The Game of 49 For 2to 5 players, age 10 and up Equipment 49 game board 60 number cards, as illustrated below Card tray Chips in 5 colors (15 each) Paper money: $1s, $5s, $10s, $20s Money way Rules 48x (1,2, 3... 48) Object “To win, place four of your chips in a row on the board, horizontally, vertically, or diagonally. (In a S-player game, three in a row wins.) Setup Place the 49 game board in the center of the table, Shuffle the number cards and place them facedown in the card tray. Choose a starting player and give that player the card tray. Give each player a set of chips of one color. Choose a player to be banker. ‘The banker gives each player $49—three $10, three $5, and four $1—and places the remaining money aside as the bank. During the game, players should not allow opponents to see how much money they have, ‘The number card deck contains 60 ‘cards: 48 standard cards, numbered 48; and 12 Wild/Payot cards, as lustrated. (The Hi symbol denotes Information forthe 2player game; see rules on page 4)Play ‘The player with the card tray draws the top card and displays it for all players to see. The player then either starts an auction for the card {minimum opening bid $1) or passes. If the player passes, the next player clockwise either starts an auction or passes. Play continues in this way until cither all players pass, at which point the card is removed from play for the remainder of the game, or until one player starts an auction, After one player makes an opening bid to start an auction, the other Sa aa RSeStTS ioe players, in clockwise order, must either raise the previous bid or pass. A bidder places chip on the board player who passes may not later reenter bidding for the card, and a player space that matches the number who previously passed rather than making an opening bid for the card may not take part in the auction, All bids must be in whole dollar amounts. When all players but one have passed, the winning bidder pays the bank the amount of his or her bid, takes the card that was auctioned, and places a chip on the matching number space on the board. Players keep number cards they have won faceup in front of them. After a card has been auctioned—or removed from play because no player bid on it—the card tray passes clockwise. The player receiving the tray draws the top card to begin a new auction, Wild/Payoff Cards Wild/Payoff cards are auctioned the same as regular number cards but ‘grant special privileges to the winning bidder. There are two types: A WildIPayoff card that shows a number range (for example, 25-40) allows the player who wins the card to place his or her chip on any vacant space within the range. The deck contains seven cards of this type (as illustrated on page 1). Win a Wild/Payort card and piace a A Wild 491Payoff card corresponds to the center space on the game board. ipon say meme pce win ‘The deck contains five Wild 49/Payoff cards. Auctions for these cards are the same as other auctions, but the 49 board space is unique in that it may change hands during the game. The player who wins the auction for a Wild 49/Payoff card does one of the following: + If the 49 space is vacant, the winning bidder for the 49 card places his or her chip on the 49 space,+ If another player's chip occupies the 49 space (as the result of an carlier auction for a 49 card), the winning bidder removes the opponent’s chip and replaces it with his or her own chip. + If the winning bidder for a 49 card already has a chip on the 49 space (as the result of an earlier auction for a 49 card), that player retains the 49 space and also places a chip on any vacant space on the board Payoff After a Wild/ Payoff card has been auctioned and a chip has been placed, all players receive a payoff from the bank. Each player receives $7 per chip he or she has on the board. The maximum payoff a player may receive is $49, even if he or she has more than seven chips on the board. If all players pass when a Wild/Payoff card is drawn, the card goes out of play without a chip being placed, but players still receive their payoff. “The deck contains a total of twelve Wild/PayofT cards (illustrated on page 1), so there will usually be multiple payofls in the course of a game. Unplayable Card If a player draws a number card that cannot be played because its board space is already covered (as the result of a previously auctioned Wild/ Payoff card), the number card is removed from play and the player draws again. If an unplayable Wild/Payoff card is drawn, Players still receive their payoff. is removed from play. Winning The player who creates a four-in-a-row, horizontally, vertically, or diagonally, wins the game. (More than four in a row also wins.) Ina S-player game, three chips in a row wins. If the deck is exhausted with no player having four chips in a row, the player with the most chips on the board wins. If two or more players are tied for most chips, the player with the most money wins the ticbreaker. If money also is tied, the player with a chip on the higher numbered board space wins, WILD 49 e PAYOFF aS WILD 1-24 e PAYOFF 3 After the auction of any Wik/Payotf «ard, the bank pays each player $7 for leach chip he or she has on the board, Lup to a maximum of $49. [S|6|7 1] 2/3) 26 2425 |26|27|28|29| 8 23/40/41 /42|43|30] 9 22|39|48/49/ 44] 31| 10 21 |38/47|46| 45/32/11 20|37/36| 35/34/33 || 19 78] 17| 16] 15| 14/13 _Win with four chipsin a row, hhortzontaly, vertically, or diagonally (ina S-player game, three na row wins) 3108 E101 mere 110 A player who cannot pay for his ot her bid must remove 1 chip trom the board, Players may not deliberately bid more money than they have, ‘Checking isan alternative to passing ‘but may only be used when no player thas yet made an opening bid for a card tna 2>player game, each number card has a required minimum bid, and the payoff decreases for a player with ‘mote than 7 chips on the board, Illegal Bid Penalty Players may not deliberately bid more money than they have in order to drive up the cost of a number card. (Players are on their honor to abide by this rule because money is held in secret.) If the player who wins an auction has mistakenly bid more than he or she can pay, a second auction is held for the number card. All players, including the player who made the illegal bid, may participate in the second auction, Before the second auction, however, the player who made the illegal bid must remove one of his or her chips from the board as a penalty. Turn the player’s number cards upside down, shufile them, and randomly select one card. Remove the player's chip from the corresponding board space. “Check Rule (optional, but recommended) Afier drawing a number card, a player may announce “check” instead of passing. A player who checks declines to start an auction for a card but reserves the right to bid if another player starts the auction, Afier a player checks, the other players, in clockwise order, also may either check or start the auction, If all players check, the card is removed from play for the remainder of the game and the card tray passes clockwise. If any player opens the bidding, all other players, in clockwise order—including any who previously checked—may participate in the auction. Players may not check once an auction has started but must either raise the previous bid or pass Minimum Bid Rule (optional) ‘The dollar amount next to the if symbol at the bottom of the number card is the minimum opening bid for the card. ‘Two-player Game Rules Rules are the same as for three or four players except that: + After a Wild/Payoff card is auctioned, payotls are as follows: For 1-7 chips on board: $7/chip ($49 maximum) For 8 chips on board: $42 For 9 chips on board: $35 For 10 or more chips on board: $28 + The Minimum Bid Rule is enforced. © 2014 Mark Corsey