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One Card Roulette — flip playing cards one by one and pick whoever draws the color joker

Players take turns flipping a shuffled deck of playing cards one at a time, and whoever turns up the color joker is picked. As in the Korean card game One Card, an ace attacks the next player with 3 cards, the ace of spades with 5, a two with 2 and the black joker with 7; the player under attack draws one card to pass the attack on or blocks it with a 3 of the same suit. A king means draw again, a queen reverses the order and a jack skips one player. Use it for a forfeit or a prize with 2 to 8 players passing one device around. The deck is shuffled in this browser and nothing is sent to a server.

One Card Roulette
Enter the players to start

54 cards. Whoever flips the color joker is picked.

    Players

    Press Enter between names; 2 to 8 players. The first turn is picked at random.

    Rules

    1. Enter the players' names, add what the pick means (a forfeit or a prize) if you like, and start.
    2. The first turn is picked at random. Whoever's turn it is taps the deck to flip one card.
    3. When attacked, draw one card to pass it on or block it; if you can't, draw the rest of the penalty one card at a time.
    4. The moment the color joker appears, that player is picked — even in the middle of a penalty.

    What each card does

    Color jokerWhoever draws it is picked. The game ends on the spot, whenever it appears.
    ANext player must take 3 cards
    ♠ANext player must take 5 cards
    2Next player must take 2 cards
    Black jokerNext player must take 7 cards. Only the ♠A can pass it on.
    3Blocks an attack when it matches the suit of the last attack card
    KSame player draws again
    QReverses the order (no effect with 2 players)
    JSkips the next player
    Any other cardNext player's turn

    Passing on and penalties

    • An ace attack can be passed on with any ace or a two of the same suit. The cards stack up and go to the next player.
    • A two attack can be passed on with any two or an ace of the same suit.
    • The black joker can pass on an attack from a black ace or two (spades or clubs).
    • Passing the black joker on with the ♠A sends 7+5 = 12 cards to the next player, who can block them with the ♠3.
    • If you can neither pass it on nor block it, the card you just drew counts as one and you draw the rest one at a time.
    • Cards drawn in the middle of a penalty do nothing; only the last one takes effect.

    FAQ

    What is One Card Roulette?
    A 54-card deck — 52 playing cards plus a black joker and a color joker — is shuffled face down and players take turns flipping one card at a time. Whoever flips the color joker is picked and the round ends. Whether the pick is a forfeit or a prize, it works whenever you need to single out one person, such as who buys coffee or who goes first. The One Card attack and block rules mean someone sometimes has to draw several cards in a row, and that is exactly when the color joker is most likely to turn up.
    What happens when I'm attacked?
    An ace, a two or the black joker attacks the next player. The player under attack first draws one card. If that card can pass the attack on, its value is added and it goes to the next player; if it is a 3 matching the suit of the last attack card, the attack is gone. Otherwise the card just drawn counts as one and you draw the remaining cards one at a time. For example, if you are hit by an ace (3 cards) and draw a 7, you draw 2 more.
    How do I stop the black joker?
    A black joker attack (7 cards) can only be passed on with the ace of spades. That adds 5, so 12 cards go to the next player, who can block with the 3 of spades or pass them on again with another ace or the 2 of spades. The black joker has no suit, so a 3 cannot block it. The black joker can also be used to pass on another attack, but only an ace or two of a black suit (spades or clubs).
    What about a K or an ace in the middle of a penalty?
    Every card in the middle does nothing. Only the last card of the penalty takes effect, just like a normal turn: a K means draw again, a Q reverses the order and an ace attacks the next player. The color joker is the one exception — if it shows up partway through a penalty, that player is picked on the spot.
    Is the shuffle fair?
    All 54 cards are shuffled at once with the browser's cryptographic random numbers (crypto.getRandomValues). The order never appears on screen — only the number of cards left — and there is no seed number that would let anyone work out the order in advance. Cards and names are used only in this browser and never sent to a server. Names and the pick description are saved in this browser only, so they are ready next time.
    How many people can play?
    From 2 to 8 players. The first turn is drawn at random every round and play then follows the order the names were entered. Seats that draw earlier are slightly more likely to be picked in this game, so choosing the starting seat at random gives everyone the same chance. With 2 players a Q's reverse means nothing, so play simply passes to the other player, while a J skips the other player so the same person draws again. There is always exactly one color joker in the deck, so someone is always picked before all 54 cards run out.

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