UNO House Rules
UNO House Rules Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Components
The box contains 112 cards. Number cards in the deck carry an "Add-a-Rule" icon. Wild Game Changer cards are part of the deck. Special graphic symbols have been added to each card to identify its color for colorblind players: red, yellow, green and blue each have their own symbol.
Object
Be first to get rid of all the cards in your hand.
Set Up
- Choose a dealer and shuffle the cards.
- Deal 7 cards to each player.
- Place the remaining cards FACEDOWN in the center of the table. This is the DRAW PILE.
- Flip over the top card of the DRAW PILE and place it FACEUP to form the DISCARD PILE. If this card is an Action Card, ignore it and flip over the next card.
- The player to the left of the dealer goes first and play proceeds clockwise.
Let's Play 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.
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 catches you and calls out "UNO" before you (and before the next player begins their turn), then you must draw 2 cards!
Winning
When a player plays their final card, they win. Time to shuffle the cards and play again!
Action Cards
NOTE: Action cards may be played on other Action cards of the same color. Wild cards may be played at any time.
Draw Two card (+2): When played, the next player must draw 2 cards and lose their turn.
Skip card: When played, the next player loses their turn.
Reverse card: When played, the direction of play is reversed. If play was moving clockwise, it now moves counterclockwise and vice versa.
Wild card: This card matches anything so you can play it no matter what card is on the Discard Pile. When you play a Wild card, you also get to choose the color that continues play.
Wild Draw Four card: This card matches anything so you can play it no matter what card is on the Discard Pile. However, there's a catch: you can only play a Wild Draw 4 if you DO NOT HAVE ANY CARD IN YOUR HAND THAT MATCHES THE COLOR OF THE DISCARD PILE.
When played, the next player has 2 options: Draw 4 cards and lose their turn OR challenge.
If the player challenges you, then you must show them your entire hand to confirm whether or not you have a card that matches the color of the discard pile. Wild cards are considered a match, too.
- If you DO NOT have a card that matches color: the challenger draws 6 cards instead of 4 and loses their turn.
- If you DO have a card that matches color: YOU must draw 4 cards and they draw none.
This card is also a Wild card, so you get to choose the color that continues play (regardless of the outcome of any challenge).
Wild Game Changer: When you play this wild card, you may change any House Rule already in play (if no House Rules have been created yet, it functions as a regular Wild Card). Simply choose a number that has a rule attached to it, make up a new rule and now every time that number is played the new rule is in effect.
This is also a Wild Card so you choose the color that continues play.
House Rules
When a Number Card with a "Add-a-Rule" icon is played, the player who played it gets to make up a rule. After that, every time a card of that same number is played, the rule must be enacted. For example, let's say a #2 card with an Add-a-Rule icon is played, and the made-up rule is that all players must "moo!" like a cow. The next time ANY "2" card is played, all players must "moo!" and the last one to "moo"! must draw a card.
There can be up to 5 house rules in play at any time, and only a Wild Game Changer card (see Wild Game Changer) can change an existing rule.
NOTE: after a rule is established, if the Number Card played that triggers the rule also has a "Add-a-Rule" icon on it, IGNORE THE ICON.
Making Up House Rules
ALL HOUSE RULES must follow this formula:
- All players must "do" something: moo, stand up, put their thumb on their forehead, etc.
- The last player to "do" the action of the rule must draw 1 card.
The penalty for being last is ALWAYS to draw 1 card.
Tips for House Rules
- Don't write down your rules as you go. Trying to remember each rule is all a part of the fun!
- Choose an Action that will make it easy to determine a clear winner.
- Physical actions like slapping the table, making moose antlers with your hands, or shouting out a crazy word are some examples of actions that are easy to referee.
- If remembering House Rules is too difficult for everyone, you can try to make your Rule Rhyme with the Number it is tied to: "Play a two, then 'MOO' - The last player to Moo like a cow draws 1 card." or "Play a three, you're a Tree - the last player to stand up and sway like a tree draws 1 card." etc.
- Don't choose an action that increases the penalty or changes the normal rules of UNO, such as "The last player to Draw 5 cards must Draw 1 card." or "The last player to discard all their Wilds must Draw 1 card."
- Focus on actions that can be done in addition to the normal game by challenging players to be silly or perform a crazy action.
Feel free to do your own thing at your own risk! The above tips are just suggestions after all. If you're feeling creative, innovative, or adventurous you can ignore these tips and go crazy by making up your OWN House Rules and/or penalties!
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, Wild Draw 4, Wild Game Changer
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! The sheet shows one symbol each for Red, Yellow, Green and Blue.