Canasta is one of the most important games in the RUMMY family, more specifically a variant of 500 Rum, first developed in Uruguay and Argentina in the 19th century. The name itself is an indication of the game’s South American origins: the Spanish word „canasta” means „basket”, most likely a reference to the receptacle where the stock and discard stack were kept during the game. In the 1930’s, when it was introduced to the United States, Canasta immediately enjoyed a huge success, quickly becoming one of the most popular card games in history. This explains the great number of variants currently played all over the world, despite the fact that in those early years, the rules were precisely defined.
Kanastic is an exciting new version of Canasta, bringing two unconventional elements to the game: a beautifully illustrated deck of cards specifically designed for Canasta, and several additional rules, including a new type of meld: the „golden suit”. This means that you can use the Kanastic deck to play the classic game according to the original rules or their variations, as well as the exclusive Kanastic variant.
THE KANASTIC DECK
This set includes 108 playing cards, each featuring a unique mythology-themed illustration. The basic structure of the deck is fully compatible with the classic Canasta game, while also adding a mythological dimension to the whole experience. The deck comprises: 88 „natural” cards divided into 11 ranks (mythic realms): 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, J, Q, K, A. There are 8 cards in each rank (realm). Every single one of these 88 cards features a different mythical creature.
8 “Necromancy”
fours
8 “Inferno”
fives
8 “Sea”
sixes
8 “Lake”
sevens
8 “Haunted Woods”
eights
8 “Swamp”
nines
8 “Desert”
tens
8 “Ice World’
Jacks
8 “Magic Forest”
Queens
8 “Cave”
Kings
8 “Heaven”
Aces
8 blue “Sword”
– regular wild cards
and stop cards
4 orange “Shield”
– stop cards
4 red “Artifact”
– powerful wild cards
and stop cards
4 green
“Treasure Pot”
cards
– bonus points
8 “Necromancy”
fours
8 “Inferno”
fives
8 “Sea”
sixes
8 “Lake”
sevens
8 “Haunted Woods”
eights
8 “Swamp”
nines
8 “Desert”
tens
8 “Ice World’
Jacks
8 “Magic Forest”
Queens
8 “Cave”
Kings
8 “Heaven”
Aces
8 blue “Sword”
– regular wild cards
and stop cards
4 orange “Shield”
– stop cards
4 red “Artifact”
– powerful wild cards
and stop cards
4 green
“Treasure Pot”
cards
– bonus points
*Note: Each realm includes a special gold card. These cards can be used to create the exclusive golden suit and they can be included in regular melds and canastas just like any other card.
HOW TO PLAY KANASTIC
Kanastic is a team game for 4 players in two partnerships. It can also be played by three players only, acting as adversaries.
The following section is an in-depth presentation of the rules and gameplay of the exclusive Kanastic variant playable only with the deck included in this set.
OBJECTIVE
The aim is for your team to be the first to reach 10,000 points. The game consists of several rounds (usually 3-4) in which players take turns clockwise drawing, melding, and discarding the cards in their hands to score points. The first team to reach a score of at least 10,000 wins.
GAME SETUP
You will need: the Kanastic deck, a large table, a piece of paper – or a notebook – and a pen for score keeping. Kanastic is a game for 4 players in two opposing teams. So, before you start, the players must choose partners to form two 2-player teams. The partners in each team must sit facing each other across the playing table. In a 2-player game, the two adversaries should also sit facing each other across the table.
PLAYING THE GAME
To begin a new game, a dealer is randomly chosen according to the agreed upon method of choice (flipping a coin, for instance). Note that there is no advantage to dealing the cards and that the dealer changes every round. The dealer shuffles all the cards, the player to his right cuts, then the dealer deals out a hand of 14 cards to each player, starting with the player on his left, who will be dealt 15 cards. Next the dealer places the remaining cards in a stack face-down in the center of the table – this will form the draw pile or stock pile.
The player who has 15 cards begins by discarding a card from his hand. This will be the first card in the discard stack. After that, each player must begin his turn by drawing the top card from the stock. Players may also draw the top card from the discard stack, if conditions are met (see Drawing from the discard stack). Then the player may begin melding the cards in his hand according to the rules (see Rules for melding). When done, the player must end his turn by placing one of the cards in his hand face-up on top of the discard stack. The player to his left (on the opposing team) is next.
The game proceeds in this manner, with players taking turns clockwise, until one of the players “goes out” (is left with no more cards in his hand) and the round ends (see Rules for going out). Once a round is ended, the score for that round is calculated for each team and a new round begins, with the next player dealing the cards.
The game goes on round after round until one of the teams reaches a score of at least 10,000 points.
RULES OF MELDING
Points are scored each round by „melding”. Melding is the action of laying on the table a formation of cards from the player’s hand on that player’s turn. Each legal formation laid on the table constitutes a meld. Any legal meld must include at least 3 natural cards and at most 3 wild cards. The smallest acceptable legal meld is made of 3 natural cards of the same rank and different suits (red hearts, blue diamonds, yellow spades, black clubs). Formations (melds) can be natural i.e., entirely made of “natural” cards (Creatures) or mixed i.e., a mix of natural and “wild” cards (Swords and Artifacts). There are 3 major formation types: regular formations, canastas and suits. The base value of each of these formations and their variations is given by the sum of the values of the cards used to create them. Beside this, each type of formation melded during the round grants a certain number of bonus points, as detailed in the Formations and scoring section.
Examples of legal melds:
Important! It is not possible to create stand-alone melds of Swords, Artifacts, Shields or Treasure Pots, as these are place-holders and special action cards.
= 65 p
= 60 p
= 60 p
= 65 p
= 60 p
= 60 p
To create a meld, a player must simply place the appropriate cards from his hand on the table, in front of him, laid on top of each other, but with the top side (the number in the top left corner) still visible. All melds created and built upon by players in a team are shared. The action of melding for the first time in a given round grants certain privileges that both players in a team can enjoy, regardless of which player was the first to meld. Please note that partners are not allowed to discuss the melding process during the game.
Once a meld was created, partners may add compatible cards to that meld. Cards cannot be added to the opposing team’s melds. There is no limit to the number of melds a team can create during a single round, but it is not permitted to create more than one meld with cards of the same rank. In order for a player to meld for the first time in the current round, that initial meld must meet a minimum value requirement. This requirement is based on the total score of the team up to that point, as shown in the table below:
Score stage
Score range
Initial meld value requirement
Stage I
0 – 1,495 points
45 points or any golden suit
Stage II
1,500 – 2,995 points
90 points (including at most 1 wild card) or any golden suit
Stage III
3,000 – 4,995 points
120 points (including at most 2 wild cards) or any golden suit
Stage IV
>= 5,000 points
Canasta (including at most 3 wild cards) or any golden suit
Stage I
0 – 1,495 points
45 points or any golden suit
Stage II
1,500 – 2,995 points
90 points (including at most 1 wild card) or any golden suit
Stage III
3,000 – 4,995 points
120 points (including at most 2 wild cards) or any golden suit
Stage IV
>= 5,000 points
Canasta (including at most 3 wild cards) or any golden suit
In the beginning of round 1, all teams are in score Stage I. After each round, the score for each team is calculated by adding the points gained in that round to the team’s total score. As such, the score increases with each round, progressively reaching new stages as defined in the above table. When a team reaches a new stage, its initial meld for the next round must be at least equal in value to the requirement associated with the new score stage.
DRAWING FROM THE DISCARD STACK
A player’s turn normally begins by drawing a card from stock. However, there are certain situations whena player may draw the top card from the discard stack (the card discarded by the previous player at the end of his turn) or even the whole stack. This may prove extremely useful, so you should take advantage of this opportunity. However, there are strict rules for drawing the top card or picking up the whole stack, the most important being that the stack must not be blocked. Shields, Swords and Artifacts have the ability to block the stack, making it unavailable to other players for a full turn. So, if a player blocks the stack by discarding a Shield, a Sword, or an Artifact, the other players are not allowed to draw the top card or pick up the stack during the current turn. The stack becomes available once again as soon as the player who discarded the blocking card begins his next turn. Example: If player A discards a Shield, a Sword, or an Artifact, the top card from the discard stack cannot be drawn, and the stack itself cannot be picked up by players B, C, D during the current turn. These players will be forced to draw from stock to play their respective hands. Of course, they can also block the discard stack.
Another important rule is that you must be able to use the top card from the discard stack to immediately meld a new formation (regular meld, canasta or suit) together with other compatible cards from your hand (at least two other natural cards of the same rank, but different suits; wildcards are not allowed).
DRAWING THE TOP CARD
A player may draw just the single top card from the discard stack if and only if he can use it to meld a new formation (regular meld, canasta or suit) together with other compatible cards from his hand. This must happen in the same turn – you cannot draw the card and keep it in your hand until your next turn. The top card can be drawn only if the team hasn’t melded yet.
(The top card can be used ONLY in the initial melding). Also, it can be drawn regardless of the score Stage the team is in.
Remeber! The top card from the discard stack cannot be taken if:
• It’s a Shield, Sword, or Artifact.
• The stack is blocked (one or more of the last three discarded cards is a Shield, Sword, or Artifact)
• The player cannot use the card to meld immediately.
Also, players may not take the first card set down by the first player in the beginning of the round. Only the card discarded by the previous player may be taken.
PICKING UP THE DISCARD STACK
Picking up the whole discard stack may provide a huge advantage, because it can sometimes grow to include dozens of cards that a player can use to create several canastas and/or a suit. The stack may pe picked up if the following conditions are met:
Condition 1: A player may pick up the discard stack only in his turn.
Condition 2: The player’s team must have already melded.
Condition 3: The stack must not be blocked.
Condition 4: The player can use the top card from the discard stack to immediately meld a new formation (regular meld, canasta or suit).
Steps: The player must first show the others the cards from his hand that he intends to use together with the top card from the discard stack. Once the proposed formation is validated by the other players, the player can take the top card from the discard stack and meld. Next, he discards a card from his hand to end his turn, placing it next to the stock pile. (this card will form the new discard stack). Now he is allowed to actually pick up the old discard stack and keep it in his hand. He may not use any of the newly obtained cards at this point to form new melds – he must wait for his next turn to be able to use them.
Note: Picking up the discard stack is a privilege gained only after the team has melded for the first time in the current round. Regardless of who melded, both partners are able to pick up the discard stack after the initial melding. However, the partner of the player who created the initial meld may not pick up the discard stack immediately after this. He must wait for a full turn before doing so (first, the player who created the initial meld must get to play another turn). Of course, after this, both players in the team may pick up the discard stack in all turns during the round, if conditions are met.
The discard stack is not available to be picked up:
a) before the team has melded / before the player who created the initial meld gets to play another turn;
b) if the discard stack is blocked;
c) if the player has less than 4 cards in his hand;
d) when there are less than 4 cards in the stock pile;
NO MORE CARDS IN STOCK
It is possible for the stock to run out of cards. In this case, the player who draws the last card must replace it with the discard stack, by turning the whole discard stack face-down. This way, the discard stack becomes the new stock. Don’t forget to shuffle it thoroughly. The card that the player discards to end his turn must be placed face-up next to the new stock pile. This card will form the new discard stack.
RULES FOR GOING OUT
The round ends with a player “going out”, i.e., getting rid of all the cards in his hand. The final card must always be discarded on top of the discard stack. If a player decides to go out and his final card is a Sword or Artifact, then the total score doubles (for both teams, regardless of whether the score is positive or negative, the number will be multiplied by two).
A player may only go out if:
• his team has already melded for that round (or when the player himself uses up all his cards to create the initial meld for his team);
• The team has at least one canasta or one suit.
It is allowed for a player intending to go out to ask his partner: “May I go out?”. The answer must be “Yes” or “No”. Further discussions are forbidden. When a player has only 3 cards, he may announce this fact.
After a player has gone out, the scores are calculated for each team, then a new round can begin. The player whose turn it is to deal gathers all the cards from the table, shuffles the deck and deals the cards to begin the next round.
FORMATIONS AND SCORING
Points are scored each round and added to the team’s total score. The values of melded canastas and suits and the cards included in them are added. The values of the cards left in the players’ hands at the end of the round are subtracted. Note: regular formations are not scored separately, like canastas and suits are.
Teams can score points by:
A. Creating suits and canastas. Each suit and each canasta have a predefined value assigned to it. These values are added up at the end of the round.
B. Summing up the values of all the cards used to create the team’s melds.
C. Gaining bonus points through achievements (going out, doubling the score or collecting Treasure Pots).
The steps for calculating the team’s score are as follows:
1. Add up the values of the canastas and suits created by the team.
2. Add to this the sum of the values of each individual card included in all the team’s melds: regular formations, canastas and suits.
3. Subtract from this the sum the values of the cards left in the players’ hands at the end of the round.
A. Canastas and suits
A canasta is a formation made up of at least 7 cards and a maximum of 8 cards of the same rank (for example, 5, 5, 5, 5, 5, 5, 5). A canasta can include a maximum of 3 wild cards (Swords and Artifacts). Wild cards can stand for natural cards of any rank. Canastas can be “natural” (made entirely of natural cards) or “mixed” (made of natural and wild cards).
A legal canasta must include a minimum of 7 cards. A card can be added later to a melded canasta, but a complete canasta can never include more than 8 cards, among which no more than 3 wild cards (Swords and Artifacts). Once a canasta is complete, it is set aside next to the team that created it.
In order to easily determine the value of a complete canasta when you calculate the score at the end of the round, you can distinguish natural canastas (600 points) from mixed canastas (300 points) by the top card: leave a card of red hearts or blue diamonds on top to mark a natural canasta or a card of black spades or orange clubs to mark a mixed canasta.
A suit is a formation of at least 7 gold cards (with a small crown symbol), natural or mixed, in sequential order. Important! Mixed suits can be created only with Artifacts as wild cards. Swords cannot be used as wild cards to create mixed suits. Additional cards can be added to a melded suit during the game, but it is very important the all the cards forming the suit be in sequential order.
Golden suits can be melded any time during the game, as long as the initial meld includes at least 3 natural gold cards. Just like with canastas, both partners can add to an existing suit during the game. Suits count as a legal initial meld for the team.
A royal suit is a suit made of 7 cards in sequential order. Example: 6 gold, 7 gold, 8 gold, 9 gold, 10 gold, J gold, Q gold. Any of these cards can be replaced by an Artifact in a legal mixed royal suit, but there can never be more than 3 Artifacts per suit. The natural royal suit is the most valuable formation in the Kanastic game, akin to a royal flush in poker. It can even win you the game, as it has a value of 5,000 points! As such, it is very rare, of course. Examples of canastas and golden suits:
Natural Canasta
Mixed Canasta
Royal golden suit
Mixed golden suit
Examples of possible combinations with golden suits used as initial melds:
This combination gives exactly 45 points, satisfying the minimum score requirement for score stage I.
This combination gives exactly 90 points, satisfying the minimum score requirement for score stage II.
The composition and value of all legal canastas and suits are listed below:
Formation type
Composition
Value
Natural Canasta
7 or 8 natural cards of the same rank
600 points
Mixed Canasta
At least 4 natural cards of the same rank + at most 3 wild cards (Swords and Artifacts)
300 points
Natural Ace Canasta
7 or 8 Aces
1000 points
Mixed Ace Canasta
At least 4 Aces
+ at most 3 wild cards (Swords and Artifacts)
500 points
Royal Golden Suit
7 natural gold (crown) cards
of sequential ranks
5000 points
Mixed Golden Suit
7 gold (crown) cards of sequential ranks, including (at most) 3 Artifacts.
2500 points
Formation type
Composition
Value
Natural Canasta
7 or 8 natural cards of the same rank
600 points
Mixed Canasta
At least 4 natural cards of the same rank + at most 3 wild cards (Swords and Artifacts)
300 points
Natural Ace Canasta
7 or 8 Aces
1000 points
Mixed Ace Canasta
At least 4 Aces
+ at most 3 wild cards (Swords and Artifacts)
500 points
Royal Golden Suit
7 natural gold (crown) cards
of sequential ranks
5000 points
Mixed Golden Suit
7 gold (crown) cards of sequential ranks, including (at most) 3 Artifacts.
2500 points
B. Individual card values
Each card in the deck has its own base value in points, as shown in the table below.
Treasure Pots
100 points each
Note: If a team collects all 4 treasure pots
during a round, the bonus points for them are tripled,
meaning the team scores 1,200 points for collecting
these 4 cards. If a team collects less than 4 treasure
pots during a round, each will count as 100 points.
Artifacts
(Pandora’s Box, Genie Lamp,
Ark of the Covenant and Helm of Darkness)
50 points each
Swords
25 points each
Heaven
(A)
20 points each
Swamp,
Desert, Ice World,
Magic Forest, Cave
(9 10 J Q K)
10 points each
Necromancy,
Inferno, Sea, Lake,
Haunted Woods
(4 5 6 7 8)
5 points each
Shields
-100 points each
(if in a player’s hand at the end of the round)
*Gold cards (with a small crown symbol) have the same value as the other cards of the same rank (in the same realm) and they can be included in regular melds and canastas just like any other card.
*Wild cards have their own fixed values of 50 and 25 points respectively, not the values of the cards they replace.
SPECIAL ACTION CARDS
Shields and Treasure Pots are special cards that must be treated differently from natural and wild cards. They cannot form melds on their own or be included in melds.
Treasure Pots (green cards): these cards have no other role than to grant bonus points to the team that owns them. They cannot be played normally and they are merely “collected”. As such, if a player is dealt one or more Treasure Pots in the beginning of a round, he must set these cards aside immediately and is dealt replacement cards. Also, if a player randomly draws a Treasure Pot from stock during the game, he must set it aside immediately and draw another card. The Treasure Pots collected this way will be kept until the end of the round and counted towards the team’s score: each Treasure Pot collected by the team counts as 100 points. But if a team collects all 4 Treasure Pots in the course of a single round, they will grant a total of 1,200 bonus points.
Shields (orange cards): basically, these cards can only be discarded. They cannot be used as wild cards or melded in any way. When a Shield card is discarded, it blocks the discard stack for the current turn, just like Swords and Artifacts (see Drawing from the discard stack). Also, it is important to note that each Shield card that is still in a player’s hand at the end of the round counts as -100 points for the team.
C. Bonus points for achievements
1. Going out: + 200 points
2. Going out on the initial melding: + 200 points and the score for that round doubles (x2)
3. Going out by discarding a wild card (Sword or Artifact): the score for that round doubles (x2) *It is possible for all of the above situations to happen at once. In that case, the score for that round doubles twice (x4).
4. All 4 Treasure Pots collected: + 1,200 points. If a team collects less than 4 Treasure Pots during the round, each Treasure Pot counts as +100 points.
For the winning team, the score is calculated as follows: The values of the melded formations (melds, canastas and/or suits) and the sum total of the individual cards included in them are added together. From this sum, you must subtract the sum of the values of the individual cards in the hand of the player who hasn’t gone out. Then add to the resulting number the bonus points granted by the Treasure Pots collected by the team. The grand total is added to the total score of the team.
For the losing team, the score is calculated as follows: • If the team hasn’t melded before the end of the round, the sum of all the cards in the players’ hands is subtracted from the team’s total score. If the team has collected any Treasure Pots, their values are also subtracted from the score (collecting all 4 Treasure Pots counts as –1,200 points). • If the team has melded during the round, the sum of the cards left in the players’ hands is subtracted from the sum of the melded formations and cards. The result is then added to the team’s total score.
The game ends after the round in which a team has reached a score of at least 10,000 points. That team is the winner.
STRATEGY GUIDELINES
General principle: All actions are aimed at the main purpose – to score as many points as possible. Picking up the discard stack is a major boost. The chances of picking up the discard stack grow proportionally with the number of cards in your hand. For this reason, early melding of a large number of cards is not recommended (the less cards you have, the less opportunities to create formations). Your initial melding should be as economical as possible (while still meeting the minimum requirement according to your team’s score stage). Examples: 10, 10, 10, wild card; or J, J, J, etc. In order to increase your chances of picking up the discard stack, you should also try to keep the pairs you have in your hand and discard single cards. In some phases of the game, it may be a good idea to “force” a useful card from the adversary on your right by discarding a card that you could actually use to create a good meld. This will trick your adversary into thinking that you have no interest in cards of that rank, so he will feel confident in discarding those he might have (safe in the knowledge that you don’t need them). When in reality, that’s exactly what you’ve been after all along.
Another important thing to keep in mind is that you should try to prevent your opponents from drawing the top card from the discard stack by discarding Shields, Swords and Artifacts whenever possible, especially when the discard stack gets thicker.
You could also try to remember which cards were discarded, as this could give you an idea of your opponents’ hands, especially during the first turns. Single cards tend to be discarded during the first turns, when the discard stack is still thin, while blocking cards are usually kept for later. When the discard stack gets thick, you shouldn’t hesitate to discard a Shield, a Sword, or an Artifact in order to block the stack. After both teams have melded, the number and ranks of the cards on the table can provide precious insights to help you decide which card to discard. After picking up the discard stack, don’t be in a hurry to meld all your new cards. Keep in your hand all pairs that would make it possible for you to pick up the stack again later in the game. Do your best to match your opponents’ number of canastas. You will not fail to notice how melding the first canasta tenses up the game by generating some serious pressure and forcing the other team to act promptly… and perhaps rashly.
When a player from the opposing team is left with 1-4 cards in his hand, it’s a signal that he might go out at any moment. You should rush to meld as much as possible, especially the more valuable cards – these might get subtracted from your score at the end of the round if your team loses. If your team finds itself at a serious disadvantage after the first round or two, being far behind on the score, you should adopt a point-scoring strategy by focusing on melding canastas or a suit. You may get lucky and catch up… or not.
GOOD BEHAVIOR FOR A FAIR GAME
Ideally, all cards should be shuffled well and dealt correctly in the very beginning, and each player should draw cards only when it is his turn to do so. You may not draw a card from stock or the discard stack before the previous player has had the chance to discard a card from his hand. Also, you may not draw from both stacks at the same time. You should only meld if your initial melds amount to the minimum required points in accordance with the team’s current score stage. If you meld and it turns out that your calculations were wrong, and your meld does not actually meet the minimum requirement, simply take your cards back, play normally, and wait until you can meld legally. With the exception of such honest mistakes, players are not allowed to change their minds. (You may not return a card taken from stock or the discard stack, and you may not take back a card added to a meld or discarded. Legal melds cannot be undone). You should pick up the discard stack only if all conditions to do so legally are met.
Players should never discuss the cards in their hands or those on the table during the game. You can communicate with your team mate regarding short-term strategy (asking for permission to go out), but it is never allowed to mention or allude to specific cards. All non-verbal, secret or codified means of communicating are strictly forbidden.
Some attempts of this sort could be easily spotted and penalized, but others might be very subtle and apparently innocent (signs agreed upon beforehand, such as unrelated questions and remarks, small gestures, etc.) Refraining from such deceitful behavior is a hallmark of moral conduct in Kanastic, because a team in which partners communicate illicit information has an unfair advantage.
All these rules are a matter of fair play and common sense. Abide by them and you will be able to enjoy an immensely rewarding experience alongside your best friends. That being said, it’s time to have a seat.
The game is about to begin!
Have a
