Kalooki rules, made easy.

Four to six players play the standard browser game. We use two standard 54-card packs for four-player tables and three for five or six players. Each pack contains 52 ordinary cards and two jokers. Individual cards may repeat because multiple packs are combined.

Our score sheets also support two, three and seven players for local table play. Those counts use the tournament score-sheet notes you supplied.

Every deal has an opening requirement. A 3 is a set of three or more cards of equal rank. A 4 is a run of four or more consecutive cards in one suit. Lay the full combination shown for your deal before you begin tacking.

When several sets are laid by one player, they must use different ranks. Several runs laid by the same player must use different suits.

On your turn, pick up the top stock card or the top discard. When your opening contract is complete, you may lay the required groups, then extend combinations on the table. Finish by discarding one card. Jokers cannot be discarded.

Kalookis follows Super Kalooki's published turn instructions: on your turn, you may draw from the stock or take the top discard, including after you have laid your contract. Calling a discarded card out of turn is available only before your first lay. You must draw before tacking during your turn. Some traditional Jamaican rule sets restrict players who are already down to stock draws only.

Before your opening lay, you may call for another player's newly discarded card when it is not your regular turn to take that card. The next player may refuse the call and take the discard for themselves.

If your call succeeds, you receive the discarded card plus one additional unseen stock card. You cannot lay or discard during that interruption. Each player may make up to three successful calls during a deal.

Your first lay must satisfy the full contract for that deal. Afterward, you can add a matching card to a set or extend a run. Runs grow at the high end first. After a run reaches a high ace, the low end can be extended.

A joker used in a set remains there. A joker in a run may shift to the open end when the natural card it represents is played, subject to the same non-adjacent-joker restriction. Jokers never return to a hand once laid.

When a player gets rid of all remaining cards, the deal ends. Other players add the penalty values of the cards still in their hands. These accumulate over nine deals. The lowest total wins.

A player who lays for the first time and goes out during that same turn is down and out. Opponents receive double deadwood points, and the winning player's score is reduced by 50 points.

The published Super Kalooki rules specify a 50-point penalty for an excessive call or an incorrect opening contract. These offenses also restrict additional actions in that deal.

Kalookis is a friendly way to learn Jamaican Contract Rummy while getting familiar with everyday Jamaican Patois (Patwa). At the browser table, the Patois play coach offers short prompts for each stage of the game, with English translations that you can show or hide.

Written Jamaican Patois varies by community and speaker. These original teaching prompts use approachable informal spellings and include English explanations to help beginners.