Liar's UNO
Liar's UNO Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Contents
112 Cards
Object
Be first to get rid of all the cards in your hand.
Regular Card: always played FACE UP.
Liar's Card: always played FACE DOWN.
Liar's UNO In A Nutshell
It plays just like classic UNO by matching color, number or symbol, but here's the twist: more than half the deck is made up of "Liar's Cards." Each Number Card in every color has one Regular Card and one Liar's Card (see above), and almost all the Action Cards are Liar's Cards! When you play a Liar's Card, you MUST play it FACE DOWN, and then say out loud what it is, but the real fun begins when you decide whether to tell the truth or bluff. If you lie and get busted, you draw a card. If you're honest but someone challenges you, they draw a card instead. So, channel your inner poker champ, keep a straight face, and when you're down to one card don't forget to yell "UNO!"
Setup
- Choose a dealer and shuffle the cards.
- Deal 7 cards to each player.
- Place the remaining cards FACE DOWN in the center of the table. This is the DRAW PILE.
- Flip over the top card of the DRAW PILE and place it FACE UP to form the DISCARD PILE. If this card is an Action Card, ignore it and flip over the next card; if it's a Liar's Card, treat it as a normal card.
- The player to the left of the dealer goes first and play proceeds clockwise.
How To Play UNO
First, let's go over the basics of UNO.
On your turn, you try to get rid of your cards by playing ONE CARD onto the Discard Pile.
If you HAVE a matching card in your hand, you may PLAY IT on the Discard Pile.
- You can only play a card if it matches at least one attribute of the top card on the Discard Pile: its Color, Number, or Symbol.
- If the card you played is an Action Card, it does something special! (see Action Cards below)
If you DO NOT HAVE a matching card, DRAW ONE CARD from the Draw Pile.
- If your new card can be played, then you may play it now.
- You may choose to draw a card instead of playing one, even if you have a playable card in your hand.
Once you play or draw a card, play continues with the next player.
NOTE: If there are no cards left in the Draw Pile, reshuffle the Discard Pile to form a new Draw Pile.
Now, Let's Play Liar's UNO
On your turn, try to get rid of your cards by playing one card onto the Discard Pile. But remember, there are Regular Cards and Liar's Cards, so you have a lot of options from simple to sneaky.
Playing A Regular Card
If you have a Regular Card that matches the top card on the Discard Pile in either Color, Number or Symbol, play it face up. Easy peasy.
Playing A Liar's Card
Matching Liar's Card: If your Liar's Card MATCHES the top card on the Discard Pile, play it FACE DOWN and say out loud what it is. Since it matches, you're telling the TRUTH.
Non-Matching Liar's Card: If your Liar's Card DOESN'T MATCH the top card on the Discard Pile, play it FACE DOWN and LIE about what it is. However, your lie must be plausible. For example, if the top card is a Red 3, you can say your card is any Red Card (Red 7, Red Draw 2, etc.) or a matching Number Card (Blue 3, Yellow 3, etc.) or even a Wild Draw 4!
After you play a card FACE DOWN, any player may challenge you:
- If you're challenged, you must reveal the card.
- If you were telling the TRUTH, the player who challenged you must draw 1 card. Sweet!
- If you were LYING, you must take the card back AND draw 1 card. Ouch!
If no one challenges you before the next player begins their turn, you're safe. If you said the card was an Action Card, the action takes effect whether you were lying or not.
If You Can't Play A Card
If you don't have a matching Regular Card or any Liar's Cards, draw a card from the Draw Pile. If that card is playable, you may play it. Otherwise, your turn is over.
NOTE: You MAY NOT play a Regular Card face down and try to pass it off as a Liar's Card. If you get caught doing so, you must take the card back and draw 6 cards!
Calling "UNO!"
The moment you only have 1 card in your hand, you must yell "UNO" to alert the other players you are about to win.
However, if someone beats you to it and calls out "UNO" before the next player takes their turn then you must draw 2 cards!
Winning
When a player plays their final card, if no one challenges them, they win. If challenged and caught lying, they must take their card back, draw 1 card as a penalty and then play continues.
Special Rules
7's Swap - When you play a 7 card of any color, you MUST swap your hand with another player of your choice. Play then continues in current order.
0's Pass - When you play a 0 card of any color, ALL players must pass their hand to the next player in the current direction of play.
NOTE: If a 7 or 0 is challenged, the penalty card is drawn AFTER any exchange of hands.
Action Cards
NOTE: All Action cards (except the Wild Liar's Challenge Card) are Liar's Cards and you MUST play them FACE DOWN. The Wild Liar's Challenge Card is always played FACE UP.
Draw Two card - When played, the next player must draw 2 cards and lose their turn.
Reverse card - When played, the direction of play is reversed. If play was moving clockwise, it now moves counterclockwise and vice versa.
Skip card - When played, the next player loses their turn.
Wild Draw 4 card - This card matches anything so you can play it no matter what card is on the Discard Pile. When played, the next player must draw 4 cards and lose their turn. You get to choose the color that continues play.
Wild Liar's Challenge card - When played, first you choose a color. Next, all other players put a card of that color FACE DOWN in front of them and say out loud what the card is (Wild Cards don't count). If they don't have a card of that color, they can put down any card, but they MUST say that it is a card matching the color you chose.
For example, if you call "red" and they don't have a red card, they can lie that their card is a Red 2, Red Skip, whatever.
Next, you may challenge any player and force them to reveal their card. If they were lying, they must take their card back and draw 1 card as a penalty. You may continue challenging players until you challenge everyone, or until you challenge someone who reveals a card of the correct color. When that happens, that player AND all remaining unchallenged players get to put their cards under the Wild Liar's Challenge card and play continues as normal with the color you chose.
NOTE: If someone discards their LAST card this way, they win (if multiple players go out, they win TOGETHER).
Keeping Score (Optional Victory Method)
When a player wins a hand, they receive points based on the cards remaining in their opponent's hands.
Cards are valued as follows:
- All number cards (0-9): Face Value
- Any Action Card: 20 Points
- Skip, Reverse, Draw 2
- Any Wild Card: 50 Points
- Wild Draw 4, Wild Liar's Challenge
Keep a running tally of each player's points from hand to hand. When a player reaches 500 points, they are the winner.
For Colorblind Players
Special graphic symbols have been added to each card to help identify the color(s) on that card. This will allow players with ANY form of color blindness to easily play!
- Red: solid circle symbol
- Yellow: four-pointed star symbol
- Green: downward triangle symbol
- Blue: solid square symbol