The player with the lowest card deals first. The bottom card of the portion each player holds is then compared.

To cut for deal, both players cut a portion of the deck, effectively splitting the deck into three parts (a portion in each player's hand and the portion remaining on the table). Place the pegs in their starting locations.Ĭut the deck to see who deals first, low card deals. A 'real' 10 is still needed to follow the correct order and make the run, such as 9-10-J. For example, 9-J-Q is not considered a run even though jacks and queens have a value of 10. Order refers to how cards can be arranged into runs. These values and orders are summarized in the table below. All other cards are equal to their face value. In cribbage, aces are always low and have a value of 1, while jacks, queens, and kings all have a value of 10. Value and Order of the CardsĪs in any card game, it is necessary to understand the order and value of each card. He first removes the back peg, then counts six holes ahead of his other peg and places his peg in this location. (Figure 2)Įxample: If the red player just scored 6 points. Therefore, the pegs keep track of the total number of points scored.

Move your peg forward one hole for each point scored.

Remove your back peg, leaving the front peg to keep track of your current location.

But, if done incorrectly, you can easily lose your place or move the incorrect amount of spaces. Points are scored in the pegging and counting phases, both of which are explained in their corresponding sections. The goal of Cribbage is to score 121 points before your opponent.

Two pegs for each player (usually included with board).

Standard deck of 52 cards with jokers removed.

Games normally take about 30 minutes, although they can take 45 minutes to an hour.ĭue to the nature of the game, with many different parts all relying on each other, it is strongly recommended that you completely read over the instructions before starting to play.Īlthough cribbage may seem like a complicated and challenging game to begin with, it will soon become second nature and a game to enjoy for the rest of your life.

At first glance, cribbage may seem like an extremely complex game.īut truly, the only requirement needed to play is the simple ability to add to 31.

How cribbage is played