all checked (see below) – you may choose to bid. Move a number of chips of your choosing from your stack into the pot. Play now passes to the player to your left.
Check:
If you are the starting playing for the round, you may choose to check rather than bid. This means that, while you are still active in the round, you are not making a bid this round. Play now passes to the player on your left.
Raise:
If a player previous to you in the round has already made a bid, you may choose to raise that bid. Move a number of chips greater than the bid of a previous player from your stack into the pot. Play now passes to the player to your left.
Fold:
If a player previous to you in the round has already made a bid, you may choose to fold your hand. Instead of raising the previous bid, you discard your cards facedown (so that no players may see them), and are eliminated from the round.
Call:
If a player previous to you in the round has already made a bid, you may choose to call. The bidding phase is now over, and the players reveal their hands and compare the value of their selected words.
WARNING: This game is highly addictive, please play responsibly.
Although you can play ALPHABET ROYAL with chips we strongly discourage playing this game using real money.
This game was designed to play with PLAY MONEY ONLY!