Cribbage is one of the oldest of the classic card games with roots dating back to the early 1600s. It evolved from an English game called 'Noddy.' The person generally credited with creating Cribbage is Sir John Suckling (1609 to 1642), a wealthy poet. The Basics To play a game of cribbage you need atleast two people but can have three or four people. Here are some guidelines which will depend on the number of people that are playing: 1. Two people: the dealer deals six cards each (pictured below) 2. Three people: the dealer deals five cards each and then one off to the side (pictured below) 3. Four people: the dealer deals five. Though in online cribbage you don't need to score manually the counting your cribbage hand correctly is a very important part of the game of Cribbage. Moreover, you can select the 'Manual' option or play non-online cribbage with Muggins variation. Muggins is when a person misses points and the other person takes them. Two or three people can play. Or four people can play two against two as partners. But Cribbage is basically. Best played by two people, and the rules that follow are for that number. The standard 52-card pack is used. K (high), Q, J, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, A. The Draw, Shuffle and Cut.
Traditional Cribbage is a card game that has been around since the 17th Century. It involves creating hands composed of pairs, runs, flushes, and sums to 15. Here at eCribbage.com, you can play 2 player, 3 player, and 4 player games. You can also play teams, muggins, and jokers.
What features make eCribbage.com the best?
How to play (2 player):
The players cut to see who gets the first 'crib'. Players are dealt 6 cards each, and both have to discard 2 cards into the crib. Then a community card is cut that will play for both hands in the show. If a jack is cut for the cut card, the player with the crib immediately gets 2 points. (This is called His Nobs). Now on to the play:
The play
Players take turns playing (pegging) their cards one at a time and announcing the total sum of the cards. Face cards count for 10. If the sum is equal to 15 or 31, that player gets 2 points. If the player forms a pair, they get 2 points. A triple pair is worth 6 points, and a quadruple pair is worth 12 points. If either player forms a run of 3 or more, they get to claim that many points as well. Runs do not necessarily have to be played in order. For example if 4,7,5,6 was played, whoever laid the 6 would get to claim a run for 4 points.
You are not allowed to play a card to make a sum over 31, so if you play to 28 and your opponent only has cards of over 3, they will say GO and you will continue to play as many cards as you can up to 31. You also claim one point for playing the last card of every trick. Whoever played the last card in the trick, their opponent starts the next trick. When all cards have been played, you move on to the show.
Play Cribbage Against Computer
The show
The show is where you count all the hands up. The player that does not have the crib counts first, then the player with the crib counts their hand, and then finally the crib is counted. Scores count for the following:
How to play (3 player):
3 player crib is very similar to 2 player crib except players are dealt 5 cards each instead of 6. They only throw one card each to the crib, and one card is taken off the top of the deck and placed in the crib.
eCribbage.com also provides the variant where the dealer (the player with the crib) can deal themself 6 cards, and the rest of the players 5. The dealer throws 2 cards to their crib, and the rest of the players throw 1 card to the crib.
How to play (4 player):
Play Cribbage Classic
4 player crib is very similar to 2 player crib except players are dealt 5 cards each instead of 6. Every player throws one card to the crib. The play goes clockwise through all players. There is also a 2 vs 2, team cribbage game that is described on the team cribbage page.