Fives Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Set Up
• How to Play
  • Round Guide
  • Trump Color
  • Resolution
  • Magenta Fives
• Scoring
  • 4 Players
  • 3 Players
  • Next Hand
  • Scoring Example
• Advice
• Credits
• Quick Reference
  • Rules
  • Scoring
  • Components

Set Up

1. Give each player 5 point chips.
2. In a 4 player game, deal the cards out evenly to all players. Everyone will have 13 cards. In a 3 player game, remove the 10 to 13 of each color first. Everyone will have 12 cards.

How to Play

Round Guide

Whoever has the Magenta 0 leads. Leading just means that they get to play the first card in the first round of the hand. They can play any card from their hand to start—they don't have to play the Magenta 0.

After they lead a card, in clockwise order, the other players also play a card. If they have a card of the same color as the lead player's card, they must play a card of that color. If they don't have any of that color, they can play any card they want.

In card game terminology, that's called following.

After everyone has played one card, whoever played the highest numbered card in the color that was led wins.

Trump Color

But there's one exception to this! In Fives, Silver is the "trump" color. That's a card game term for a color that beats all the other colors.

So for example, if someone played a Silver 2 in that last round, they'd win, even if it's a lower number than the color that was led! But remember, if you ever have the led color in your hand, you have to follow with it.

In other words:

• If a Silver card is played, the highest Silver card played in the round wins.
• If no one plays a Silver, the winner is whoever played the highest card of the color led.
• Anyone who played a card that isn't Silver or the led color can never win a round.

Resolution

After you determine who won, the winner takes all the cards played this round—either 3 or 4, depending on how many people are playing—in a stack. The winner should leave their winning card on top as the only one visible, and puts the stack in front of themself.

For example, if you win with that Silver 2 above, place the 2 on top of the cards when you collect them.

The winner also gets to lead the next round. Keep playing rounds until everyone has played through their entire hand of cards like this.

Magenta Fives

Here's the big twist in Fives: in addition to playing cards face up, you can also play them face down as a Magenta 5!

There are 4 situations where you can play a card as a Magenta 5 instead:

1. If you are the start player, you can play any card, including playing a card face down as a Magenta 5. Other players will then need to play a Magenta card too, if they have one.
2. If the start player plays a Magenta card, you can play any card in your hand face down as a Magenta 5. You can play a Magenta 5, even if you have other Magenta cards. And if you don't have any Magenta cards, you're NOT obligated to play a Magenta 5 card.
3. If you don't have a card of the same color as the start player's card, you can play any card you want, including flipping any to a Magenta 5.
4. This last one is a little tricky: if you have exactly one card of the color that was led, you still must play that card. But you can choose to play it face down as a Magenta 5.

And only one Magenta 5 can be played per round, of course.

Scoring

Once everyone is out of cards in their hand, it's time to score. Each player adds up the value of all their winning cards.

4 Players

The player closest to 25 without exceeding it gets 3 point chips. If their total is exactly 25, they get 1 additional point chip.

The 2nd closest player to 25 gets 2 point chips.

The 3rd closest player to 25 gets 1 point chip.

Any players with a lower sum do not receive any points.

Any player that exceeded 25 busts! They have to give 1 of their point chips to the player who scored closest to 25. If multiple players tied for the best score that hand, the busting players toss their point chips into the center of the table and they're carried over as a bonus for the next hand. (In the final round, if chips would be carried over, they're just not awarded to anyone in the game.)

If players are ever tied for a score, they all get the lowest rank. For example, in a 4-player game, if two players are each 2nd closest to 25 with scores of 24, they'd both get the 3rd closest score of 1 point.

3 Players

The player closest to 25 without exceeding it gets 2 point chips. If their total is exactly 25, they get 1 additional point chip.

The 2nd closest player to 25 gets 1 point chip.

Any players with a lower sum do not receive any points.

If players are tied, they are treated as having the lower rank and will both receive the points of that rank.

Any player that exceeded 25 busts! They have to give 1 of their point chips to the player who scored closest to 25. If multiple players tied for the best score that hand, the busting players toss their point chips into the center of the table and they're carried over as a bonus for the next hand. (In the final round, if chips would be carried over, they're just not awarded to anyone in the game.)

Next Hand

Once you've scored, collect all the cards, flip them back over so the Magenta 5s are all on the same side, and shuffle the deck.

You're going to play 4 hands total, so deal everyone a new hand of cards and play again!

The player with the highest score after 4 hands wins the game. In the case of a tie, the player whose cards summed the closest to 25 (without exceeding) in the final hand wins. If this is also a tie, share the victory.

Scoring Example

Player 1 — Blue 10, Blue 12, Green 4. Final value: 26. Busted, so loses 1 chip, giving it to the player who got closest to 25.

Player 2 — Magenta 13, Silver 12. Final value: 25. Got 25 exactly and won 3 chips for being closest to 25, plus 1 chip for getting 25 exactly, plus 1 chip from Player 1 for them busting.

Player 3 — Green 10, Green 2, Silver 5, Magenta 5. Final value: 22. Tied for next closest, so gets 1 chip.

Player 4 — Silver 9, Silver 1, Silver 6, Magenta 6. Final value: 22. Tied for next closest, so gets 1 chip.

Advice

Keep in mind that all of the cards you'll use to sum to 25 are in the hand you've been dealt. Try to come up with a plan to hit that number at the start of your hand.

Figure out how to get rid of your high number cards, like using them as a Magenta 5 instead.

Whenever a player busts, it's a good idea for them to immediately put their point chip into the center right when it happens, so any winning player will remember to take it at the end of the hand.

Credits

• Game Design: Taiki Shinzawa 新澤大樹
• Graphic Design: Pràctica
• Cover Illustration: Pràctica
• Structural Packaging: Studio Mars
• Creative Director: Alex Hague
• Curator: James Nathan Spencer
• Publisher: CMYK
• Manufacturer: Strom MFG
• Thanks: Flowchart, Justin Vickers

Quick Reference

Rules

• Player with the Magenta 0 plays first, but doesn't have to lead the 0
• Everyone must follow color if they can
• Silver is trump
• Winner leads
• Can play cards face up or as Magenta 5s
• Winning cards are your total for the hand
• Play 4 hands

Scoring

3 Player Game

• Exact or closest to 25 = 2 chips
• 25 exactly = +1 chip
• 2nd closest = 1 chip
• Bust = -1 chip

4 Player Game

• Exact or closest to 25 = 3 chips
• 25 exactly = +1 chip
• 2nd closest = 2 chips
• 3rd closest = 1 chip
• Bust = -1 chip

Components

• 52 cards: 1–13 in Blue, Green and Silver; 0–4 and 6–13 in Magenta
• 42 chips