Larry
Larry Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Materials
55 cards:
- 38 number cards (3x 7; 6x 4; 6x 3; 6x 2; 5x 1; 4x 0; 4x -1 and 4x -2)
- 13 action cards
- 3 gloat cards
- 1 limit card (front side 7, rear side 5)
Gloat
Catch your fellow players out at fibbing! Put your cards face-down on the pile in the middle and add your number to the last total of the pile of cards. Don't exceed the current limit though! If you do, there is only one way out – cheat!
Objective of the game
All players try to gradually reduce the number of cards in their hand by playing a card face down onto the pile in the centre of the table. The first one to get rid of their hand wins!
Preparing the game
The black limit card is placed in the middle of the table with the "7" side showing. At the start, play is in a clockwise direction (as indicated by the limit card).
The most honest player begins. If you can't decide who the most honest player is, the youngest player starts.
The player who starts, shuffles all 54 cards. Each player is dealt the same number of cards (face-down) depending on the number of players (see table). The rest of the cards are used as the pick-up pile.
| Players | Cards per player |
|---|---|
| 2 players | 12 cards |
| 3 players | 9 cards |
| 4 players | 7 cards |
| 5 players | 6 cards |
| 6-8 players | 5 cards |
How to play
The limit card always specifies the current limit. The game starts with limit 7.
The first player selects a card from their hand and places it face-down in the middle of the table next to the limit card. They must say out loud the number on the card (or a different number).
The game continues in a clockwise direction and the next player places one of their cards (face-down) onto the pile, this time saying out loud the total of the two numbers. And so the game continues. Each player adds their number to the last total quoted, and says the new total out loud.
Since the cards are placed face-down, an incorrect number might be "unintentionally" quoted. Some players call this "cheating" or "bluffing"… That is the whole idea behind LARRY!
If a player plays a card with a minus number, they take this number off the total.
When adding up, however, a player is allowed to not exceed the current limit.
As long as the following player doesn't doubt the total, the game proceeds as normal.
HOWEVER: ...the next player may have doubts about the quoted total. As soon as a player doubts the quoted total, the whole pile of played cards is uncovered and the correct total is worked out.
- If it is the same as the total quoted, i.e. the total was correct, the doubter has to pick up two cards from the covered pick-up pile.
- If the total isn't the same as the quoted number, the last player to play a card (irrespective of whether this is a number, action or gloat card) has to pick up two cards. It makes no difference whether it was them or a previous player that made the "mistake" adding up.
The played cards are then put onto the discard pile and the player who had to pick up two cards starts the next round by playing a card.
Example: The first player puts down a "3" and says "4". The next player puts down a "3" and says "7". The third player puts down a "-2" and says "5". The next player now doubts this. Since the total is "four" and not "five", they were right to express doubt. The player who played the "-2" card now has to pick up 2 cards, although they had added up correctly.
Attention! By playing a card – irrespective of the card – the player accepts the total quoted and assumes responsibility for the entire pile. This means that the player carries the risk of somebody cheating earlier on – even if he or she had honestly added up the value of their card to the best of their knowledge.
Don't be a Larry (gloat card)
Like a number card, the gloat card is placed face-down on the pile in the middle of the table.
Gloat card: once they have played the card, the player has to say any number he or she likes (observe the limit!). If there is a gloat card in the pile, the quoted total is always correct, irrespective of which cards have been played.
2 gloat cards cancel each other out in a pile. If there are 3 gloat cards in the pile, everything is back to normal.
Action cards
Instead of placing a card on the pile, a player can play a blue action card. Action cards are played face-up. Apart from changing the direction of play, all other action cards are played against any player.
Playing face-up: this card is placed face-up in front of any player. This player must then play their next number card face-up. If they then play an action card, the "face-up card" stays in front of the other player until a number card is played. The number card must be played face up. If the limit is exceeded they have to pick up two cards, as usual. The played cards are put on the discard pile and that player lays the next card. The "face-up card" is placed on the discard pile as "done".
The following action cards have an immediate effect:
- Pick up 2 cards: a selected player must immediately pick up 2 cards from the pick-up pile.
- Give away 1 card: the player who plays this card may "give" a player of their choice one of their cards. The "give away 1 card" may not be played as the last or last but one card.
- Changing direction: playing this card changes the direction of play. The black limit card is turned over. In addition to the direction changing, the limit is automatically changed from 7 to 5 or from 5 to 7.
However, a word of caution: the next player to put their card face-down in the middle of the table and say the number may not exceed the limit either. In the case of an action card, however, the old limit still applies.
Once they have been played, action cards are placed on the discard pile.
Attention! By playing an action card you also "accept" the current total. If the next player doubts the current total of the concealed pile and if the total really is wrong, 2 cards need to be picked up from the pick-up pile even if you haven't actually contributed towards the incorrect total.
It is also permitted to put an action card face-down in the middle and to name a total. Action cards which are put face-down on the pile do not have any value and count as 0.
If the concealed pick-up pile is empty, the discard pile is shuffled and is then used as the new concealed pick-up pile.
If a player plays their last but one card, they have to say out loud "Larry". If they forget, he or she has to pick up 2 cards from the pick-up pile and the game continues.
End of the game
Once a player has played their last card, the next player can still express his doubt. If they don't, or if the quoted number is correct, the round is counted up.
If the total was correct, the doubter has to pick up two cards.
The player who ended the round is awarded two bonus points. All the other players are awarded minus points depending on their cards. To this end, they count the Larrys on their cards and write them down as minus points.
All the cards are then shuffled again and dealt out for a new round according to the table above. The player with the most minus points starts the next round. If several players have the same amount of minus points, the player whose turn was last in the last round, starts.
The game finishes after 3 hands. The player with the least minus points (or the most bonus points) wins.
Short version
Naturally, you can declare a winner after just one round if you want to just play a short version of the game. In this case, the winner is the first person to get rid of all their cards. However, once they have put down their last card, they must prove that everything is correct. If this is not the case, they have to pick up 2 cards and the game continues.