Banakil is a four-player partnership game using two decks of playing cards (104 cards) and two jokers. The game includes 8 Banakil cards, where Banakil is equivalent to the card numbered 2.
Game Objective
The goal of the Banakil game is for each player to get rid of their cards by laying down sets on the table or adding their cards to their partner's sets.
Cards and Distribution
Players randomly select the dealer, who then thoroughly shuffles the cards and deals 18 cards to each player at the beginning of the game. An additional card is given to the player on their right. The remaining cards are placed face-down in the middle of the table, forming the “deck.”
How to Play
1. The player holding 19 cards starts by discarding one card onto the table, and then play proceeds counterclockwise. Each player has the option to either draw a card from the deck or from the table.
2. The round ends when one player's finishes their cards, and the entire game concludes when one team reaches 222 points or more.
Laying Down Sets and Combining
· Sets in the Banakil game consist of consecutive cards of the same suit or different types of 3s or Aces, provided the set contains at least three cards.
· A player can lay down sets on the table without a minimum requirement for the set's total value.
· After a player lays down their initial sets, they can only combine cards on their partner's sets and cannot add cards to the opponent's sets.
· Jokers and Banakil cards serve as substitutes for any card the player doesn't have. If there is a joker in a set on the table, and the player has the card the joker is substituting, they can replace the joker with their card.
Scoring
When a player finishes their cards, they score 20+ points in addition to the total value of the sets they laid down. The remaining cards in the player's or their partner's hand are subtracted from the final score.
Cards are scored as follows:
Cards (3-6) = 0.5 Points
Cards (7-K) = 1 Point
Ace = 1 Point
Banakil (2) = 2 Points
Joker = 4 Points
If a player lays down all their cards at once, they score 51+ for the winning team and 0 points for the opposing team. In case both players from the opposing team lay down sets on the table, the winning team scores 102+, and the opposing team scores 0 points.