Board Game Arena - User contributions [en]

Gamehelpfaifo

2026-06-21T22:27:54Z

Silene: missing rule added: 2nd highest reputation gets 1 coin

==Gameplay==
* At the start of each round, each player gains 1 ship and 2 coins.
* Shuffle all merchants (and 3 ships for 5 players) and deal them evenly to each player.
* If there are 3 players, each player must discard a card.
* On your turn, choose a card from your hand. Then everyone reveals at the same time.
* Activate all ships and special conditions. Then the player with the highest reputation gains 2 coins, the 2nd highest reputation earns 1 coin and the lowest activates their skill. Ships are not counted.
* Repeat this twice.

==End of the Game==
* The player with the most coins gains 1 contract.
* If there is a tie, duel with the last card.
* If a player has 3 contracts, they win.

==Card Skills==
* 1: Gain 3 coins, then play RPS with another player. Loser discards half of their money.
* 2: Gain 3 coins.
* 3: All players pass a card to the left.
* 4: Exchange a card with a player.
* 5: Return coins gained in this round to the bank.
* 6: Steal 3 coins from a player.
* 7: Swap money of 2 players.
* 8: Gain 1 contract. If you win this round, gain another contract.
* 9: Copy a skill revealed in this round.
* 10: No skill.
* 11: Lose 1 coin.
* 12: Give 1 coin to each of your neighbors.
* Ship: If there is 1 ship gain 3 coins. If there are 2 ships gain 1 coin.

Gamehelptrailblazers

2024-08-24T23:27:21Z

Silene:

===Overview===

Gain the most points over 4 rounds

===Start of Round===

In the first three rounds only, after hand cards are dealt, each player picks one of their three camp cards to use this round

===Turn===

The round is made up of three turns

Each turn, you choose two cards from your hand to play, then pass the rest of your hand on to the next player (Left 1/3, Right 2/4)

After the three turns, you will have two cards left which will just be discarded

===Card Placement===

Cards may be played orthogonally adjacent to or overlapping other cards

Camp cards cannot be overlapped

Trails are NOT required to match or be continuous

===In-Game & End-Game Goals===

There are four goals randomly created at the start, two for in-game and two for end-game

In-game goals can be claimed during the game, multiple players can claim the same goal but ensure to mark when they were claimed as earlier claims score more points, goals scored at the same time score the same rank, once all the ranks of a goal are claimed no more claims can be made

End-Game goals are scored in a similar fashion, except these are scored at end of fourth round and will typically be ranked on how well you did something, rather than when you did it

===Game End===

The game ends at the end of the fourth round

In-Game and End-Game goals are scored based on the player rank on them

Each Camp will score its colour/type loop

Each Camp is only interested in ONE route type

Brown Hiking / Orange Biking / Blue Kayaking

A Route only counts as a Loop if it begins and ends at the Camp i.e. one clear exit and one clear entrance

Each Camp can house multiple Loops

Each loop scores based on each Trail Marker feature it passes as you'd travel it, if you pass a feature twice, count it twice

The player with the most points, wins!

If tied, the player who achieved the most goals wins!

=== Trail Scoring (TLDR) ===

Tiles are only scored if they're part of a completed trail beginning and ending at the camp of it's color.

Score 1 point for each 1x1 (half a tile aka "Trail Marker") a trail passes through (if it passes through multiple times, each time is worth a point)

(^ One 2x1 tile can generate multiple points)

''Since we're adding attribution here, apparently, this TLDR is partly brought to you by [https://boardgamearena.com/player?id=91993923 sl8rgames] (with many thanks to [https://boardgamearena.com/player?id=94554368 jestaoz] who made this all clear)''

Gamehelptrailblazers

2024-08-23T07:44:19Z

Silene: /* Trail Scoring (TLDR) */ color matching is important enough for the TLDR.

===Overview===

Gain the most points over 4 rounds

===Start of Round===

In the first three rounds only, after hand cards are dealt, each player picks one of their three camp cards to use this round

===Turn===

The round is made up of three turns

Each turn, you choose two cards from your hand to play, then pass the rest of your hand on to the next player (Left 1/3, Right 2/4)

After the three turns, you will have two cards left which will just be discarded

===Card Placement===

Cards may be played orthogonally adjacent to or overlapping other cards

Camp cards cannot be overlapped

Trails are NOT required to match or be continuous

===In-Game & End-Game Goals===

There are four goals randomly created at the start, two for in-game and two for end-game

In-game goals can be claimed during the game, multiple players can claim the same goal but ensure to mark when they were claimed as earlier claims score more points, goals scored at the same time score the same rank, once all the ranks of a goal are claimed no more claims can be made

End-Game goals are scored in a similar fashion, except these are scored at end of fourth round and will typically be ranked on how well you did something, rather than when you did it

===Game End===

The game ends at the end of the fourth round

In-Game and End-Game goals are scored based on the player rank on them

Each Camp will score its colour/type loop

Each Camp is only interested in ONE route type

Brown Hiking / Orange Biking / Blue Kayaking

A Route only counts as a Loop if it begins and ends at the Camp i.e. one clear exit and one clear entrance

Each Camp can house multiple Loops

Each loop scores based on each Trail Marker feature it passes as you'd travel it, if you pass a feature twice, count it twice

The player with the most points, wins!

If tied, the player who achieved the most goals wins!

=== Trail Scoring (TLDR) ===

Tiles are only scored if they're part of a completed trail beginning and ending at the camp of it's color.

Score 1 point for each 1x1 (half a tile aka "Trail Marker") a trail passes through (if it passes through multiple times, each time is worth a point)

(^ One 2x1 tile can generate multiple points)

''Since we're adding attribution here, apparently, this TLDR is brought to you by [https://boardgamearena.com/player?id=91993923 sl8rgames] (with many thanks to [https://boardgamearena.com/player?id=94554368 jestaoz] who made this all clear)''

Gamehelphanabi

2023-10-14T17:28:41Z

Silene: /* Meaning of skipping a player / stealing clues in Finesse convention */

Hanabi is a cooperative game. Your goal, as a team, is to build a fabulous fireworks show. You have to put together 5 fireworks ( 1 white, 1 red, 1 blue, 1 yellow, 1 green), by making series rising in number (1, 2, 3, 4, 5) with the same coloured cards.

However, you cannot see your own cards; you can only see the cards of your team mates.

Also, communication (and non communication) between the players is essential to Hanabi.

You can only communication with your teammates when you give them a clue (see below).

No other communication is allowed.

Your final score is the total of the top cards on the five piles:

{|class="wikitable" style="width:auto; text-align:center;" border="2"
|+Final Score Ratings
!Points
!Overall impression
|-
|0-5
|horrible, booed by the crowd...
|-
|6-10
|mediocre, just a spattering of applause.
|-
|11-15
|honourable, but will not be remembered for very long...
|-
|16-20
|excellent, crowd pleasing.
|-
|21-24
|amazing, will be remembered for a very long time!
|-
|25
|legendary, everyone left speechless, stars in their eyes
|}

== Card distribution ==

* Each card has a colour and a number.
{|class="wikitable" style="width:auto;" border="2"
|+Normal difficulty (50 cards)
!Red (r)
|{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=2}}
|{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=2}}{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=2}}
|{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=2}}{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=2}}
|{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=2}}{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=2}}
|{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=2}}
|-
!Yellow (y)
|{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#fe5|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#fe5|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#fe5|size=2}}
|{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#fe5|size=2}}{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#fe5|size=2}}
|{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#fe5|size=2}}{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#fe5|size=2}}
|{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#fe5|size=2}}{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#fe5|size=2}}
|{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#fe5|size=2}}
|-
!Green (g)
|{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#2a7|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#2a7|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#2a7|size=2}}
|{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#2a7|size=2}}{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#2a7|size=2}}
|{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#2a7|size=2}}{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#2a7|size=2}}
|{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#2a7|size=2}}{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#2a7|size=2}}
|{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#2a7|size=2}}
|-
!Blue (b)
|{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#0ae|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#0ae|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#0ae|size=2}}
|{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#0ae|size=2}}{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#0ae|size=2}}
|{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#0ae|size=2}}{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#0ae|size=2}}
|{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#0ae|size=2}}{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#0ae|size=2}}
|{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#0ae|size=2}}
|-
!White (w)
|{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#fff|size=2}}
|}

=== Multicolour cards ===

* There are three variants that add a 6th colour: the multicolour.
* There are three difficulties:

==== Tricky ====

* These cards get marked by a separate '''multicolour clue'''.
{|class="wikitable" style="width:auto;" border="2"
|+Tricky difficulty (+10 cards)
!Multicolour (m)
|{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|}

==== Hard ====

* These cards get marked by a separate '''multicolour clue'''.
{|class="wikitable" style="width:auto;" border="2"
|+Hard difficulty (+5 cards)
!Multi-colour (m)
|{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|}

==== Very Difficult ====

* These cards get marked by '''any colour clue'''.
{|class="wikitable" style="width:auto;" border="2"
|+Avalanche difficulty (+10 cards)
!Multi-colour (m)
|{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|}

== Setup ==

* 8 clue tokens.
{|class="wikitable" style="width:auto;" border="2"
|+# cards dealt to each player
!# Players
!2
!3
!4
!5
|-
!# Cards (official rules)
|5
|5
|4
|4
|-
!# Cards (unofficial rules)
|6
|5
|4
|3
|}

== Game play ==

Players take turns to either:

• Give a '''clue''' 
• '''Play''' a card, or 
• '''Discard''' a card

=== Clue ===

* Possible when there is at least one clue token available.
* Clues indicate '''all''' cards of a certain colour, or '''all''' cards of a certain number.
you may indicate '''no''' cards of a color or number on BGA (you have no 5s, or you have no reds)
you may not indicate only a single card of the matching criteria if there is more than one

To do this:

1. The active player selects a card in another player's hand. 
2. The active player selects a clue option. 
3. One clue token is moved from 'available' to 'used'.

=== Play ===

1. The active player selects a card in their hand. 
2. The active player selects the 'Play selected card' button. 
:• If the played card fits in any of the sequences, it is placed in the appropriate colour stack on the table. 
:• If the played card does not fit, it is placed in the discard pile and the team gets a ''misfire'' token. 
3. A replacement card is drawn.

=== Discard ===

This is only possible when there are fewer than 8 clue tokens available.

1. The active player selects a card in their hand. 
2. The active player selects the 'Discard selected card' button. 
3. The discarded card is placed in the discard pile. 
4. One clue token is moved from 'used' to 'available'. 
5. A replacement card is drawn.

== Game end ==

* The game can end in several ways:
*1. All cards have been drawn from the deck. After this happens, everybody gets 1 more turn. The game ends with the score at the last turn.
*2. Your team played all possible cards. In this case, the game ends immediately and you receive the maximum possible score.
*3. Your team made three mistakes that caused misfires. In this case, you lose the game and get negative ten (-10) points.
*4. Your team 'abandons' the game. Although discouraged, you receive zero (0) points.

== Options ==

=== Black Powder ===

* Clues cannot be given for the colour black.
* Black cards must be played in reverse order, from 5 to 1.
{|class="wikitable" style="width:auto;" border="2"
|+Black Powder (+10 cards)
!Black Powder (k)
|{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#000|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#000|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#000|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#000|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#000|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#000|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#000|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#000|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#000|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#000|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|}

=== Five Flamboyants ===

After playing the last card of a colour, randomly select one of the following bonuses for immediate use:
* Gain a clue token.
* Gain a clue token and recover a life.
* Give a clue regarding a colour.
* Give a clue regarding a number.
* Shuffle a discarded card into the deck.
* Play a discarded card, if possible.

== Lingo ==

When you play with others, certain words are used to describe certain objects or situations. Here is a short list.

;Marked: A card that is highlighted by a clue.
;Unmarked: A card that is not clued.
;chop: The oldest, unmarked card. The card that you have no information on and will chop from your hand.
;draw: The newest, unmarked card. The card that you have no information on and was freshly drawn.
;To bomb: A play that causes the third misfire-token. Sometimes called '''explosion'''
;Unique: A card that has no copy (left) in the deck.
;Double discard: When consecutive players have the same card on chop. A special problem, since, to each of the consecutive players, a number to chop does not look like a unique save.
;Twin chop: 2 consecutive players have the same card on chop. Same as Double discard
;Double save: When a player has two consecutive unique cards, requiring consecutive save clues.
;Strategy: A set of rules / guidelines / conventions on how to interpret actions by players (including spending of clue-tokens).

== ELO rating ==

* If you are playing with ELO rating on, your ELO may be changed at the end of the game.
* Here is how it works:
*1. Every player on the team is temporarily considered as having the average ELO rating of the team.
*2. The system will generate a bot associated with the score your team has achieved (let’s call it '''''Hanabot''''').
**• Hanabot’s ELO rating depends on the variant you are playing (50 cards, 60 cards, 60 cards multicolour), the number of players on the team and, most importantly, your team's score.
**• All Hanabot’s ELO ratings have been set by an experienced player, they are not random or simply proportional to the score/number of players.
*3. Your team (actually your team's average ELO) will now compete against Hanabot.
**• The system will calculate your team’s ELO gain/loss as though your team had tied with Hanabot.
**• If your score is below 18 (50-card game) or below 21 (60-card game), Hanabot's ELO is always 1000.

* You can find [http://forum.boardgamearena.com/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=4814 all bots' ELO ratings here]
* The 55-card variant (50 cards + 1 of each value in the sixth color) cannot be played with ELO rating on. (This is because this variant is highly dependent on draw and a team’s score may not always reflect the players’ skills.)
* If you achieve the perfect score and this should cost you ELO points, you will be considered as having beaten the bot associated with the score, so that you lose no ELO points.
* To be confirmed: I think the ELO-system has had an overhaul.

== Cheating ==

* Players can cheat at Hanabi by:
**1. Sharing information via the chat user interface.
**2. Deliberately abandoning games.
* This is why ranking has been disabled for this game.

== Conventions ==

* If you want to play "full information" style, meaning that you wait until you know both the colour and number of a card before you play it, you will likely be short on clue tokens in >99% of the decks.
* The logical conclusion is that you cannot play a full information style game and the team must agree on some sort of meta-information. The meta-information is coded in a convention.
* Many players have different kinds of conventions.
** ''Note: not all conventions are added to the BGA list. Please respect the convention the table creator wants to play.''
* When different players in the same team assign different meta-information to the same clue, the game becomes unplayable.
** This is why there is an option to display the convention for the table.
** See '''[https://boardgamearena.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=26863 this forum post]''' started by '''[https://boardgamearena.com/player?id=84207926 user Romain672]'''.
* Ideally, all players adhere to the convention, to avoid miscommunication.
* Below, the meta-information of several conventions is explained.

=== Standard ===

* Players assume the following meta-information:
** Every marked card will be playable at some point.

==== Number clue ====

* Cards with a number-clue on them must be saved to be played later on in the game
* Saved cards can be safely played when all "number-1" cards are played.
** ''Saved cards are played from oldest to newest.''

==== Colour clue ====

* The newest, previously unmarked card, is the next playable card in the sequence.
* The oldest, unmarked card is safe to discard.
** If a player has a card that they are sure they will never be able to play, e.g. cards marked by a blue clue when the blue stack is already complete, these card must be discarded in priority.

==== Bad clues ====

* A clue that marks 0 new cards.
* A clue that tells a ''lie'' (i.e. does not conform to the meta-information above).
* A clue that marks unplayable or duplicate cards, unless it saves a card at the chop position that does not have another copy of the card in the deck or other players' hands.
** e.g. Marking 4s in another hand if your hand could have a copy of that 4.
* Sometimes, a "bad" clue cannot be avoided.
** ''e.g. Save a unique 3 using a number clue which also marks unplayable cards.
** ''e.g. A colour clue from a flamboyant must be used and it is used to mark 0 new cards.
* When a ''lie'' has been told, it needs to be corrected.
* A correction clue can never mean "play", it can only mean "discard".

{{infoBoxes3 |maxWidth=625
|title1=Standard convention example 1
|body1=<div style="display:flex;flex-flow:row wrap;gap:1rem;">
{{cardholder|player=Table|arrow=|cardBackground=#324
|card1=1|card1Colour=red
|card2=5|card2Colour=yellow
|card3=1|card3Colour=lightgreen
|card4=3|card4Colour=deepskyblue
|card5=4|card5Colour=white
}}

{{cardholder|player=Amy|cardBackground=#bbb}}

{{cardholder|player=Bob|cardBackground=#324
|clue5=5|clue5Colour=lightgrey

|card1=2|card1Colour=red
|card2=4|card2Colour=yellow
|card3=3|card3Colour=red
|card4=3|card4Colour=deepskyblue
|card5=5|card5Colour=lightgreen
}}

{{cardholder|player=Cat|cardBackground=#324
|card1=4|card1Colour=lightgreen
|card2=1|card2Colour=yellow
|card3=4|card3Colour=red
|card4=3|card4Colour=yellow
|card5=2|card5Colour=yellow
}}
</div>

* It's Amy's turn, and Bob knows his chop card is {{card|=5}}.
* Amy will give a red {{card|background=red}} clue to Bob.
* This will tell Bob that the newest card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=red|size=1.5}}), and that the other red can be {{card|=3|background=#324|colour=red|size=1.5}}, {{card|=4|background=#324|colour=red|size=1.5}}, or {{card|=5|background=#324|colour=red|size=1.5}} (because it must be playable at some later point in the game).

|title2=Standard convention example 2
|body2=<div style="display:flex;flex-flow:row wrap;gap:1rem;">
{{cardholder|player=Table|arrow=|cardBackground=#324
|card1=2|card1Colour=red
|card2=5|card2Colour=yellow
|card3=1|card3Colour=lightgreen
|card4=3|card4Colour=deepskyblue
|card5=4|card5Colour=white
}}

{{cardholder|player=Amy|cardBackground=#bbb}}

{{cardholder|player=Bob|cardBackground=#324
|clue5=5|clue5Colour=lightgrey
|clue3Colour=red

|card1=5|card1Colour=white
|card2=4|card2Colour=yellow
|card3=3|card3Colour=red
|card4=3|card4Colour=deepskyblue
|card5=5|card5Colour=lightgreen
}}

{{cardholder|player=Cat|cardBackground=#324
|card1=2|card1Colour=white
|card2=4|card2Colour=lightgreen
|card3=1|card3Colour=yellow
|card4=4|card4Colour=red
|card5=3|card5Colour=yellow
}}
</div>

* It is Amy's turn again, and Bob knows his oldest card is {{card|=5}}, and his middle card is {{card|background=red}}.
* Amy will give a red {{card|background=red}} clue to Cat.
* This will tell Cat that her marked card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be {{card|=4|background=#324|colour=red|size=1.5}}, because {{card|=3|background=#324|colour=red|size=1.5}} is already marked).
* This will give Bob the meta-information that his saved red card, is {{card|=3|background=#324|colour=red|size=1.5}}.
** ''This particular move is sometimes called prompting, and is a common way to allow a card that is saved by colour to get played without re-cluing it.''

|title3=Standard convention example 3
|body3=<div style="display:flex;flex-flow:row wrap;gap:1rem;">
{{cardholder|player=Table|arrow=|cardBackground=#324
|card1=1|card1Colour=red
|card2=5|card2Colour=yellow
|card3Background=lightgreen
|card4=3|card4Colour=deepskyblue
|card5=4|card5Colour=white
}}

{{cardholder|player=Amy|cardBackground=#bbb}}

{{cardholder|player=Bob|cardBackground=#324
|clue3=2|clue3Colour=lightgrey

|card1=3|card1Colour=red
|card2=4|card2Colour=yellow
|card3=2|card3Colour=red
|card4=3|card4Colour=deepskyblue
|card5=5|card5Colour=lightgreen
}}

{{cardholder|player=Cat|cardBackground=#324
|card1=4|card1Colour=lightgreen
|card2=1|card2Colour=yellow
|card3=4|card3Colour=red
|card4=3|card4Colour=yellow
|card5=2|card5Colour=yellow
}}
</div>

* It is Amy's turn, and Bob knows his middle card is {{card|=2}}.
* Amy will give a red {{card|background=#d03}} clue to Bob.
* This will tell Bob that his newest card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be {{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=1.5}}, because {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=1.5}} is now visible with 100% information).
}}

=== Finesse ===

* Finesse builds on the standard convention (making it a bit more complex).
* In the finesse convention, the timing of the clue gives you extra information.
* You can assume the following meta-information:
** Every card that gets marked, will be playable at some point.
** If the oldest, unmarked card gets marked with a number-clue, then the clue meant "save this/these card(s)". (It is custom to play saved cards from oldest to newest when appropriate.)
** A clue that doesn't mark the oldest card, means that the newest, previously unmarked card, is the next playable card in the sequence.
** The oldest, unmarked card is safe to discard unless that player is busy by having a "known" play or discard.
*** ''Obviously, if a player has a card that they are sure they will never be able to play, for example a card on which is marked as 1 when all the 1s have already been played, should be discarded in priority.''
** Clues are given by the last possible player.
*** When the timing of a clue doesn't match your expectations, you can draw certain conclusions (see next section: special interpretations)

==== Special interpretations ====

* When receiving a clue for the "next playable card in the sequence", the linking cards are not limited to already marked cards (like in standard convention).
* The newest, unmarked cards in every player's hand should be considered as well.

{{infoBoxes3 |maxWidth=625
|title1=Example of finesse
|body1=<div style="display:flex;flex-flow:row wrap;gap:1rem;">
{{cardholder|player=Table|arrow=
|card1Background=red
|card2Background=yellow
|card3Background=lightgreen
|card4Background=deepskyblue
|card5Background=white
}}

{{cardholder|player=Amy|cardBackground=#bbb}}

{{cardholder|player=Bob|cardBackground=#324
|card1=1|card1Colour=deepskyblue
|card2=5|card2Colour=yellow
|card3=3|card3Colour=deepskyblue
|card4=1|card4Colour=white
|card5=2|card5Colour=white
}}

{{cardholder|player=Cat|cardBackground=#324
|clue3Colour=deepskyblue

|card1=5|card1Colour=red
|card2=2|card2Colour=red
|card3=2|card3Colour=deepskyblue
|card4=2|card4Colour=lightgreen
|card5=2|card5Colour=yellow
}}
</div>

* Amy gives a blue {{card|background=deepskyblue}} to Cat.
* This gives the information that {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}} is the next playable card in the sequence, and that Bob is either not allowed to give a blue {{card|background=deepskyblue}} clue, or has something to play.
* Since Bob has no marked cards, he was not blocked from giving a blue {{card|background=deepskyblue}} clue, so he must have something to play.
* This something, must be the missing link ({{card|=1|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}}, to enable {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}}) that makes {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}} the next playable card.
* Since there is no logical (marked) card that could be {{card|=1|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}}, Bob must assume his newest, unmarked card is {{card|=1|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}} and blind-plays this card.

|title2=Example of reversed finesse
|body2=<div style="display:flex;flex-flow:row wrap;gap:1rem;">
{{cardholder|player=Table|arrow=
|card1Background=red
|card2Background=yellow
|card3Background=lightgreen
|card4Background=deepskyblue
|card5Background=white
}}

{{cardholder|player=Amy|cardBackground=#bbb}}

{{cardholder|player=Bob|cardBackground=#324
|clue3Colour=deepskyblue

|card1=5|card1Colour=red
|card2=2|card2Colour=red
|card3=2|card3Colour=deepskyblue
|card4=2|card4Colour=lightgreen
|card5=2|card5Colour=yellow
}}

{{cardholder|player=Cat|cardBackground=#324
|card1=1|card1Colour=deepskyblue
|card2=5|card2Colour=yellow
|card3=3|card3Colour=deepskyblue
|card4=1|card4Colour=white
|card5=2|card5Colour=white
}}
</div>

* Amy gives a blue {{card|background=deepskyblue}} clue to Bob.
* This gives the information that {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}} is the next playable card in the sequence.
* Bob sees that the newest, unmarked card in Cat's hand is of the same colour (blue) '''and''' playable now. Bob concludes it is a finesse, with the players in reversed order, so his blue card must be {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}}.

|title3=Example of a bluff
|body3=<div style="display:flex;flex-flow:row wrap;gap:1rem;">
{{cardholder|player=Table|arrow=
|card1Background=red
|card2Background=yellow
|card3Background=lightgreen
|card4Background=deepskyblue
|card5Background=white
}}

{{cardholder|player=Amy|cardBackground=#bbb}}

{{cardholder|player=Bob|cardBackground=#324
|card1=1|card1Colour=white
|card2=5|card2Colour=yellow
|card3=3|card3Colour=deepskyblue
|card4=1|card4Colour=white
|card5=2|card5Colour=white
}}

{{cardholder|player=Cat|cardBackground=#324
|clue3Colour=deepskyblue

|card1=5|card1Colour=red
|card2=2|card2Colour=red
|card3=2|card3Colour=deepskyblue
|card4=2|card4Colour=lightgreen
|card5=2|card5Colour=yellow
}}
</div>

* Amy gives a blue {{card|background=deepskyblue}} clue to Cat.
* This gives the information that {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}} is the next playable card in the sequence, and that Bob is either not allowed to give a blue {{card|background=deepskyblue}} clue, or has something to play.
* Since Bob has no marked cards, he was not blocked from giving a blue {{card|background=deepskyblue}} clue, so he must have something to play.
* This something, must be the missing link ({{card|=1|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}}, to enable {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}}) that makes {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}} the next playable card.
* Since there is no logical (marked) card that could be {{card|=1|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}}, Bob must assume his newest, unmarked card is {{card|=1|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}} and blind-plays this card.
* However, at this point the "lie" is revealed (because the colour of the played card does '''not''' match the colour of the finesse-clue).
* The blind-played card is '''not''' {{card|=1|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}}, but {{card|=1|background=#324|colour=white|size=1.5}}. Cat, up to this point, was thinking she had {{card|=1|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}}.
* Bob's blind-play gives Cat extra information: her blue card is in fact {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}}.
}}

* If a marked card gets discarded it means:
** The copy of that card is already marked in someone else's hand, and the discarding player is the first to realize this; or
** The copy of that card MUST be marked in a future clue (because a save-clue will be given that will mark the copy card as collateral).

==== Clues you should avoid giving (bad clues) ====

* As a special remark: don't mark useless, or duplicate cards. So if you have a saved 4, you are forbidden from marking 4s, unless you are sure you are not holding a copy of that

==== Meaning of skipping a player / stealing clues in Finesse convention ====

* There are different approaches among finesse-convention-players about who should clue whom. So this section will be devided into sub-sections. The order does not say anything about which approach is more common on BGA. There are a lot of players following each idea.
* If you allow for skipping (without assigning information to it), a lot of potential information is destroyed. Note that some players are religious in their beliefs about their interpretation on convention, so this section is getting re-edited over and over.
* As of now, there is no way of saying which approach is "right" or "better". Of course it is important for success, that in a game, the group of players follows the same idea. If they get mixed, it will most likely result in bombs. If that happens, it does not mean, the other player is "bad" - it merely means, they follow a different idea. So you can only try to find a common ground for the next game or play with another group next time.
* The text within the sections are written by people who follow the idea.

===== a) Skipping / stealing should be avoided =====
To summarize what we already know about finesse convention:
1. Ever marked card will be playable at some point.
2. A number-clue that marks the CHOP card is a "save this for later"-clue.
3. Every other clue means: the newest, previously unmarked card, is the next playable card.
4. If you have no known playable card (or known safe-to-discard card), your CHOP card is safe to discard.
5. A clue is given by the last possible player.
* If more than 1 person are able to give the same clue, then the last possible person should give that clue.
* In finesse convention skipping (Alice clues Cat, instead of Bob; then Bob is skipped) means either:
**1. The Bob is forbidden from giving that clue; or
**2. The Bob has something to play.
* Note that skipping a player to give a save-clue (number-clue on the CHOP card) is NOT a finesse, and can (should) be used
** to save "nice-to-have" cards;
** to save one of the twin-CHOP cards;
** to speed up the discard of useless cards.
* Things that people who follow this convention say about discard management:
** The main problem with this interpretation, is that "discard management" destroys the assumption that your CHOP is safe to discard, making the convention contradict itself. There is no reason for Alice to avoid discarding her safe-to-discard CHOP card, just because she sees a safe-to-discard card in Bob's hand.
** When applying this style of finesse convention, you assume that players use a bad strategy (see section [[Gamehelphanabi#Strategy|Strategy]]) of not-saving-valuable cards.

===== b) Skipping / stealing is for discard-management =====

[If you don't follow this way of playing then refrain from editing this section! You can write in the section with the convention you follow, why yours is the best.]

This style is one way of applying finesse convention. Since the primary assumption is that your CHOP is safe to discard, it might still be that said card is a nice-to-have like a NON-unique 2 or 3 that is not yet playable. without knowing your chop card, it is good to handle each-other's chop situation by preferably letting players with definitely useless chop-cards discard rather than discarding your own unknown card. Skipping/stealing is a term that is often used for a situation, where giving a clue is not left for the last possible player to do. ''e.g. Alice saves a card on chop of Cat, potentially leaving Bob without a known play or a useful/necessary clue to give.'' Skipping players is a useful move to give other players the time to play / discard / clue more cards.

When getting skipped without having a play or useful option to clue, it most likely means that your chop card is not very useful.
These are valid reasons for skipping you:
* Your chop-card is trash (a copy of the card is already played/marked)
* Your chop-card is redundant: Another copy of it is on another player's (or your own) hand as well, so discarding it is no loss (or it has low priority like a high number when it's very early in the game).
* You might still have something nice on chop, but the player sitting before already received information that their chop might be something very good (from earlier discard-behaviour like NOT being skipped over by the player sitting before them on earlier turns) and they are reluctant to discard for that reason.
* The clue given is a play-clue for a card that might be in your hand so you couldn't know whether you want the other card or not. The player skipping you knows that you want it and therefore takes away the decision.

This approach sacrifices some saving-clue-tokens option (that might be achieved on a stricter dogma about who should clue whom) in order to be able to keep nice cards in the game for longer and discard useless cards instead and by that often get those cards played before they would be discarded.
* This convention is better for players, who play efficient enough to rarely struggle with clue-shortness and can therefore afford being more careful about not losing first copies.
* If a group often struggles with clue-shortness then skipping-dogma (as proposed by other conventions) might as well improve their overall results. If the problem for not achieving 30 points usually isn't clue-shortness but getting bottom-decked (or heavily delayed from losing earlier a card that could be played now), then results can get better with this discard-management convention.

Planning ahead is a vital aspect of the game. By carefully deciding on who to let clue and whom to skip, it is often possible to
* avoid twin-chops before they become an issue
* avoid not having enough clue tokens to save all necessary cards
* get the discard you were waiting for (when a player has 2 copies of the same playable card and you want them to discard before clueing it)

=== Others conventions ===

* For others conventions, see the previous link: '''[https://boardgamearena.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=26863 this forum post]'''

== Strategy ==

* In addition to the convention(s), there is also some strategy to the game.
* You should '''not''' confuse strategy with convention! Strategy is '''team''' vs '''deck'''; convention is communication within the team.
* A simple example of strategy is saving 2s in 2-player games.
** Using number-2-clue to communicate that those cards need to be saved, is a convention.

=== Examples ===

* More advanced players will try to avoid losing as many "first" (non-unique) cards as possible.
* It's a good strategy to keep good cards in the game as long as possible - even if they are not yet playable.
** ''The other copy of that card might be far down the draw pile.''
* Trying to mark at least 12 cards with the first 8 clue-tokens.
** This gives 99% chance of always having enough tokens in the game.
* Not using the last two clue-tokens for "single plays".
** This avoids running out of clue-tokens in times when you need to save critical cards.

[[Category:Card games]]

Gamehelphanabi

2023-10-14T17:14:12Z

Silene: removed some double information

Hanabi is a cooperative game. Your goal, as a team, is to build a fabulous fireworks show. You have to put together 5 fireworks ( 1 white, 1 red, 1 blue, 1 yellow, 1 green), by making series rising in number (1, 2, 3, 4, 5) with the same coloured cards.

However, you cannot see your own cards; you can only see the cards of your team mates.

Also, communication (and non communication) between the players is essential to Hanabi.

You can only communication with your teammates when you give them a clue (see below).

No other communication is allowed.

Your final score is the total of the top cards on the five piles:

{|class="wikitable" style="width:auto; text-align:center;" border="2"
|+Final Score Ratings
!Points
!Overall impression
|-
|0-5
|horrible, booed by the crowd...
|-
|6-10
|mediocre, just a spattering of applause.
|-
|11-15
|honourable, but will not be remembered for very long...
|-
|16-20
|excellent, crowd pleasing.
|-
|21-24
|amazing, will be remembered for a very long time!
|-
|25
|legendary, everyone left speechless, stars in their eyes
|}

== Card distribution ==

* Each card has a colour and a number.
{|class="wikitable" style="width:auto;" border="2"
|+Normal difficulty (50 cards)
!Red (r)
|{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=2}}
|{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=2}}{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=2}}
|{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=2}}{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=2}}
|{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=2}}{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=2}}
|{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=2}}
|-
!Yellow (y)
|{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#fe5|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#fe5|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#fe5|size=2}}
|{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#fe5|size=2}}{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#fe5|size=2}}
|{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#fe5|size=2}}{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#fe5|size=2}}
|{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#fe5|size=2}}{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#fe5|size=2}}
|{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#fe5|size=2}}
|-
!Green (g)
|{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#2a7|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#2a7|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#2a7|size=2}}
|{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#2a7|size=2}}{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#2a7|size=2}}
|{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#2a7|size=2}}{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#2a7|size=2}}
|{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#2a7|size=2}}{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#2a7|size=2}}
|{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#2a7|size=2}}
|-
!Blue (b)
|{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#0ae|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#0ae|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#0ae|size=2}}
|{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#0ae|size=2}}{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#0ae|size=2}}
|{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#0ae|size=2}}{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#0ae|size=2}}
|{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#0ae|size=2}}{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#0ae|size=2}}
|{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#0ae|size=2}}
|-
!White (w)
|{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#fff|size=2}}
|}

=== Multicolour cards ===

* There are three variants that add a 6th colour: the multicolour.
* There are three difficulties:

==== Tricky ====

* These cards get marked by a separate '''multicolour clue'''.
{|class="wikitable" style="width:auto;" border="2"
|+Tricky difficulty (+10 cards)
!Multicolour (m)
|{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|}

==== Hard ====

* These cards get marked by a separate '''multicolour clue'''.
{|class="wikitable" style="width:auto;" border="2"
|+Hard difficulty (+5 cards)
!Multi-colour (m)
|{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|}

==== Very Difficult ====

* These cards get marked by '''any colour clue'''.
{|class="wikitable" style="width:auto;" border="2"
|+Avalanche difficulty (+10 cards)
!Multi-colour (m)
|{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|}

== Setup ==

* 8 clue tokens.
{|class="wikitable" style="width:auto;" border="2"
|+# cards dealt to each player
!# Players
!2
!3
!4
!5
|-
!# Cards (official rules)
|5
|5
|4
|4
|-
!# Cards (unofficial rules)
|6
|5
|4
|3
|}

== Game play ==

Players take turns to either:

• Give a '''clue''' 
• '''Play''' a card, or 
• '''Discard''' a card

=== Clue ===

* Possible when there is at least one clue token available.
* Clues indicate '''all''' cards of a certain colour, or '''all''' cards of a certain number.
you may indicate '''no''' cards of a color or number on BGA (you have no 5s, or you have no reds)
you may not indicate only a single card of the matching criteria if there is more than one

To do this:

1. The active player selects a card in another player's hand. 
2. The active player selects a clue option. 
3. One clue token is moved from 'available' to 'used'.

=== Play ===

1. The active player selects a card in their hand. 
2. The active player selects the 'Play selected card' button. 
:• If the played card fits in any of the sequences, it is placed in the appropriate colour stack on the table. 
:• If the played card does not fit, it is placed in the discard pile and the team gets a ''misfire'' token. 
3. A replacement card is drawn.

=== Discard ===

This is only possible when there are fewer than 8 clue tokens available.

1. The active player selects a card in their hand. 
2. The active player selects the 'Discard selected card' button. 
3. The discarded card is placed in the discard pile. 
4. One clue token is moved from 'used' to 'available'. 
5. A replacement card is drawn.

== Game end ==

* The game can end in several ways:
*1. All cards have been drawn from the deck. After this happens, everybody gets 1 more turn. The game ends with the score at the last turn.
*2. Your team played all possible cards. In this case, the game ends immediately and you receive the maximum possible score.
*3. Your team made three mistakes that caused misfires. In this case, you lose the game and get negative ten (-10) points.
*4. Your team 'abandons' the game. Although discouraged, you receive zero (0) points.

== Options ==

=== Black Powder ===

* Clues cannot be given for the colour black.
* Black cards must be played in reverse order, from 5 to 1.
{|class="wikitable" style="width:auto;" border="2"
|+Black Powder (+10 cards)
!Black Powder (k)
|{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#000|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#000|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#000|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#000|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#000|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#000|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#000|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#000|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#000|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#000|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|}

=== Five Flamboyants ===

After playing the last card of a colour, randomly select one of the following bonuses for immediate use:
* Gain a clue token.
* Gain a clue token and recover a life.
* Give a clue regarding a colour.
* Give a clue regarding a number.
* Shuffle a discarded card into the deck.
* Play a discarded card, if possible.

== Lingo ==

When you play with others, certain words are used to describe certain objects or situations. Here is a short list.

;Marked: A card that is highlighted by a clue.
;Unmarked: A card that is not clued.
;chop: The oldest, unmarked card. The card that you have no information on and will chop from your hand.
;draw: The newest, unmarked card. The card that you have no information on and was freshly drawn.
;To bomb: A play that causes the third misfire-token. Sometimes called '''explosion'''
;Unique: A card that has no copy (left) in the deck.
;Double discard: When consecutive players have the same card on chop. A special problem, since, to each of the consecutive players, a number to chop does not look like a unique save.
;Twin chop: 2 consecutive players have the same card on chop. Same as Double discard
;Double save: When a player has two consecutive unique cards, requiring consecutive save clues.
;Strategy: A set of rules / guidelines / conventions on how to interpret actions by players (including spending of clue-tokens).

== ELO rating ==

* If you are playing with ELO rating on, your ELO may be changed at the end of the game.
* Here is how it works:
*1. Every player on the team is temporarily considered as having the average ELO rating of the team.
*2. The system will generate a bot associated with the score your team has achieved (let’s call it '''''Hanabot''''').
**• Hanabot’s ELO rating depends on the variant you are playing (50 cards, 60 cards, 60 cards multicolour), the number of players on the team and, most importantly, your team's score.
**• All Hanabot’s ELO ratings have been set by an experienced player, they are not random or simply proportional to the score/number of players.
*3. Your team (actually your team's average ELO) will now compete against Hanabot.
**• The system will calculate your team’s ELO gain/loss as though your team had tied with Hanabot.
**• If your score is below 18 (50-card game) or below 21 (60-card game), Hanabot's ELO is always 1000.

* You can find [http://forum.boardgamearena.com/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=4814 all bots' ELO ratings here]
* The 55-card variant (50 cards + 1 of each value in the sixth color) cannot be played with ELO rating on. (This is because this variant is highly dependent on draw and a team’s score may not always reflect the players’ skills.)
* If you achieve the perfect score and this should cost you ELO points, you will be considered as having beaten the bot associated with the score, so that you lose no ELO points.
* To be confirmed: I think the ELO-system has had an overhaul.

== Cheating ==

* Players can cheat at Hanabi by:
**1. Sharing information via the chat user interface.
**2. Deliberately abandoning games.
* This is why ranking has been disabled for this game.

== Conventions ==

* If you want to play "full information" style, meaning that you wait until you know both the colour and number of a card before you play it, you will likely be short on clue tokens in >99% of the decks.
* The logical conclusion is that you cannot play a full information style game and the team must agree on some sort of meta-information. The meta-information is coded in a convention.
* Many players have different kinds of conventions.
** ''Note: not all conventions are added to the BGA list. Please respect the convention the table creator wants to play.''
* When different players in the same team assign different meta-information to the same clue, the game becomes unplayable.
** This is why there is an option to display the convention for the table.
** See '''[https://boardgamearena.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=26863 this forum post]''' started by '''[https://boardgamearena.com/player?id=84207926 user Romain672]'''.
* Ideally, all players adhere to the convention, to avoid miscommunication.
* Below, the meta-information of several conventions is explained.

=== Standard ===

* Players assume the following meta-information:
** Every marked card will be playable at some point.

==== Number clue ====

* Cards with a number-clue on them must be saved to be played later on in the game
* Saved cards can be safely played when all "number-1" cards are played.
** ''Saved cards are played from oldest to newest.''

==== Colour clue ====

* The newest, previously unmarked card, is the next playable card in the sequence.
* The oldest, unmarked card is safe to discard.
** If a player has a card that they are sure they will never be able to play, e.g. cards marked by a blue clue when the blue stack is already complete, these card must be discarded in priority.

==== Bad clues ====

* A clue that marks 0 new cards.
* A clue that tells a ''lie'' (i.e. does not conform to the meta-information above).
* A clue that marks unplayable or duplicate cards, unless it saves a card at the chop position that does not have another copy of the card in the deck or other players' hands.
** e.g. Marking 4s in another hand if your hand could have a copy of that 4.
* Sometimes, a "bad" clue cannot be avoided.
** ''e.g. Save a unique 3 using a number clue which also marks unplayable cards.
** ''e.g. A colour clue from a flamboyant must be used and it is used to mark 0 new cards.
* When a ''lie'' has been told, it needs to be corrected.
* A correction clue can never mean "play", it can only mean "discard".

{{infoBoxes3 |maxWidth=625
|title1=Standard convention example 1
|body1=<div style="display:flex;flex-flow:row wrap;gap:1rem;">
{{cardholder|player=Table|arrow=|cardBackground=#324
|card1=1|card1Colour=red
|card2=5|card2Colour=yellow
|card3=1|card3Colour=lightgreen
|card4=3|card4Colour=deepskyblue
|card5=4|card5Colour=white
}}

{{cardholder|player=Amy|cardBackground=#bbb}}

{{cardholder|player=Bob|cardBackground=#324
|clue5=5|clue5Colour=lightgrey

|card1=2|card1Colour=red
|card2=4|card2Colour=yellow
|card3=3|card3Colour=red
|card4=3|card4Colour=deepskyblue
|card5=5|card5Colour=lightgreen
}}

{{cardholder|player=Cat|cardBackground=#324
|card1=4|card1Colour=lightgreen
|card2=1|card2Colour=yellow
|card3=4|card3Colour=red
|card4=3|card4Colour=yellow
|card5=2|card5Colour=yellow
}}
</div>

* It's Amy's turn, and Bob knows his chop card is {{card|=5}}.
* Amy will give a red {{card|background=red}} clue to Bob.
* This will tell Bob that the newest card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=red|size=1.5}}), and that the other red can be {{card|=3|background=#324|colour=red|size=1.5}}, {{card|=4|background=#324|colour=red|size=1.5}}, or {{card|=5|background=#324|colour=red|size=1.5}} (because it must be playable at some later point in the game).

|title2=Standard convention example 2
|body2=<div style="display:flex;flex-flow:row wrap;gap:1rem;">
{{cardholder|player=Table|arrow=|cardBackground=#324
|card1=2|card1Colour=red
|card2=5|card2Colour=yellow
|card3=1|card3Colour=lightgreen
|card4=3|card4Colour=deepskyblue
|card5=4|card5Colour=white
}}

{{cardholder|player=Amy|cardBackground=#bbb}}

{{cardholder|player=Bob|cardBackground=#324
|clue5=5|clue5Colour=lightgrey
|clue3Colour=red

|card1=5|card1Colour=white
|card2=4|card2Colour=yellow
|card3=3|card3Colour=red
|card4=3|card4Colour=deepskyblue
|card5=5|card5Colour=lightgreen
}}

{{cardholder|player=Cat|cardBackground=#324
|card1=2|card1Colour=white
|card2=4|card2Colour=lightgreen
|card3=1|card3Colour=yellow
|card4=4|card4Colour=red
|card5=3|card5Colour=yellow
}}
</div>

* It is Amy's turn again, and Bob knows his oldest card is {{card|=5}}, and his middle card is {{card|background=red}}.
* Amy will give a red {{card|background=red}} clue to Cat.
* This will tell Cat that her marked card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be {{card|=4|background=#324|colour=red|size=1.5}}, because {{card|=3|background=#324|colour=red|size=1.5}} is already marked).
* This will give Bob the meta-information that his saved red card, is {{card|=3|background=#324|colour=red|size=1.5}}.
** ''This particular move is sometimes called prompting, and is a common way to allow a card that is saved by colour to get played without re-cluing it.''

|title3=Standard convention example 3
|body3=<div style="display:flex;flex-flow:row wrap;gap:1rem;">
{{cardholder|player=Table|arrow=|cardBackground=#324
|card1=1|card1Colour=red
|card2=5|card2Colour=yellow
|card3Background=lightgreen
|card4=3|card4Colour=deepskyblue
|card5=4|card5Colour=white
}}

{{cardholder|player=Amy|cardBackground=#bbb}}

{{cardholder|player=Bob|cardBackground=#324
|clue3=2|clue3Colour=lightgrey

|card1=3|card1Colour=red
|card2=4|card2Colour=yellow
|card3=2|card3Colour=red
|card4=3|card4Colour=deepskyblue
|card5=5|card5Colour=lightgreen
}}

{{cardholder|player=Cat|cardBackground=#324
|card1=4|card1Colour=lightgreen
|card2=1|card2Colour=yellow
|card3=4|card3Colour=red
|card4=3|card4Colour=yellow
|card5=2|card5Colour=yellow
}}
</div>

* It is Amy's turn, and Bob knows his middle card is {{card|=2}}.
* Amy will give a red {{card|background=#d03}} clue to Bob.
* This will tell Bob that his newest card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be {{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=1.5}}, because {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=1.5}} is now visible with 100% information).
}}

=== Finesse ===

* Finesse builds on the standard convention (making it a bit more complex).
* In the finesse convention, the timing of the clue gives you extra information.
* You can assume the following meta-information:
** Every card that gets marked, will be playable at some point.
** If the oldest, unmarked card gets marked with a number-clue, then the clue meant "save this/these card(s)". (It is custom to play saved cards from oldest to newest when appropriate.)
** A clue that doesn't mark the oldest card, means that the newest, previously unmarked card, is the next playable card in the sequence.
** The oldest, unmarked card is safe to discard unless that player is busy by having a "known" play or discard.
*** ''Obviously, if a player has a card that they are sure they will never be able to play, for example a card on which is marked as 1 when all the 1s have already been played, should be discarded in priority.''
** Clues are given by the last possible player.
*** When the timing of a clue doesn't match your expectations, you can draw certain conclusions (see next section: special interpretations)

==== Special interpretations ====

* When receiving a clue for the "next playable card in the sequence", the linking cards are not limited to already marked cards (like in standard convention).
* The newest, unmarked cards in every player's hand should be considered as well.

{{infoBoxes3 |maxWidth=625
|title1=Example of finesse
|body1=<div style="display:flex;flex-flow:row wrap;gap:1rem;">
{{cardholder|player=Table|arrow=
|card1Background=red
|card2Background=yellow
|card3Background=lightgreen
|card4Background=deepskyblue
|card5Background=white
}}

{{cardholder|player=Amy|cardBackground=#bbb}}

{{cardholder|player=Bob|cardBackground=#324
|card1=1|card1Colour=deepskyblue
|card2=5|card2Colour=yellow
|card3=3|card3Colour=deepskyblue
|card4=1|card4Colour=white
|card5=2|card5Colour=white
}}

{{cardholder|player=Cat|cardBackground=#324
|clue3Colour=deepskyblue

|card1=5|card1Colour=red
|card2=2|card2Colour=red
|card3=2|card3Colour=deepskyblue
|card4=2|card4Colour=lightgreen
|card5=2|card5Colour=yellow
}}
</div>

* Amy gives a blue {{card|background=deepskyblue}} to Cat.
* This gives the information that {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}} is the next playable card in the sequence, and that Bob is either not allowed to give a blue {{card|background=deepskyblue}} clue, or has something to play.
* Since Bob has no marked cards, he was not blocked from giving a blue {{card|background=deepskyblue}} clue, so he must have something to play.
* This something, must be the missing link ({{card|=1|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}}, to enable {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}}) that makes {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}} the next playable card.
* Since there is no logical (marked) card that could be {{card|=1|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}}, Bob must assume his newest, unmarked card is {{card|=1|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}} and blind-plays this card.

|title2=Example of reversed finesse
|body2=<div style="display:flex;flex-flow:row wrap;gap:1rem;">
{{cardholder|player=Table|arrow=
|card1Background=red
|card2Background=yellow
|card3Background=lightgreen
|card4Background=deepskyblue
|card5Background=white
}}

{{cardholder|player=Amy|cardBackground=#bbb}}

{{cardholder|player=Bob|cardBackground=#324
|clue3Colour=deepskyblue

|card1=5|card1Colour=red
|card2=2|card2Colour=red
|card3=2|card3Colour=deepskyblue
|card4=2|card4Colour=lightgreen
|card5=2|card5Colour=yellow
}}

{{cardholder|player=Cat|cardBackground=#324
|card1=1|card1Colour=deepskyblue
|card2=5|card2Colour=yellow
|card3=3|card3Colour=deepskyblue
|card4=1|card4Colour=white
|card5=2|card5Colour=white
}}
</div>

* Amy gives a blue {{card|background=deepskyblue}} clue to Bob.
* This gives the information that {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}} is the next playable card in the sequence.
* Bob sees that the newest, unmarked card in Cat's hand is of the same colour (blue) '''and''' playable now. Bob concludes it is a finesse, with the players in reversed order, so his blue card must be {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}}.

|title3=Example of a bluff
|body3=<div style="display:flex;flex-flow:row wrap;gap:1rem;">
{{cardholder|player=Table|arrow=
|card1Background=red
|card2Background=yellow
|card3Background=lightgreen
|card4Background=deepskyblue
|card5Background=white
}}

{{cardholder|player=Amy|cardBackground=#bbb}}

{{cardholder|player=Bob|cardBackground=#324
|card1=1|card1Colour=white
|card2=5|card2Colour=yellow
|card3=3|card3Colour=deepskyblue
|card4=1|card4Colour=white
|card5=2|card5Colour=white
}}

{{cardholder|player=Cat|cardBackground=#324
|clue3Colour=deepskyblue

|card1=5|card1Colour=red
|card2=2|card2Colour=red
|card3=2|card3Colour=deepskyblue
|card4=2|card4Colour=lightgreen
|card5=2|card5Colour=yellow
}}
</div>

* Amy gives a blue {{card|background=deepskyblue}} clue to Cat.
* This gives the information that {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}} is the next playable card in the sequence, and that Bob is either not allowed to give a blue {{card|background=deepskyblue}} clue, or has something to play.
* Since Bob has no marked cards, he was not blocked from giving a blue {{card|background=deepskyblue}} clue, so he must have something to play.
* This something, must be the missing link ({{card|=1|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}}, to enable {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}}) that makes {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}} the next playable card.
* Since there is no logical (marked) card that could be {{card|=1|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}}, Bob must assume his newest, unmarked card is {{card|=1|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}} and blind-plays this card.
* However, at this point the "lie" is revealed (because the colour of the played card does '''not''' match the colour of the finesse-clue).
* The blind-played card is '''not''' {{card|=1|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}}, but {{card|=1|background=#324|colour=white|size=1.5}}. Cat, up to this point, was thinking she had {{card|=1|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}}.
* Bob's blind-play gives Cat extra information: her blue card is in fact {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}}.
}}

* If a marked card gets discarded it means:
** The copy of that card is already marked in someone else's hand, and the discarding player is the first to realize this; or
** The copy of that card MUST be marked in a future clue (because a save-clue will be given that will mark the copy card as collateral).

==== Clues you should avoid giving (bad clues) ====

* As a special remark: don't mark useless, or duplicate cards. So if you have a saved 4, you are forbidden from marking 4s, unless you are sure you are not holding a copy of that

==== Meaning of skipping a player / stealing clues in Finesse convention ====

* There are different approaches among finesse-convention-players about who should clue whom. So this section will be devided into sub-sections. The order does not say anything about which approach is more common on BGA. There are a lot of players following each idea.
* If you allow for skipping (without assigning information to it), a lot of potential information is destroyed. Note that some players are religious in their beliefs about their interpretation on convention, so this section is getting re-edited over and over.
* As of now, there is no way of saying which approach is "right" or "better". Of course it is important for success, that in a game, the group of players follows the same idea. If they get mixed, it will most likely result in bombs. If that happens, it does not mean, the other player is "bad" - it merely means, they follow a different idea. So you can only try to find a common ground for the next game or play with another group next time.
* The text within the sections are written by people who follow the idea.

===== a) Skipping / stealing should be avoided =====
To summarize what we already know about finesse convention:
1. Ever marked card will be playable at some point.
2. A number-clue that marks the CHOP card is a "save this for later"-clue.
3. Every other clue means: the newest, previously unmarked card, is the next playable card.
4. If you have no known playable card (or known safe-to-discard card), your CHOP card is safe to discard.
5. A clue is given by the last possible player.
* If more than 1 person are able to give the same clue, then the last possible person should give that clue.
* In finesse convention skipping (Alice clues Cat, instead of Bob; then Bob is skipped) means either:
**1. The Bob is forbidden from giving that clue; or
**2. The Bob has something to play.
* Note that skipping a player to give a save-clue (number-clue on the CHOP card) is NOT a finesse, and can (should) be used
** to save "nice-to-have" cards;
** to save one of the twin-CHOP cards;
** to speed up the discard of useless cards.
* Things that people who follow this convention say about discard management:
** The main problem with this interpretation, is that "discard management" destroys the assumption that your CHOP is safe to discard, making the convention contradict itself. There is no reason for Alice to avoid discarding her safe-to-discard CHOP card, just because she sees a safe-to-discard card in Bob's hand.
** When applying this style of finesse convention, you assume that players use a bad strategy (see section [[Gamehelphanabi#Strategy|Strategy]]) of not-saving-valuable cards.

===== b) Skipping / stealing is for discard-management =====

If you don't follow this way of playing then refrain from editing this section! You can write in the section with the convention you follow, why yours is the best.

This style is one way of applying finesse convention. Since the primary assumption is that your CHOP is safe to discard, it might still be that said card is a nice-to-have like a NON-unique 2 or 3 that is not yet playable. without knowing your chop card, it is good to handle each-other's chop situation by preferably letting players with definitely useless chop-cards discard rather than discarding your own unknown card. Skipping/stealing is a term that is often used for a situation, where giving a clue is not left for the last possible player to do. ''e.g. Alice saves a card on chop of Cat, potentially leaving Bob without a known play or a useful/necessary clue to give.'' Skipping players is a useful move to give other players the time to play / discard / clue more cards.

When getting skipped without having a play or useful option to clue, it most likely means that your chop card is not very useful.
These are valid reasons for skipping you:
* Your chop-card is trash (a copy of the card is already played/marked)
* Your chop-card is redundant: Another copy of it is on another player's (or your own) hand as well, so discarding it is no loss (or it has low priority like a high number when it's very early in the game).
* You might still have something nice on chop, but the player sitting before already received information that their chop might be something very good (from earlier discard-behaviour like NOT being skipped over by the player sitting before them on earlier turns) and they are reluctant to discard for that reason.
* The clue given is a play-clue for a card that might be in your hand so you couldn't know whether you want the other card or not. The player skipping you knows that you want it and therefore takes away the decision.

This approach sacrifices some saving-clue-tokens option (that might be achieved on a stricter dogma about who should clue whom) in order to be able to keep nice cards in the game for longer and discard useless cards instead and by that often get those cards played before they would be discarded.
* This convention is better for players, who play efficient enough to rarely struggle with clue-shortness and can therefore afford being more careful about not losing first copies.
* If a group often struggles with clue-shortness then skipping-dogma (as proposed by other conventions) might as well improve their overall results. If the problem for not achieving 30 points usually isn't clue-shortness but getting bottom-decked (or heavily delayed from losing earlier a card that could be played now), then results can get better with this discard-management convention.

Planning ahead is a vital aspect of the game. By carefully deciding on who to let clue and whom to skip, it is often possible to
* avoid twin-chops before they become an issue
* avoid not having enough clue tokens to save all necessary cards
* get the discard you were waiting for (when a player has 2 copies of the same playable card and you want them to discard before clueing it)

=== Others conventions ===

* For others conventions, see the previous link: '''[https://boardgamearena.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=26863 this forum post]'''

== Strategy ==

* In addition to the convention(s), there is also some strategy to the game.
* You should '''not''' confuse strategy with convention! Strategy is '''team''' vs '''deck'''; convention is communication within the team.
* A simple example of strategy is saving 2s in 2-player games.
** Using number-2-clue to communicate that those cards need to be saved, is a convention.

=== Examples ===

* More advanced players will try to avoid losing as many "first" (non-unique) cards as possible.
* It's a good strategy to keep good cards in the game as long as possible - even if they are not yet playable.
** ''The other copy of that card might be far down the draw pile.''
* Trying to mark at least 12 cards with the first 8 clue-tokens.
** This gives 99% chance of always having enough tokens in the game.
* Not using the last two clue-tokens for "single plays".
** This avoids running out of clue-tokens in times when you need to save critical cards.

[[Category:Card games]]

Gamehelphanabi

2023-10-14T17:04:05Z

Silene: removing a line that was doubled

Hanabi is a cooperative game. Your goal, as a team, is to build a fabulous fireworks show. You have to put together 5 fireworks ( 1 white, 1 red, 1 blue, 1 yellow, 1 green), by making series rising in number (1, 2, 3, 4, 5) with the same coloured cards.

However, you cannot see your own cards; you can only see the cards of your team mates.

Also, communication (and non communication) between the players is essential to Hanabi.

You can only communication with your teammates when you give them a clue (see below).

No other communication is allowed.

Your final score is the total of the top cards on the five piles:

{|class="wikitable" style="width:auto; text-align:center;" border="2"
|+Final Score Ratings
!Points
!Overall impression
|-
|0-5
|horrible, booed by the crowd...
|-
|6-10
|mediocre, just a spattering of applause.
|-
|11-15
|honourable, but will not be remembered for very long...
|-
|16-20
|excellent, crowd pleasing.
|-
|21-24
|amazing, will be remembered for a very long time!
|-
|25
|legendary, everyone left speechless, stars in their eyes
|}

== Card distribution ==

* Each card has a colour and a number.
{|class="wikitable" style="width:auto;" border="2"
|+Normal difficulty (50 cards)
!Red (r)
|{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=2}}
|{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=2}}{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=2}}
|{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=2}}{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=2}}
|{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=2}}{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=2}}
|{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=2}}
|-
!Yellow (y)
|{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#fe5|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#fe5|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#fe5|size=2}}
|{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#fe5|size=2}}{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#fe5|size=2}}
|{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#fe5|size=2}}{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#fe5|size=2}}
|{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#fe5|size=2}}{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#fe5|size=2}}
|{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#fe5|size=2}}
|-
!Green (g)
|{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#2a7|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#2a7|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#2a7|size=2}}
|{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#2a7|size=2}}{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#2a7|size=2}}
|{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#2a7|size=2}}{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#2a7|size=2}}
|{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#2a7|size=2}}{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#2a7|size=2}}
|{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#2a7|size=2}}
|-
!Blue (b)
|{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#0ae|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#0ae|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#0ae|size=2}}
|{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#0ae|size=2}}{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#0ae|size=2}}
|{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#0ae|size=2}}{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#0ae|size=2}}
|{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#0ae|size=2}}{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#0ae|size=2}}
|{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#0ae|size=2}}
|-
!White (w)
|{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#fff|size=2}}
|}

=== Multicolour cards ===

* There are three variants that add a 6th colour: the multicolour.
* There are three difficulties:

==== Tricky ====

* These cards get marked by a separate '''multicolour clue'''.
{|class="wikitable" style="width:auto;" border="2"
|+Tricky difficulty (+10 cards)
!Multicolour (m)
|{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|}

==== Hard ====

* These cards get marked by a separate '''multicolour clue'''.
{|class="wikitable" style="width:auto;" border="2"
|+Hard difficulty (+5 cards)
!Multi-colour (m)
|{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|}

==== Very Difficult ====

* These cards get marked by '''any colour clue'''.
{|class="wikitable" style="width:auto;" border="2"
|+Avalanche difficulty (+10 cards)
!Multi-colour (m)
|{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|}

== Setup ==

* 8 clue tokens.
{|class="wikitable" style="width:auto;" border="2"
|+# cards dealt to each player
!# Players
!2
!3
!4
!5
|-
!# Cards (official rules)
|5
|5
|4
|4
|-
!# Cards (unofficial rules)
|6
|5
|4
|3
|}

== Game play ==

Players take turns to either:

• Give a '''clue''' 
• '''Play''' a card, or 
• '''Discard''' a card

=== Clue ===

* Possible when there is at least one clue token available.
* Clues indicate '''all''' cards of a certain colour, or '''all''' cards of a certain number.
you may indicate '''no''' cards of a color or number on BGA (you have no 5s, or you have no reds)
you may not indicate only a single card of the matching criteria if there is more than one

To do this:

1. The active player selects a card in another player's hand. 
2. The active player selects a clue option. 
3. One clue token is moved from 'available' to 'used'.

=== Play ===

1. The active player selects a card in their hand. 
2. The active player selects the 'Play selected card' button. 
:• If the played card fits in any of the sequences, it is placed in the appropriate colour stack on the table. 
:• If the played card does not fit, it is placed in the discard pile and the team gets a ''misfire'' token. 
3. A replacement card is drawn.

=== Discard ===

This is only possible when there are fewer than 8 clue tokens available.

1. The active player selects a card in their hand. 
2. The active player selects the 'Discard selected card' button. 
3. The discarded card is placed in the discard pile. 
4. One clue token is moved from 'used' to 'available'. 
5. A replacement card is drawn.

== Game end ==

* The game can end in several ways:
*1. All cards have been drawn from the deck. After this happens, everybody gets 1 more turn. The game ends with the score at the last turn.
*2. Your team played all possible cards. In this case, the game ends immediately and you receive the maximum possible score.
*3. Your team made three mistakes that caused misfires. In this case, you lose the game and get negative ten (-10) points.
*4. Your team 'abandons' the game. Although discouraged, you receive zero (0) points.

== Options ==

=== Black Powder ===

* Clues cannot be given for the colour black.
* Black cards must be played in reverse order, from 5 to 1.
{|class="wikitable" style="width:auto;" border="2"
|+Black Powder (+10 cards)
!Black Powder (k)
|{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#000|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#000|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#000|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#000|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#000|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#000|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#000|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#000|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#000|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#000|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|}

=== Five Flamboyants ===

After playing the last card of a colour, randomly select one of the following bonuses for immediate use:
* Gain a clue token.
* Gain a clue token and recover a life.
* Give a clue regarding a colour.
* Give a clue regarding a number.
* Shuffle a discarded card into the deck.
* Play a discarded card, if possible.

== Lingo ==

When you play with others, certain words are used to describe certain objects or situations. Here is a short list.

;Marked: A card that is highlighted by a clue.
;Unmarked: A card that is not clued.
;chop: The oldest, unmarked card. The card that you have no information on and will chop from your hand.
;draw: The newest, unmarked card. The card that you have no information on and was freshly drawn.
;To bomb: A play that causes the third misfire-token. Sometimes called '''explosion'''
;Unique: A card that has no copy (left) in the deck.
;Double discard: When consecutive players have the same card on chop. A special problem, since, to each of the consecutive players, a number to chop does not look like a unique save.
;Twin chop: 2 consecutive players have the same card on chop. Same as Double discard
;Double save: When a player has two consecutive unique cards, requiring consecutive save clues.
;Strategy: A set of rules / guidelines / conventions on how to interpret actions by players (including spending of clue-tokens).

== ELO rating ==

* If you are playing with ELO rating on, your ELO may be changed at the end of the game.
* Here is how it works:
*1. Every player on the team is temporarily considered as having the average ELO rating of the team.
*2. The system will generate a bot associated with the score your team has achieved (let’s call it '''''Hanabot''''').
**• Hanabot’s ELO rating depends on the variant you are playing (50 cards, 60 cards, 60 cards multicolour), the number of players on the team and, most importantly, your team's score.
**• All Hanabot’s ELO ratings have been set by an experienced player, they are not random or simply proportional to the score/number of players.
*3. Your team (actually your team's average ELO) will now compete against Hanabot.
**• The system will calculate your team’s ELO gain/loss as though your team had tied with Hanabot.
**• If your score is below 18 (50-card game) or below 21 (60-card game), Hanabot's ELO is always 1000.

* You can find [http://forum.boardgamearena.com/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=4814 all bots' ELO ratings here]
* The 55-card variant (50 cards + 1 of each value in the sixth color) cannot be played with ELO rating on. (This is because this variant is highly dependent on draw and a team’s score may not always reflect the players’ skills.)
* If you achieve the perfect score and this should cost you ELO points, you will be considered as having beaten the bot associated with the score, so that you lose no ELO points.
* To be confirmed: I think the ELO-system has had an overhaul.

== Cheating ==

* Players can cheat at Hanabi by:
**1. Sharing information via the chat user interface.
**2. Deliberately abandoning games.
* This is why ranking has been disabled for this game.

== Conventions ==

* If you want to play "full information" style, meaning that you wait until you know both the colour and number of a card before you play it, you will likely be short on clue tokens in >99% of the decks.
* The logical conclusion is that you cannot play a full information style game and the team must agree on some sort of meta-information. The meta-information is coded in a convention.
* Many players have different kinds of conventions.
** ''Note: not all conventions are added to the BGA list. Please respect the convention the table creator wants to play.''
* When different players in the same team assign different meta-information to the same clue, the game becomes unplayable.
** This is why there is an option to display the convention for the table.
** See '''[https://boardgamearena.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=26863 this forum post]''' started by '''[https://boardgamearena.com/player?id=84207926 user Romain672]'''.
* Ideally, all players adhere to the convention, to avoid miscommunication.
* Below, the meta-information of several conventions is explained.

=== Standard ===

* Players assume the following meta-information:
** Every marked card will be playable at some point.

==== Number clue ====

* Cards with a number-clue on them must be saved to be played later on in the game
* Saved cards can be safely played when all "number-1" cards are played.
** ''Saved cards are played from oldest to newest.''

==== Colour clue ====

* The newest, previously unmarked card, is the next playable card in the sequence.
* The oldest, unmarked card is safe to discard.
** If a player has a card that they are sure they will never be able to play, e.g. cards marked by a blue clue when the blue stack is already complete, these card must be discarded in priority.

==== Bad clues ====

* A clue that marks 0 new cards.
* A clue that tells a ''lie'' (i.e. does not conform to the meta-information above).
* A clue that marks unplayable or duplicate cards, unless it saves a card at the chop position that does not have another copy of the card in the deck or other players' hands.
** e.g. Marking 4s in another hand if your hand could have a copy of that 4.
* Sometimes, a "bad" clue cannot be avoided.
** ''e.g. Save a unique 3 using a number clue which also marks unplayable cards.
** ''e.g. A colour clue from a flamboyant must be used and it is used to mark 0 new cards.
* When a ''lie'' has been told, it needs to be corrected.
* A correction clue can never mean "play", it can only mean "discard".

{{infoBoxes3 |maxWidth=625
|title1=Standard convention example 1
|body1=<div style="display:flex;flex-flow:row wrap;gap:1rem;">
{{cardholder|player=Table|arrow=|cardBackground=#324
|card1=1|card1Colour=red
|card2=5|card2Colour=yellow
|card3=1|card3Colour=lightgreen
|card4=3|card4Colour=deepskyblue
|card5=4|card5Colour=white
}}

{{cardholder|player=Amy|cardBackground=#bbb}}

{{cardholder|player=Bob|cardBackground=#324
|clue5=5|clue5Colour=lightgrey

|card1=2|card1Colour=red
|card2=4|card2Colour=yellow
|card3=3|card3Colour=red
|card4=3|card4Colour=deepskyblue
|card5=5|card5Colour=lightgreen
}}

{{cardholder|player=Cat|cardBackground=#324
|card1=4|card1Colour=lightgreen
|card2=1|card2Colour=yellow
|card3=4|card3Colour=red
|card4=3|card4Colour=yellow
|card5=2|card5Colour=yellow
}}
</div>

* It's Amy's turn, and Bob knows his chop card is {{card|=5}}.
* Amy will give a red {{card|background=red}} clue to Bob.
* This will tell Bob that the newest card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=red|size=1.5}}), and that the other red can be {{card|=3|background=#324|colour=red|size=1.5}}, {{card|=4|background=#324|colour=red|size=1.5}}, or {{card|=5|background=#324|colour=red|size=1.5}} (because it must be playable at some later point in the game).

|title2=Standard convention example 2
|body2=<div style="display:flex;flex-flow:row wrap;gap:1rem;">
{{cardholder|player=Table|arrow=|cardBackground=#324
|card1=2|card1Colour=red
|card2=5|card2Colour=yellow
|card3=1|card3Colour=lightgreen
|card4=3|card4Colour=deepskyblue
|card5=4|card5Colour=white
}}

{{cardholder|player=Amy|cardBackground=#bbb}}

{{cardholder|player=Bob|cardBackground=#324
|clue5=5|clue5Colour=lightgrey
|clue3Colour=red

|card1=5|card1Colour=white
|card2=4|card2Colour=yellow
|card3=3|card3Colour=red
|card4=3|card4Colour=deepskyblue
|card5=5|card5Colour=lightgreen
}}

{{cardholder|player=Cat|cardBackground=#324
|card1=2|card1Colour=white
|card2=4|card2Colour=lightgreen
|card3=1|card3Colour=yellow
|card4=4|card4Colour=red
|card5=3|card5Colour=yellow
}}
</div>

* It is Amy's turn again, and Bob knows his oldest card is {{card|=5}}, and his middle card is {{card|background=red}}.
* Amy will give a red {{card|background=red}} clue to Cat.
* This will tell Cat that her marked card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be {{card|=4|background=#324|colour=red|size=1.5}}, because {{card|=3|background=#324|colour=red|size=1.5}} is already marked).
* This will give Bob the meta-information that his saved red card, is {{card|=3|background=#324|colour=red|size=1.5}}.
** ''This particular move is sometimes called prompting, and is a common way to allow a card that is saved by colour to get played without re-cluing it.''

|title3=Standard convention example 3
|body3=<div style="display:flex;flex-flow:row wrap;gap:1rem;">
{{cardholder|player=Table|arrow=|cardBackground=#324
|card1=1|card1Colour=red
|card2=5|card2Colour=yellow
|card3Background=lightgreen
|card4=3|card4Colour=deepskyblue
|card5=4|card5Colour=white
}}

{{cardholder|player=Amy|cardBackground=#bbb}}

{{cardholder|player=Bob|cardBackground=#324
|clue3=2|clue3Colour=lightgrey

|card1=3|card1Colour=red
|card2=4|card2Colour=yellow
|card3=2|card3Colour=red
|card4=3|card4Colour=deepskyblue
|card5=5|card5Colour=lightgreen
}}

{{cardholder|player=Cat|cardBackground=#324
|card1=4|card1Colour=lightgreen
|card2=1|card2Colour=yellow
|card3=4|card3Colour=red
|card4=3|card4Colour=yellow
|card5=2|card5Colour=yellow
}}
</div>

* It is Amy's turn, and Bob knows his middle card is {{card|=2}}.
* Amy will give a red {{card|background=#d03}} clue to Bob.
* This will tell Bob that his newest card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be {{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=1.5}}, because {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=1.5}} is now visible with 100% information).
}}

=== Finesse ===

* Finesse builds on the standard convention (making it a bit more complex).
* In the finesse convention, the timing of the clue gives you extra information.
* You can assume the following meta-information:
** Every card that gets marked, will be playable at some point.
** If the oldest, unmarked card gets marked with a number-clue, then the clue meant "save this/these card(s)". (It is custom to play saved cards from oldest to newest when appropriate.)
** A clue that doesn't mark the oldest card, means that the newest, previously unmarked card, is the next playable card in the sequence.
** The oldest, unmarked card is safe to discard unless that player is busy by having a "known" play or discard.
*** ''Obviously, if a player has a card that they are sure they will never be able to play, for example a card on which is marked as 1 when all the 1s have already been played, should be discarded in priority.''
** Clues are given by the last possible player.
*** When the timing of a clue doesn't match your expectations, you can draw certain conclusions (see next section: special interpretations)

==== Special interpretations ====

* When receiving a clue for the "next playable card in the sequence", the linking cards are not limited to already marked cards (like in standard convention).
* The newest, unmarked cards in every player's hand should be considered as well.

{{infoBoxes3 |maxWidth=625
|title1=Example of finesse
|body1=<div style="display:flex;flex-flow:row wrap;gap:1rem;">
{{cardholder|player=Table|arrow=
|card1Background=red
|card2Background=yellow
|card3Background=lightgreen
|card4Background=deepskyblue
|card5Background=white
}}

{{cardholder|player=Amy|cardBackground=#bbb}}

{{cardholder|player=Bob|cardBackground=#324
|card1=1|card1Colour=deepskyblue
|card2=5|card2Colour=yellow
|card3=3|card3Colour=deepskyblue
|card4=1|card4Colour=white
|card5=2|card5Colour=white
}}

{{cardholder|player=Cat|cardBackground=#324
|clue3Colour=deepskyblue

|card1=5|card1Colour=red
|card2=2|card2Colour=red
|card3=2|card3Colour=deepskyblue
|card4=2|card4Colour=lightgreen
|card5=2|card5Colour=yellow
}}
</div>

* Amy gives a blue {{card|background=deepskyblue}} to Cat.
* This gives the information that {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}} is the next playable card in the sequence, and that Bob is either not allowed to give a blue {{card|background=deepskyblue}} clue, or has something to play.
* Since Bob has no marked cards, he was not blocked from giving a blue {{card|background=deepskyblue}} clue, so he must have something to play.
* This something, must be the missing link ({{card|=1|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}}, to enable {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}}) that makes {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}} the next playable card.
* Since there is no logical (marked) card that could be {{card|=1|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}}, Bob must assume his newest, unmarked card is {{card|=1|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}} and blind-plays this card.

|title2=Example of reversed finesse
|body2=<div style="display:flex;flex-flow:row wrap;gap:1rem;">
{{cardholder|player=Table|arrow=
|card1Background=red
|card2Background=yellow
|card3Background=lightgreen
|card4Background=deepskyblue
|card5Background=white
}}

{{cardholder|player=Amy|cardBackground=#bbb}}

{{cardholder|player=Bob|cardBackground=#324
|clue3Colour=deepskyblue

|card1=5|card1Colour=red
|card2=2|card2Colour=red
|card3=2|card3Colour=deepskyblue
|card4=2|card4Colour=lightgreen
|card5=2|card5Colour=yellow
}}

{{cardholder|player=Cat|cardBackground=#324
|card1=1|card1Colour=deepskyblue
|card2=5|card2Colour=yellow
|card3=3|card3Colour=deepskyblue
|card4=1|card4Colour=white
|card5=2|card5Colour=white
}}
</div>

* Amy gives a blue {{card|background=deepskyblue}} clue to Bob.
* This gives the information that {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}} is the next playable card in the sequence.
* Bob sees that the newest, unmarked card in Cat's hand is of the same colour (blue) '''and''' playable now. Bob concludes it is a finesse, with the players in reversed order, so his blue card must be {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}}.

|title3=Example of a bluff
|body3=<div style="display:flex;flex-flow:row wrap;gap:1rem;">
{{cardholder|player=Table|arrow=
|card1Background=red
|card2Background=yellow
|card3Background=lightgreen
|card4Background=deepskyblue
|card5Background=white
}}

{{cardholder|player=Amy|cardBackground=#bbb}}

{{cardholder|player=Bob|cardBackground=#324
|card1=1|card1Colour=white
|card2=5|card2Colour=yellow
|card3=3|card3Colour=deepskyblue
|card4=1|card4Colour=white
|card5=2|card5Colour=white
}}

{{cardholder|player=Cat|cardBackground=#324
|clue3Colour=deepskyblue

|card1=5|card1Colour=red
|card2=2|card2Colour=red
|card3=2|card3Colour=deepskyblue
|card4=2|card4Colour=lightgreen
|card5=2|card5Colour=yellow
}}
</div>

* Amy gives a blue {{card|background=deepskyblue}} clue to Cat.
* This gives the information that {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}} is the next playable card in the sequence, and that Bob is either not allowed to give a blue {{card|background=deepskyblue}} clue, or has something to play.
* Since Bob has no marked cards, he was not blocked from giving a blue {{card|background=deepskyblue}} clue, so he must have something to play.
* This something, must be the missing link ({{card|=1|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}}, to enable {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}}) that makes {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}} the next playable card.
* Since there is no logical (marked) card that could be {{card|=1|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}}, Bob must assume his newest, unmarked card is {{card|=1|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}} and blind-plays this card.
* However, at this point the "lie" is revealed (because the colour of the played card does '''not''' match the colour of the finesse-clue).
* The blind-played card is '''not''' {{card|=1|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}}, but {{card|=1|background=#324|colour=white|size=1.5}}. Cat, up to this point, was thinking she had {{card|=1|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}}.
* Bob's blind-play gives Cat extra information: her blue card is in fact {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}}.
}}

* If a marked card gets discarded it means:
** The copy of that card is already marked in someone else's hand, and the discarding player is the first to realize this; or
** The copy of that card MUST be marked in a future clue (because a save-clue will be given that will mark the copy card as collateral).

==== Clues you should avoid giving (bad clues) ====

* As a special remark: don't mark useless, or duplicate cards. So if you have a saved 4, you are forbidden from marking 4s, unless you are sure you are not holding a copy of that

==== Meaning of skipping a player / stealing clues in Finesse convention ====

* There are different approaches among finesse-convention-players about who should clue whom. So this section will be devided into sub-sections. The order does not say anything about which approach is more common on BGA. There are a lot of players following each idea.
* If you allow for skipping (without assigning information to it), a lot of potential information is destroyed. Note that some players are religious in their beliefs about their interpretation on convention, so this section is getting re-edited over and over.
* As of now, there is no way of saying which approach is "right" or "better". Of course it is important for success, that in a game, the group of players follows the same idea. If they get mixed, it will most likely result in bombs. If that happens, it does not mean, the other player is "bad" - it merely means, they follow a different idea. So you can only try to find a common ground for the next game or play with another group next time.
* The text within the sections are written by people who follow the idea.

===== a) Skipping / stealing should be avoided =====
To summarize what we already know about finesse convention:
1. Ever marked card will be playable at some point.
2. A number-clue that marks the CHOP card is a "save this for later"-clue.
3. Every other clue means: the newest, previously unmarked card, is the next playable card.
4. If you have no known playable card (or known safe-to-discard card), your CHOP card is safe to discard.
5. A clue is given by the last possible player.
* If more than 1 person are able to give the same clue, then the last possible person should give that clue.
* In finesse convention skipping (Alice clues Cat, instead of Bob; then Bob is skipped) means either:
**1. The Bob is forbidden from giving that clue; or
**2. The Bob has something to play.
* Note that skipping a player to give a save-clue (number-clue on the CHOP card) is NOT a finesse, and can (should) be used
** to save "nice-to-have" cards;
** to save one of the twin-CHOP cards;
** to speed up the discard of useless cards.
* Things that people who follow this convention say about discard management:
** The main problem with this interpretation, is that "discard management" destroys the assumption that your CHOP is safe to discard, making the convention contradict itself. There is no reason for Alice to avoid discarding her safe-to-discard CHOP card, just because she sees a safe-to-discard card in Bob's hand.
** When applying this style of finesse convention, you assume that players use a bad strategy (see section [[Gamehelphanabi#Strategy|Strategy]]) of not-saving-valuable cards. Your CHOP card might be not-unique, but nice-to-have (not playable, but almost playable). So to avoid discarding a nice-to-have card, you force people into discarding by skipping them, and leaving them without anything useful to do. Skipping/stealing is a term that is often used for a situation, where giving a clue is not left for the last possible player to do. ''e.g. Alice saves a card on chop of Cat, potentially leaving Bob without a known play or a useful/necessary clue to give.'' Skipping players is a useful move to give other players the time to play / discard / clue more cards.

===== b) Skipping / stealing is for discard-management =====

If you don't follow this way of playing then refrain from editing this section! You can write in the section with the convention you follow, why yours is the best.

This style is one way of applying finesse convention. Since the primary assumption is that your CHOP is safe to discard, it might still be that said card is a nice-to-have like a non-unique 2 or 3 that is not yet playable. without knowing your chop card, it is good to handle each-other's chop situation by preferably letting players with definitely useless chop-cards discard rather than discarding your own unknown card. Skipping/stealing is a term that is often used for a situation, where giving a clue is not left for the last possible player to do. ''e.g. player A saves a card on chop of player C, potentially leaving player B without a known play or a useful/necessary clue to give.'' Skipping players is a useful move to give other players the time to play / discard / clue more cards.

When getting skipped without having a play or useful option to clue, it most likely means that your chop card is not very useful.
These are valid reasons for skipping you:
* Your chop-card is trash (a copy of the card is already played/marked)
* Your chop-card is redundant: Another copy of it is on another player's (or your own) hand as well, so discarding it is no loss (or it has low priority like a high number when it's very early in the game).
* You might still have something nice on chop, but the player sitting before already received information that their chop might be something very good (from earlier discard-behaviour like NOT being skipped over by the player sitting before them on earlier turns) and they are reluctant to discard for that reason.
* The clue given is a play-clue for a card that might be in your hand so you couldn't know whether you want the other card or not. The player skipping you knows that you want it and therefore takes away the decision.

This approach sacrifices some saving-clue-tokens option (that might be achieved on a stricter dogma about who should clue whom) in order to be able to keep nice cards in the game for longer and discard useless cards instead and by that often get those cards played before they would be discarded.
* This convention is better for players, who play efficient enough to rarely struggle with clue-shortness and can therefore afford being more careful about not losing first copies.
* If a group often struggles with clue-shortness then skipping-dogma (as proposed by other conventions) might as well improve their overall results. If the problem for not achieving 30 points usually isn't clue-shortness but getting bottom-decked (or heavily delayed from losing earlier a card that could be played now), then results can get better with this discard-management convention.

Planning ahead is a vital aspect of the game. By carefully deciding on who to let clue and whom to skip, it is often possible to
* avoid twin-chops before they become an issue
* avoid not having enough clue tokens to save all necessary cards
* get the discard you were waiting for (when a player has 2 copies of the same playable card and you want them to discard before clueing it)

=== Others conventions ===

* For others conventions, see the previous link: '''[https://boardgamearena.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=26863 this forum post]'''

== Strategy ==

* In addition to the convention(s), there is also some strategy to the game.
* You should '''not''' confuse strategy with convention! Strategy is '''team''' vs '''deck'''; convention is communication within the team.
* A simple example of strategy is saving 2s in 2-player games.
** Using number-2-clue to communicate that those cards need to be saved, is a convention.

=== Examples ===

* More advanced players will try to avoid losing as many "first" (non-unique) cards as possible.
* It's a good strategy to keep good cards in the game as long as possible - even if they are not yet playable.
** ''The other copy of that card might be far down the draw pile.''
* Trying to mark at least 12 cards with the first 8 clue-tokens.
** This gives 99% chance of always having enough tokens in the game.
* Not using the last two clue-tokens for "single plays".
** This avoids running out of clue-tokens in times when you need to save critical cards.

[[Category:Card games]]

Gamehelphanabi

2023-10-14T16:59:44Z

Silene: Moving something into the sub-section because part of it does not reflect both approaches

Hanabi is a cooperative game. Your goal, as a team, is to build a fabulous fireworks show. You have to put together 5 fireworks ( 1 white, 1 red, 1 blue, 1 yellow, 1 green), by making series rising in number (1, 2, 3, 4, 5) with the same coloured cards.

However, you cannot see your own cards; you can only see the cards of your team mates.

Also, communication (and non communication) between the players is essential to Hanabi.

You can only communication with your teammates when you give them a clue (see below).

No other communication is allowed.

Your final score is the total of the top cards on the five piles:

{|class="wikitable" style="width:auto; text-align:center;" border="2"
|+Final Score Ratings
!Points
!Overall impression
|-
|0-5
|horrible, booed by the crowd...
|-
|6-10
|mediocre, just a spattering of applause.
|-
|11-15
|honourable, but will not be remembered for very long...
|-
|16-20
|excellent, crowd pleasing.
|-
|21-24
|amazing, will be remembered for a very long time!
|-
|25
|legendary, everyone left speechless, stars in their eyes
|}

== Card distribution ==

* Each card has a colour and a number.
{|class="wikitable" style="width:auto;" border="2"
|+Normal difficulty (50 cards)
!Red (r)
|{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=2}}
|{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=2}}{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=2}}
|{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=2}}{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=2}}
|{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=2}}{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=2}}
|{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=2}}
|-
!Yellow (y)
|{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#fe5|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#fe5|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#fe5|size=2}}
|{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#fe5|size=2}}{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#fe5|size=2}}
|{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#fe5|size=2}}{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#fe5|size=2}}
|{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#fe5|size=2}}{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#fe5|size=2}}
|{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#fe5|size=2}}
|-
!Green (g)
|{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#2a7|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#2a7|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#2a7|size=2}}
|{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#2a7|size=2}}{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#2a7|size=2}}
|{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#2a7|size=2}}{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#2a7|size=2}}
|{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#2a7|size=2}}{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#2a7|size=2}}
|{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#2a7|size=2}}
|-
!Blue (b)
|{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#0ae|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#0ae|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#0ae|size=2}}
|{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#0ae|size=2}}{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#0ae|size=2}}
|{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#0ae|size=2}}{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#0ae|size=2}}
|{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#0ae|size=2}}{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#0ae|size=2}}
|{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#0ae|size=2}}
|-
!White (w)
|{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#fff|size=2}}
|}

=== Multicolour cards ===

* There are three variants that add a 6th colour: the multicolour.
* There are three difficulties:

==== Tricky ====

* These cards get marked by a separate '''multicolour clue'''.
{|class="wikitable" style="width:auto;" border="2"
|+Tricky difficulty (+10 cards)
!Multicolour (m)
|{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|}

==== Hard ====

* These cards get marked by a separate '''multicolour clue'''.
{|class="wikitable" style="width:auto;" border="2"
|+Hard difficulty (+5 cards)
!Multi-colour (m)
|{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|}

==== Very Difficult ====

* These cards get marked by '''any colour clue'''.
{|class="wikitable" style="width:auto;" border="2"
|+Avalanche difficulty (+10 cards)
!Multi-colour (m)
|{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|}

== Setup ==

* 8 clue tokens.
{|class="wikitable" style="width:auto;" border="2"
|+# cards dealt to each player
!# Players
!2
!3
!4
!5
|-
!# Cards (official rules)
|5
|5
|4
|4
|-
!# Cards (unofficial rules)
|6
|5
|4
|3
|}

== Game play ==

Players take turns to either:

• Give a '''clue''' 
• '''Play''' a card, or 
• '''Discard''' a card

=== Clue ===

* Possible when there is at least one clue token available.
* Clues indicate '''all''' cards of a certain colour, or '''all''' cards of a certain number.
you may indicate '''no''' cards of a color or number on BGA (you have no 5s, or you have no reds)
you may not indicate only a single card of the matching criteria if there is more than one

To do this:

1. The active player selects a card in another player's hand. 
2. The active player selects a clue option. 
3. One clue token is moved from 'available' to 'used'.

=== Play ===

1. The active player selects a card in their hand. 
2. The active player selects the 'Play selected card' button. 
:• If the played card fits in any of the sequences, it is placed in the appropriate colour stack on the table. 
:• If the played card does not fit, it is placed in the discard pile and the team gets a ''misfire'' token. 
3. A replacement card is drawn.

=== Discard ===

This is only possible when there are fewer than 8 clue tokens available.

1. The active player selects a card in their hand. 
2. The active player selects the 'Discard selected card' button. 
3. The discarded card is placed in the discard pile. 
4. One clue token is moved from 'used' to 'available'. 
5. A replacement card is drawn.

== Game end ==

* The game can end in several ways:
*1. All cards have been drawn from the deck. After this happens, everybody gets 1 more turn. The game ends with the score at the last turn.
*2. Your team played all possible cards. In this case, the game ends immediately and you receive the maximum possible score.
*3. Your team made three mistakes that caused misfires. In this case, you lose the game and get negative ten (-10) points.
*4. Your team 'abandons' the game. Although discouraged, you receive zero (0) points.

== Options ==

=== Black Powder ===

* Clues cannot be given for the colour black.
* Black cards must be played in reverse order, from 5 to 1.
{|class="wikitable" style="width:auto;" border="2"
|+Black Powder (+10 cards)
!Black Powder (k)
|{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#000|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#000|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#000|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#000|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#000|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#000|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#000|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#000|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#000|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#000|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|}

=== Five Flamboyants ===

After playing the last card of a colour, randomly select one of the following bonuses for immediate use:
* Gain a clue token.
* Gain a clue token and recover a life.
* Give a clue regarding a colour.
* Give a clue regarding a number.
* Shuffle a discarded card into the deck.
* Play a discarded card, if possible.

== Lingo ==

When you play with others, certain words are used to describe certain objects or situations. Here is a short list.

;Marked: A card that is highlighted by a clue.
;Unmarked: A card that is not clued.
;chop: The oldest, unmarked card. The card that you have no information on and will chop from your hand.
;draw: The newest, unmarked card. The card that you have no information on and was freshly drawn.
;To bomb: A play that causes the third misfire-token. Sometimes called '''explosion'''
;Unique: A card that has no copy (left) in the deck.
;Double discard: When consecutive players have the same card on chop. A special problem, since, to each of the consecutive players, a number to chop does not look like a unique save.
;Twin chop: 2 consecutive players have the same card on chop. Same as Double discard
;Double save: When a player has two consecutive unique cards, requiring consecutive save clues.
;Strategy: A set of rules / guidelines / conventions on how to interpret actions by players (including spending of clue-tokens).

== ELO rating ==

* If you are playing with ELO rating on, your ELO may be changed at the end of the game.
* Here is how it works:
*1. Every player on the team is temporarily considered as having the average ELO rating of the team.
*2. The system will generate a bot associated with the score your team has achieved (let’s call it '''''Hanabot''''').
**• Hanabot’s ELO rating depends on the variant you are playing (50 cards, 60 cards, 60 cards multicolour), the number of players on the team and, most importantly, your team's score.
**• All Hanabot’s ELO ratings have been set by an experienced player, they are not random or simply proportional to the score/number of players.
*3. Your team (actually your team's average ELO) will now compete against Hanabot.
**• The system will calculate your team’s ELO gain/loss as though your team had tied with Hanabot.
**• If your score is below 18 (50-card game) or below 21 (60-card game), Hanabot's ELO is always 1000.

* You can find [http://forum.boardgamearena.com/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=4814 all bots' ELO ratings here]
* The 55-card variant (50 cards + 1 of each value in the sixth color) cannot be played with ELO rating on. (This is because this variant is highly dependent on draw and a team’s score may not always reflect the players’ skills.)
* If you achieve the perfect score and this should cost you ELO points, you will be considered as having beaten the bot associated with the score, so that you lose no ELO points.
* To be confirmed: I think the ELO-system has had an overhaul.

== Cheating ==

* Players can cheat at Hanabi by:
**1. Sharing information via the chat user interface.
**2. Deliberately abandoning games.
* This is why ranking has been disabled for this game.

== Conventions ==

* If you want to play "full information" style, meaning that you wait until you know both the colour and number of a card before you play it, you will likely be short on clue tokens in >99% of the decks.
* The logical conclusion is that you cannot play a full information style game and the team must agree on some sort of meta-information. The meta-information is coded in a convention.
* Many players have different kinds of conventions.
** ''Note: not all conventions are added to the BGA list. Please respect the convention the table creator wants to play.''
* When different players in the same team assign different meta-information to the same clue, the game becomes unplayable.
** This is why there is an option to display the convention for the table.
** See '''[https://boardgamearena.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=26863 this forum post]''' started by '''[https://boardgamearena.com/player?id=84207926 user Romain672]'''.
* Ideally, all players adhere to the convention, to avoid miscommunication.
* Below, the meta-information of several conventions is explained.

=== Standard ===

* Players assume the following meta-information:
** Every marked card will be playable at some point.

==== Number clue ====

* Cards with a number-clue on them must be saved to be played later on in the game
* Saved cards can be safely played when all "number-1" cards are played.
** ''Saved cards are played from oldest to newest.''

==== Colour clue ====

* The newest, previously unmarked card, is the next playable card in the sequence.
* The oldest, unmarked card is safe to discard.
** If a player has a card that they are sure they will never be able to play, e.g. cards marked by a blue clue when the blue stack is already complete, these card must be discarded in priority.

==== Bad clues ====

* A clue that marks 0 new cards.
* A clue that tells a ''lie'' (i.e. does not conform to the meta-information above).
* A clue that marks unplayable or duplicate cards, unless it saves a card at the chop position that does not have another copy of the card in the deck or other players' hands.
** e.g. Marking 4s in another hand if your hand could have a copy of that 4.
* Sometimes, a "bad" clue cannot be avoided.
** ''e.g. Save a unique 3 using a number clue which also marks unplayable cards.
** ''e.g. A colour clue from a flamboyant must be used and it is used to mark 0 new cards.
* When a ''lie'' has been told, it needs to be corrected.
* A correction clue can never mean "play", it can only mean "discard".

{{infoBoxes3 |maxWidth=625
|title1=Standard convention example 1
|body1=<div style="display:flex;flex-flow:row wrap;gap:1rem;">
{{cardholder|player=Table|arrow=|cardBackground=#324
|card1=1|card1Colour=red
|card2=5|card2Colour=yellow
|card3=1|card3Colour=lightgreen
|card4=3|card4Colour=deepskyblue
|card5=4|card5Colour=white
}}

{{cardholder|player=Amy|cardBackground=#bbb}}

{{cardholder|player=Bob|cardBackground=#324
|clue5=5|clue5Colour=lightgrey

|card1=2|card1Colour=red
|card2=4|card2Colour=yellow
|card3=3|card3Colour=red
|card4=3|card4Colour=deepskyblue
|card5=5|card5Colour=lightgreen
}}

{{cardholder|player=Cat|cardBackground=#324
|card1=4|card1Colour=lightgreen
|card2=1|card2Colour=yellow
|card3=4|card3Colour=red
|card4=3|card4Colour=yellow
|card5=2|card5Colour=yellow
}}
</div>

* It's Amy's turn, and Bob knows his chop card is {{card|=5}}.
* Amy will give a red {{card|background=red}} clue to Bob.
* This will tell Bob that the newest card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=red|size=1.5}}), and that the other red can be {{card|=3|background=#324|colour=red|size=1.5}}, {{card|=4|background=#324|colour=red|size=1.5}}, or {{card|=5|background=#324|colour=red|size=1.5}} (because it must be playable at some later point in the game).

|title2=Standard convention example 2
|body2=<div style="display:flex;flex-flow:row wrap;gap:1rem;">
{{cardholder|player=Table|arrow=|cardBackground=#324
|card1=2|card1Colour=red
|card2=5|card2Colour=yellow
|card3=1|card3Colour=lightgreen
|card4=3|card4Colour=deepskyblue
|card5=4|card5Colour=white
}}

{{cardholder|player=Amy|cardBackground=#bbb}}

{{cardholder|player=Bob|cardBackground=#324
|clue5=5|clue5Colour=lightgrey
|clue3Colour=red

|card1=5|card1Colour=white
|card2=4|card2Colour=yellow
|card3=3|card3Colour=red
|card4=3|card4Colour=deepskyblue
|card5=5|card5Colour=lightgreen
}}

{{cardholder|player=Cat|cardBackground=#324
|card1=2|card1Colour=white
|card2=4|card2Colour=lightgreen
|card3=1|card3Colour=yellow
|card4=4|card4Colour=red
|card5=3|card5Colour=yellow
}}
</div>

* It is Amy's turn again, and Bob knows his oldest card is {{card|=5}}, and his middle card is {{card|background=red}}.
* Amy will give a red {{card|background=red}} clue to Cat.
* This will tell Cat that her marked card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be {{card|=4|background=#324|colour=red|size=1.5}}, because {{card|=3|background=#324|colour=red|size=1.5}} is already marked).
* This will give Bob the meta-information that his saved red card, is {{card|=3|background=#324|colour=red|size=1.5}}.
** ''This particular move is sometimes called prompting, and is a common way to allow a card that is saved by colour to get played without re-cluing it.''

|title3=Standard convention example 3
|body3=<div style="display:flex;flex-flow:row wrap;gap:1rem;">
{{cardholder|player=Table|arrow=|cardBackground=#324
|card1=1|card1Colour=red
|card2=5|card2Colour=yellow
|card3Background=lightgreen
|card4=3|card4Colour=deepskyblue
|card5=4|card5Colour=white
}}

{{cardholder|player=Amy|cardBackground=#bbb}}

{{cardholder|player=Bob|cardBackground=#324
|clue3=2|clue3Colour=lightgrey

|card1=3|card1Colour=red
|card2=4|card2Colour=yellow
|card3=2|card3Colour=red
|card4=3|card4Colour=deepskyblue
|card5=5|card5Colour=lightgreen
}}

{{cardholder|player=Cat|cardBackground=#324
|card1=4|card1Colour=lightgreen
|card2=1|card2Colour=yellow
|card3=4|card3Colour=red
|card4=3|card4Colour=yellow
|card5=2|card5Colour=yellow
}}
</div>

* It is Amy's turn, and Bob knows his middle card is {{card|=2}}.
* Amy will give a red {{card|background=#d03}} clue to Bob.
* This will tell Bob that his newest card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be {{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=1.5}}, because {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=1.5}} is now visible with 100% information).
}}

=== Finesse ===

* Finesse builds on the standard convention (making it a bit more complex).
* In the finesse convention, the timing of the clue gives you extra information.
* You can assume the following meta-information:
** Every card that gets marked, will be playable at some point.
** If the oldest, unmarked card gets marked with a number-clue, then the clue meant "save this/these card(s)". (It is custom to play saved cards from oldest to newest when appropriate.)
** A clue that doesn't mark the oldest card, means that the newest, previously unmarked card, is the next playable card in the sequence.
** The oldest, unmarked card is safe to discard unless that player is busy by having a "known" play or discard.
*** ''Obviously, if a player has a card that they are sure they will never be able to play, for example a card on which is marked as 1 when all the 1s have already been played, should be discarded in priority.''
** Clues are given by the last possible player.
*** When the timing of a clue doesn't match your expectations, you can draw certain conclusions (see next section: special interpretations)

==== Special interpretations ====

* When receiving a clue for the "next playable card in the sequence", the linking cards are not limited to already marked cards (like in standard convention).
* The newest, unmarked cards in every player's hand should be considered as well.

{{infoBoxes3 |maxWidth=625
|title1=Example of finesse
|body1=<div style="display:flex;flex-flow:row wrap;gap:1rem;">
{{cardholder|player=Table|arrow=
|card1Background=red
|card2Background=yellow
|card3Background=lightgreen
|card4Background=deepskyblue
|card5Background=white
}}

{{cardholder|player=Amy|cardBackground=#bbb}}

{{cardholder|player=Bob|cardBackground=#324
|card1=1|card1Colour=deepskyblue
|card2=5|card2Colour=yellow
|card3=3|card3Colour=deepskyblue
|card4=1|card4Colour=white
|card5=2|card5Colour=white
}}

{{cardholder|player=Cat|cardBackground=#324
|clue3Colour=deepskyblue

|card1=5|card1Colour=red
|card2=2|card2Colour=red
|card3=2|card3Colour=deepskyblue
|card4=2|card4Colour=lightgreen
|card5=2|card5Colour=yellow
}}
</div>

* Amy gives a blue {{card|background=deepskyblue}} to Cat.
* This gives the information that {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}} is the next playable card in the sequence, and that Bob is either not allowed to give a blue {{card|background=deepskyblue}} clue, or has something to play.
* Since Bob has no marked cards, he was not blocked from giving a blue {{card|background=deepskyblue}} clue, so he must have something to play.
* This something, must be the missing link ({{card|=1|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}}, to enable {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}}) that makes {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}} the next playable card.
* Since there is no logical (marked) card that could be {{card|=1|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}}, Bob must assume his newest, unmarked card is {{card|=1|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}} and blind-plays this card.

|title2=Example of reversed finesse
|body2=<div style="display:flex;flex-flow:row wrap;gap:1rem;">
{{cardholder|player=Table|arrow=
|card1Background=red
|card2Background=yellow
|card3Background=lightgreen
|card4Background=deepskyblue
|card5Background=white
}}

{{cardholder|player=Amy|cardBackground=#bbb}}

{{cardholder|player=Bob|cardBackground=#324
|clue3Colour=deepskyblue

|card1=5|card1Colour=red
|card2=2|card2Colour=red
|card3=2|card3Colour=deepskyblue
|card4=2|card4Colour=lightgreen
|card5=2|card5Colour=yellow
}}

{{cardholder|player=Cat|cardBackground=#324
|card1=1|card1Colour=deepskyblue
|card2=5|card2Colour=yellow
|card3=3|card3Colour=deepskyblue
|card4=1|card4Colour=white
|card5=2|card5Colour=white
}}
</div>

* Amy gives a blue {{card|background=deepskyblue}} clue to Bob.
* This gives the information that {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}} is the next playable card in the sequence.
* Bob sees that the newest, unmarked card in Cat's hand is of the same colour (blue) '''and''' playable now. Bob concludes it is a finesse, with the players in reversed order, so his blue card must be {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}}.

|title3=Example of a bluff
|body3=<div style="display:flex;flex-flow:row wrap;gap:1rem;">
{{cardholder|player=Table|arrow=
|card1Background=red
|card2Background=yellow
|card3Background=lightgreen
|card4Background=deepskyblue
|card5Background=white
}}

{{cardholder|player=Amy|cardBackground=#bbb}}

{{cardholder|player=Bob|cardBackground=#324
|card1=1|card1Colour=white
|card2=5|card2Colour=yellow
|card3=3|card3Colour=deepskyblue
|card4=1|card4Colour=white
|card5=2|card5Colour=white
}}

{{cardholder|player=Cat|cardBackground=#324
|clue3Colour=deepskyblue

|card1=5|card1Colour=red
|card2=2|card2Colour=red
|card3=2|card3Colour=deepskyblue
|card4=2|card4Colour=lightgreen
|card5=2|card5Colour=yellow
}}
</div>

* Amy gives a blue {{card|background=deepskyblue}} clue to Cat.
* This gives the information that {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}} is the next playable card in the sequence, and that Bob is either not allowed to give a blue {{card|background=deepskyblue}} clue, or has something to play.
* Since Bob has no marked cards, he was not blocked from giving a blue {{card|background=deepskyblue}} clue, so he must have something to play.
* This something, must be the missing link ({{card|=1|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}}, to enable {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}}) that makes {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}} the next playable card.
* Since there is no logical (marked) card that could be {{card|=1|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}}, Bob must assume his newest, unmarked card is {{card|=1|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}} and blind-plays this card.
* However, at this point the "lie" is revealed (because the colour of the played card does '''not''' match the colour of the finesse-clue).
* The blind-played card is '''not''' {{card|=1|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}}, but {{card|=1|background=#324|colour=white|size=1.5}}. Cat, up to this point, was thinking she had {{card|=1|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}}.
* Bob's blind-play gives Cat extra information: her blue card is in fact {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}}.
}}

* If a marked card gets discarded it means:
** The copy of that card is already marked in someone else's hand, and the discarding player is the first to realize this; or
** The copy of that card MUST be marked in a future clue (because a save-clue will be given that will mark the copy card as collateral).

==== Clues you should avoid giving (bad clues) ====

* As a special remark: don't mark useless, or duplicate cards. So if you have a saved 4, you are forbidden from marking 4s, unless you are sure you are not holding a copy of that

==== Meaning of skipping a player / stealing clues in Finesse convention ====

* There are different approaches among finesse-convention-players about who should clue whom. So this section will be devided into sub-sections. The order does not say anything about which approach is more common on BGA. There are a lot of players following each idea.
* If you allow for skipping (without assigning information to it), a lot of potential information is destroyed. Note that some players are religious in their beliefs about their interpretation on convention, so this section is getting re-edited over and over.
* As of now, there is no way of saying which approach is "right" or "better". Of course it is important for success, that in a game, the group of players follows the same idea. If they get mixed, it will most likely result in bombs. If that happens, it does not mean, the other player is "bad" - it merely means, they follow a different idea. So you can only try to find a common ground for the next game or play with another group next time.
* The text within the sections are written by people who follow the idea.

* The text within the sections are written by people who follow the idea.

===== a) Skipping / stealing should be avoided =====
To summarize what we already know about finesse convention:
1. Ever marked card will be playable at some point.
2. A number-clue that marks the CHOP card is a "save this for later"-clue.
3. Every other clue means: the newest, previously unmarked card, is the next playable card.
4. If you have no known playable card (or known safe-to-discard card), your CHOP card is safe to discard.
5. A clue is given by the last possible player.
* If more than 1 person are able to give the same clue, then the last possible person should give that clue.
* In finesse convention skipping (Alice clues Cat, instead of Bob; then Bob is skipped) means either:
**1. The Bob is forbidden from giving that clue; or
**2. The Bob has something to play.
* Note that skipping a player to give a save-clue (number-clue on the CHOP card) is NOT a finesse, and can (should) be used
** to save "nice-to-have" cards;
** to save one of the twin-CHOP cards;
** to speed up the discard of useless cards.
* Things that people who follow this convention say about discard management:
** The main problem with this interpretation, is that "discard management" destroys the assumption that your CHOP is safe to discard, making the convention contradict itself. There is no reason for Alice to avoid discarding her safe-to-discard CHOP card, just because she sees a safe-to-discard card in Bob's hand.
** When applying this style of finesse convention, you assume that players use a bad strategy (see section [[Gamehelphanabi#Strategy|Strategy]]) of not-saving-valuable cards. Your CHOP card might be not-unique, but nice-to-have (not playable, but almost playable). So to avoid discarding a nice-to-have card, you force people into discarding by skipping them, and leaving them without anything useful to do. Skipping/stealing is a term that is often used for a situation, where giving a clue is not left for the last possible player to do. ''e.g. Alice saves a card on chop of Cat, potentially leaving Bob without a known play or a useful/necessary clue to give.'' Skipping players is a useful move to give other players the time to play / discard / clue more cards.

===== b) Skipping / stealing is for discard-management =====

If you don't follow this way of playing then refrain from editing this section! You can write in the section with the convention you follow, why yours is the best.

This style is one way of applying finesse convention. Since the primary assumption is that your CHOP is safe to discard, it might still be that said card is a nice-to-have like a non-unique 2 or 3 that is not yet playable. without knowing your chop card, it is good to handle each-other's chop situation by preferably letting players with definitely useless chop-cards discard rather than discarding your own unknown card. Skipping/stealing is a term that is often used for a situation, where giving a clue is not left for the last possible player to do. ''e.g. player A saves a card on chop of player C, potentially leaving player B without a known play or a useful/necessary clue to give.'' Skipping players is a useful move to give other players the time to play / discard / clue more cards.

When getting skipped without having a play or useful option to clue, it most likely means that your chop card is not very useful.
These are valid reasons for skipping you:
* Your chop-card is trash (a copy of the card is already played/marked)
* Your chop-card is redundant: Another copy of it is on another player's (or your own) hand as well, so discarding it is no loss (or it has low priority like a high number when it's very early in the game).
* You might still have something nice on chop, but the player sitting before already received information that their chop might be something very good (from earlier discard-behaviour like NOT being skipped over by the player sitting before them on earlier turns) and they are reluctant to discard for that reason.
* The clue given is a play-clue for a card that might be in your hand so you couldn't know whether you want the other card or not. The player skipping you knows that you want it and therefore takes away the decision.

This approach sacrifices some saving-clue-tokens option (that might be achieved on a stricter dogma about who should clue whom) in order to be able to keep nice cards in the game for longer and discard useless cards instead and by that often get those cards played before they would be discarded.
* This convention is better for players, who play efficient enough to rarely struggle with clue-shortness and can therefore afford being more careful about not losing first copies.
* If a group often struggles with clue-shortness then skipping-dogma (as proposed by other conventions) might as well improve their overall results. If the problem for not achieving 30 points usually isn't clue-shortness but getting bottom-decked (or heavily delayed from losing earlier a card that could be played now), then results can get better with this discard-management convention.

Planning ahead is a vital aspect of the game. By carefully deciding on who to let clue and whom to skip, it is often possible to
* avoid twin-chops before they become an issue
* avoid not having enough clue tokens to save all necessary cards
* get the discard you were waiting for (when a player has 2 copies of the same playable card and you want them to discard before clueing it)

=== Others conventions ===

* For others conventions, see the previous link: '''[https://boardgamearena.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=26863 this forum post]'''

== Strategy ==

* In addition to the convention(s), there is also some strategy to the game.
* You should '''not''' confuse strategy with convention! Strategy is '''team''' vs '''deck'''; convention is communication within the team.
* A simple example of strategy is saving 2s in 2-player games.
** Using number-2-clue to communicate that those cards need to be saved, is a convention.

=== Examples ===

* More advanced players will try to avoid losing as many "first" (non-unique) cards as possible.
* It's a good strategy to keep good cards in the game as long as possible - even if they are not yet playable.
** ''The other copy of that card might be far down the draw pile.''
* Trying to mark at least 12 cards with the first 8 clue-tokens.
** This gives 99% chance of always having enough tokens in the game.
* Not using the last two clue-tokens for "single plays".
** This avoids running out of clue-tokens in times when you need to save critical cards.

[[Category:Card games]]

Gamehelphanabi

2023-10-14T16:53:42Z

Silene: /* a) Skipping / stealing should be avoided */

Hanabi is a cooperative game. Your goal, as a team, is to build a fabulous fireworks show. You have to put together 5 fireworks ( 1 white, 1 red, 1 blue, 1 yellow, 1 green), by making series rising in number (1, 2, 3, 4, 5) with the same coloured cards.

However, you cannot see your own cards; you can only see the cards of your team mates.

Also, communication (and non communication) between the players is essential to Hanabi.

You can only communication with your teammates when you give them a clue (see below).

No other communication is allowed.

Your final score is the total of the top cards on the five piles:

{|class="wikitable" style="width:auto; text-align:center;" border="2"
|+Final Score Ratings
!Points
!Overall impression
|-
|0-5
|horrible, booed by the crowd...
|-
|6-10
|mediocre, just a spattering of applause.
|-
|11-15
|honourable, but will not be remembered for very long...
|-
|16-20
|excellent, crowd pleasing.
|-
|21-24
|amazing, will be remembered for a very long time!
|-
|25
|legendary, everyone left speechless, stars in their eyes
|}

== Card distribution ==

* Each card has a colour and a number.
{|class="wikitable" style="width:auto;" border="2"
|+Normal difficulty (50 cards)
!Red (r)
|{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=2}}
|{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=2}}{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=2}}
|{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=2}}{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=2}}
|{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=2}}{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=2}}
|{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=2}}
|-
!Yellow (y)
|{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#fe5|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#fe5|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#fe5|size=2}}
|{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#fe5|size=2}}{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#fe5|size=2}}
|{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#fe5|size=2}}{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#fe5|size=2}}
|{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#fe5|size=2}}{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#fe5|size=2}}
|{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#fe5|size=2}}
|-
!Green (g)
|{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#2a7|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#2a7|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#2a7|size=2}}
|{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#2a7|size=2}}{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#2a7|size=2}}
|{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#2a7|size=2}}{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#2a7|size=2}}
|{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#2a7|size=2}}{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#2a7|size=2}}
|{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#2a7|size=2}}
|-
!Blue (b)
|{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#0ae|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#0ae|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#0ae|size=2}}
|{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#0ae|size=2}}{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#0ae|size=2}}
|{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#0ae|size=2}}{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#0ae|size=2}}
|{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#0ae|size=2}}{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#0ae|size=2}}
|{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#0ae|size=2}}
|-
!White (w)
|{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#fff|size=2}}
|}

=== Multicolour cards ===

* There are three variants that add a 6th colour: the multicolour.
* There are three difficulties:

==== Tricky ====

* These cards get marked by a separate '''multicolour clue'''.
{|class="wikitable" style="width:auto;" border="2"
|+Tricky difficulty (+10 cards)
!Multicolour (m)
|{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|}

==== Hard ====

* These cards get marked by a separate '''multicolour clue'''.
{|class="wikitable" style="width:auto;" border="2"
|+Hard difficulty (+5 cards)
!Multi-colour (m)
|{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|}

==== Very Difficult ====

* These cards get marked by '''any colour clue'''.
{|class="wikitable" style="width:auto;" border="2"
|+Avalanche difficulty (+10 cards)
!Multi-colour (m)
|{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|}

== Setup ==

* 8 clue tokens.
{|class="wikitable" style="width:auto;" border="2"
|+# cards dealt to each player
!# Players
!2
!3
!4
!5
|-
!# Cards (official rules)
|5
|5
|4
|4
|-
!# Cards (unofficial rules)
|6
|5
|4
|3
|}

== Game play ==

Players take turns to either:

• Give a '''clue''' 
• '''Play''' a card, or 
• '''Discard''' a card

=== Clue ===

* Possible when there is at least one clue token available.
* Clues indicate '''all''' cards of a certain colour, or '''all''' cards of a certain number.
you may indicate '''no''' cards of a color or number on BGA (you have no 5s, or you have no reds)
you may not indicate only a single card of the matching criteria if there is more than one

To do this:

1. The active player selects a card in another player's hand. 
2. The active player selects a clue option. 
3. One clue token is moved from 'available' to 'used'.

=== Play ===

1. The active player selects a card in their hand. 
2. The active player selects the 'Play selected card' button. 
:• If the played card fits in any of the sequences, it is placed in the appropriate colour stack on the table. 
:• If the played card does not fit, it is placed in the discard pile and the team gets a ''misfire'' token. 
3. A replacement card is drawn.

=== Discard ===

This is only possible when there are fewer than 8 clue tokens available.

1. The active player selects a card in their hand. 
2. The active player selects the 'Discard selected card' button. 
3. The discarded card is placed in the discard pile. 
4. One clue token is moved from 'used' to 'available'. 
5. A replacement card is drawn.

== Game end ==

* The game can end in several ways:
*1. All cards have been drawn from the deck. After this happens, everybody gets 1 more turn. The game ends with the score at the last turn.
*2. Your team played all possible cards. In this case, the game ends immediately and you receive the maximum possible score.
*3. Your team made three mistakes that caused misfires. In this case, you lose the game and get negative ten (-10) points.
*4. Your team 'abandons' the game. Although discouraged, you receive zero (0) points.

== Options ==

=== Black Powder ===

* Clues cannot be given for the colour black.
* Black cards must be played in reverse order, from 5 to 1.
{|class="wikitable" style="width:auto;" border="2"
|+Black Powder (+10 cards)
!Black Powder (k)
|{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#000|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#000|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#000|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#000|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#000|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#000|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#000|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#000|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#000|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#000|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|}

=== Five Flamboyants ===

After playing the last card of a colour, randomly select one of the following bonuses for immediate use:
* Gain a clue token.
* Gain a clue token and recover a life.
* Give a clue regarding a colour.
* Give a clue regarding a number.
* Shuffle a discarded card into the deck.
* Play a discarded card, if possible.

== Lingo ==

When you play with others, certain words are used to describe certain objects or situations. Here is a short list.

;Marked: A card that is highlighted by a clue.
;Unmarked: A card that is not clued.
;chop: The oldest, unmarked card. The card that you have no information on and will chop from your hand.
;draw: The newest, unmarked card. The card that you have no information on and was freshly drawn.
;To bomb: A play that causes the third misfire-token. Sometimes called '''explosion'''
;Unique: A card that has no copy (left) in the deck.
;Double discard: When consecutive players have the same card on chop. A special problem, since, to each of the consecutive players, a number to chop does not look like a unique save.
;Twin chop: 2 consecutive players have the same card on chop. Same as Double discard
;Double save: When a player has two consecutive unique cards, requiring consecutive save clues.
;Strategy: A set of rules / guidelines / conventions on how to interpret actions by players (including spending of clue-tokens).

== ELO rating ==

* If you are playing with ELO rating on, your ELO may be changed at the end of the game.
* Here is how it works:
*1. Every player on the team is temporarily considered as having the average ELO rating of the team.
*2. The system will generate a bot associated with the score your team has achieved (let’s call it '''''Hanabot''''').
**• Hanabot’s ELO rating depends on the variant you are playing (50 cards, 60 cards, 60 cards multicolour), the number of players on the team and, most importantly, your team's score.
**• All Hanabot’s ELO ratings have been set by an experienced player, they are not random or simply proportional to the score/number of players.
*3. Your team (actually your team's average ELO) will now compete against Hanabot.
**• The system will calculate your team’s ELO gain/loss as though your team had tied with Hanabot.
**• If your score is below 18 (50-card game) or below 21 (60-card game), Hanabot's ELO is always 1000.

* You can find [http://forum.boardgamearena.com/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=4814 all bots' ELO ratings here]
* The 55-card variant (50 cards + 1 of each value in the sixth color) cannot be played with ELO rating on. (This is because this variant is highly dependent on draw and a team’s score may not always reflect the players’ skills.)
* If you achieve the perfect score and this should cost you ELO points, you will be considered as having beaten the bot associated with the score, so that you lose no ELO points.
* To be confirmed: I think the ELO-system has had an overhaul.

== Cheating ==

* Players can cheat at Hanabi by:
**1. Sharing information via the chat user interface.
**2. Deliberately abandoning games.
* This is why ranking has been disabled for this game.

== Conventions ==

* If you want to play "full information" style, meaning that you wait until you know both the colour and number of a card before you play it, you will likely be short on clue tokens in >99% of the decks.
* The logical conclusion is that you cannot play a full information style game and the team must agree on some sort of meta-information. The meta-information is coded in a convention.
* Many players have different kinds of conventions.
** ''Note: not all conventions are added to the BGA list. Please respect the convention the table creator wants to play.''
* When different players in the same team assign different meta-information to the same clue, the game becomes unplayable.
** This is why there is an option to display the convention for the table.
** See '''[https://boardgamearena.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=26863 this forum post]''' started by '''[https://boardgamearena.com/player?id=84207926 user Romain672]'''.
* Ideally, all players adhere to the convention, to avoid miscommunication.
* Below, the meta-information of several conventions is explained.

=== Standard ===

* Players assume the following meta-information:
** Every marked card will be playable at some point.

==== Number clue ====

* Cards with a number-clue on them must be saved to be played later on in the game
* Saved cards can be safely played when all "number-1" cards are played.
** ''Saved cards are played from oldest to newest.''

==== Colour clue ====

* The newest, previously unmarked card, is the next playable card in the sequence.
* The oldest, unmarked card is safe to discard.
** If a player has a card that they are sure they will never be able to play, e.g. cards marked by a blue clue when the blue stack is already complete, these card must be discarded in priority.

==== Bad clues ====

* A clue that marks 0 new cards.
* A clue that tells a ''lie'' (i.e. does not conform to the meta-information above).
* A clue that marks unplayable or duplicate cards, unless it saves a card at the chop position that does not have another copy of the card in the deck or other players' hands.
** e.g. Marking 4s in another hand if your hand could have a copy of that 4.
* Sometimes, a "bad" clue cannot be avoided.
** ''e.g. Save a unique 3 using a number clue which also marks unplayable cards.
** ''e.g. A colour clue from a flamboyant must be used and it is used to mark 0 new cards.
* When a ''lie'' has been told, it needs to be corrected.
* A correction clue can never mean "play", it can only mean "discard".

{{infoBoxes3 |maxWidth=625
|title1=Standard convention example 1
|body1=<div style="display:flex;flex-flow:row wrap;gap:1rem;">
{{cardholder|player=Table|arrow=|cardBackground=#324
|card1=1|card1Colour=red
|card2=5|card2Colour=yellow
|card3=1|card3Colour=lightgreen
|card4=3|card4Colour=deepskyblue
|card5=4|card5Colour=white
}}

{{cardholder|player=Amy|cardBackground=#bbb}}

{{cardholder|player=Bob|cardBackground=#324
|clue5=5|clue5Colour=lightgrey

|card1=2|card1Colour=red
|card2=4|card2Colour=yellow
|card3=3|card3Colour=red
|card4=3|card4Colour=deepskyblue
|card5=5|card5Colour=lightgreen
}}

{{cardholder|player=Cat|cardBackground=#324
|card1=4|card1Colour=lightgreen
|card2=1|card2Colour=yellow
|card3=4|card3Colour=red
|card4=3|card4Colour=yellow
|card5=2|card5Colour=yellow
}}
</div>

* It's Amy's turn, and Bob knows his chop card is {{card|=5}}.
* Amy will give a red {{card|background=red}} clue to Bob.
* This will tell Bob that the newest card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=red|size=1.5}}), and that the other red can be {{card|=3|background=#324|colour=red|size=1.5}}, {{card|=4|background=#324|colour=red|size=1.5}}, or {{card|=5|background=#324|colour=red|size=1.5}} (because it must be playable at some later point in the game).

|title2=Standard convention example 2
|body2=<div style="display:flex;flex-flow:row wrap;gap:1rem;">
{{cardholder|player=Table|arrow=|cardBackground=#324
|card1=2|card1Colour=red
|card2=5|card2Colour=yellow
|card3=1|card3Colour=lightgreen
|card4=3|card4Colour=deepskyblue
|card5=4|card5Colour=white
}}

{{cardholder|player=Amy|cardBackground=#bbb}}

{{cardholder|player=Bob|cardBackground=#324
|clue5=5|clue5Colour=lightgrey
|clue3Colour=red

|card1=5|card1Colour=white
|card2=4|card2Colour=yellow
|card3=3|card3Colour=red
|card4=3|card4Colour=deepskyblue
|card5=5|card5Colour=lightgreen
}}

{{cardholder|player=Cat|cardBackground=#324
|card1=2|card1Colour=white
|card2=4|card2Colour=lightgreen
|card3=1|card3Colour=yellow
|card4=4|card4Colour=red
|card5=3|card5Colour=yellow
}}
</div>

* It is Amy's turn again, and Bob knows his oldest card is {{card|=5}}, and his middle card is {{card|background=red}}.
* Amy will give a red {{card|background=red}} clue to Cat.
* This will tell Cat that her marked card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be {{card|=4|background=#324|colour=red|size=1.5}}, because {{card|=3|background=#324|colour=red|size=1.5}} is already marked).
* This will give Bob the meta-information that his saved red card, is {{card|=3|background=#324|colour=red|size=1.5}}.
** ''This particular move is sometimes called prompting, and is a common way to allow a card that is saved by colour to get played without re-cluing it.''

|title3=Standard convention example 3
|body3=<div style="display:flex;flex-flow:row wrap;gap:1rem;">
{{cardholder|player=Table|arrow=|cardBackground=#324
|card1=1|card1Colour=red
|card2=5|card2Colour=yellow
|card3Background=lightgreen
|card4=3|card4Colour=deepskyblue
|card5=4|card5Colour=white
}}

{{cardholder|player=Amy|cardBackground=#bbb}}

{{cardholder|player=Bob|cardBackground=#324
|clue3=2|clue3Colour=lightgrey

|card1=3|card1Colour=red
|card2=4|card2Colour=yellow
|card3=2|card3Colour=red
|card4=3|card4Colour=deepskyblue
|card5=5|card5Colour=lightgreen
}}

{{cardholder|player=Cat|cardBackground=#324
|card1=4|card1Colour=lightgreen
|card2=1|card2Colour=yellow
|card3=4|card3Colour=red
|card4=3|card4Colour=yellow
|card5=2|card5Colour=yellow
}}
</div>

* It is Amy's turn, and Bob knows his middle card is {{card|=2}}.
* Amy will give a red {{card|background=#d03}} clue to Bob.
* This will tell Bob that his newest card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be {{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=1.5}}, because {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=1.5}} is now visible with 100% information).
}}

=== Finesse ===

* Finesse builds on the standard convention (making it a bit more complex).
* In the finesse convention, the timing of the clue gives you extra information.
* You can assume the following meta-information:
** Every card that gets marked, will be playable at some point.
** If the oldest, unmarked card gets marked with a number-clue, then the clue meant "save this/these card(s)". (It is custom to play saved cards from oldest to newest when appropriate.)
** A clue that doesn't mark the oldest card, means that the newest, previously unmarked card, is the next playable card in the sequence.
** The oldest, unmarked card is safe to discard unless that player is busy by having a "known" play or discard.
*** ''Obviously, if a player has a card that they are sure they will never be able to play, for example a card on which is marked as 1 when all the 1s have already been played, should be discarded in priority.''
** Clues are given by the last possible player.
*** When the timing of a clue doesn't match your expectations, you can draw certain conclusions (see next section: special interpretations)

==== Special interpretations ====

* When receiving a clue for the "next playable card in the sequence", the linking cards are not limited to already marked cards (like in standard convention).
* The newest, unmarked cards in every player's hand should be considered as well.

{{infoBoxes3 |maxWidth=625
|title1=Example of finesse
|body1=<div style="display:flex;flex-flow:row wrap;gap:1rem;">
{{cardholder|player=Table|arrow=
|card1Background=red
|card2Background=yellow
|card3Background=lightgreen
|card4Background=deepskyblue
|card5Background=white
}}

{{cardholder|player=Amy|cardBackground=#bbb}}

{{cardholder|player=Bob|cardBackground=#324
|card1=1|card1Colour=deepskyblue
|card2=5|card2Colour=yellow
|card3=3|card3Colour=deepskyblue
|card4=1|card4Colour=white
|card5=2|card5Colour=white
}}

{{cardholder|player=Cat|cardBackground=#324
|clue3Colour=deepskyblue

|card1=5|card1Colour=red
|card2=2|card2Colour=red
|card3=2|card3Colour=deepskyblue
|card4=2|card4Colour=lightgreen
|card5=2|card5Colour=yellow
}}
</div>

* Amy gives a blue {{card|background=deepskyblue}} to Cat.
* This gives the information that {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}} is the next playable card in the sequence, and that Bob is either not allowed to give a blue {{card|background=deepskyblue}} clue, or has something to play.
* Since Bob has no marked cards, he was not blocked from giving a blue {{card|background=deepskyblue}} clue, so he must have something to play.
* This something, must be the missing link ({{card|=1|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}}, to enable {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}}) that makes {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}} the next playable card.
* Since there is no logical (marked) card that could be {{card|=1|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}}, Bob must assume his newest, unmarked card is {{card|=1|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}} and blind-plays this card.

|title2=Example of reversed finesse
|body2=<div style="display:flex;flex-flow:row wrap;gap:1rem;">
{{cardholder|player=Table|arrow=
|card1Background=red
|card2Background=yellow
|card3Background=lightgreen
|card4Background=deepskyblue
|card5Background=white
}}

{{cardholder|player=Amy|cardBackground=#bbb}}

{{cardholder|player=Bob|cardBackground=#324
|clue3Colour=deepskyblue

|card1=5|card1Colour=red
|card2=2|card2Colour=red
|card3=2|card3Colour=deepskyblue
|card4=2|card4Colour=lightgreen
|card5=2|card5Colour=yellow
}}

{{cardholder|player=Cat|cardBackground=#324
|card1=1|card1Colour=deepskyblue
|card2=5|card2Colour=yellow
|card3=3|card3Colour=deepskyblue
|card4=1|card4Colour=white
|card5=2|card5Colour=white
}}
</div>

* Amy gives a blue {{card|background=deepskyblue}} clue to Bob.
* This gives the information that {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}} is the next playable card in the sequence.
* Bob sees that the newest, unmarked card in Cat's hand is of the same colour (blue) '''and''' playable now. Bob concludes it is a finesse, with the players in reversed order, so his blue card must be {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}}.

|title3=Example of a bluff
|body3=<div style="display:flex;flex-flow:row wrap;gap:1rem;">
{{cardholder|player=Table|arrow=
|card1Background=red
|card2Background=yellow
|card3Background=lightgreen
|card4Background=deepskyblue
|card5Background=white
}}

{{cardholder|player=Amy|cardBackground=#bbb}}

{{cardholder|player=Bob|cardBackground=#324
|card1=1|card1Colour=white
|card2=5|card2Colour=yellow
|card3=3|card3Colour=deepskyblue
|card4=1|card4Colour=white
|card5=2|card5Colour=white
}}

{{cardholder|player=Cat|cardBackground=#324
|clue3Colour=deepskyblue

|card1=5|card1Colour=red
|card2=2|card2Colour=red
|card3=2|card3Colour=deepskyblue
|card4=2|card4Colour=lightgreen
|card5=2|card5Colour=yellow
}}
</div>

* Amy gives a blue {{card|background=deepskyblue}} clue to Cat.
* This gives the information that {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}} is the next playable card in the sequence, and that Bob is either not allowed to give a blue {{card|background=deepskyblue}} clue, or has something to play.
* Since Bob has no marked cards, he was not blocked from giving a blue {{card|background=deepskyblue}} clue, so he must have something to play.
* This something, must be the missing link ({{card|=1|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}}, to enable {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}}) that makes {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}} the next playable card.
* Since there is no logical (marked) card that could be {{card|=1|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}}, Bob must assume his newest, unmarked card is {{card|=1|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}} and blind-plays this card.
* However, at this point the "lie" is revealed (because the colour of the played card does '''not''' match the colour of the finesse-clue).
* The blind-played card is '''not''' {{card|=1|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}}, but {{card|=1|background=#324|colour=white|size=1.5}}. Cat, up to this point, was thinking she had {{card|=1|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}}.
* Bob's blind-play gives Cat extra information: her blue card is in fact {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}}.
}}

* If a marked card gets discarded it means:
** The copy of that card is already marked in someone else's hand, and the discarding player is the first to realize this; or
** The copy of that card MUST be marked in a future clue (because a save-clue will be given that will mark the copy card as collateral).

==== Clues you should avoid giving (bad clues) ====

* As a special remark: don't mark useless, or duplicate cards. So if you have a saved 4, you are forbidden from marking 4s, unless you are sure you are not holding a copy of that

==== Meaning of skipping a player / stealing clues in Finesse convention ====

* There are different approaches among finesse-convention-players about who should clue whom. So this section will be devided into sub-sections. The order does not say anything about which approach is more common on BGA. There are a lot of players following each idea.
* If you allow for skipping (without assigning information to it), a lot of potential information is destroyed. Note that some players are religious in their beliefs about their interpretation on convention, so this section gets re-edited over and over.
To summarize what we already know about finesse convention:
1. Ever marked card will be playable at some point.
2. A number-clue that marks the CHOP card is a "save this for later"-clue.
3. Every other clue means: the newest, previously unmarked card, is the next playable card.
4. If you have no known playable card (or known safe-to-discard card), your CHOP card is safe to discard.
5. A clue is given by the last possible player.

* The text within the sections are written by people who follow the idea.

===== a) Skipping / stealing should be avoided =====

* If more than 1 person are able to give the same clue, then the last possible person should give that clue.
* In finesse convention skipping (Alice clues Cat, instead of Bob; then Bob is skipped) means either:
**1. The Bob is forbidden from giving that clue; or
**2. The Bob has something to play.
* Note that skipping a player to give a save-clue (number-clue on the CHOP card) is NOT a finesse, and can (should) be used
** to save "nice-to-have" cards;
** to save one of the twin-CHOP cards;
** to speed up the discard of useless cards.
* Things that people who follow this convention say about discard management:
** The main problem with this interpretation, is that "discard management" destroys the assumption that your CHOP is safe to discard, making the convention contradict itself. There is no reason for Alice to avoid discarding her safe-to-discard CHOP card, just because she sees a safe-to-discard card in Bob's hand.
** When applying this style of finesse convention, you assume that players use a bad strategy (see section [[Gamehelphanabi#Strategy|Strategy]]) of not-saving-valuable cards. Your CHOP card might be not-unique, but nice-to-have (not playable, but almost playable). So to avoid discarding a nice-to-have card, you force people into discarding by skipping them, and leaving them without anything useful to do. Skipping/stealing is a term that is often used for a situation, where giving a clue is not left for the last possible player to do. ''e.g. Alice saves a card on chop of Cat, potentially leaving Bob without a known play or a useful/necessary clue to give.'' Skipping players is a useful move to give other players the time to play / discard / clue more cards.

===== b) Skipping / stealing is for discard-management =====

If you don't follow this way of playing then refrain from editing this section! You can write in the section with the convention you follow, why yours is the best.

This style is one way of applying finesse convention. Since the primary assumption is that your CHOP is safe to discard, it might still be that said card is a nice-to-have like a non-unique 2 or 3 that is not yet playable. without knowing your chop card, it is good to handle each-other's chop situation by preferably letting players with definitely useless chop-cards discard rather than discarding your own unknown card. Skipping/stealing is a term that is often used for a situation, where giving a clue is not left for the last possible player to do. ''e.g. player A saves a card on chop of player C, potentially leaving player B without a known play or a useful/necessary clue to give.'' Skipping players is a useful move to give other players the time to play / discard / clue more cards.

When getting skipped without having a play or useful option to clue, it most likely means that your chop card is not very useful.
These are valid reasons for skipping you:
* Your chop-card is trash (a copy of the card is already played/marked)
* Your chop-card is redundant: Another copy of it is on another player's (or your own) hand as well, so discarding it is no loss (or it has low priority like a high number when it's very early in the game).
* You might still have something nice on chop, but the player sitting before already received information that their chop might be something very good (from earlier discard-behaviour like NOT being skipped over by the player sitting before them on earlier turns) and they are reluctant to discard for that reason.
* The clue given is a play-clue for a card that might be in your hand so you couldn't know whether you want the other card or not. The player skipping you knows that you want it and therefore takes away the decision.

This approach sacrifices some saving-clue-tokens option (that might be achieved on a stricter dogma about who should clue whom) in order to be able to keep nice cards in the game for longer and discard useless cards instead and by that often get those cards played before they would be discarded.
* This convention is better for players, who play efficient enough to rarely struggle with clue-shortness and can therefore afford being more careful about not losing first copies.
* If a group often struggles with clue-shortness then skipping-dogma (as proposed by other conventions) might as well improve their overall results. If the problem for not achieving 30 points usually isn't clue-shortness but getting bottom-decked (or heavily delayed from losing earlier a card that could be played now), then results can get better with this discard-management convention.

Planning ahead is a vital aspect of the game. By carefully deciding on who to let clue and whom to skip, it is often possible to
* avoid twin-chops before they become an issue
* avoid not having enough clue tokens to save all necessary cards
* get the discard you were waiting for (when a player has 2 copies of the same playable card and you want them to discard before clueing it)

=== Others conventions ===

* For others conventions, see the previous link: '''[https://boardgamearena.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=26863 this forum post]'''

== Strategy ==

* In addition to the convention(s), there is also some strategy to the game.
* You should '''not''' confuse strategy with convention! Strategy is '''team''' vs '''deck'''; convention is communication within the team.
* A simple example of strategy is saving 2s in 2-player games.
** Using number-2-clue to communicate that those cards need to be saved, is a convention.

=== Examples ===

* More advanced players will try to avoid losing as many "first" (non-unique) cards as possible.
* It's a good strategy to keep good cards in the game as long as possible - even if they are not yet playable.
** ''The other copy of that card might be far down the draw pile.''
* Trying to mark at least 12 cards with the first 8 clue-tokens.
** This gives 99% chance of always having enough tokens in the game.
* Not using the last two clue-tokens for "single plays".
** This avoids running out of clue-tokens in times when you need to save critical cards.

[[Category:Card games]]

Gamehelphanabi

2023-10-14T16:52:39Z

Silene: Fixing discard-management-section to reflect what it is about and not reflect what people who follow other ideas think

Hanabi is a cooperative game. Your goal, as a team, is to build a fabulous fireworks show. You have to put together 5 fireworks ( 1 white, 1 red, 1 blue, 1 yellow, 1 green), by making series rising in number (1, 2, 3, 4, 5) with the same coloured cards.

However, you cannot see your own cards; you can only see the cards of your team mates.

Also, communication (and non communication) between the players is essential to Hanabi.

You can only communication with your teammates when you give them a clue (see below).

No other communication is allowed.

Your final score is the total of the top cards on the five piles:

{|class="wikitable" style="width:auto; text-align:center;" border="2"
|+Final Score Ratings
!Points
!Overall impression
|-
|0-5
|horrible, booed by the crowd...
|-
|6-10
|mediocre, just a spattering of applause.
|-
|11-15
|honourable, but will not be remembered for very long...
|-
|16-20
|excellent, crowd pleasing.
|-
|21-24
|amazing, will be remembered for a very long time!
|-
|25
|legendary, everyone left speechless, stars in their eyes
|}

== Card distribution ==

* Each card has a colour and a number.
{|class="wikitable" style="width:auto;" border="2"
|+Normal difficulty (50 cards)
!Red (r)
|{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=2}}
|{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=2}}{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=2}}
|{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=2}}{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=2}}
|{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=2}}{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=2}}
|{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=2}}
|-
!Yellow (y)
|{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#fe5|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#fe5|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#fe5|size=2}}
|{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#fe5|size=2}}{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#fe5|size=2}}
|{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#fe5|size=2}}{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#fe5|size=2}}
|{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#fe5|size=2}}{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#fe5|size=2}}
|{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#fe5|size=2}}
|-
!Green (g)
|{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#2a7|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#2a7|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#2a7|size=2}}
|{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#2a7|size=2}}{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#2a7|size=2}}
|{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#2a7|size=2}}{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#2a7|size=2}}
|{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#2a7|size=2}}{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#2a7|size=2}}
|{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#2a7|size=2}}
|-
!Blue (b)
|{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#0ae|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#0ae|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#0ae|size=2}}
|{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#0ae|size=2}}{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#0ae|size=2}}
|{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#0ae|size=2}}{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#0ae|size=2}}
|{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#0ae|size=2}}{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#0ae|size=2}}
|{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#0ae|size=2}}
|-
!White (w)
|{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#fff|size=2}}
|}

=== Multicolour cards ===

* There are three variants that add a 6th colour: the multicolour.
* There are three difficulties:

==== Tricky ====

* These cards get marked by a separate '''multicolour clue'''.
{|class="wikitable" style="width:auto;" border="2"
|+Tricky difficulty (+10 cards)
!Multicolour (m)
|{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|}

==== Hard ====

* These cards get marked by a separate '''multicolour clue'''.
{|class="wikitable" style="width:auto;" border="2"
|+Hard difficulty (+5 cards)
!Multi-colour (m)
|{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|}

==== Very Difficult ====

* These cards get marked by '''any colour clue'''.
{|class="wikitable" style="width:auto;" border="2"
|+Avalanche difficulty (+10 cards)
!Multi-colour (m)
|{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|}

== Setup ==

* 8 clue tokens.
{|class="wikitable" style="width:auto;" border="2"
|+# cards dealt to each player
!# Players
!2
!3
!4
!5
|-
!# Cards (official rules)
|5
|5
|4
|4
|-
!# Cards (unofficial rules)
|6
|5
|4
|3
|}

== Game play ==

Players take turns to either:

• Give a '''clue''' 
• '''Play''' a card, or 
• '''Discard''' a card

=== Clue ===

* Possible when there is at least one clue token available.
* Clues indicate '''all''' cards of a certain colour, or '''all''' cards of a certain number.
you may indicate '''no''' cards of a color or number on BGA (you have no 5s, or you have no reds)
you may not indicate only a single card of the matching criteria if there is more than one

To do this:

1. The active player selects a card in another player's hand. 
2. The active player selects a clue option. 
3. One clue token is moved from 'available' to 'used'.

=== Play ===

1. The active player selects a card in their hand. 
2. The active player selects the 'Play selected card' button. 
:• If the played card fits in any of the sequences, it is placed in the appropriate colour stack on the table. 
:• If the played card does not fit, it is placed in the discard pile and the team gets a ''misfire'' token. 
3. A replacement card is drawn.

=== Discard ===

This is only possible when there are fewer than 8 clue tokens available.

1. The active player selects a card in their hand. 
2. The active player selects the 'Discard selected card' button. 
3. The discarded card is placed in the discard pile. 
4. One clue token is moved from 'used' to 'available'. 
5. A replacement card is drawn.

== Game end ==

* The game can end in several ways:
*1. All cards have been drawn from the deck. After this happens, everybody gets 1 more turn. The game ends with the score at the last turn.
*2. Your team played all possible cards. In this case, the game ends immediately and you receive the maximum possible score.
*3. Your team made three mistakes that caused misfires. In this case, you lose the game and get negative ten (-10) points.
*4. Your team 'abandons' the game. Although discouraged, you receive zero (0) points.

== Options ==

=== Black Powder ===

* Clues cannot be given for the colour black.
* Black cards must be played in reverse order, from 5 to 1.
{|class="wikitable" style="width:auto;" border="2"
|+Black Powder (+10 cards)
!Black Powder (k)
|{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#000|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#000|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#000|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#000|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#000|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#000|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#000|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#000|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#000|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#000|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|}

=== Five Flamboyants ===

After playing the last card of a colour, randomly select one of the following bonuses for immediate use:
* Gain a clue token.
* Gain a clue token and recover a life.
* Give a clue regarding a colour.
* Give a clue regarding a number.
* Shuffle a discarded card into the deck.
* Play a discarded card, if possible.

== Lingo ==

When you play with others, certain words are used to describe certain objects or situations. Here is a short list.

;Marked: A card that is highlighted by a clue.
;Unmarked: A card that is not clued.
;chop: The oldest, unmarked card. The card that you have no information on and will chop from your hand.
;draw: The newest, unmarked card. The card that you have no information on and was freshly drawn.
;To bomb: A play that causes the third misfire-token. Sometimes called '''explosion'''
;Unique: A card that has no copy (left) in the deck.
;Double discard: When consecutive players have the same card on chop. A special problem, since, to each of the consecutive players, a number to chop does not look like a unique save.
;Twin chop: 2 consecutive players have the same card on chop. Same as Double discard
;Double save: When a player has two consecutive unique cards, requiring consecutive save clues.
;Strategy: A set of rules / guidelines / conventions on how to interpret actions by players (including spending of clue-tokens).

== ELO rating ==

* If you are playing with ELO rating on, your ELO may be changed at the end of the game.
* Here is how it works:
*1. Every player on the team is temporarily considered as having the average ELO rating of the team.
*2. The system will generate a bot associated with the score your team has achieved (let’s call it '''''Hanabot''''').
**• Hanabot’s ELO rating depends on the variant you are playing (50 cards, 60 cards, 60 cards multicolour), the number of players on the team and, most importantly, your team's score.
**• All Hanabot’s ELO ratings have been set by an experienced player, they are not random or simply proportional to the score/number of players.
*3. Your team (actually your team's average ELO) will now compete against Hanabot.
**• The system will calculate your team’s ELO gain/loss as though your team had tied with Hanabot.
**• If your score is below 18 (50-card game) or below 21 (60-card game), Hanabot's ELO is always 1000.

* You can find [http://forum.boardgamearena.com/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=4814 all bots' ELO ratings here]
* The 55-card variant (50 cards + 1 of each value in the sixth color) cannot be played with ELO rating on. (This is because this variant is highly dependent on draw and a team’s score may not always reflect the players’ skills.)
* If you achieve the perfect score and this should cost you ELO points, you will be considered as having beaten the bot associated with the score, so that you lose no ELO points.
* To be confirmed: I think the ELO-system has had an overhaul.

== Cheating ==

* Players can cheat at Hanabi by:
**1. Sharing information via the chat user interface.
**2. Deliberately abandoning games.
* This is why ranking has been disabled for this game.

== Conventions ==

* If you want to play "full information" style, meaning that you wait until you know both the colour and number of a card before you play it, you will likely be short on clue tokens in >99% of the decks.
* The logical conclusion is that you cannot play a full information style game and the team must agree on some sort of meta-information. The meta-information is coded in a convention.
* Many players have different kinds of conventions.
** ''Note: not all conventions are added to the BGA list. Please respect the convention the table creator wants to play.''
* When different players in the same team assign different meta-information to the same clue, the game becomes unplayable.
** This is why there is an option to display the convention for the table.
** See '''[https://boardgamearena.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=26863 this forum post]''' started by '''[https://boardgamearena.com/player?id=84207926 user Romain672]'''.
* Ideally, all players adhere to the convention, to avoid miscommunication.
* Below, the meta-information of several conventions is explained.

=== Standard ===

* Players assume the following meta-information:
** Every marked card will be playable at some point.

==== Number clue ====

* Cards with a number-clue on them must be saved to be played later on in the game
* Saved cards can be safely played when all "number-1" cards are played.
** ''Saved cards are played from oldest to newest.''

==== Colour clue ====

* The newest, previously unmarked card, is the next playable card in the sequence.
* The oldest, unmarked card is safe to discard.
** If a player has a card that they are sure they will never be able to play, e.g. cards marked by a blue clue when the blue stack is already complete, these card must be discarded in priority.

==== Bad clues ====

* A clue that marks 0 new cards.
* A clue that tells a ''lie'' (i.e. does not conform to the meta-information above).
* A clue that marks unplayable or duplicate cards, unless it saves a card at the chop position that does not have another copy of the card in the deck or other players' hands.
** e.g. Marking 4s in another hand if your hand could have a copy of that 4.
* Sometimes, a "bad" clue cannot be avoided.
** ''e.g. Save a unique 3 using a number clue which also marks unplayable cards.
** ''e.g. A colour clue from a flamboyant must be used and it is used to mark 0 new cards.
* When a ''lie'' has been told, it needs to be corrected.
* A correction clue can never mean "play", it can only mean "discard".

{{infoBoxes3 |maxWidth=625
|title1=Standard convention example 1
|body1=<div style="display:flex;flex-flow:row wrap;gap:1rem;">
{{cardholder|player=Table|arrow=|cardBackground=#324
|card1=1|card1Colour=red
|card2=5|card2Colour=yellow
|card3=1|card3Colour=lightgreen
|card4=3|card4Colour=deepskyblue
|card5=4|card5Colour=white
}}

{{cardholder|player=Amy|cardBackground=#bbb}}

{{cardholder|player=Bob|cardBackground=#324
|clue5=5|clue5Colour=lightgrey

|card1=2|card1Colour=red
|card2=4|card2Colour=yellow
|card3=3|card3Colour=red
|card4=3|card4Colour=deepskyblue
|card5=5|card5Colour=lightgreen
}}

{{cardholder|player=Cat|cardBackground=#324
|card1=4|card1Colour=lightgreen
|card2=1|card2Colour=yellow
|card3=4|card3Colour=red
|card4=3|card4Colour=yellow
|card5=2|card5Colour=yellow
}}
</div>

* It's Amy's turn, and Bob knows his chop card is {{card|=5}}.
* Amy will give a red {{card|background=red}} clue to Bob.
* This will tell Bob that the newest card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=red|size=1.5}}), and that the other red can be {{card|=3|background=#324|colour=red|size=1.5}}, {{card|=4|background=#324|colour=red|size=1.5}}, or {{card|=5|background=#324|colour=red|size=1.5}} (because it must be playable at some later point in the game).

|title2=Standard convention example 2
|body2=<div style="display:flex;flex-flow:row wrap;gap:1rem;">
{{cardholder|player=Table|arrow=|cardBackground=#324
|card1=2|card1Colour=red
|card2=5|card2Colour=yellow
|card3=1|card3Colour=lightgreen
|card4=3|card4Colour=deepskyblue
|card5=4|card5Colour=white
}}

{{cardholder|player=Amy|cardBackground=#bbb}}

{{cardholder|player=Bob|cardBackground=#324
|clue5=5|clue5Colour=lightgrey
|clue3Colour=red

|card1=5|card1Colour=white
|card2=4|card2Colour=yellow
|card3=3|card3Colour=red
|card4=3|card4Colour=deepskyblue
|card5=5|card5Colour=lightgreen
}}

{{cardholder|player=Cat|cardBackground=#324
|card1=2|card1Colour=white
|card2=4|card2Colour=lightgreen
|card3=1|card3Colour=yellow
|card4=4|card4Colour=red
|card5=3|card5Colour=yellow
}}
</div>

* It is Amy's turn again, and Bob knows his oldest card is {{card|=5}}, and his middle card is {{card|background=red}}.
* Amy will give a red {{card|background=red}} clue to Cat.
* This will tell Cat that her marked card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be {{card|=4|background=#324|colour=red|size=1.5}}, because {{card|=3|background=#324|colour=red|size=1.5}} is already marked).
* This will give Bob the meta-information that his saved red card, is {{card|=3|background=#324|colour=red|size=1.5}}.
** ''This particular move is sometimes called prompting, and is a common way to allow a card that is saved by colour to get played without re-cluing it.''

|title3=Standard convention example 3
|body3=<div style="display:flex;flex-flow:row wrap;gap:1rem;">
{{cardholder|player=Table|arrow=|cardBackground=#324
|card1=1|card1Colour=red
|card2=5|card2Colour=yellow
|card3Background=lightgreen
|card4=3|card4Colour=deepskyblue
|card5=4|card5Colour=white
}}

{{cardholder|player=Amy|cardBackground=#bbb}}

{{cardholder|player=Bob|cardBackground=#324
|clue3=2|clue3Colour=lightgrey

|card1=3|card1Colour=red
|card2=4|card2Colour=yellow
|card3=2|card3Colour=red
|card4=3|card4Colour=deepskyblue
|card5=5|card5Colour=lightgreen
}}

{{cardholder|player=Cat|cardBackground=#324
|card1=4|card1Colour=lightgreen
|card2=1|card2Colour=yellow
|card3=4|card3Colour=red
|card4=3|card4Colour=yellow
|card5=2|card5Colour=yellow
}}
</div>

* It is Amy's turn, and Bob knows his middle card is {{card|=2}}.
* Amy will give a red {{card|background=#d03}} clue to Bob.
* This will tell Bob that his newest card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be {{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=1.5}}, because {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=1.5}} is now visible with 100% information).
}}

=== Finesse ===

* Finesse builds on the standard convention (making it a bit more complex).
* In the finesse convention, the timing of the clue gives you extra information.
* You can assume the following meta-information:
** Every card that gets marked, will be playable at some point.
** If the oldest, unmarked card gets marked with a number-clue, then the clue meant "save this/these card(s)". (It is custom to play saved cards from oldest to newest when appropriate.)
** A clue that doesn't mark the oldest card, means that the newest, previously unmarked card, is the next playable card in the sequence.
** The oldest, unmarked card is safe to discard unless that player is busy by having a "known" play or discard.
*** ''Obviously, if a player has a card that they are sure they will never be able to play, for example a card on which is marked as 1 when all the 1s have already been played, should be discarded in priority.''
** Clues are given by the last possible player.
*** When the timing of a clue doesn't match your expectations, you can draw certain conclusions (see next section: special interpretations)

==== Special interpretations ====

* When receiving a clue for the "next playable card in the sequence", the linking cards are not limited to already marked cards (like in standard convention).
* The newest, unmarked cards in every player's hand should be considered as well.

{{infoBoxes3 |maxWidth=625
|title1=Example of finesse
|body1=<div style="display:flex;flex-flow:row wrap;gap:1rem;">
{{cardholder|player=Table|arrow=
|card1Background=red
|card2Background=yellow
|card3Background=lightgreen
|card4Background=deepskyblue
|card5Background=white
}}

{{cardholder|player=Amy|cardBackground=#bbb}}

{{cardholder|player=Bob|cardBackground=#324
|card1=1|card1Colour=deepskyblue
|card2=5|card2Colour=yellow
|card3=3|card3Colour=deepskyblue
|card4=1|card4Colour=white
|card5=2|card5Colour=white
}}

{{cardholder|player=Cat|cardBackground=#324
|clue3Colour=deepskyblue

|card1=5|card1Colour=red
|card2=2|card2Colour=red
|card3=2|card3Colour=deepskyblue
|card4=2|card4Colour=lightgreen
|card5=2|card5Colour=yellow
}}
</div>

* Amy gives a blue {{card|background=deepskyblue}} to Cat.
* This gives the information that {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}} is the next playable card in the sequence, and that Bob is either not allowed to give a blue {{card|background=deepskyblue}} clue, or has something to play.
* Since Bob has no marked cards, he was not blocked from giving a blue {{card|background=deepskyblue}} clue, so he must have something to play.
* This something, must be the missing link ({{card|=1|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}}, to enable {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}}) that makes {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}} the next playable card.
* Since there is no logical (marked) card that could be {{card|=1|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}}, Bob must assume his newest, unmarked card is {{card|=1|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}} and blind-plays this card.

|title2=Example of reversed finesse
|body2=<div style="display:flex;flex-flow:row wrap;gap:1rem;">
{{cardholder|player=Table|arrow=
|card1Background=red
|card2Background=yellow
|card3Background=lightgreen
|card4Background=deepskyblue
|card5Background=white
}}

{{cardholder|player=Amy|cardBackground=#bbb}}

{{cardholder|player=Bob|cardBackground=#324
|clue3Colour=deepskyblue

|card1=5|card1Colour=red
|card2=2|card2Colour=red
|card3=2|card3Colour=deepskyblue
|card4=2|card4Colour=lightgreen
|card5=2|card5Colour=yellow
}}

{{cardholder|player=Cat|cardBackground=#324
|card1=1|card1Colour=deepskyblue
|card2=5|card2Colour=yellow
|card3=3|card3Colour=deepskyblue
|card4=1|card4Colour=white
|card5=2|card5Colour=white
}}
</div>

* Amy gives a blue {{card|background=deepskyblue}} clue to Bob.
* This gives the information that {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}} is the next playable card in the sequence.
* Bob sees that the newest, unmarked card in Cat's hand is of the same colour (blue) '''and''' playable now. Bob concludes it is a finesse, with the players in reversed order, so his blue card must be {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}}.

|title3=Example of a bluff
|body3=<div style="display:flex;flex-flow:row wrap;gap:1rem;">
{{cardholder|player=Table|arrow=
|card1Background=red
|card2Background=yellow
|card3Background=lightgreen
|card4Background=deepskyblue
|card5Background=white
}}

{{cardholder|player=Amy|cardBackground=#bbb}}

{{cardholder|player=Bob|cardBackground=#324
|card1=1|card1Colour=white
|card2=5|card2Colour=yellow
|card3=3|card3Colour=deepskyblue
|card4=1|card4Colour=white
|card5=2|card5Colour=white
}}

{{cardholder|player=Cat|cardBackground=#324
|clue3Colour=deepskyblue

|card1=5|card1Colour=red
|card2=2|card2Colour=red
|card3=2|card3Colour=deepskyblue
|card4=2|card4Colour=lightgreen
|card5=2|card5Colour=yellow
}}
</div>

* Amy gives a blue {{card|background=deepskyblue}} clue to Cat.
* This gives the information that {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}} is the next playable card in the sequence, and that Bob is either not allowed to give a blue {{card|background=deepskyblue}} clue, or has something to play.
* Since Bob has no marked cards, he was not blocked from giving a blue {{card|background=deepskyblue}} clue, so he must have something to play.
* This something, must be the missing link ({{card|=1|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}}, to enable {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}}) that makes {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}} the next playable card.
* Since there is no logical (marked) card that could be {{card|=1|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}}, Bob must assume his newest, unmarked card is {{card|=1|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}} and blind-plays this card.
* However, at this point the "lie" is revealed (because the colour of the played card does '''not''' match the colour of the finesse-clue).
* The blind-played card is '''not''' {{card|=1|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}}, but {{card|=1|background=#324|colour=white|size=1.5}}. Cat, up to this point, was thinking she had {{card|=1|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}}.
* Bob's blind-play gives Cat extra information: her blue card is in fact {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}}.
}}

* If a marked card gets discarded it means:
** The copy of that card is already marked in someone else's hand, and the discarding player is the first to realize this; or
** The copy of that card MUST be marked in a future clue (because a save-clue will be given that will mark the copy card as collateral).

==== Clues you should avoid giving (bad clues) ====

* As a special remark: don't mark useless, or duplicate cards. So if you have a saved 4, you are forbidden from marking 4s, unless you are sure you are not holding a copy of that

==== Meaning of skipping a player / stealing clues in Finesse convention ====

* There are different approaches among finesse-convention-players about who should clue whom. So this section will be devided into sub-sections. The order does not say anything about which approach is more common on BGA. There are a lot of players following each idea.
* If you allow for skipping (without assigning information to it), a lot of potential information is destroyed. Note that some players are religious in their beliefs about their interpretation on convention, so this section gets re-edited over and over.
To summarize what we already know about finesse convention:
1. Ever marked card will be playable at some point.
2. A number-clue that marks the CHOP card is a "save this for later"-clue.
3. Every other clue means: the newest, previously unmarked card, is the next playable card.
4. If you have no known playable card (or known safe-to-discard card), your CHOP card is safe to discard.
5. A clue is given by the last possible player.

* The text within the sections are written by people who follow the idea.

===== a) Skipping / stealing should be avoided =====

* If more than 1 person are able to give the same clue, then the last possible person should give that clue.
* In finesse convention skipping (Alice clues Cat, instead of Bob; then Bob is skipped) means either:
**1. The Bob is forbidden from giving that clue; or
**2. The Bob has something to play.
* Note that skipping a player to give a save-clue (number-clue on the CHOP card) is NOT a finesse, and can (should) be used
** to save "nice-to-have" cards;
** to save one of the twin-CHOP cards;
** to speed up the discard of useless cards.
* Things that people who follow this convention say stuff about discard management:
** The main problem with this interpretation, is that "discard management" destroys the assumption that your CHOP is safe to discard, making the convention contradict itself. There is no reason for Alice to avoid discarding her safe-to-discard CHOP card, just because she sees a safe-to-discard card in Bob's hand.
** When applying this style of finesse convention, you assume that players use a bad strategy (see section [[Gamehelphanabi#Strategy|Strategy]]) of not-saving-valuable cards. Your CHOP card might be not-unique, but nice-to-have (not playable, but almost playable). So to avoid discarding a nice-to-have card, you force people into discarding by skipping them, and leaving them without anything useful to do. Skipping/stealing is a term that is often used for a situation, where giving a clue is not left for the last possible player to do. ''e.g. Alice saves a card on chop of Cat, potentially leaving Bob without a known play or a useful/necessary clue to give.'' Skipping players is a useful move to give other players the time to play / discard / clue more cards.

===== b) Skipping / stealing is for discard-management =====

If you don't follow this way of playing then refrain from editing this section! You can write in the section with the convention you follow, why yours is the best.

This style is one way of applying finesse convention. Since the primary assumption is that your CHOP is safe to discard, it might still be that said card is a nice-to-have like a non-unique 2 or 3 that is not yet playable. without knowing your chop card, it is good to handle each-other's chop situation by preferably letting players with definitely useless chop-cards discard rather than discarding your own unknown card. Skipping/stealing is a term that is often used for a situation, where giving a clue is not left for the last possible player to do. ''e.g. player A saves a card on chop of player C, potentially leaving player B without a known play or a useful/necessary clue to give.'' Skipping players is a useful move to give other players the time to play / discard / clue more cards.

When getting skipped without having a play or useful option to clue, it most likely means that your chop card is not very useful.
These are valid reasons for skipping you:
* Your chop-card is trash (a copy of the card is already played/marked)
* Your chop-card is redundant: Another copy of it is on another player's (or your own) hand as well, so discarding it is no loss (or it has low priority like a high number when it's very early in the game).
* You might still have something nice on chop, but the player sitting before already received information that their chop might be something very good (from earlier discard-behaviour like NOT being skipped over by the player sitting before them on earlier turns) and they are reluctant to discard for that reason.
* The clue given is a play-clue for a card that might be in your hand so you couldn't know whether you want the other card or not. The player skipping you knows that you want it and therefore takes away the decision.

This approach sacrifices some saving-clue-tokens option (that might be achieved on a stricter dogma about who should clue whom) in order to be able to keep nice cards in the game for longer and discard useless cards instead and by that often get those cards played before they would be discarded.
* This convention is better for players, who play efficient enough to rarely struggle with clue-shortness and can therefore afford being more careful about not losing first copies.
* If a group often struggles with clue-shortness then skipping-dogma (as proposed by other conventions) might as well improve their overall results. If the problem for not achieving 30 points usually isn't clue-shortness but getting bottom-decked (or heavily delayed from losing earlier a card that could be played now), then results can get better with this discard-management convention.

Planning ahead is a vital aspect of the game. By carefully deciding on who to let clue and whom to skip, it is often possible to
* avoid twin-chops before they become an issue
* avoid not having enough clue tokens to save all necessary cards
* get the discard you were waiting for (when a player has 2 copies of the same playable card and you want them to discard before clueing it)

=== Others conventions ===

* For others conventions, see the previous link: '''[https://boardgamearena.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=26863 this forum post]'''

== Strategy ==

* In addition to the convention(s), there is also some strategy to the game.
* You should '''not''' confuse strategy with convention! Strategy is '''team''' vs '''deck'''; convention is communication within the team.
* A simple example of strategy is saving 2s in 2-player games.
** Using number-2-clue to communicate that those cards need to be saved, is a convention.

=== Examples ===

* More advanced players will try to avoid losing as many "first" (non-unique) cards as possible.
* It's a good strategy to keep good cards in the game as long as possible - even if they are not yet playable.
** ''The other copy of that card might be far down the draw pile.''
* Trying to mark at least 12 cards with the first 8 clue-tokens.
** This gives 99% chance of always having enough tokens in the game.
* Not using the last two clue-tokens for "single plays".
** This avoids running out of clue-tokens in times when you need to save critical cards.

[[Category:Card games]]

Gamehelphanabi

2022-04-19T14:01:32Z

Silene: /* Finesse */ just re-ordering paragraphs

Hanabi is a cooperative game. Your goal, as a team, is to build a fabulous fireworks show.

You do this by playing the cards in the correct order.

However, you cannot see your own cards; you can only see the cards of your team mates.

Your final score is the total of the top cards on the five piles:

{|class="wikitable" style="width:auto; text-align:center;" border="2"
|+Final Score Ratings
!Points
!Overall impression
|-
|0-5
|horrible, booed by the crowd...
|-
|6-10
|mediocre, just a spattering of applause.
|-
|11-15
|honourable, but will not be remembered for very long...
|-
|16-20
|excellent, crowd pleasing.
|-
|21-24
|amazing, will be remembered for a very long time!
|-
|25
|legendary, everyone left speechless, stars in their eyes
|}

== Card distribution ==

* Each card has a colour and a number.
{|class="wikitable" style="width:auto;" border="2"
|+Normal difficulty (50 cards)
!Red (r)
|{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=2}}
|{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=2}}{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=2}}
|{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=2}}{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=2}}
|{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=2}}{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=2}}
|{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=2}}
|-
!Yellow (y)
|{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#fe5|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#fe5|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#fe5|size=2}}
|{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#fe5|size=2}}{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#fe5|size=2}}
|{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#fe5|size=2}}{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#fe5|size=2}}
|{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#fe5|size=2}}{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#fe5|size=2}}
|{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#fe5|size=2}}
|-
!Green (g)
|{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#2a7|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#2a7|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#2a7|size=2}}
|{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#2a7|size=2}}{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#2a7|size=2}}
|{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#2a7|size=2}}{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#2a7|size=2}}
|{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#2a7|size=2}}{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#2a7|size=2}}
|{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#2a7|size=2}}
|-
!Blue (b)
|{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#0ae|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#0ae|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#0ae|size=2}}
|{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#0ae|size=2}}{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#0ae|size=2}}
|{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#0ae|size=2}}{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#0ae|size=2}}
|{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#0ae|size=2}}{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#0ae|size=2}}
|{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#0ae|size=2}}
|-
!White (w)
|{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#fff|size=2}}
|}

=== Multicolour cards ===

* There are three variants that add a 6th colour: the multicolour.
* There are three difficulties:

==== Tricky ====

* These cards get marked by a separate '''multicolour clue'''.
{|class="wikitable" style="width:auto;" border="2"
|+Tricky difficulty (+10 cards)
!Multicolour (m)
|{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|}

==== Hard ====

* These cards get marked by a separate '''multicolour clue'''.
{|class="wikitable" style="width:auto;" border="2"
|+Hard difficulty (+5 cards)
!Multi-colour (m)
|{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|}

==== Very Difficult ====

* These cards get marked by '''any colour clue'''.
{|class="wikitable" style="width:auto;" border="2"
|+Avalanche difficulty (+10 cards)
!Multi-colour (m)
|{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|}

== Setup ==

* 8 clue tokens.
{|class="wikitable" style="width:auto;" border="2"
|+# cards dealt to each player
!# Players
!2
!3
!4
!5
|-
!# Cards (official rules)
|5
|4
|4
|4
|-
!# Cards (unofficial rules)
|6
|4
|4
|3
|}

== Game play ==

Players take turns to either:

• Give a '''clue''' 
• '''Play''' a card, or 
• '''Discard''' a card

=== Clue ===

* Possible when there is at least one clue token available.
* Clues indicate '''all''' cards of a certain colour, or '''all''' cards of a certain number.

To do this:

1. The active player selects a card in another player's hand. 
2. The active player selects a clue option. 
3. One clue token is moved from 'available' to 'used'.

=== Play ===

1. The active player selects a card in their hand. 
2. The active player selects the 'Play selected card' button. 
:• If the played card fits in any of the sequences, it is placed in the appropriate colour stack on the table. 
:• If the played card does not fit, it is placed in the discard pile and the team gets a ''misfire'' token. 
3. A replacement card is drawn.

=== Discard ===

This is only possible when there are fewer than 8 clue tokens available.

1. The active player selects a card in their hand. 
2. The active player selects the 'Discard selected card' button. 
3. The discarded card is placed in the discard pile. 
4. One clue token is moved from 'used' to 'available'. 
5. A replacement card is drawn.

== Game end ==

* The game can end in several ways:
*# All cards have been drawn from the deck. After this happens, everybody gets 1 more turn. The game ends with the score at the last turn.
*# Your team played all possible cards. In this case, the game ends immediately and you receive the maximum possible score.
*# Your team made three mistakes that caused misfires. In this case, you lose the game and get negative ten (-10) points.
*# Your team 'abandons' the game. Although discouraged, you receive zero (0) points.

== Options ==

=== Black Powder ===

* Clues cannot be given for the colour black.
* Black cards must be played in reverse order, from 5 to 1.
{|class="wikitable" style="width:auto;" border="2"
|+Black Powder (+10 cards)
!Black Powder (k)
|{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#000|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#000|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#000|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#000|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#000|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#000|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#000|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#000|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#000|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#000|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|}

=== Five Flamboyants ===

After playing the last card of a colour, randomly select one of the following bonuses for immediate use:
* Gain a clue token.
* Gain a clue token and recover a life.
* Give a clue regarding a colour.
* Give a clue regarding a number.
* Shuffle a discarded card into the deck.
* Play a discarded card, if possible.

== Lingo ==

When you play with others, certain words are used to describe certain objects or situations. Here is a short list.

;Marked: A card that is highlighted by a clue.
;Unmarked: A card that is not clued.
;chop: The oldest, unmarked card. The card that you have no information on and will chop from your hand.
;draw: The newest, unmarked card. The card that you have no information on and was freshly drawn.
;To bomb: A play that causes the third misfire-token. Sometimes called '''explosion'''
;Unique: A card that has no copy (left) in the deck.
;Double discard: When consecutive players have the same card on chop. A special problem, since, to each of the consecutive players, a number to chop does not look like a unique save.
;Twin chop: 2 consecutive players have the same card on chop. Same as Double discard
;Double save: When a player has two consecutive unique cards, requiring consecutive save clues.
;Strategy: A set of rules / guidelines / conventions on how to interpret actions by players (including spending of clue-tokens).

== ELO rating ==

* If you are playing with ELO rating on, your ELO may be changed at the end of the game.
* Here is how it works:
*# Every player on the team is temporarily considered as having the average ELO rating of the team.
*# The system will generate a bot associated with the score your team has achieved (let’s call it '''''Hanabot''''').
*#* Hanabot’s ELO rating depends on the variant you are playing (50 cards, 60 cards, 60 cards multicolour), the number of players on the team and, most importantly, your team's score.
*#* All Hanabot’s ELO ratings have been set by an experienced player, they are not random or simply proportional to the score/number of players.
*# Your team (actually your team's average ELO) will now compete against Hanabot.
*#* The system will calculate your team’s ELO gain/loss as though your team had tied with Hanabot.
*#* If your score is below 18 (50-card game) or below 21 (60-card game), Hanabot's ELO is always 1000.

* You can find [http://forum.boardgamearena.com/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=4814 all bots' ELO ratings here]
* The 55-card variant (50 cards + 1 of each value in the sixth color) cannot be played with ELO rating on.
** This is because this variant is highly dependent on draw and a team’s score may not always reflect the players’ skills.
* If you achieve the perfect score and this should cost you ELO points, you will be considered as having beaten the bot associated with the score, so that you lose no ELO points.
* To be confirmed: I think the ELO-system has had an overhaul.

== Cheating ==

* Players can cheat at Hanabi by:
*# Sharing information via the chat user interface.
*# Deliberately abandoning games.
* This is why ranking has been disabled for this game.

== Conventions ==

* If you want to play "full information" style, meaning that you wait until you know both the colour and number of a card before you play it, you will likely be short on clue tokens in >99% of the decks.
* The logical conclusion is that you cannot play a full information style game and the team must agree on some sort of convention.
** This means a certain amount of meta-information is assigned to clues.
* Many players have different kinds of conventions.
** ''Note: not all conventions are added to the BGA list. Please respect the convention the table creator wants to play.''
* When different players in the same team assign different meta-information to the same clue, the game becomes unplayable.
** This is why there is an option to display the convention for the table.
** See '''[https://boardgamearena.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=102&t=18031 this forum post]''' started by '''[https://boardgamearena.com/player?id=84207926 user Romain672]'''.
* Ideally, all players adhere to the convention, to avoid miscommunication.
* Below, the meta-information of several conventions is explained.

=== Standard ===

* Players assume the following meta-information:
** Every marked card will be playable at some point.

==== Number clue ====

* Can be played when all "number-1" cards are played.
* Saved to be played later on in the game.
** ''Saved cards are usually played from oldest to newest.''

==== Colour clue ====

* The newest, previously unmarked card, is the next playable card in the sequence.
* The oldest, unmarked card is safe to discard.
** If a player has a card that they are sure they will never be able to play, e.g. cards marked by a blue clue when the blue stack is already complete, these card must be discarded in priority.

==== Bad clues ====

* A clue that marks 0 new cards.
* A clue that tells a ''lie'' (i.e. does not conform to the meta-information above).
* A clue that marks unplayable or duplicate cards.
** e.g. Marking 4s in another hand if your hand could have a copy of that 4.
* Sometimes, a "bad" clue cannot be avoided.
** ''e.g. Save a unique 3 using a number clue which also marks unplayable cards.
** ''e.g. A colour clue from a flamboyant must be used and it is used to mark 0 new cards.
* When a ''lie'' has been told, it needs to be corrected.
* A correction clue can never mean "play", it can only mean "discard".

{{infoBoxes3 |maxWidth=625
|title1=Standard convention example 1
|body1=<div style="display:flex;flex-flow:row wrap;gap:1rem;">
{{cardholder|player=Table|arrow=|cardBackground=#324
|card1=1|card1Colour=red
|card2=5|card2Colour=yellow
|card3=1|card3Colour=lightgreen
|card4=3|card4Colour=deepskyblue
|card5=4|card5Colour=white
}}

{{cardholder|player=Amy|cardBackground=#bbb}}

{{cardholder|player=Bob|cardBackground=#324
|clue5=5|clue5Colour=lightgrey

|card1=2|card1Colour=red
|card2=4|card2Colour=yellow
|card3=3|card3Colour=red
|card4=3|card4Colour=deepskyblue
|card5=5|card5Colour=lightgreen
}}

{{cardholder|player=Cat|cardBackground=#324
|card1=4|card1Colour=lightgreen
|card2=1|card2Colour=yellow
|card3=4|card3Colour=red
|card4=3|card4Colour=yellow
|card5=2|card5Colour=yellow
}}
</div>

* It's Amy's turn, and Bob knows his chop card is {{card|=5}}.
* Amy will give a red {{card|background=red}} clue to Bob.
* This will tell Bob that the newest card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=red|size=1.5}}), and that the other red can be {{card|=3|background=#324|colour=red|size=1.5}}, {{card|=4|background=#324|colour=red|size=1.5}}, or {{card|=5|background=#324|colour=red|size=1.5}} (because it must be playable at some later point in the game).

|title2=Standard convention example 2
|body2=<div style="display:flex;flex-flow:row wrap;gap:1rem;">
{{cardholder|player=Table|arrow=|cardBackground=#324
|card1=2|card1Colour=red
|card2=5|card2Colour=yellow
|card3=1|card3Colour=lightgreen
|card4=3|card4Colour=deepskyblue
|card5=4|card5Colour=white
}}

{{cardholder|player=Amy|cardBackground=#bbb}}

{{cardholder|player=Bob|cardBackground=#324
|clue5=5|clue5Colour=lightgrey
|clue3Colour=red

|card1=5|card1Colour=white
|card2=4|card2Colour=yellow
|card3=3|card3Colour=red
|card4=3|card4Colour=deepskyblue
|card5=5|card5Colour=lightgreen
}}

{{cardholder|player=Cat|cardBackground=#324
|card1=2|card1Colour=white
|card2=4|card2Colour=lightgreen
|card3=1|card3Colour=yellow
|card4=4|card4Colour=red
|card5=3|card5Colour=yellow
}}
</div>

* It is Amy's turn again, and Bob knows his oldest card is {{card|=5}}, and his middle card is {{card|background=red}}.
* Amy will give a red {{card|background=red}} clue to Cat.
* This will tell Cat that her marked card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be {{card|=4|background=#324|colour=red|size=1.5}}, because {{card|=3|background=#324|colour=red|size=1.5}} is already marked).
* This will give Bob the meta-information that his saved red card, is {{card|=3|background=#324|colour=red|size=1.5}}.
** ''This particular move is sometimes called prompting, and is a common way to allow a card that is saved by colour to get played without re-cluing it.''

|title3=Standard convention example 3
|body3=<div style="display:flex;flex-flow:row wrap;gap:1rem;">
{{cardholder|player=Table|arrow=|cardBackground=#324
|card1=1|card1Colour=red
|card2=5|card2Colour=yellow
|card3Background=lightgreen
|card4=3|card4Colour=deepskyblue
|card5=4|card5Colour=white
}}

{{cardholder|player=Amy|cardBackground=#bbb}}

{{cardholder|player=Bob|cardBackground=#324
|clue3=2|clue3Colour=lightgrey

|card1=3|card1Colour=red
|card2=4|card2Colour=yellow
|card3=2|card3Colour=red
|card4=3|card4Colour=deepskyblue
|card5=5|card5Colour=lightgreen
}}

{{cardholder|player=Cat|cardBackground=#324
|card1=4|card1Colour=lightgreen
|card2=1|card2Colour=yellow
|card3=4|card3Colour=red
|card4=3|card4Colour=yellow
|card5=2|card5Colour=yellow
}}
</div>

* It is Amy's turn, and Bob knows his middle card is {{card|=2}}.
* Amy will give a red {{card|background=#d03}} clue to Bob.
* This will tell Bob that his newest card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be {{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=1.5}}, because {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=1.5}} is now visible with 100% information).
}}
=== Finesse ===

* Finesse builds on the standard convention (making it a bit more complex).
* In the finesse convention, the timing of the clue gives you extra information.
* You can assume the following meta-information:
** Every card that gets marked, will be playable at some point.
** If the oldest, unmarked card gets marked with a number-clue, then the clue meant "save this/these card(s)". (It is custom to play saved cards from oldest to newest when appropriate.)
** A clue that doesn't mark the oldest card, means that the newest, previously unmarked card, is the next playable card in the sequence.
** The oldest, unmarked card is safe to discard unless that player is busy by having a "known" play.
*** ''Obviously, if a player has a card that they are sure they will never be able to play, for example a card on which is marked as blue when the blue and multicolor piles have already been completed, such card must be discarded in priority.''
** If a marked card gets discarded it means:
*** The copy of that card is already marked in someone else's hand, and the discarding player is the first to realize this; or
*** The copy of that card MUST be marked in a future clue (because a save-clue will be given that will mark the copy card as collateral).

==== Special interpretation for play-clues ====

* When receiving a clue for the "next playable card in the sequence", the linking cards are not limited to already marked cards (like in standard convention).
* The newest, unmarked cards in every player's hand should be considered as well.

{{infoBoxes3 |maxWidth=625
|title1=Example of finesse
|body1=<div style="display:flex;flex-flow:row wrap;gap:1rem;">
{{cardholder|player=Table|arrow=
|card1Background=red
|card2Background=yellow
|card3Background=lightgreen
|card4Background=deepskyblue
|card5Background=white
}}

{{cardholder|player=Amy|cardBackground=#bbb}}

{{cardholder|player=Bob|cardBackground=#324
|card1=1|card1Colour=deepskyblue
|card2=5|card2Colour=yellow
|card3=3|card3Colour=deepskyblue
|card4=1|card4Colour=white
|card5=2|card5Colour=white
}}

{{cardholder|player=Cat|cardBackground=#324
|clue3Colour=deepskyblue

|card1=5|card1Colour=red
|card2=2|card2Colour=red
|card3=2|card3Colour=deepskyblue
|card4=2|card4Colour=lightgreen
|card5=2|card5Colour=yellow
}}
</div>

* Amy gives a blue {{card|background=deepskyblue}} to Cat.
* This gives the information that {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}} is the next playable card in the sequence, and that Bob is either not allowed to give a blue {{card|background=deepskyblue}} clue, or has something to play.
* Since Bob has no marked cards, he was not blocked from giving a blue {{card|background=deepskyblue}} clue, so he must have something to play.
* This something, must be the missing link ({{card|=1|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}}, to enable {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}}) that makes {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}} the next playable card.
* Since there is no logical (marked) card that could be {{card|=1|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}}, Bob must assume his newest, unmarked card is {{card|=1|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}} and blind-plays this card.

|title2=Example of reversed finesse
|body2=<div style="display:flex;flex-flow:row wrap;gap:1rem;">
{{cardholder|player=Table|arrow=
|card1Background=red
|card2Background=yellow
|card3Background=lightgreen
|card4Background=deepskyblue
|card5Background=white
}}

{{cardholder|player=Amy|cardBackground=#bbb}}

{{cardholder|player=Bob|cardBackground=#324
|clue3Colour=deepskyblue

|card1=5|card1Colour=red
|card2=2|card2Colour=red
|card3=2|card3Colour=deepskyblue
|card4=2|card4Colour=lightgreen
|card5=2|card5Colour=yellow
}}

{{cardholder|player=Cat|cardBackground=#324
|card1=1|card1Colour=deepskyblue
|card2=5|card2Colour=yellow
|card3=3|card3Colour=deepskyblue
|card4=1|card4Colour=white
|card5=2|card5Colour=white
}}
</div>

* Amy gives a blue {{card|background=deepskyblue}} clue to Bob.
* This gives the information that {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}} is the next playable card in the sequence.
* Bob sees that the newest, unmarked card in Cat's hand is of the same colour (blue) '''and''' playable now. Bob concludes it is a finesse, with the players in reversed order, so his blue card must be {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}}.

|title3=Example of a bluff
|body3=<div style="display:flex;flex-flow:row wrap;gap:1rem;">
{{cardholder|player=Table|arrow=
|card1Background=red
|card2Background=yellow
|card3Background=lightgreen
|card4Background=deepskyblue
|card5Background=white
}}

{{cardholder|player=Amy|cardBackground=#bbb}}

{{cardholder|player=Bob|cardBackground=#324
|card1=1|card1Colour=white
|card2=5|card2Colour=yellow
|card3=3|card3Colour=deepskyblue
|card4=1|card4Colour=white
|card5=2|card5Colour=white
}}

{{cardholder|player=Cat|cardBackground=#324
|clue3Colour=deepskyblue

|card1=5|card1Colour=red
|card2=2|card2Colour=red
|card3=2|card3Colour=deepskyblue
|card4=2|card4Colour=lightgreen
|card5=2|card5Colour=yellow
}}
</div>

* Amy gives a blue {{card|background=deepskyblue}} clue to Cat.
* This gives the information that {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}} is the next playable card in the sequence, and that Bob is either not allowed to give a blue {{card|background=deepskyblue}} clue, or has something to play.
* Since Bob has no marked cards, he was not blocked from giving a blue {{card|background=deepskyblue}} clue, so he must have something to play.
* This something, must be the missing link ({{card|=1|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}}, to enable {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}}) that makes {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}} the next playable card.
* Since there is no logical (marked) card that could be {{card|=1|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}}, Bob must assume his newest, unmarked card is {{card|=1|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}} and blind-plays this card.
* However, at this point the "lie" is revealed (because the colour of the played card does '''not''' match the colour of the finesse-clue).
* The blind-played card is '''not''' {{card|=1|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}}, but {{card|=1|background=#324|colour=white|size=1.5}}. Cat, up to this point, was thinking she had {{card|=1|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}}.
* Bob's blind-play gives Cat extra information: her blue card is in fact {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}}.
}}

==== Clues you should avoid giving (bad clues) ====

* As a special remark: don't mark useless, or duplicate cards. So if you have a saved 4, you are forbidden from marking 4s, unless you are sure you are not holding a copy of that

==== Meaning of skipping a player / stealing clues in Finesse convention ====

* There are different approaches among finesse-convention-players about who should clue whom. So this section will be devided into sub-sections. The order does not say anything about which approach is more common on BGA. There are a lot of players following each idea.
* As of now, there is no way of saying which approach is "right" or "better". Of course it is important for success, that in a game, the group of players follows the same idea. If they get mixed, it will most likely result in bombs. If that happens, it does not mean, the other player is "bad" - it merely means, they follow a different idea. So you can only try to find a common ground for the next game or play with another group next time.
* The text within the sections are written by people who follow the idea.

===== a) Skipping / stealing should be avoided =====

* If more than 1 person are able to give the same clue, then the last possible person should give that clue.
* In finesse convention skipping (P1 clues P3, instead of P2; then P2 is skipped) means either:
*# The skipped player is forbidden from giving that clue; or
*# The skipped player has something to play.

===== b) Skipping / stealing is for discard-management =====

This style is one way of applying finesse convention. Since the primary assumption is that your CHOP is safe to discard, it might still be that said card is a nice-to-have like a non-unique 2 or 3 that is not yet playable. without knowing your chop card, it is good to handle each-other's chop situation by preferably letting players with definitely useless chop-cards discard rather than discarding your own unknown card.
Skipping/stealing is a term that is often used for a situation, where giving a clue is not left for the last possible player to do.
''e.g. player A saves a card on chop of player C, potentially leaving player B without a known play or a useful/necessary clue to give.''
Skipping players is a useful move to give other players the time to play / discard / clue more cards.

When getting skipped without having a play or useful option to clue, it most likely means that your chop card is not very useful.
These are valid reasons for skipping you:
* Your chop-card is trash (a copy of the card is already played/marked)
* Your chop-card is redundant: Another copy of it is on another player's (or your own) hand as well, so discarding it is no loss (or it has low priority like a high number when it's very early in the game).
* You might still have something nice on chop, but the player sitting before already received information that their chop might be something very good (from earlier discard-behaviour like NOT being skipped over by the player sitting before them on earlier turns) and they are reluctant to discard for that reason.
* The clue given is a play-clue for a card that might be in your hand so you couldn't know whether you want the other card or not. The player skipping you knows that you want it and therefore takes away the decision.

This approach sacrifices some saving-clue-tokens option (that might be achieved on a stricter dogma about who should clue whom) in order to be able to keep nice cards in the game for longer and discard useless cards instead and by that often get those cards played before they would be discarded.
* This convention is better for players, who play efficient enough to rarely struggle with clue-shortness and can therefore afford being more careful about not losing first copies.
* If a group often struggles with clue-shortness then skipping-dogma (as proposed by other conventions) might as well improve their overall results. If the problem for not achieving 30 points usually isn't clue-shortness but getting bottom-decked (or heavily delayed from losing earlier a card that could be played now), then results can get better with this discard-management convention.

Planning ahead is a vital aspect of the game. By carefully deciding on who to let clue and whom to skip, it is often possible to
* avoid twin-chops before they become an issue
* avoid not having enough clue tokens to save all necessary cards
* get the discard you were waiting for (when a player has 2 copies of the same playable card and you want them to discard before clueing it)

=== Hat-guessing ===

* [https://github.com/hanabi/hanabi.github.io/blob/main/misc/hat-guessing.md Github hat-guessing]

=== Logical Leftism ===

* [http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/basics-level-1-a117610126 Hanabi Logic basics-level-1]
* [http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/-a163408102 Hanabi Logic logical-leftism-in-a-nutshell]

=== Closest Friend ===

* TODO

=== Secret convention ===

* TODO

=== Conventional Leftism ===

* [http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/ll-vs-cl-the-differences-a132077536 Hanabi Logic ll-vs-cl-the-differences] gives some clues, but doesn't explain Conventional Leftism from first principles.

=== Chop-focus ===

* TODO

== Strategy ==

* In addition to the convention(s), there is also some strategy to the game.
* You should '''not''' confuse strategy with convention! Strategy is '''team''' vs '''deck'''; convention is communication within the team.
* A simple example of strategy is saving 2s in 2-player games.
** Using number-2-clue to communicate that those cards need to be saved, is a convention.

=== Examples ===

* More advanced players will try to avoid losing as many "first" (non-unique) cards as possible.
* It's a good strategy to keep good cards in the game as long as possible - even if they are not yet playable.
** ''The other copy of that card might be far down the draw pile.''
* Trying to mark at least 12 cards with the first 8 clue-tokens.
** This gives 99% chance of always having enough tokens in the game.
* Not using the last two clue-tokens for "single plays".
** This avoids running out of clue-tokens in times when you need to save critical cards.

[[Category:Card games]]

Gamehelphanabi

2022-03-22T20:45:08Z

Silene: /* b) Skipping / stealing is for discard-management */

[[Category:Card games]]
For tips on how to play hanabi, see [[Tips_hanabi]]
== Introduction ==

* Hanabi is a cooperative game. Your goal, as a team, is to build a fabulous fireworks show.
* You do this by playing the cards in the correct order.
* However, you cannot see your own cards; you can only see the cards of your team mates.

{|class="wikitable" style="width:auto; text-align:center;"
|+Final Score Ratings
!Points
!Overall impression
|-
|0-5
|horrible, booed by the crowd...
|-
|6-10
|mediocre, just a spattering of applause.
|-
|11-15
|honourable, but will not be remembered for very long...
|-
|16-20
|excellent, crowd pleasing.
|-
|21-24
|amazing, will be remembered for a very long time!
|-
|25
|legendary, everyone left speechless, stars in their eyes
|}

== Card distribution ==

* Each card has a colour and a number.
{|class="wikitable" style="width:auto;"
|+Normal difficulty (50 cards)
!Red (r)
|{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=2}}
|{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=2}}{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=2}}
|{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=2}}{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=2}}
|{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=2}}{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=2}}
|{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=2}}
|-
!Yellow (y)
|{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#fe5|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#fe5|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#fe5|size=2}}
|{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#fe5|size=2}}{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#fe5|size=2}}
|{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#fe5|size=2}}{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#fe5|size=2}}
|{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#fe5|size=2}}{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#fe5|size=2}}
|{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#fe5|size=2}}
|-
!Green (g)
|{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#2a7|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#2a7|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#2a7|size=2}}
|{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#2a7|size=2}}{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#2a7|size=2}}
|{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#2a7|size=2}}{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#2a7|size=2}}
|{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#2a7|size=2}}{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#2a7|size=2}}
|{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#2a7|size=2}}
|-
!Blue (b)
|{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#0ae|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#0ae|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#0ae|size=2}}
|{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#0ae|size=2}}{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#0ae|size=2}}
|{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#0ae|size=2}}{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#0ae|size=2}}
|{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#0ae|size=2}}{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#0ae|size=2}}
|{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#0ae|size=2}}
|-
!White (w)
|{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#fff|size=2}}
|}

=== Multicolour cards ===

* There are three variants that add a 6th colour: the multicolour.
* There are three difficulties:

==== Tricky ====

* These cards get marked by a separate '''multicolour clue'''.
{|class="wikitable" style="width:auto;"
|+Tricky difficulty (+10 cards)
!Multicolour (m)
|{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|}

==== Hard ====

* These cards get marked by a separate '''multicolour clue'''.
{|class="wikitable" style="width:auto;"
|+Hard difficulty (+5 cards)
!Multi-colour (m)
|{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|}

==== Very Difficult ====

* These cards get marked by '''any colour clue'''.
{|class="wikitable" style="width:auto;"
|+Avalanche difficulty (+10 cards)
!Multi-colour (m)
|{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#717|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|}

== Setup ==

* 8 clue tokens.
{|class="wikitable" style="width:auto;"
|+# cards dealt to each player
!# Players
!2
!3
!4
!5
|-
!# Cards (official rules)
|5
|4
|4
|4
|-
!# Cards (unofficial rules)
|6
|4
|4
|3
|}

== Game play ==

* Players take turns to either:
*# Give a '''[[#clue]]''',
*# '''[[#Play]]''' a card or
*# '''[[#Discard]]''' a card

=== Clue ===

* Possible when there is at least one clue token available.
* Clues indicate '''all''' cards of a certain colour, or '''all''' cards of a certain number.
# The active player selects a card in another player's hand.
# The active player selects a clue option.
# One clue token is moved from 'available' to 'used'.

=== Play ===

# The active player selects a card in their hand.
# The active player selects the 'Play selected card' button.
#* If the played card fits in any of the sequences, it is placed in the appropriate colour stack on the table.
#* If the played card does not fit, it is placed in the discard pile and the team gets a ''misfire'' token.
# A replacement card is drawn.

=== Discard ===

* Possible when there are fewer than 8 clue tokens available.
# The active player selects a card in their hand.
# The active player selects the 'Discard selected card' button.
# The discarded card is placed in the discard pile.
# One clue token is moved from 'used' to 'available'.
# A replacement card is drawn.

== Game end ==

* The game can end in several ways:
*# All cards have been drawn from the deck. After this happens, everybody gets 1 more turn. The game ends with the score at the last turn.
*# Your team played all possible cards. In this case, the game ends immediately and you receive the maximum possible score.
*# Your team made three mistakes that caused misfires. In this case, you lose the game and get negative ten (-10) points.
*# Your team 'abandons' the game. Although discouraged, you receive zero (0) points.

== Options ==

=== Black Powder ===

* Clues cannot be given for the colour black.
* Black cards must be played in reverse order, from 5 to 1.
{|class="wikitable" style="width:auto;"
|+Black Powder (+10 cards)
!Black Powder (k)
|{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#000|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#000|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=5|background=#324|colour=#000|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#000|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=4|background=#324|colour=#000|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#000|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#000|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#000|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}{{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#000|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|{{card|=1|background=#324|colour=#000|outlineColour=#fff|size=2}}
|}

=== Five Flamboyants ===

After playing the last card of a colour, randomly select one of the following bonuses for immediate use:
* Gain a clue token.
* Gain a clue token and recover a life.
* Give a clue regarding a colour.
* Give a clue regarding a number.
* Shuffle a discarded card into the deck.
* Play a discarded card, if possible.

== Lingo ==

When you play with others, certain words are used to describe certain objects or situations. Here is a short list.

;Marked: A card that is highlighted by a clue.
;Unmarked: A card that is not clued.
;chop: The oldest, unmarked card. The card that you have no information on and will chop from your hand.
;draw: The newest, unmarked card. The card that you have no information on and was freshly drawn.
;To bomb: A play that causes the third misfire-token. Sometimes called '''explosion'''
;Unique: A card that has no copy (left) in the deck.
;Double discard: When consecutive players have the same card on chop. A special problem, since, to each of the consecutive players, a number to chop does not look like a unique save.
;Twin chop: 2 consecutive players have the same card on chop. Same as Double discard
;Double save: When a player has two consecutive unique cards, requiring consecutive save clues.
;Strategy: A set of rules / guidelines / conventions on how to interpret actions by players (including spending of clue-tokens).

== ELO rating ==

* If you are playing with ELO rating on, your ELO may be changed at the end of the game.
* Here is how it works:
*# Every player on the team is temporarily considered as having the average ELO rating of the team.
*# The system will generate a bot associated with the score your team has achieved (let’s call it '''''Hanabot''''').
*#* Hanabot’s ELO rating depends on the variant you are playing (50 cards, 60 cards, 60 cards multicolour), the number of players on the team and, most importantly, your team's score.
*#* All Hanabot’s ELO ratings have been set by an experienced player, they are not random or simply proportional to the score/number of players.
*# Your team (actually your team's average ELO) will now compete against Hanabot.
*#* The system will calculate your team’s ELO gain/loss as though your team had tied with Hanabot.
*#* If your score is below 18 (50-card game) or below 21 (60-card game), Hanabot's ELO is always 1000.

* You can find [http://forum.boardgamearena.com/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=4814 all bots' ELO ratings here]
* The 55-card variant (50 cards + 1 of each value in the sixth color) cannot be played with ELO rating on.
** This is because this variant is highly dependent on draw and a team’s score may not always reflect the players’ skills.
* If you achieve the perfect score and this should cost you ELO points, you will be considered as having beaten the bot associated with the score, so that you lose no ELO points.
* To be confirmed: I think the ELO-system has had an overhaul.

== Cheating ==

* Players can cheat at Hanabi by:
*# Sharing information via the chat user interface.
*# Deliberately abandoning games.
* This is why ranking has been disabled for this game.

== Conventions ==

* If you want to play "full information" style, meaning that you wait until you know both the colour and number of a card before you play it, you will likely be short on clue tokens in >99% of the decks.
* The logical conclusion is that you cannot play a full information style game and the team must agree on some sort of convention.
** This means a certain amount of meta-information is assigned to clues.
* Many players have different kinds of conventions.
** ''Note: not all conventions are added to the BGA list. Please respect the convention the table creator wants to play.''
* When different players in the same team assign different meta-information to the same clue, the game becomes unplayable.
** This is why there is an option to display the convention for the table.
** See '''[https://boardgamearena.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=102&t=18031 this forum post]''' started by '''[https://boardgamearena.com/player?id=84207926 user Romain672]'''.
* Ideally, all players adhere to the convention, to avoid miscommunication.
* Below, the meta-information of several conventions is explained.

=== Standard ===

* Players assume the following meta-information:
** Every marked card will be playable at some point.

==== Number clue ====

* Can be played when all "number-1" cards are played.
* Saved to be played later on in the game.
** ''Saved cards are usually played from oldest to newest.''

==== Colour clue ====

* The newest, previously unmarked card, is the next playable card in the sequence.
* The oldest, unmarked card is safe to discard.
** If a player has a card that they are sure they will never be able to play, e.g. cards marked by a blue clue when the blue stack is already complete, these card must be discarded in priority.

==== Bad clues ====

* A clue that marks 0 new cards.
* A clue that tells a ''lie'' (i.e. does not conform to the meta-information above).
* A clue that marks unplayable or duplicate cards.
** e.g. Marking 4s in another hand if your hand could have a copy of that 4.
* Sometimes, a "bad" clue cannot be avoided.
** ''e.g. Save a unique 3 using a number clue which also marks unplayable cards.
** ''e.g. A colour clue from a flamboyant must be used and it is used to mark 0 new cards.
* When a ''lie'' has been told, it needs to be corrected.
* A correction clue can never mean "play", it can only mean "discard".

{{infoBoxes3 |maxWidth=625
|title1=Standard convention example 1
|body1=<div style="display:flex;flex-flow:row wrap;gap:1rem;">
{{cardholder|player=Table|arrow=|cardBackground=#324
|card1=1|card1Colour=red
|card2=5|card2Colour=yellow
|card3=1|card3Colour=lightgreen
|card4=3|card4Colour=deepskyblue
|card5=4|card5Colour=white
}}

{{cardholder|player=Amy|cardBackground=#bbb}}

{{cardholder|player=Bob|cardBackground=#324
|clue5=5|clue5Colour=lightgrey

|card1=2|card1Colour=red
|card2=4|card2Colour=yellow
|card3=3|card3Colour=red
|card4=3|card4Colour=deepskyblue
|card5=5|card5Colour=lightgreen
}}

{{cardholder|player=Cat|cardBackground=#324
|card1=4|card1Colour=lightgreen
|card2=1|card2Colour=yellow
|card3=4|card3Colour=red
|card4=3|card4Colour=yellow
|card5=2|card5Colour=yellow
}}
</div>

* It's Amy's turn, and Bob knows his chop card is {{card|=5}}.
* Amy will give a red {{card|background=red}} clue to Bob.
* This will tell Bob that the newest card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=red|size=1.5}}), and that the other red can be {{card|=3|background=#324|colour=red|size=1.5}}, {{card|=4|background=#324|colour=red|size=1.5}}, or {{card|=5|background=#324|colour=red|size=1.5}} (because it must be playable at some later point in the game).

|title2=Standard convention example 2
|body2=<div style="display:flex;flex-flow:row wrap;gap:1rem;">
{{cardholder|player=Table|arrow=|cardBackground=#324
|card1=2|card1Colour=red
|card2=5|card2Colour=yellow
|card3=1|card3Colour=lightgreen
|card4=3|card4Colour=deepskyblue
|card5=4|card5Colour=white
}}

{{cardholder|player=Amy|cardBackground=#bbb}}

{{cardholder|player=Bob|cardBackground=#324
|clue5=5|clue5Colour=lightgrey
|clue3Colour=red

|card1=5|card1Colour=white
|card2=4|card2Colour=yellow
|card3=3|card3Colour=red
|card4=3|card4Colour=deepskyblue
|card5=5|card5Colour=lightgreen
}}

{{cardholder|player=Cat|cardBackground=#324
|card1=2|card1Colour=white
|card2=4|card2Colour=lightgreen
|card3=1|card3Colour=yellow
|card4=4|card4Colour=red
|card5=3|card5Colour=yellow
}}
</div>

* It is Amy's turn again, and Bob knows his oldest card is {{card|=5}}, and his middle card is {{card|background=red}}.
* Amy will give a red {{card|background=red}} clue to Cat.
* This will tell Cat that her marked card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be {{card|=4|background=#324|colour=red|size=1.5}}, because {{card|=3|background=#324|colour=red|size=1.5}} is already marked).
* This will give Bob the meta-information that his saved red card, is {{card|=3|background=#324|colour=red|size=1.5}}.
** ''This particular move is sometimes called prompting, and is a common way to allow a card that is saved by colour to get played without re-cluing it.''

|title3=Standard convention example 3
|body3=<div style="display:flex;flex-flow:row wrap;gap:1rem;">
{{cardholder|player=Table|arrow=|cardBackground=#324
|card1=1|card1Colour=red
|card2=5|card2Colour=yellow
|card3Background=lightgreen
|card4=3|card4Colour=deepskyblue
|card5=4|card5Colour=white
}}

{{cardholder|player=Amy|cardBackground=#bbb}}

{{cardholder|player=Bob|cardBackground=#324
|clue3=2|clue3Colour=lightgrey

|card1=3|card1Colour=red
|card2=4|card2Colour=yellow
|card3=2|card3Colour=red
|card4=3|card4Colour=deepskyblue
|card5=5|card5Colour=lightgreen
}}

{{cardholder|player=Cat|cardBackground=#324
|card1=4|card1Colour=lightgreen
|card2=1|card2Colour=yellow
|card3=4|card3Colour=red
|card4=3|card4Colour=yellow
|card5=2|card5Colour=yellow
}}
</div>

* It is Amy's turn, and Bob knows his middle card is {{card|=2}}.
* Amy will give a red {{card|background=#d03}} clue to Bob.
* This will tell Bob that his newest card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be {{card|=3|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=1.5}}, because {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=#d03|size=1.5}} is now visible with 100% information).
}}
=== Finesse ===

* Finesse builds on the standard convention (making it a bit more complex).
* In the finesse convention, the timing of the clue gives you extra information.
* You can assume the following meta-information:
** Every card that gets marked, will be playable at some point.
** If the oldest, unmarked card gets marked with a number-clue, then the clue meant "save this/these card(s)". (It is custom to play saved cards from oldest to newest when appropriate.)
** A clue that doesn't mark the oldest card, means that the newest, previously unmarked card, is the next playable card in the sequence.
** The oldest, unmarked card is safe to discard unless that player is busy by having a "known" play.
*** ''Obviously, if a player has a card that they are sure they will never be able to play, for example a card on which is marked as blue when the blue and multicolor piles have already been completed, such card must be discarded in priority.''
** If a marked card gets discarded it means:
*** The copy of that card is already marked in someone else's hand, and the discarding player is the first to realize this; or
*** The copy of that card MUST be marked in a future clue (because a save-clue will be given that will mark the copy card as collateral).

==== Meaning of skipping a player / stealing clues in Finesse convention ====

* There are different approaches among finesse-convention-players about who should clue whom. So this section will be devided into sub-sections. The order does not say anything about which approach is more common on BGA. There are a lot of players following each idea.
* As of now, there is no way of saying which approach is "right" or "better". Of course it is important for success, that in a game, the group of players follows the same idea. If they get mixed, it will most likely result in bombs. If that happens, it does not mean, the other player is "bad" - it merely means, they follow a different idea. So you can only try to find a common ground for the next game or play with another group next time.
* The text within the sections are written by people who follow the idea.

===== a) Skipping / stealing should be avoided =====

* If more than 1 person are able to give the same clue, then the last possible person should give that clue.
* In finesse convention skipping (P1 clues P3, instead of P2; then P2 is skipped) means either:
*# The skipped player is forbidden from giving that clue; or
*# The skipped player has something to play.

===== b) Skipping / stealing is for discard-management =====

This style is one way of applying finesse convention. Since the primary assumption is that your CHOP is safe to discard, it might still be that said card is a nice-to-have like a non-unique 2 or 3 that is not yet playable. without knowing your chop card, it is good to handle each-other's chop situation by preferably letting players with definitely useless chop-cards discard rather than discarding your own unknown card.
Skipping/stealing is a term that is often used for a situation, where giving a clue is not left for the last possible player to do.
''e.g. player A saves a card on chop of player C, potentially leaving player B without a known play or a useful/necessary clue to give.''
Skipping players is a useful move to give other players the time to play / discard / clue more cards.

When getting skipped without having a play or useful option to clue, it most likely means that your chop card is not very useful.
These are valid reasons for skipping you:
* Your chop-card is trash (a copy of the card is already played/marked)
* Your chop-card is redundant: Another copy of it is on another player's (or your own) hand as well, so discarding it is no loss (or it has low priority like a high number when it's very early in the game).
* You might still have something nice on chop, but the player sitting before already received information that their chop might be something very good (from earlier discard-behaviour like NOT being skipped over by the player sitting before them on earlier turns) and they are reluctant to discard for that reason.
* The clue given is a play-clue for a card that might be in your hand so you couldn't know whether you want the other card or not. The player skipping you knows that you want it and therefore takes away the decision.

This approach sacrifices some saving-clue-tokens option (that might be achieved on a stricter dogma about who should clue whom) in order to be able to keep nice cards in the game for longer and discard useless cards instead and by that often get those cards played before they would be discarded.
* This convention is better for players, who play efficient enough to rarely struggle with clue-shortness and can therefore afford being more careful about not losing first copies.
* If a group often struggles with clue-shortness then skipping-dogma (as proposed by other conventions) might as well improve their overall results. If the problem for not achieving 30 points usually isn't clue-shortness but getting bottom-decked (or heavily delayed from losing earlier a card that could be played now), then results can get better with this discard-management convention.

Planning ahead is a vital aspect of the game. By carefully deciding on who to let clue and whom to skip, it is often possible to
* avoid twin-chops before they become an issue
* avoid not having enough clue tokens to save all necessary cards
* get the discard you were waiting for (when a player has 2 copies of the same playable card and you want them to discard before clueing it)

==== Clues you should avoid giving (bad clues) ====

* As a special remark: don't mark useless, or duplicate cards. So if you have a saved 4, you are forbidden from marking 4s, unless you are sure you are not holding a copy of that

==== Special interpretation for play-clues ====

* When receiving a clue for the "next playable card in the sequence", the linking cards are not limited to already marked cards (like in standard convention).
* The newest, unmarked cards in every player's hand should be considered as well.

{{infoBoxes3 |maxWidth=625
|title1=Example of finesse
|body1=<div style="display:flex;flex-flow:row wrap;gap:1rem;">
{{cardholder|player=Table|arrow=
|card1Background=red
|card2Background=yellow
|card3Background=lightgreen
|card4Background=deepskyblue
|card5Background=white
}}

{{cardholder|player=Amy|cardBackground=#bbb}}

{{cardholder|player=Bob|cardBackground=#324
|card1=1|card1Colour=deepskyblue
|card2=5|card2Colour=yellow
|card3=3|card3Colour=deepskyblue
|card4=1|card4Colour=white
|card5=2|card5Colour=white
}}

{{cardholder|player=Cat|cardBackground=#324
|clue3Colour=deepskyblue

|card1=5|card1Colour=red
|card2=2|card2Colour=red
|card3=2|card3Colour=deepskyblue
|card4=2|card4Colour=lightgreen
|card5=2|card5Colour=yellow
}}
</div>

* Amy gives a blue {{card|background=deepskyblue}} to Cat.
* This gives the information that {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}} is the next playable card in the sequence, and that Bob is either not allowed to give a blue {{card|background=deepskyblue}} clue, or has something to play.
* Since Bob has no marked cards, he was not blocked from giving a blue {{card|background=deepskyblue}} clue, so he must have something to play.
* This something, must be the missing link ({{card|=1|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}}, to enable {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}}) that makes {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}} the next playable card.
* Since there is no logical (marked) card that could be {{card|=1|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}}, Bob must assume his newest, unmarked card is {{card|=1|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}} and blind-plays this card.

|title2=Example of reversed finesse
|body2=<div style="display:flex;flex-flow:row wrap;gap:1rem;">
{{cardholder|player=Table|arrow=
|card1Background=red
|card2Background=yellow
|card3Background=lightgreen
|card4Background=deepskyblue
|card5Background=white
}}

{{cardholder|player=Amy|cardBackground=#bbb}}

{{cardholder|player=Bob|cardBackground=#324
|clue3Colour=deepskyblue

|card1=5|card1Colour=red
|card2=2|card2Colour=red
|card3=2|card3Colour=deepskyblue
|card4=2|card4Colour=lightgreen
|card5=2|card5Colour=yellow
}}

{{cardholder|player=Cat|cardBackground=#324
|card1=1|card1Colour=deepskyblue
|card2=5|card2Colour=yellow
|card3=3|card3Colour=deepskyblue
|card4=1|card4Colour=white
|card5=2|card5Colour=white
}}
</div>

* Amy gives a blue {{card|background=deepskyblue}} clue to Bob.
* This gives the information that {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}} is the next playable card in the sequence.
* Bob sees that the newest, unmarked card in Cat's hand is of the same colour (blue) '''and''' playable now. Bob concludes it is a finesse, with the players in reversed order, so his blue card must be {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}}.

|title3=Example of a bluff
|body3=<div style="display:flex;flex-flow:row wrap;gap:1rem;">
{{cardholder|player=Table|arrow=
|card1Background=red
|card2Background=yellow
|card3Background=lightgreen
|card4Background=deepskyblue
|card5Background=white
}}

{{cardholder|player=Amy|cardBackground=#bbb}}

{{cardholder|player=Bob|cardBackground=#324
|card1=1|card1Colour=white
|card2=5|card2Colour=yellow
|card3=3|card3Colour=deepskyblue
|card4=1|card4Colour=white
|card5=2|card5Colour=white
}}

{{cardholder|player=Cat|cardBackground=#324
|clue3Colour=deepskyblue

|card1=5|card1Colour=red
|card2=2|card2Colour=red
|card3=2|card3Colour=deepskyblue
|card4=2|card4Colour=lightgreen
|card5=2|card5Colour=yellow
}}
</div>

* Amy gives a blue {{card|background=deepskyblue}} clue to Cat.
* This gives the information that {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}} is the next playable card in the sequence, and that Bob is either not allowed to give a blue {{card|background=deepskyblue}} clue, or has something to play.
* Since Bob has no marked cards, he was not blocked from giving a blue {{card|background=deepskyblue}} clue, so he must have something to play.
* This something, must be the missing link ({{card|=1|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}}, to enable {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}}) that makes {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}} the next playable card.
* Since there is no logical (marked) card that could be {{card|=1|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}}, Bob must assume his newest, unmarked card is {{card|=1|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}} and blind-plays this card.
* However, at this point the "lie" is revealed (because the colour of the played card does '''not''' match the colour of the finesse-clue).
* The blind-played card is '''not''' {{card|=1|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}}, but {{card|=1|background=#324|colour=white|size=1.5}}. Cat, up to this point, was thinking she had {{card|=1|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}}.
* Bob's blind-play gives Cat extra information: her blue card is in fact {{card|=2|background=#324|colour=deepskyblue|size=1.5}}.
}}
=== Hat-guessing ===

* [https://github.com/hanabi/hanabi.github.io/blob/main/misc/hat-guessing.md Github hat-guessing]

=== Logical Leftism ===

* [http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/basics-level-1-a117610126 Hanabi Logic basics-level-1]
* [http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/-a163408102 Hanabi Logic logical-leftism-in-a-nutshell]

=== Closest Friend ===

* TODO

=== Secret convention ===

* TODO

=== Conventional Leftism ===

* [http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/ll-vs-cl-the-differences-a132077536 Hanabi Logic ll-vs-cl-the-differences] gives some clues, but doesn't explain Conventional Leftism from first principles.

=== Chop-focus ===

* TODO

== Strategy ==

* In addition to the convention(s), there is also some strategy to the game.
* You should '''not''' confuse strategy with convention! Strategy is '''team''' vs '''deck'''; convention is communication within the team.
* A simple example of strategy is saving 2s in 2-player games.
** Using number-2-clue to communicate that those cards need to be saved, is a convention.

=== Examples ===

* More advanced players will try to avoid losing as many "first" (non-unique) cards as possible.
* It's a good strategy to keep good cards in the game as long as possible - even if they are not yet playable.
** ''The other copy of that card might be far down the draw pile.''
* Trying to mark at least 12 cards with the first 8 clue-tokens.
** This gives 99% chance of always having enough tokens in the game.
* Not using the last two clue-tokens for "single plays".
** This avoids running out of clue-tokens in times when you need to save critical cards.

For strategy tips, see [[Tips_hanabi]]

Gamehelphanabi

2022-03-04T22:23:37Z

Silene: /* b) Skipping / stealing is for discard-management */

[[Category:Card games]]
For tips on how to play hanabi, see [[Tips_hanabi]]
== Introduction ==

* Hanabi is a cooperative game. Your goal, as a team, is to build a fabulous fireworks show.
* You do this by playing the cards in the correct order.
* However, you cannot see your own cards; you can only see the cards of your team mates.

==== Final Score Ratings ====

{| class="wikitable"
|-
!Points
!Overall impression
|-
|5 or less
|horrible, booed by the crowd...
|-
|6-10
|mediocre, just a spattering of applause.
|-
|11-15
|honourable, but will not be remembered for very long...
|-
|16-20
|excellent, crowd pleasing.
|-
|21-24
|amazing, will be remembered for a very long time!
|-
|25
|legendary, everyone left speechless, stars in their eyes
|}

== Card distribution ==

* In a game of Hanabi on '''normal difficulty''', the deck contains 50 cards.
* Each card has exactly one colour: either Red, Yellow, Green, Blue, or White.

There are 10 cards in each colour:
* three 1s
* two 2s
* two 3s
* two 4s
* one 5

=== Multicolour cards ===

* There are three variants that add a 6th colour: the multicolour.
* There are three difficulties:

==== Tricky ====

* Adds 10 multicolour cards to the normal game.
* These cards get marked by a separate multicolour clue.

==== Hard ====

* '''5''' multicolour cards to the normal game: one of each number.
* These cards get marked by a separate multicolour clue.

==== Very Difficult ====

* Adds 10 multicolour cards to the normal game.
* These cards get marked by ANY colour clue.

== Game play ==

* You each take turns.
* During a turn, a player may take one (1) of three actions.
* After your action, the turn ends and it is the next player's turn.
* The game can end in several ways:
*# All cards have been drawn from the deck. After this happens, everybody gets 1 more turn. The game ends with the score at the last turn.
*# Your team played all possible cards. In this case, the game ends immediately and you receive the maximum possible score.
*# Your team made three mistakes that caused misfires. In this case, you lose the game and get negative ten (-10) points.
*# Your team 'abandons' the game. Although discouraged, you receive zero (0) points.

== Turn ==

* During your turn, you have one (1) action.
* You can choose to do one of the following:

==== Give a colour or number clue to a teammate ====

* This costs one clue-token (-1).
* You cannot give a clue if there are zero (0) clue-tokens left.
* When you give a clue, you must indicate '''all''' cards of a certain colour, or '''all''' cards of a certain number.

==== Play a card ====

* When a card is played, it is evaluated.
* If the card fits in one of sequences, it is placed in the appropriate colour stack on the table.
* If it does not fit, it is placed in the discard pile and the team gets a misfire-token.
* Then draw a new card.

==== Discard a card ====

* When you discard, the card is placed in the discard pile and you get a clue-token (+1).
* ''Note:'' cards on the discard pile are out of the game and can never return.
* Then draw a new card.

== Options ==

=== Black Powder ===

* You may not give clues regarding the colour black.
* Black cards must be played in reverse order, from 5 to 1.
* In the deck there are three black 5s, two black 4s, two black 3s, two black 2s, and one black 1.

=== Five Flamboyants ===

After playing the last card of a colour, randomly select one of the following bonuses for immediate use:
* Gain a clue token.
* Gain a clue token and recover a life.
* Give a clue regarding a colour.
* Give a clue regarding a number.
* Shuffle a discarded card into the deck.
* Play a discarded card, if possible.

== Lingo ==

When you play with others, certain words are used to describe certain objects or situations. Here is a short list.

;Marked: A card that is highlighted by a clue.
;Unmarked: A card that is not clued.
;chop: The oldest, unmarked card. The card that you have no information on and will chop from your hand.
;draw: The newest, unmarked card. The card that you have no information on and was freshly drawn.
;To bomb: A play that causes the third misfire-token. Sometimes called '''explosion'''
;Unique: A card that has no copy (left) in the deck.
;Double discard: When consecutive players have the same card on chop. A special problem, since, to each of the consecutive players, a number to chop does not look like a unique save.
;Twin chop: 2 consecutive players have the same card on chop. Same as Double discard
;Double save: When a player has two consecutive unique cards, requiring consecutive save clues.
;Strategy: A set of rules / guidelines / conventions on how to interpret actions by players (including spending of clue-tokens).

== ELO rating ==

* If you are playing with ELO rating on, your ELO may be changed at the end of the game.
* Here is how it works:
*# Every player on the team is temporarily considered as having the average ELO rating of the team.
*# The system will generate a bot associated with the score your team has achieved (let’s call it '''''Hanabot''''').
*#* Hanabot’s ELO rating depends on the variant you are playing (50 cards, 60 cards, 60 cards multicolour), the number of players on the team and, most importantly, your team's score.
*#* All Hanabot’s ELO ratings have been set by an experienced player, they are not random or simply proportional to the score/number of players.
*# Your team (actually your team's average ELO) will now compete against Hanabot.
*#* The system will calculate your team’s ELO gain/loss as though your team had tied with Hanabot.
*#* If your score is below 18 (50-card game) or below 21 (60-card game), Hanabot's ELO is always 1000.

* You can find [http://forum.boardgamearena.com/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=4814 all bots' ELO ratings here]
* The 55-card variant (50 cards + 1 of each value in the sixth color) cannot be played with ELO rating on.
** This is because this variant is highly dependent on draw and a team’s score may not always reflect the players’ skills.
* If you achieve the perfect score and this should cost you ELO points, you will be considered as having beaten the bot associated with the score, so that you lose no ELO points.
* To be confirmed: I think the ELO-system has had an overhaul.

== About "cheating" ==

* In the "real life Hanabi", you can talk. That's why we chose to let the chat open for the online version.

* As a consequence, it is very easy to cheat at Hanabi.
** However, as you can imagine, cheating is very stupid and has no interest... except for ELO boosting.
** This is why there is no international ranking for this game (ie: best player, second best player) and no trophies associated to it.

* Abandoning: Another method of cheating is to deliberately avoid finishing games that would cause ELO to drop.
** While some argue that games become "boring" once 30 becomes impossible, it is rarely the case that games are abandoned on 29 points while waiting for the final 5 to be drawn.

== Conventions ==
* If you want to play "full information" style, meaning that you wait until you know both the colour and number of a card before you play it, you will likely be short on clue-tokens in >99% of the decks.
* The logical conclusion is, that you cannot play a full information style game, and the team must agree on some sort of convention.
** Meaning: a certain amount of meta-information is assigned to the clues.

* Many players have different kinds of conventions. (Please note that not all conventions are added to the BGA list. Please respect the convention the table creator wants to play.)

* When different players in the same team assign different meta-information to the same clue, the game becomes unplayable.
** This is why the BGA table-settings give the option to set a table convention since the end of 2020.
** Please see this [https://boardgamearena.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=102&t=18031 post] started by [https://boardgamearena.com/player?id=84207926 Romain672].
* Ideally, all players adhere to the convention, to avoid miscommunication.

* Below, the meta-information of several conventions is explained.
* In the examples, colours are indicated by their first letter:
R - Red -      ,
Y - Yellow -      ,
G - Green -      ,
B - Blue -      ,
W - White -      ,
M - Multi-colour -      ,
P - black Powder -      .
K - blacK powder -      .
* ''For example:'' Y2 means the card with number 2 and colour yellow.
* For Black, you might see P or K (P for Powder, K for blacK which is played in reverse)

=== Standard convention ===

*You can assume the following meta-information:
** Every card that gets marked, will be playable at some point.
** A card marked with a number, can be played when all "number-1" cards are played.
*** ''This is usually explained as: number-clues mean that these cards should be saved and played later on in the game.''
*** ''It is custom to play saved cards from oldest to newest.'' (Since a number-clue is often used to save a card from being discarded, the oldest card is the most valuable and should be played first.)
** A colour-clue means that the newest, previously unmarked card, is the next playable card in the sequence.
** The oldest, unmarked card is safe to discard.
*** ''Obviously, if a player has a card that they are sure they will never be able to play, for example a card on which is marked as blue when the blue pile has already been completed, such card must be discarded in priority.''

* Clues you should avoid giving (bad clues):
** Giving a clue that marks 0 new cards.
** Give a clue that tells a lie (does not conform to the meta-information above).
** As a special remark: Since every marked card is assumed playable, you shouldn't mark useless, or duplicate cards. So if you have a saved 4, you are forbidden from marking 4s, unless you are sure you are not holding a copy of that 4.
* Sometimes, a "bad" clue can't be avoided.
** ''For example:'' when you need to save a unique 3 (using a number-clue) to avoid it being discarded, but you also accidentally mark a useless card.
** Or if you are forced to give a colour-clue from a flamboyant, and you use it to mark 0 new cards.
* When a lie has been told, it needs to be corrected.
* A correction-clue can never mean "play", it can only mean "discard".

==== Example 1 ====

new -> old
P1: R1, Y1, G1, B1, W1
P2: R2, Y4, R3, B3, G'''5'''
P3: G4, Y1, R4, Y3, Y2

Table: R1, Y5, G1, B3, W4

* It's P1's turn, and P2 knows his oldest card is 5.
* P1 will give R-clue to P2.
* This will tell P2, that the newest card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be R2), and that the other red can be R3, R4, or R5 (because it must be playable at some later point in the game).

==== Example 2 ====

new -> old
P1: R1, Y1, G1, B1, W1
P2: W5, Y4, '''R'''3, B3, G'''5'''
P3: W2, G4, Y1, R4, Y3

Table: R2, Y5, G1, B3, W4

* It is P1's turn again, and P2 knows his oldest card is 5, and his middle card is R.
* P1 will give R-clue to P3.
* This will tell P3, that his middle card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be R4, because R3 is already marked).
* This will give P2 the meta-information that his saved red card, is R3.
** ''This particular move is sometimes called prompting, and is a common way to allow a card that is saved by colour to get played without re-cluing it.''

==== Example 3 ====

new -> old
P1: R1, Y1, G1, B1, W1
P2: R3, Y4, R'''2''', B3, G5
P3: G4, Y1, R4, Y3, Y2

Table: R1, Y5, G0, B3, W4

* It is P1's turn, and P2 knows his middle card is 2.
* P1 will give R-clue to P2.
* This will tell P2 that his newest card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be R3, because R2 is now visible with 100% information).

=== Finesse ===

* Finesse builds on the standard convention (making it a bit more complex).
* In the finesse convention, the timing of the clue gives you extra information.
* You can assume the following meta-information:
** Every card that gets marked, will be playable at some point.
** If the oldest, unmarked card gets marked with a number-clue, then the clue meant "save this/these card(s)". (It is custom to play saved cards from oldest to newest when appropriate.)
** A clue that doesn't mark the oldest card, means that the newest, previously unmarked card, is the next playable card in the sequence.
** The oldest, unmarked card is safe to discard unless that player is busy by having a "known" play.
*** ''Obviously, if a player has a card that they are sure they will never be able to play, for example a card on which is marked as blue when the blue and multicolor piles have already been completed, such card must be discarded in priority.''
** If a marked card gets discarded it means:
*** The copy of that card is already marked in someone else's hand, and the discarding player is the first to realize this; or
*** The copy of that card MUST be marked in a future clue (because a save-clue will be given that will mark the copy card as collateral).

==== Meaning of skipping a player / stealing clues in Finesse convention ====
* There are different approaches among finesse-convention-players about who should clue whom. So this section will be devided into sub-sections. The order does not say anything about which approach is more common on BGA. There are a lot of players following each idea.
* As of now, there is no way of saying which approach is "right" or "better". Of course it is important for success, that in a game, the group of players follows the same idea. If they get mixed, it will most likely result in bombs. If that happens, it does not mean, the other player is "bad" - it merely means, they follow a different idea. So you can only try to find a common ground for the next game or play with another group next time.
* The text within the sections are written by people who follow the idea.

===== a) Skipping / stealing should be avoided =====
* If more than 1 person are able to give the same clue, then the last possible person should give that clue.
* In finesse convention skipping (P1 clues P3, instead of P2; then P2 is skipped) means either:
*# The skipped player is forbidden from giving that clue; or
*# The skipped player has something to play.

===== b) Skipping / stealing is for discard-management =====
This style is one of different ways of applying finesse convention. Since the primary assumption is that your CHOP is safe to discard, it might still be that said card is a nice-to-have like a non-unique 2 or 3 that is not yet playable. without knowing your chop card, it is good to handle each-other's chop situation by preferrably letting players with definitely useless chop-cards discard rather than discarding your own unknown card.

Skipping/stealing is a term that is often used for a situation, where giving a clue is not left for the last possible player to do. For example - player A saves a card on chop of player C, potentially leaving player B without a known play or a useful/necessary clue to give. Skipping players is a useful move to give other players the time to clue additional cards or discard.

When getting skipped without having a play or useful option to clue, it most likely means that your chop card is not very useful. These are valid reasons for skipping you:
* Your chop-card is trash (a copy of the card is already played/marked)
* Your chop-card is redundant: Another copy of it is on another player's (or your own) hand as well
* Your chop-card is a 4 and it's very early in the game
* You might still have something nice on chop, but the player sitting before already received information that their chop might be something very good (from earlier discard-behaviour like NOT being skipped over by the player sitting before them on earlier turns) and they are reluctant to discard for that reason.
* The clue given is a play-clue for a card that might be in your hand so you couldn't know whether you want the other card or not. The player skipping you knows that you want it and therefore takes away the decision.

This approach sacrifices some saving-clue-tokens option (that might be achieved on a stricter dogma about who should clue whom) in order to be able to keep nice cards in the game for longer and discard useless cards instead and by that often get those cards played before they would be discarded.
* This convention is better for players, who play efficient enough to rarely struggle with clue-shortness and can therefore afford being more careful about not losing first copies.
* If a group often struggles with clue-shortness then skipping-dogma (as proposed by other conventions) might as well improve their overall results. If the problem for not achieving 30 points usually isn't clue-shortness but getting bottom-decked (or heavily delayed from losing earlier a card that could be played now), then results can get better with this discard-management convention.

Planning ahead is a vital aspect of the game. By carefully deciding on who to let clue and whom to skip, it is often possible to
* avoid twin-chops before they become an issue
* avoid not having enough clue tokens to save all necessary cards
* get the discard you were waiting for (when a player has 2 copies of the same playable card and you want them to discard before clueing it)

==== Clues you should avoid giving (bad clues) ====

* As a special remark: don't mark useless, or duplicate cards. So if you have a saved 4, you are forbidden from marking 4s, unless you are sure you are not holding a copy of that

==== Special interpretation for play-clues ====

* When receiving a clue for the "next playable card in the sequence", the linking cards are not limited to already marked cards (like in standard convention).
* The newest, unmarked cards in every player's hand should be considered as well.

====== Example ======

new -> old
P1: ??, ??, ??, ??, ??
P2: B1, Y5, B3, W1, W2
P3: R5, R2, B2, G2, Y2

Table: R0, Y0, G0, B0, W0

* P1 gives B-clue to P3.
* This gives the information that B2 is the next playable card in the sequence, and that P2 is either not allowed to give B-clue, or has something to play.
* Since P2 has no marked cards, he was not blocked from giving B-clue, so he must have something to play.
* This something, must be the missing link (B1, to enable B2) that makes B2 the next playable card.
* Since there is no logical (marked) card that could be B1, P2 must assume his newest, unmarked card is B1 and blind-plays this card.

===== Example of reversed finesse =====

new -> old
P1: ??, ??, ??, ??, ??
P2: R5, R2, B2, G2, Y2
P3: B1, Y5, B3, W1, W2

Table: R0, Y0, G0, B0, W0

* P1 gives B-clue to P2.
* This gives the information that B2 is the next playable card in the sequence.
* P2 sees that the newest, unmarked card in the hand of P3 is of the same colour (blue) '''and''' playable now. P2 concludes it is a finesse, with the players in reversed order, so his blue card must be B2.

===== Example of a bluff =====

new -> old
P1: ??, ??, ??, ??, ??
P2: W1, Y5, B3, W1, W2
P3: R5, R2, B2, G2, Y2

Table: R0, Y0, G0, B0, W0

* P1 gives B-clue to P3.
* This gives the information that B2 is the next playable card in the sequence, and that P2 is either not allowed to give B-clue, or has something to play.
* Since P2 has no marked cards, he was not blocked from giving B-clue, so he must have something to play.
* This something, must be the missing link (B1, to enable B2) that makes B2 the next playable card.
* Since there is no logical (marked) card that could be B1, P2 must assume his newest, unmarked card is B1 and blind-plays this card.
* However, at this point the "lie" is revealed (because the colour of the played card does '''not''' match the colour of the finesse-clue).
* The blind-played card is '''not''' B1, but W1. P3, up to this point, was thinking he had B1.
* The blind-play of P2 gives him extra information: his blue card is in fact B2.

=== Hat-guessing ===

* [https://github.com/hanabi/hanabi.github.io/blob/main/misc/hat-guessing.md Github hat-guessing]

=== Logical Leftism ===

* [http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/basics-level-1-a117610126 Hanabi Logic basics-level-1]
* [http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/-a163408102 Hanabi Logic logical-leftism-in-a-nutshell]

=== Closest Friend ===

* TODO

=== Secret convention ===

* TODO

=== Conventional Leftism ===

* [http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/ll-vs-cl-the-differences-a132077536 Hanabi Logic ll-vs-cl-the-differences] gives some clues, but doesn't explain Conventional Leftism from first principles.

=== Chop-focus ===

* TODO

== Strategy ==

* In addition to the convention(s), there is also some strategy to the game.
* You should '''not''' confuse strategy with convention! Strategy is '''team''' vs '''deck'''; convention is communication within the team.
* A simple example of strategy is saving 2s in 2-player games.
** Using number-2-clue to communicate that those cards need to be saved, is a convention.

=== Examples ===

* More advanced players will try to avoid losing as many "first" (non-unique) cards as possible.
* It's a good strategy to keep good cards in the game as long as possible - even if they are not yet playable.
** ''The other copy of that card might be far down the draw pile.''
* Trying to mark at least 12 cards with the first 8 clue-tokens.
** This gives 99% chance of always having enough tokens in the game.
* Not using the last two clue-tokens for "single plays".
** This avoids running out of clue-tokens in times when you need to save critical cards.

For strategy tips, see [[Tips_hanabi]]

Gamehelphanabi

2022-03-04T22:22:29Z

Silene: /* b) Skipping / stealing is for discard-management */

[[Category:Card games]]
For tips on how to play hanabi, see [[Tips_hanabi]]
== Introduction ==

* Hanabi is a cooperative game. Your goal, as a team, is to build a fabulous fireworks show.
* You do this by playing the cards in the correct order.
* However, you cannot see your own cards; you can only see the cards of your team mates.

==== Final Score Ratings ====

{| class="wikitable"
|-
!Points
!Overall impression
|-
|5 or less
|horrible, booed by the crowd...
|-
|6-10
|mediocre, just a spattering of applause.
|-
|11-15
|honourable, but will not be remembered for very long...
|-
|16-20
|excellent, crowd pleasing.
|-
|21-24
|amazing, will be remembered for a very long time!
|-
|25
|legendary, everyone left speechless, stars in their eyes
|}

== Card distribution ==

* In a game of Hanabi on '''normal difficulty''', the deck contains 50 cards.
* Each card has exactly one colour: either Red, Yellow, Green, Blue, or White.

There are 10 cards in each colour:
* three 1s
* two 2s
* two 3s
* two 4s
* one 5

=== Multicolour cards ===

* There are three variants that add a 6th colour: the multicolour.
* There are three difficulties:

==== Tricky ====

* Adds 10 multicolour cards to the normal game.
* These cards get marked by a separate multicolour clue.

==== Hard ====

* '''5''' multicolour cards to the normal game: one of each number.
* These cards get marked by a separate multicolour clue.

==== Very Difficult ====

* Adds 10 multicolour cards to the normal game.
* These cards get marked by ANY colour clue.

== Game play ==

* You each take turns.
* During a turn, a player may take one (1) of three actions.
* After your action, the turn ends and it is the next player's turn.
* The game can end in several ways:
*# All cards have been drawn from the deck. After this happens, everybody gets 1 more turn. The game ends with the score at the last turn.
*# Your team played all possible cards. In this case, the game ends immediately and you receive the maximum possible score.
*# Your team made three mistakes that caused misfires. In this case, you lose the game and get negative ten (-10) points.
*# Your team 'abandons' the game. Although discouraged, you receive zero (0) points.

== Turn ==

* During your turn, you have one (1) action.
* You can choose to do one of the following:

==== Give a colour or number clue to a teammate ====

* This costs one clue-token (-1).
* You cannot give a clue if there are zero (0) clue-tokens left.
* When you give a clue, you must indicate '''all''' cards of a certain colour, or '''all''' cards of a certain number.

==== Play a card ====

* When a card is played, it is evaluated.
* If the card fits in one of sequences, it is placed in the appropriate colour stack on the table.
* If it does not fit, it is placed in the discard pile and the team gets a misfire-token.
* Then draw a new card.

==== Discard a card ====

* When you discard, the card is placed in the discard pile and you get a clue-token (+1).
* ''Note:'' cards on the discard pile are out of the game and can never return.
* Then draw a new card.

== Options ==

=== Black Powder ===

* You may not give clues regarding the colour black.
* Black cards must be played in reverse order, from 5 to 1.
* In the deck there are three black 5s, two black 4s, two black 3s, two black 2s, and one black 1.

=== Five Flamboyants ===

After playing the last card of a colour, randomly select one of the following bonuses for immediate use:
* Gain a clue token.
* Gain a clue token and recover a life.
* Give a clue regarding a colour.
* Give a clue regarding a number.
* Shuffle a discarded card into the deck.
* Play a discarded card, if possible.

== Lingo ==

When you play with others, certain words are used to describe certain objects or situations. Here is a short list.

;Marked: A card that is highlighted by a clue.
;Unmarked: A card that is not clued.
;chop: The oldest, unmarked card. The card that you have no information on and will chop from your hand.
;draw: The newest, unmarked card. The card that you have no information on and was freshly drawn.
;To bomb: A play that causes the third misfire-token. Sometimes called '''explosion'''
;Unique: A card that has no copy (left) in the deck.
;Double discard: When consecutive players have the same card on chop. A special problem, since, to each of the consecutive players, a number to chop does not look like a unique save.
;Twin chop: 2 consecutive players have the same card on chop. Same as Double discard
;Double save: When a player has two consecutive unique cards, requiring consecutive save clues.
;Strategy: A set of rules / guidelines / conventions on how to interpret actions by players (including spending of clue-tokens).

== ELO rating ==

* If you are playing with ELO rating on, your ELO may be changed at the end of the game.
* Here is how it works:
*# Every player on the team is temporarily considered as having the average ELO rating of the team.
*# The system will generate a bot associated with the score your team has achieved (let’s call it '''''Hanabot''''').
*#* Hanabot’s ELO rating depends on the variant you are playing (50 cards, 60 cards, 60 cards multicolour), the number of players on the team and, most importantly, your team's score.
*#* All Hanabot’s ELO ratings have been set by an experienced player, they are not random or simply proportional to the score/number of players.
*# Your team (actually your team's average ELO) will now compete against Hanabot.
*#* The system will calculate your team’s ELO gain/loss as though your team had tied with Hanabot.
*#* If your score is below 18 (50-card game) or below 21 (60-card game), Hanabot's ELO is always 1000.

* You can find [http://forum.boardgamearena.com/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=4814 all bots' ELO ratings here]
* The 55-card variant (50 cards + 1 of each value in the sixth color) cannot be played with ELO rating on.
** This is because this variant is highly dependent on draw and a team’s score may not always reflect the players’ skills.
* If you achieve the perfect score and this should cost you ELO points, you will be considered as having beaten the bot associated with the score, so that you lose no ELO points.
* To be confirmed: I think the ELO-system has had an overhaul.

== About "cheating" ==

* In the "real life Hanabi", you can talk. That's why we chose to let the chat open for the online version.

* As a consequence, it is very easy to cheat at Hanabi.
** However, as you can imagine, cheating is very stupid and has no interest... except for ELO boosting.
** This is why there is no international ranking for this game (ie: best player, second best player) and no trophies associated to it.

* Abandoning: Another method of cheating is to deliberately avoid finishing games that would cause ELO to drop.
** While some argue that games become "boring" once 30 becomes impossible, it is rarely the case that games are abandoned on 29 points while waiting for the final 5 to be drawn.

== Conventions ==
* If you want to play "full information" style, meaning that you wait until you know both the colour and number of a card before you play it, you will likely be short on clue-tokens in >99% of the decks.
* The logical conclusion is, that you cannot play a full information style game, and the team must agree on some sort of convention.
** Meaning: a certain amount of meta-information is assigned to the clues.

* Many players have different kinds of conventions. (Please note that not all conventions are added to the BGA list. Please respect the convention the table creator wants to play.)

* When different players in the same team assign different meta-information to the same clue, the game becomes unplayable.
** This is why the BGA table-settings give the option to set a table convention since the end of 2020.
** Please see this [https://boardgamearena.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=102&t=18031 post] started by [https://boardgamearena.com/player?id=84207926 Romain672].
* Ideally, all players adhere to the convention, to avoid miscommunication.

* Below, the meta-information of several conventions is explained.
* In the examples, colours are indicated by their first letter:
R - Red -      ,
Y - Yellow -      ,
G - Green -      ,
B - Blue -      ,
W - White -      ,
M - Multi-colour -      ,
P - black Powder -      .
K - blacK powder -      .
* ''For example:'' Y2 means the card with number 2 and colour yellow.
* For Black, you might see P or K (P for Powder, K for blacK which is played in reverse)

=== Standard convention ===

*You can assume the following meta-information:
** Every card that gets marked, will be playable at some point.
** A card marked with a number, can be played when all "number-1" cards are played.
*** ''This is usually explained as: number-clues mean that these cards should be saved and played later on in the game.''
*** ''It is custom to play saved cards from oldest to newest.'' (Since a number-clue is often used to save a card from being discarded, the oldest card is the most valuable and should be played first.)
** A colour-clue means that the newest, previously unmarked card, is the next playable card in the sequence.
** The oldest, unmarked card is safe to discard.
*** ''Obviously, if a player has a card that they are sure they will never be able to play, for example a card on which is marked as blue when the blue pile has already been completed, such card must be discarded in priority.''

* Clues you should avoid giving (bad clues):
** Giving a clue that marks 0 new cards.
** Give a clue that tells a lie (does not conform to the meta-information above).
** As a special remark: Since every marked card is assumed playable, you shouldn't mark useless, or duplicate cards. So if you have a saved 4, you are forbidden from marking 4s, unless you are sure you are not holding a copy of that 4.
* Sometimes, a "bad" clue can't be avoided.
** ''For example:'' when you need to save a unique 3 (using a number-clue) to avoid it being discarded, but you also accidentally mark a useless card.
** Or if you are forced to give a colour-clue from a flamboyant, and you use it to mark 0 new cards.
* When a lie has been told, it needs to be corrected.
* A correction-clue can never mean "play", it can only mean "discard".

==== Example 1 ====

new -> old
P1: R1, Y1, G1, B1, W1
P2: R2, Y4, R3, B3, G'''5'''
P3: G4, Y1, R4, Y3, Y2

Table: R1, Y5, G1, B3, W4

* It's P1's turn, and P2 knows his oldest card is 5.
* P1 will give R-clue to P2.
* This will tell P2, that the newest card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be R2), and that the other red can be R3, R4, or R5 (because it must be playable at some later point in the game).

==== Example 2 ====

new -> old
P1: R1, Y1, G1, B1, W1
P2: W5, Y4, '''R'''3, B3, G'''5'''
P3: W2, G4, Y1, R4, Y3

Table: R2, Y5, G1, B3, W4

* It is P1's turn again, and P2 knows his oldest card is 5, and his middle card is R.
* P1 will give R-clue to P3.
* This will tell P3, that his middle card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be R4, because R3 is already marked).
* This will give P2 the meta-information that his saved red card, is R3.
** ''This particular move is sometimes called prompting, and is a common way to allow a card that is saved by colour to get played without re-cluing it.''

==== Example 3 ====

new -> old
P1: R1, Y1, G1, B1, W1
P2: R3, Y4, R'''2''', B3, G5
P3: G4, Y1, R4, Y3, Y2

Table: R1, Y5, G0, B3, W4

* It is P1's turn, and P2 knows his middle card is 2.
* P1 will give R-clue to P2.
* This will tell P2 that his newest card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be R3, because R2 is now visible with 100% information).

=== Finesse ===

* Finesse builds on the standard convention (making it a bit more complex).
* In the finesse convention, the timing of the clue gives you extra information.
* You can assume the following meta-information:
** Every card that gets marked, will be playable at some point.
** If the oldest, unmarked card gets marked with a number-clue, then the clue meant "save this/these card(s)". (It is custom to play saved cards from oldest to newest when appropriate.)
** A clue that doesn't mark the oldest card, means that the newest, previously unmarked card, is the next playable card in the sequence.
** The oldest, unmarked card is safe to discard unless that player is busy by having a "known" play.
*** ''Obviously, if a player has a card that they are sure they will never be able to play, for example a card on which is marked as blue when the blue and multicolor piles have already been completed, such card must be discarded in priority.''
** If a marked card gets discarded it means:
*** The copy of that card is already marked in someone else's hand, and the discarding player is the first to realize this; or
*** The copy of that card MUST be marked in a future clue (because a save-clue will be given that will mark the copy card as collateral).

==== Meaning of skipping a player / stealing clues in Finesse convention ====
* There are different approaches among finesse-convention-players about who should clue whom. So this section will be devided into sub-sections. The order does not say anything about which approach is more common on BGA. There are a lot of players following each idea.
* As of now, there is no way of saying which approach is "right" or "better". Of course it is important for success, that in a game, the group of players follows the same idea. If they get mixed, it will most likely result in bombs. If that happens, it does not mean, the other player is "bad" - it merely means, they follow a different idea. So you can only try to find a common ground for the next game or play with another group next time.
* The text within the sections are written by people who follow the idea.

===== a) Skipping / stealing should be avoided =====
* If more than 1 person are able to give the same clue, then the last possible person should give that clue.
* In finesse convention skipping (P1 clues P3, instead of P2; then P2 is skipped) means either:
*# The skipped player is forbidden from giving that clue; or
*# The skipped player has something to play.

===== b) Skipping / stealing is for discard-management =====
This style is one of different ways of applying finesse convention. Since the primary assumption is that your CHOP is safe to discard, it might still be that said card is a nice-to-have like a non-unique 2 or 3 that is not yet playable. without knowing your chop card, it is good to handle each-other's chop situation by preferrably letting players with definitely useless chop-cards discard rather than discarding your own unknown card.

Skipping/stealing is a term that is often used for a situation, where giving a clue is not left for the last possible player to do. For example - player A saves a card on chop of player C, potentially leaving player B without a known play or a useful/necessary clue to give. Skipping players is a useful move to give other players the time to clue additional cards or discard.

When getting skipped without having a play or useful option to clue, it most likely means that your chop card is not very useful. These are valid reasons for skipping you:
* Your chop-card is trash (a copy of the card is already played/marked)
* Your chop-card is redundant: Another copy of it is on another player's (or your own) hand as well
* You might still have something nice on chop, but the player sitting before already received information that their chop might be something very good (from earlier discard-behaviour like NOT being skipped over by the player sitting before them on earlier turns) and they are reluctant to discard for that reason.
* The clue given is a play-clue for a card that might be in your hand so you couldn't know whether you want the other card or not. The player skipping you knows that you want it and therefore takes away the decision.

This approach sacrifices some saving-clue-tokens option (that might be achieved on a stricter dogma about who should clue whom) in order to be able to keep nice cards in the game for longer and discard useless cards instead and by that often get those cards played before they would be discarded.
* This convention is better for players, who play efficient enough to rarely struggle with clue-shortness and can therefore afford being more careful about not losing first copies.
* If a group often struggles with clue-shortness then skipping-dogma (as proposed by other conventions) might as well improve their overall results. If the problem for not achieving 30 points usually isn't clue-shortness but getting bottom-decked (or heavily delayed from losing earlier a card that could be played now), then results can get better with this discard-management convention.

Planning ahead is a vital aspect of the game. By carefully deciding on who to let clue and whom to skip, it is often possible to
* avoid twin-chops before they become an issue
* avoid not having enough clue tokens to save all necessary cards
* get the discard you were waiting for (when a player has 2 copies of the same playable card and you want them to discard before clueing it)

==== Clues you should avoid giving (bad clues) ====

* As a special remark: don't mark useless, or duplicate cards. So if you have a saved 4, you are forbidden from marking 4s, unless you are sure you are not holding a copy of that

==== Special interpretation for play-clues ====

* When receiving a clue for the "next playable card in the sequence", the linking cards are not limited to already marked cards (like in standard convention).
* The newest, unmarked cards in every player's hand should be considered as well.

====== Example ======

new -> old
P1: ??, ??, ??, ??, ??
P2: B1, Y5, B3, W1, W2
P3: R5, R2, B2, G2, Y2

Table: R0, Y0, G0, B0, W0

* P1 gives B-clue to P3.
* This gives the information that B2 is the next playable card in the sequence, and that P2 is either not allowed to give B-clue, or has something to play.
* Since P2 has no marked cards, he was not blocked from giving B-clue, so he must have something to play.
* This something, must be the missing link (B1, to enable B2) that makes B2 the next playable card.
* Since there is no logical (marked) card that could be B1, P2 must assume his newest, unmarked card is B1 and blind-plays this card.

===== Example of reversed finesse =====

new -> old
P1: ??, ??, ??, ??, ??
P2: R5, R2, B2, G2, Y2
P3: B1, Y5, B3, W1, W2

Table: R0, Y0, G0, B0, W0

* P1 gives B-clue to P2.
* This gives the information that B2 is the next playable card in the sequence.
* P2 sees that the newest, unmarked card in the hand of P3 is of the same colour (blue) '''and''' playable now. P2 concludes it is a finesse, with the players in reversed order, so his blue card must be B2.

===== Example of a bluff =====

new -> old
P1: ??, ??, ??, ??, ??
P2: W1, Y5, B3, W1, W2
P3: R5, R2, B2, G2, Y2

Table: R0, Y0, G0, B0, W0

* P1 gives B-clue to P3.
* This gives the information that B2 is the next playable card in the sequence, and that P2 is either not allowed to give B-clue, or has something to play.
* Since P2 has no marked cards, he was not blocked from giving B-clue, so he must have something to play.
* This something, must be the missing link (B1, to enable B2) that makes B2 the next playable card.
* Since there is no logical (marked) card that could be B1, P2 must assume his newest, unmarked card is B1 and blind-plays this card.
* However, at this point the "lie" is revealed (because the colour of the played card does '''not''' match the colour of the finesse-clue).
* The blind-played card is '''not''' B1, but W1. P3, up to this point, was thinking he had B1.
* The blind-play of P2 gives him extra information: his blue card is in fact B2.

=== Hat-guessing ===

* [https://github.com/hanabi/hanabi.github.io/blob/main/misc/hat-guessing.md Github hat-guessing]

=== Logical Leftism ===

* [http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/basics-level-1-a117610126 Hanabi Logic basics-level-1]
* [http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/-a163408102 Hanabi Logic logical-leftism-in-a-nutshell]

=== Closest Friend ===

* TODO

=== Secret convention ===

* TODO

=== Conventional Leftism ===

* [http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/ll-vs-cl-the-differences-a132077536 Hanabi Logic ll-vs-cl-the-differences] gives some clues, but doesn't explain Conventional Leftism from first principles.

=== Chop-focus ===

* TODO

== Strategy ==

* In addition to the convention(s), there is also some strategy to the game.
* You should '''not''' confuse strategy with convention! Strategy is '''team''' vs '''deck'''; convention is communication within the team.
* A simple example of strategy is saving 2s in 2-player games.
** Using number-2-clue to communicate that those cards need to be saved, is a convention.

=== Examples ===

* More advanced players will try to avoid losing as many "first" (non-unique) cards as possible.
* It's a good strategy to keep good cards in the game as long as possible - even if they are not yet playable.
** ''The other copy of that card might be far down the draw pile.''
* Trying to mark at least 12 cards with the first 8 clue-tokens.
** This gives 99% chance of always having enough tokens in the game.
* Not using the last two clue-tokens for "single plays".
** This avoids running out of clue-tokens in times when you need to save critical cards.

For strategy tips, see [[Tips_hanabi]]

Gamehelphanabi

2022-03-04T22:20:43Z

Silene: /* b) Skipping / stealing is for discard-management */

[[Category:Card games]]
For tips on how to play hanabi, see [[Tips_hanabi]]
== Introduction ==

* Hanabi is a cooperative game. Your goal, as a team, is to build a fabulous fireworks show.
* You do this by playing the cards in the correct order.
* However, you cannot see your own cards; you can only see the cards of your team mates.

==== Final Score Ratings ====

{| class="wikitable"
|-
!Points
!Overall impression
|-
|5 or less
|horrible, booed by the crowd...
|-
|6-10
|mediocre, just a spattering of applause.
|-
|11-15
|honourable, but will not be remembered for very long...
|-
|16-20
|excellent, crowd pleasing.
|-
|21-24
|amazing, will be remembered for a very long time!
|-
|25
|legendary, everyone left speechless, stars in their eyes
|}

== Card distribution ==

* In a game of Hanabi on '''normal difficulty''', the deck contains 50 cards.
* Each card has exactly one colour: either Red, Yellow, Green, Blue, or White.

There are 10 cards in each colour:
* three 1s
* two 2s
* two 3s
* two 4s
* one 5

=== Multicolour cards ===

* There are three variants that add a 6th colour: the multicolour.
* There are three difficulties:

==== Tricky ====

* Adds 10 multicolour cards to the normal game.
* These cards get marked by a separate multicolour clue.

==== Hard ====

* '''5''' multicolour cards to the normal game: one of each number.
* These cards get marked by a separate multicolour clue.

==== Very Difficult ====

* Adds 10 multicolour cards to the normal game.
* These cards get marked by ANY colour clue.

== Game play ==

* You each take turns.
* During a turn, a player may take one (1) of three actions.
* After your action, the turn ends and it is the next player's turn.
* The game can end in several ways:
*# All cards have been drawn from the deck. After this happens, everybody gets 1 more turn. The game ends with the score at the last turn.
*# Your team played all possible cards. In this case, the game ends immediately and you receive the maximum possible score.
*# Your team made three mistakes that caused misfires. In this case, you lose the game and get negative ten (-10) points.
*# Your team 'abandons' the game. Although discouraged, you receive zero (0) points.

== Turn ==

* During your turn, you have one (1) action.
* You can choose to do one of the following:

==== Give a colour or number clue to a teammate ====

* This costs one clue-token (-1).
* You cannot give a clue if there are zero (0) clue-tokens left.
* When you give a clue, you must indicate '''all''' cards of a certain colour, or '''all''' cards of a certain number.

==== Play a card ====

* When a card is played, it is evaluated.
* If the card fits in one of sequences, it is placed in the appropriate colour stack on the table.
* If it does not fit, it is placed in the discard pile and the team gets a misfire-token.
* Then draw a new card.

==== Discard a card ====

* When you discard, the card is placed in the discard pile and you get a clue-token (+1).
* ''Note:'' cards on the discard pile are out of the game and can never return.
* Then draw a new card.

== Options ==

=== Black Powder ===

* You may not give clues regarding the colour black.
* Black cards must be played in reverse order, from 5 to 1.
* In the deck there are three black 5s, two black 4s, two black 3s, two black 2s, and one black 1.

=== Five Flamboyants ===

After playing the last card of a colour, randomly select one of the following bonuses for immediate use:
* Gain a clue token.
* Gain a clue token and recover a life.
* Give a clue regarding a colour.
* Give a clue regarding a number.
* Shuffle a discarded card into the deck.
* Play a discarded card, if possible.

== Lingo ==

When you play with others, certain words are used to describe certain objects or situations. Here is a short list.

;Marked: A card that is highlighted by a clue.
;Unmarked: A card that is not clued.
;chop: The oldest, unmarked card. The card that you have no information on and will chop from your hand.
;draw: The newest, unmarked card. The card that you have no information on and was freshly drawn.
;To bomb: A play that causes the third misfire-token. Sometimes called '''explosion'''
;Unique: A card that has no copy (left) in the deck.
;Double discard: When consecutive players have the same card on chop. A special problem, since, to each of the consecutive players, a number to chop does not look like a unique save.
;Twin chop: 2 consecutive players have the same card on chop. Same as Double discard
;Double save: When a player has two consecutive unique cards, requiring consecutive save clues.
;Strategy: A set of rules / guidelines / conventions on how to interpret actions by players (including spending of clue-tokens).

== ELO rating ==

* If you are playing with ELO rating on, your ELO may be changed at the end of the game.
* Here is how it works:
*# Every player on the team is temporarily considered as having the average ELO rating of the team.
*# The system will generate a bot associated with the score your team has achieved (let’s call it '''''Hanabot''''').
*#* Hanabot’s ELO rating depends on the variant you are playing (50 cards, 60 cards, 60 cards multicolour), the number of players on the team and, most importantly, your team's score.
*#* All Hanabot’s ELO ratings have been set by an experienced player, they are not random or simply proportional to the score/number of players.
*# Your team (actually your team's average ELO) will now compete against Hanabot.
*#* The system will calculate your team’s ELO gain/loss as though your team had tied with Hanabot.
*#* If your score is below 18 (50-card game) or below 21 (60-card game), Hanabot's ELO is always 1000.

* You can find [http://forum.boardgamearena.com/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=4814 all bots' ELO ratings here]
* The 55-card variant (50 cards + 1 of each value in the sixth color) cannot be played with ELO rating on.
** This is because this variant is highly dependent on draw and a team’s score may not always reflect the players’ skills.
* If you achieve the perfect score and this should cost you ELO points, you will be considered as having beaten the bot associated with the score, so that you lose no ELO points.
* To be confirmed: I think the ELO-system has had an overhaul.

== About "cheating" ==

* In the "real life Hanabi", you can talk. That's why we chose to let the chat open for the online version.

* As a consequence, it is very easy to cheat at Hanabi.
** However, as you can imagine, cheating is very stupid and has no interest... except for ELO boosting.
** This is why there is no international ranking for this game (ie: best player, second best player) and no trophies associated to it.

* Abandoning: Another method of cheating is to deliberately avoid finishing games that would cause ELO to drop.
** While some argue that games become "boring" once 30 becomes impossible, it is rarely the case that games are abandoned on 29 points while waiting for the final 5 to be drawn.

== Conventions ==
* If you want to play "full information" style, meaning that you wait until you know both the colour and number of a card before you play it, you will likely be short on clue-tokens in >99% of the decks.
* The logical conclusion is, that you cannot play a full information style game, and the team must agree on some sort of convention.
** Meaning: a certain amount of meta-information is assigned to the clues.

* Many players have different kinds of conventions. (Please note that not all conventions are added to the BGA list. Please respect the convention the table creator wants to play.)

* When different players in the same team assign different meta-information to the same clue, the game becomes unplayable.
** This is why the BGA table-settings give the option to set a table convention since the end of 2020.
** Please see this [https://boardgamearena.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=102&t=18031 post] started by [https://boardgamearena.com/player?id=84207926 Romain672].
* Ideally, all players adhere to the convention, to avoid miscommunication.

* Below, the meta-information of several conventions is explained.
* In the examples, colours are indicated by their first letter:
R - Red -      ,
Y - Yellow -      ,
G - Green -      ,
B - Blue -      ,
W - White -      ,
M - Multi-colour -      ,
P - black Powder -      .
K - blacK powder -      .
* ''For example:'' Y2 means the card with number 2 and colour yellow.
* For Black, you might see P or K (P for Powder, K for blacK which is played in reverse)

=== Standard convention ===

*You can assume the following meta-information:
** Every card that gets marked, will be playable at some point.
** A card marked with a number, can be played when all "number-1" cards are played.
*** ''This is usually explained as: number-clues mean that these cards should be saved and played later on in the game.''
*** ''It is custom to play saved cards from oldest to newest.'' (Since a number-clue is often used to save a card from being discarded, the oldest card is the most valuable and should be played first.)
** A colour-clue means that the newest, previously unmarked card, is the next playable card in the sequence.
** The oldest, unmarked card is safe to discard.
*** ''Obviously, if a player has a card that they are sure they will never be able to play, for example a card on which is marked as blue when the blue pile has already been completed, such card must be discarded in priority.''

* Clues you should avoid giving (bad clues):
** Giving a clue that marks 0 new cards.
** Give a clue that tells a lie (does not conform to the meta-information above).
** As a special remark: Since every marked card is assumed playable, you shouldn't mark useless, or duplicate cards. So if you have a saved 4, you are forbidden from marking 4s, unless you are sure you are not holding a copy of that 4.
* Sometimes, a "bad" clue can't be avoided.
** ''For example:'' when you need to save a unique 3 (using a number-clue) to avoid it being discarded, but you also accidentally mark a useless card.
** Or if you are forced to give a colour-clue from a flamboyant, and you use it to mark 0 new cards.
* When a lie has been told, it needs to be corrected.
* A correction-clue can never mean "play", it can only mean "discard".

==== Example 1 ====

new -> old
P1: R1, Y1, G1, B1, W1
P2: R2, Y4, R3, B3, G'''5'''
P3: G4, Y1, R4, Y3, Y2

Table: R1, Y5, G1, B3, W4

* It's P1's turn, and P2 knows his oldest card is 5.
* P1 will give R-clue to P2.
* This will tell P2, that the newest card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be R2), and that the other red can be R3, R4, or R5 (because it must be playable at some later point in the game).

==== Example 2 ====

new -> old
P1: R1, Y1, G1, B1, W1
P2: W5, Y4, '''R'''3, B3, G'''5'''
P3: W2, G4, Y1, R4, Y3

Table: R2, Y5, G1, B3, W4

* It is P1's turn again, and P2 knows his oldest card is 5, and his middle card is R.
* P1 will give R-clue to P3.
* This will tell P3, that his middle card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be R4, because R3 is already marked).
* This will give P2 the meta-information that his saved red card, is R3.
** ''This particular move is sometimes called prompting, and is a common way to allow a card that is saved by colour to get played without re-cluing it.''

==== Example 3 ====

new -> old
P1: R1, Y1, G1, B1, W1
P2: R3, Y4, R'''2''', B3, G5
P3: G4, Y1, R4, Y3, Y2

Table: R1, Y5, G0, B3, W4

* It is P1's turn, and P2 knows his middle card is 2.
* P1 will give R-clue to P2.
* This will tell P2 that his newest card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be R3, because R2 is now visible with 100% information).

=== Finesse ===

* Finesse builds on the standard convention (making it a bit more complex).
* In the finesse convention, the timing of the clue gives you extra information.
* You can assume the following meta-information:
** Every card that gets marked, will be playable at some point.
** If the oldest, unmarked card gets marked with a number-clue, then the clue meant "save this/these card(s)". (It is custom to play saved cards from oldest to newest when appropriate.)
** A clue that doesn't mark the oldest card, means that the newest, previously unmarked card, is the next playable card in the sequence.
** The oldest, unmarked card is safe to discard unless that player is busy by having a "known" play.
*** ''Obviously, if a player has a card that they are sure they will never be able to play, for example a card on which is marked as blue when the blue and multicolor piles have already been completed, such card must be discarded in priority.''
** If a marked card gets discarded it means:
*** The copy of that card is already marked in someone else's hand, and the discarding player is the first to realize this; or
*** The copy of that card MUST be marked in a future clue (because a save-clue will be given that will mark the copy card as collateral).

==== Meaning of skipping a player / stealing clues in Finesse convention ====
* There are different approaches among finesse-convention-players about who should clue whom. So this section will be devided into sub-sections. The order does not say anything about which approach is more common on BGA. There are a lot of players following each idea.
* As of now, there is no way of saying which approach is "right" or "better". Of course it is important for success, that in a game, the group of players follows the same idea. If they get mixed, it will most likely result in bombs. If that happens, it does not mean, the other player is "bad" - it merely means, they follow a different idea. So you can only try to find a common ground for the next game or play with another group next time.
* The text within the sections are written by people who follow the idea.

===== a) Skipping / stealing should be avoided =====
* If more than 1 person are able to give the same clue, then the last possible person should give that clue.
* In finesse convention skipping (P1 clues P3, instead of P2; then P2 is skipped) means either:
*# The skipped player is forbidden from giving that clue; or
*# The skipped player has something to play.

===== b) Skipping / stealing is for discard-management =====
This style is one of different ways of applying finesse convention. Since the primary assumption is that your CHOP is safe to discard, it might still be that said card is a nice-to-have like a non-unique 2 or 3 that is not yet playable. without knowing your chop card, it is good to handle each-other's chop situation by preferrably letting players with definitely useless chop-cards discard rather than discarding your own unknown card.

Skipping/stealing is a term that is often used for a situation, where giving a clue is not left for the last possible player to do. For example - player A saves a card on chop of player C, potentially leaving player B without a known play or a useful/necessary clue to give. Skipping players is a useful move give other players the time to play other cards or discardd.

When getting skipped without having a play or useful option to clue, it most likely means that your chop card is not very useful. These are valid reasons for skipping you:
* Your chop-card is trash (a copy of the card is already played/marked)
* Your chop-card is redundant: Another copy of it is on another player's (or your own) hand as well
* You might still have something nice on chop, but the player sitting before already received information that their chop might be something very good (from earlier discard-behaviour like NOT being skipped over by the player sitting before them on earlier turns) and they are reluctant to discard for that reason.
* The clue given is a play-clue for a card that might be in your hand so you couldn't know whether you want the other card or not. The player skipping you knows that you want it and therefore takes away the decision.

This approach sacrifices some saving-clue-tokens option (that might be achieved on a stricter dogma about who should clue whom) in order to be able to keep nice cards in the game for longer and discard useless cards instead and by that often get those cards played before they would be discarded.
* This convention is better for players, who play efficient enough to rarely struggle with clue-shortness and can therefore afford being more careful about not losing first copies.
* If a group often struggles with clue-shortness then skipping-dogma (as proposed by other conventions) might as well improve their overall results. If the problem for not achieving 30 points usually isn't clue-shortness but getting bottom-decked (or heavily delayed from losing earlier a card that could be played now), then results can get better with this discard-management convention.

Planning ahead is a vital aspect of the game. By carefully deciding on who to let clue and whom to skip, it is often possible to
* avoid twin-chops before they become an issue
* avoid not having enough clue tokens to save all necessary cards
* get the discard you were waiting for (when a player has 2 copies of the same playable card and you want them to discard before clueing it)

==== Clues you should avoid giving (bad clues) ====

* As a special remark: don't mark useless, or duplicate cards. So if you have a saved 4, you are forbidden from marking 4s, unless you are sure you are not holding a copy of that

==== Special interpretation for play-clues ====

* When receiving a clue for the "next playable card in the sequence", the linking cards are not limited to already marked cards (like in standard convention).
* The newest, unmarked cards in every player's hand should be considered as well.

====== Example ======

new -> old
P1: ??, ??, ??, ??, ??
P2: B1, Y5, B3, W1, W2
P3: R5, R2, B2, G2, Y2

Table: R0, Y0, G0, B0, W0

* P1 gives B-clue to P3.
* This gives the information that B2 is the next playable card in the sequence, and that P2 is either not allowed to give B-clue, or has something to play.
* Since P2 has no marked cards, he was not blocked from giving B-clue, so he must have something to play.
* This something, must be the missing link (B1, to enable B2) that makes B2 the next playable card.
* Since there is no logical (marked) card that could be B1, P2 must assume his newest, unmarked card is B1 and blind-plays this card.

===== Example of reversed finesse =====

new -> old
P1: ??, ??, ??, ??, ??
P2: R5, R2, B2, G2, Y2
P3: B1, Y5, B3, W1, W2

Table: R0, Y0, G0, B0, W0

* P1 gives B-clue to P2.
* This gives the information that B2 is the next playable card in the sequence.
* P2 sees that the newest, unmarked card in the hand of P3 is of the same colour (blue) '''and''' playable now. P2 concludes it is a finesse, with the players in reversed order, so his blue card must be B2.

===== Example of a bluff =====

new -> old
P1: ??, ??, ??, ??, ??
P2: W1, Y5, B3, W1, W2
P3: R5, R2, B2, G2, Y2

Table: R0, Y0, G0, B0, W0

* P1 gives B-clue to P3.
* This gives the information that B2 is the next playable card in the sequence, and that P2 is either not allowed to give B-clue, or has something to play.
* Since P2 has no marked cards, he was not blocked from giving B-clue, so he must have something to play.
* This something, must be the missing link (B1, to enable B2) that makes B2 the next playable card.
* Since there is no logical (marked) card that could be B1, P2 must assume his newest, unmarked card is B1 and blind-plays this card.
* However, at this point the "lie" is revealed (because the colour of the played card does '''not''' match the colour of the finesse-clue).
* The blind-played card is '''not''' B1, but W1. P3, up to this point, was thinking he had B1.
* The blind-play of P2 gives him extra information: his blue card is in fact B2.

=== Hat-guessing ===

* [https://github.com/hanabi/hanabi.github.io/blob/main/misc/hat-guessing.md Github hat-guessing]

=== Logical Leftism ===

* [http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/basics-level-1-a117610126 Hanabi Logic basics-level-1]
* [http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/-a163408102 Hanabi Logic logical-leftism-in-a-nutshell]

=== Closest Friend ===

* TODO

=== Secret convention ===

* TODO

=== Conventional Leftism ===

* [http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/ll-vs-cl-the-differences-a132077536 Hanabi Logic ll-vs-cl-the-differences] gives some clues, but doesn't explain Conventional Leftism from first principles.

=== Chop-focus ===

* TODO

== Strategy ==

* In addition to the convention(s), there is also some strategy to the game.
* You should '''not''' confuse strategy with convention! Strategy is '''team''' vs '''deck'''; convention is communication within the team.
* A simple example of strategy is saving 2s in 2-player games.
** Using number-2-clue to communicate that those cards need to be saved, is a convention.

=== Examples ===

* More advanced players will try to avoid losing as many "first" (non-unique) cards as possible.
* It's a good strategy to keep good cards in the game as long as possible - even if they are not yet playable.
** ''The other copy of that card might be far down the draw pile.''
* Trying to mark at least 12 cards with the first 8 clue-tokens.
** This gives 99% chance of always having enough tokens in the game.
* Not using the last two clue-tokens for "single plays".
** This avoids running out of clue-tokens in times when you need to save critical cards.

For strategy tips, see [[Tips_hanabi]]

Gamehelphanabi

2022-03-04T22:19:49Z

Silene: /* b) Skipping / stealing is for discard-management */

[[Category:Card games]]
For tips on how to play hanabi, see [[Tips_hanabi]]
== Introduction ==

* Hanabi is a cooperative game. Your goal, as a team, is to build a fabulous fireworks show.
* You do this by playing the cards in the correct order.
* However, you cannot see your own cards; you can only see the cards of your team mates.

==== Final Score Ratings ====

{| class="wikitable"
|-
!Points
!Overall impression
|-
|5 or less
|horrible, booed by the crowd...
|-
|6-10
|mediocre, just a spattering of applause.
|-
|11-15
|honourable, but will not be remembered for very long...
|-
|16-20
|excellent, crowd pleasing.
|-
|21-24
|amazing, will be remembered for a very long time!
|-
|25
|legendary, everyone left speechless, stars in their eyes
|}

== Card distribution ==

* In a game of Hanabi on '''normal difficulty''', the deck contains 50 cards.
* Each card has exactly one colour: either Red, Yellow, Green, Blue, or White.

There are 10 cards in each colour:
* three 1s
* two 2s
* two 3s
* two 4s
* one 5

=== Multicolour cards ===

* There are three variants that add a 6th colour: the multicolour.
* There are three difficulties:

==== Tricky ====

* Adds 10 multicolour cards to the normal game.
* These cards get marked by a separate multicolour clue.

==== Hard ====

* '''5''' multicolour cards to the normal game: one of each number.
* These cards get marked by a separate multicolour clue.

==== Very Difficult ====

* Adds 10 multicolour cards to the normal game.
* These cards get marked by ANY colour clue.

== Game play ==

* You each take turns.
* During a turn, a player may take one (1) of three actions.
* After your action, the turn ends and it is the next player's turn.
* The game can end in several ways:
*# All cards have been drawn from the deck. After this happens, everybody gets 1 more turn. The game ends with the score at the last turn.
*# Your team played all possible cards. In this case, the game ends immediately and you receive the maximum possible score.
*# Your team made three mistakes that caused misfires. In this case, you lose the game and get negative ten (-10) points.
*# Your team 'abandons' the game. Although discouraged, you receive zero (0) points.

== Turn ==

* During your turn, you have one (1) action.
* You can choose to do one of the following:

==== Give a colour or number clue to a teammate ====

* This costs one clue-token (-1).
* You cannot give a clue if there are zero (0) clue-tokens left.
* When you give a clue, you must indicate '''all''' cards of a certain colour, or '''all''' cards of a certain number.

==== Play a card ====

* When a card is played, it is evaluated.
* If the card fits in one of sequences, it is placed in the appropriate colour stack on the table.
* If it does not fit, it is placed in the discard pile and the team gets a misfire-token.
* Then draw a new card.

==== Discard a card ====

* When you discard, the card is placed in the discard pile and you get a clue-token (+1).
* ''Note:'' cards on the discard pile are out of the game and can never return.
* Then draw a new card.

== Options ==

=== Black Powder ===

* You may not give clues regarding the colour black.
* Black cards must be played in reverse order, from 5 to 1.
* In the deck there are three black 5s, two black 4s, two black 3s, two black 2s, and one black 1.

=== Five Flamboyants ===

After playing the last card of a colour, randomly select one of the following bonuses for immediate use:
* Gain a clue token.
* Gain a clue token and recover a life.
* Give a clue regarding a colour.
* Give a clue regarding a number.
* Shuffle a discarded card into the deck.
* Play a discarded card, if possible.

== Lingo ==

When you play with others, certain words are used to describe certain objects or situations. Here is a short list.

;Marked: A card that is highlighted by a clue.
;Unmarked: A card that is not clued.
;chop: The oldest, unmarked card. The card that you have no information on and will chop from your hand.
;draw: The newest, unmarked card. The card that you have no information on and was freshly drawn.
;To bomb: A play that causes the third misfire-token. Sometimes called '''explosion'''
;Unique: A card that has no copy (left) in the deck.
;Double discard: When consecutive players have the same card on chop. A special problem, since, to each of the consecutive players, a number to chop does not look like a unique save.
;Twin chop: 2 consecutive players have the same card on chop. Same as Double discard
;Double save: When a player has two consecutive unique cards, requiring consecutive save clues.
;Strategy: A set of rules / guidelines / conventions on how to interpret actions by players (including spending of clue-tokens).

== ELO rating ==

* If you are playing with ELO rating on, your ELO may be changed at the end of the game.
* Here is how it works:
*# Every player on the team is temporarily considered as having the average ELO rating of the team.
*# The system will generate a bot associated with the score your team has achieved (let’s call it '''''Hanabot''''').
*#* Hanabot’s ELO rating depends on the variant you are playing (50 cards, 60 cards, 60 cards multicolour), the number of players on the team and, most importantly, your team's score.
*#* All Hanabot’s ELO ratings have been set by an experienced player, they are not random or simply proportional to the score/number of players.
*# Your team (actually your team's average ELO) will now compete against Hanabot.
*#* The system will calculate your team’s ELO gain/loss as though your team had tied with Hanabot.
*#* If your score is below 18 (50-card game) or below 21 (60-card game), Hanabot's ELO is always 1000.

* You can find [http://forum.boardgamearena.com/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=4814 all bots' ELO ratings here]
* The 55-card variant (50 cards + 1 of each value in the sixth color) cannot be played with ELO rating on.
** This is because this variant is highly dependent on draw and a team’s score may not always reflect the players’ skills.
* If you achieve the perfect score and this should cost you ELO points, you will be considered as having beaten the bot associated with the score, so that you lose no ELO points.
* To be confirmed: I think the ELO-system has had an overhaul.

== About "cheating" ==

* In the "real life Hanabi", you can talk. That's why we chose to let the chat open for the online version.

* As a consequence, it is very easy to cheat at Hanabi.
** However, as you can imagine, cheating is very stupid and has no interest... except for ELO boosting.
** This is why there is no international ranking for this game (ie: best player, second best player) and no trophies associated to it.

* Abandoning: Another method of cheating is to deliberately avoid finishing games that would cause ELO to drop.
** While some argue that games become "boring" once 30 becomes impossible, it is rarely the case that games are abandoned on 29 points while waiting for the final 5 to be drawn.

== Conventions ==
* If you want to play "full information" style, meaning that you wait until you know both the colour and number of a card before you play it, you will likely be short on clue-tokens in >99% of the decks.
* The logical conclusion is, that you cannot play a full information style game, and the team must agree on some sort of convention.
** Meaning: a certain amount of meta-information is assigned to the clues.

* Many players have different kinds of conventions. (Please note that not all conventions are added to the BGA list. Please respect the convention the table creator wants to play.)

* When different players in the same team assign different meta-information to the same clue, the game becomes unplayable.
** This is why the BGA table-settings give the option to set a table convention since the end of 2020.
** Please see this [https://boardgamearena.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=102&t=18031 post] started by [https://boardgamearena.com/player?id=84207926 Romain672].
* Ideally, all players adhere to the convention, to avoid miscommunication.

* Below, the meta-information of several conventions is explained.
* In the examples, colours are indicated by their first letter:
R - Red -      ,
Y - Yellow -      ,
G - Green -      ,
B - Blue -      ,
W - White -      ,
M - Multi-colour -      ,
P - black Powder -      .
K - blacK powder -      .
* ''For example:'' Y2 means the card with number 2 and colour yellow.
* For Black, you might see P or K (P for Powder, K for blacK which is played in reverse)

=== Standard convention ===

*You can assume the following meta-information:
** Every card that gets marked, will be playable at some point.
** A card marked with a number, can be played when all "number-1" cards are played.
*** ''This is usually explained as: number-clues mean that these cards should be saved and played later on in the game.''
*** ''It is custom to play saved cards from oldest to newest.'' (Since a number-clue is often used to save a card from being discarded, the oldest card is the most valuable and should be played first.)
** A colour-clue means that the newest, previously unmarked card, is the next playable card in the sequence.
** The oldest, unmarked card is safe to discard.
*** ''Obviously, if a player has a card that they are sure they will never be able to play, for example a card on which is marked as blue when the blue pile has already been completed, such card must be discarded in priority.''

* Clues you should avoid giving (bad clues):
** Giving a clue that marks 0 new cards.
** Give a clue that tells a lie (does not conform to the meta-information above).
** As a special remark: Since every marked card is assumed playable, you shouldn't mark useless, or duplicate cards. So if you have a saved 4, you are forbidden from marking 4s, unless you are sure you are not holding a copy of that 4.
* Sometimes, a "bad" clue can't be avoided.
** ''For example:'' when you need to save a unique 3 (using a number-clue) to avoid it being discarded, but you also accidentally mark a useless card.
** Or if you are forced to give a colour-clue from a flamboyant, and you use it to mark 0 new cards.
* When a lie has been told, it needs to be corrected.
* A correction-clue can never mean "play", it can only mean "discard".

==== Example 1 ====

new -> old
P1: R1, Y1, G1, B1, W1
P2: R2, Y4, R3, B3, G'''5'''
P3: G4, Y1, R4, Y3, Y2

Table: R1, Y5, G1, B3, W4

* It's P1's turn, and P2 knows his oldest card is 5.
* P1 will give R-clue to P2.
* This will tell P2, that the newest card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be R2), and that the other red can be R3, R4, or R5 (because it must be playable at some later point in the game).

==== Example 2 ====

new -> old
P1: R1, Y1, G1, B1, W1
P2: W5, Y4, '''R'''3, B3, G'''5'''
P3: W2, G4, Y1, R4, Y3

Table: R2, Y5, G1, B3, W4

* It is P1's turn again, and P2 knows his oldest card is 5, and his middle card is R.
* P1 will give R-clue to P3.
* This will tell P3, that his middle card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be R4, because R3 is already marked).
* This will give P2 the meta-information that his saved red card, is R3.
** ''This particular move is sometimes called prompting, and is a common way to allow a card that is saved by colour to get played without re-cluing it.''

==== Example 3 ====

new -> old
P1: R1, Y1, G1, B1, W1
P2: R3, Y4, R'''2''', B3, G5
P3: G4, Y1, R4, Y3, Y2

Table: R1, Y5, G0, B3, W4

* It is P1's turn, and P2 knows his middle card is 2.
* P1 will give R-clue to P2.
* This will tell P2 that his newest card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be R3, because R2 is now visible with 100% information).

=== Finesse ===

* Finesse builds on the standard convention (making it a bit more complex).
* In the finesse convention, the timing of the clue gives you extra information.
* You can assume the following meta-information:
** Every card that gets marked, will be playable at some point.
** If the oldest, unmarked card gets marked with a number-clue, then the clue meant "save this/these card(s)". (It is custom to play saved cards from oldest to newest when appropriate.)
** A clue that doesn't mark the oldest card, means that the newest, previously unmarked card, is the next playable card in the sequence.
** The oldest, unmarked card is safe to discard unless that player is busy by having a "known" play.
*** ''Obviously, if a player has a card that they are sure they will never be able to play, for example a card on which is marked as blue when the blue and multicolor piles have already been completed, such card must be discarded in priority.''
** If a marked card gets discarded it means:
*** The copy of that card is already marked in someone else's hand, and the discarding player is the first to realize this; or
*** The copy of that card MUST be marked in a future clue (because a save-clue will be given that will mark the copy card as collateral).

==== Meaning of skipping a player / stealing clues in Finesse convention ====
* There are different approaches among finesse-convention-players about who should clue whom. So this section will be devided into sub-sections. The order does not say anything about which approach is more common on BGA. There are a lot of players following each idea.
* As of now, there is no way of saying which approach is "right" or "better". Of course it is important for success, that in a game, the group of players follows the same idea. If they get mixed, it will most likely result in bombs. If that happens, it does not mean, the other player is "bad" - it merely means, they follow a different idea. So you can only try to find a common ground for the next game or play with another group next time.
* The text within the sections are written by people who follow the idea.

===== a) Skipping / stealing should be avoided =====
* If more than 1 person are able to give the same clue, then the last possible person should give that clue.
* In finesse convention skipping (P1 clues P3, instead of P2; then P2 is skipped) means either:
*# The skipped player is forbidden from giving that clue; or
*# The skipped player has something to play.

===== b) Skipping / stealing is for discard-management =====
This style is one of different ways of applying finesse convention. Since the primary assumption is that your CHOP is safe to discard, it might still be that said card is a nice-to-have like a non-unique 2 or 3 that is not yet playable. without knowing your chop card, it is good to handle each-other's chop situation by preferrably letting players with definitely useless chop-cards discard rather than discarding your own unknown card.
Skipping/stealing is a term that is often used for a situation, where giving a clue is not left for the last possible player to do. For example - player A saves a card on chop of player C, potentially leaving player B without a known play or a useful/necessary clue to give. Skipping players is a useful move give other players the time to play other cards or discardd.

When getting skipped without having a play or useful option to clue, it most likely means that your chop card is not very useful. These are valid reasons for skipping you:
* Your chop-card is trash (a copy of the card is already played/marked)
* Your chop-card is redundant: Another copy of it is on another player's (or your own) hand as well
* You might still have something nice on chop, but the player sitting before already received information that their chop might be something very good (from earlier discard-behaviour like NOT being skipped over by the player sitting before them on earlier turns) and they are reluctant to discard for that reason.
* The clue given is a play-clue for a card that might be in your hand so you couldn't know whether you want the other card or not. The player skipping you knows that you want it and therefore takes away the decision.

This approach sacrifices some saving-clue-tokens option (that might be achieved on a stricter dogma about who should clue whom) in order to be able to keep nice cards in the game for longer and discard useless cards instead and by that often get those cards played before they would be discarded.
* This convention is better for players, who play efficient enough to rarely struggle with clue-shortness and can therefore afford being more careful about not losing first copies.
* If a group often struggles with clue-shortness then skipping-dogma (as proposed by other conventions) might as well improve their overall results. If the problem for not achieving 30 points usually isn't clue-shortness but getting bottom-decked (or heavily delayed from losing earlier a card that could be played now), then results can get better with this discard-management convention.

Planning ahead is a vital aspect of the game. By carefully deciding on who to let clue and whom to skip, it is often possible to
* avoid twin-chops before they become an issue
* avoid not having enough clue tokens to save all necessary cards
* get the discard you were waiting for (when a player has 2 copies of the same playable card and you want them to discard before clueing it)

==== Clues you should avoid giving (bad clues) ====

* As a special remark: don't mark useless, or duplicate cards. So if you have a saved 4, you are forbidden from marking 4s, unless you are sure you are not holding a copy of that

==== Special interpretation for play-clues ====

* When receiving a clue for the "next playable card in the sequence", the linking cards are not limited to already marked cards (like in standard convention).
* The newest, unmarked cards in every player's hand should be considered as well.

====== Example ======

new -> old
P1: ??, ??, ??, ??, ??
P2: B1, Y5, B3, W1, W2
P3: R5, R2, B2, G2, Y2

Table: R0, Y0, G0, B0, W0

* P1 gives B-clue to P3.
* This gives the information that B2 is the next playable card in the sequence, and that P2 is either not allowed to give B-clue, or has something to play.
* Since P2 has no marked cards, he was not blocked from giving B-clue, so he must have something to play.
* This something, must be the missing link (B1, to enable B2) that makes B2 the next playable card.
* Since there is no logical (marked) card that could be B1, P2 must assume his newest, unmarked card is B1 and blind-plays this card.

===== Example of reversed finesse =====

new -> old
P1: ??, ??, ??, ??, ??
P2: R5, R2, B2, G2, Y2
P3: B1, Y5, B3, W1, W2

Table: R0, Y0, G0, B0, W0

* P1 gives B-clue to P2.
* This gives the information that B2 is the next playable card in the sequence.
* P2 sees that the newest, unmarked card in the hand of P3 is of the same colour (blue) '''and''' playable now. P2 concludes it is a finesse, with the players in reversed order, so his blue card must be B2.

===== Example of a bluff =====

new -> old
P1: ??, ??, ??, ??, ??
P2: W1, Y5, B3, W1, W2
P3: R5, R2, B2, G2, Y2

Table: R0, Y0, G0, B0, W0

* P1 gives B-clue to P3.
* This gives the information that B2 is the next playable card in the sequence, and that P2 is either not allowed to give B-clue, or has something to play.
* Since P2 has no marked cards, he was not blocked from giving B-clue, so he must have something to play.
* This something, must be the missing link (B1, to enable B2) that makes B2 the next playable card.
* Since there is no logical (marked) card that could be B1, P2 must assume his newest, unmarked card is B1 and blind-plays this card.
* However, at this point the "lie" is revealed (because the colour of the played card does '''not''' match the colour of the finesse-clue).
* The blind-played card is '''not''' B1, but W1. P3, up to this point, was thinking he had B1.
* The blind-play of P2 gives him extra information: his blue card is in fact B2.

=== Hat-guessing ===

* [https://github.com/hanabi/hanabi.github.io/blob/main/misc/hat-guessing.md Github hat-guessing]

=== Logical Leftism ===

* [http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/basics-level-1-a117610126 Hanabi Logic basics-level-1]
* [http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/-a163408102 Hanabi Logic logical-leftism-in-a-nutshell]

=== Closest Friend ===

* TODO

=== Secret convention ===

* TODO

=== Conventional Leftism ===

* [http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/ll-vs-cl-the-differences-a132077536 Hanabi Logic ll-vs-cl-the-differences] gives some clues, but doesn't explain Conventional Leftism from first principles.

=== Chop-focus ===

* TODO

== Strategy ==

* In addition to the convention(s), there is also some strategy to the game.
* You should '''not''' confuse strategy with convention! Strategy is '''team''' vs '''deck'''; convention is communication within the team.
* A simple example of strategy is saving 2s in 2-player games.
** Using number-2-clue to communicate that those cards need to be saved, is a convention.

=== Examples ===

* More advanced players will try to avoid losing as many "first" (non-unique) cards as possible.
* It's a good strategy to keep good cards in the game as long as possible - even if they are not yet playable.
** ''The other copy of that card might be far down the draw pile.''
* Trying to mark at least 12 cards with the first 8 clue-tokens.
** This gives 99% chance of always having enough tokens in the game.
* Not using the last two clue-tokens for "single plays".
** This avoids running out of clue-tokens in times when you need to save critical cards.

For strategy tips, see [[Tips_hanabi]]

Gamehelphanabi

2022-03-04T22:19:23Z

Silene: /* b) Skipping / stealing is for discard-management */

[[Category:Card games]]
For tips on how to play hanabi, see [[Tips_hanabi]]
== Introduction ==

* Hanabi is a cooperative game. Your goal, as a team, is to build a fabulous fireworks show.
* You do this by playing the cards in the correct order.
* However, you cannot see your own cards; you can only see the cards of your team mates.

==== Final Score Ratings ====

{| class="wikitable"
|-
!Points
!Overall impression
|-
|5 or less
|horrible, booed by the crowd...
|-
|6-10
|mediocre, just a spattering of applause.
|-
|11-15
|honourable, but will not be remembered for very long...
|-
|16-20
|excellent, crowd pleasing.
|-
|21-24
|amazing, will be remembered for a very long time!
|-
|25
|legendary, everyone left speechless, stars in their eyes
|}

== Card distribution ==

* In a game of Hanabi on '''normal difficulty''', the deck contains 50 cards.
* Each card has exactly one colour: either Red, Yellow, Green, Blue, or White.

There are 10 cards in each colour:
* three 1s
* two 2s
* two 3s
* two 4s
* one 5

=== Multicolour cards ===

* There are three variants that add a 6th colour: the multicolour.
* There are three difficulties:

==== Tricky ====

* Adds 10 multicolour cards to the normal game.
* These cards get marked by a separate multicolour clue.

==== Hard ====

* '''5''' multicolour cards to the normal game: one of each number.
* These cards get marked by a separate multicolour clue.

==== Very Difficult ====

* Adds 10 multicolour cards to the normal game.
* These cards get marked by ANY colour clue.

== Game play ==

* You each take turns.
* During a turn, a player may take one (1) of three actions.
* After your action, the turn ends and it is the next player's turn.
* The game can end in several ways:
*# All cards have been drawn from the deck. After this happens, everybody gets 1 more turn. The game ends with the score at the last turn.
*# Your team played all possible cards. In this case, the game ends immediately and you receive the maximum possible score.
*# Your team made three mistakes that caused misfires. In this case, you lose the game and get negative ten (-10) points.
*# Your team 'abandons' the game. Although discouraged, you receive zero (0) points.

== Turn ==

* During your turn, you have one (1) action.
* You can choose to do one of the following:

==== Give a colour or number clue to a teammate ====

* This costs one clue-token (-1).
* You cannot give a clue if there are zero (0) clue-tokens left.
* When you give a clue, you must indicate '''all''' cards of a certain colour, or '''all''' cards of a certain number.

==== Play a card ====

* When a card is played, it is evaluated.
* If the card fits in one of sequences, it is placed in the appropriate colour stack on the table.
* If it does not fit, it is placed in the discard pile and the team gets a misfire-token.
* Then draw a new card.

==== Discard a card ====

* When you discard, the card is placed in the discard pile and you get a clue-token (+1).
* ''Note:'' cards on the discard pile are out of the game and can never return.
* Then draw a new card.

== Options ==

=== Black Powder ===

* You may not give clues regarding the colour black.
* Black cards must be played in reverse order, from 5 to 1.
* In the deck there are three black 5s, two black 4s, two black 3s, two black 2s, and one black 1.

=== Five Flamboyants ===

After playing the last card of a colour, randomly select one of the following bonuses for immediate use:
* Gain a clue token.
* Gain a clue token and recover a life.
* Give a clue regarding a colour.
* Give a clue regarding a number.
* Shuffle a discarded card into the deck.
* Play a discarded card, if possible.

== Lingo ==

When you play with others, certain words are used to describe certain objects or situations. Here is a short list.

;Marked: A card that is highlighted by a clue.
;Unmarked: A card that is not clued.
;chop: The oldest, unmarked card. The card that you have no information on and will chop from your hand.
;draw: The newest, unmarked card. The card that you have no information on and was freshly drawn.
;To bomb: A play that causes the third misfire-token. Sometimes called '''explosion'''
;Unique: A card that has no copy (left) in the deck.
;Double discard: When consecutive players have the same card on chop. A special problem, since, to each of the consecutive players, a number to chop does not look like a unique save.
;Twin chop: 2 consecutive players have the same card on chop. Same as Double discard
;Double save: When a player has two consecutive unique cards, requiring consecutive save clues.
;Strategy: A set of rules / guidelines / conventions on how to interpret actions by players (including spending of clue-tokens).

== ELO rating ==

* If you are playing with ELO rating on, your ELO may be changed at the end of the game.
* Here is how it works:
*# Every player on the team is temporarily considered as having the average ELO rating of the team.
*# The system will generate a bot associated with the score your team has achieved (let’s call it '''''Hanabot''''').
*#* Hanabot’s ELO rating depends on the variant you are playing (50 cards, 60 cards, 60 cards multicolour), the number of players on the team and, most importantly, your team's score.
*#* All Hanabot’s ELO ratings have been set by an experienced player, they are not random or simply proportional to the score/number of players.
*# Your team (actually your team's average ELO) will now compete against Hanabot.
*#* The system will calculate your team’s ELO gain/loss as though your team had tied with Hanabot.
*#* If your score is below 18 (50-card game) or below 21 (60-card game), Hanabot's ELO is always 1000.

* You can find [http://forum.boardgamearena.com/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=4814 all bots' ELO ratings here]
* The 55-card variant (50 cards + 1 of each value in the sixth color) cannot be played with ELO rating on.
** This is because this variant is highly dependent on draw and a team’s score may not always reflect the players’ skills.
* If you achieve the perfect score and this should cost you ELO points, you will be considered as having beaten the bot associated with the score, so that you lose no ELO points.
* To be confirmed: I think the ELO-system has had an overhaul.

== About "cheating" ==

* In the "real life Hanabi", you can talk. That's why we chose to let the chat open for the online version.

* As a consequence, it is very easy to cheat at Hanabi.
** However, as you can imagine, cheating is very stupid and has no interest... except for ELO boosting.
** This is why there is no international ranking for this game (ie: best player, second best player) and no trophies associated to it.

* Abandoning: Another method of cheating is to deliberately avoid finishing games that would cause ELO to drop.
** While some argue that games become "boring" once 30 becomes impossible, it is rarely the case that games are abandoned on 29 points while waiting for the final 5 to be drawn.

== Conventions ==
* If you want to play "full information" style, meaning that you wait until you know both the colour and number of a card before you play it, you will likely be short on clue-tokens in >99% of the decks.
* The logical conclusion is, that you cannot play a full information style game, and the team must agree on some sort of convention.
** Meaning: a certain amount of meta-information is assigned to the clues.

* Many players have different kinds of conventions. (Please note that not all conventions are added to the BGA list. Please respect the convention the table creator wants to play.)

* When different players in the same team assign different meta-information to the same clue, the game becomes unplayable.
** This is why the BGA table-settings give the option to set a table convention since the end of 2020.
** Please see this [https://boardgamearena.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=102&t=18031 post] started by [https://boardgamearena.com/player?id=84207926 Romain672].
* Ideally, all players adhere to the convention, to avoid miscommunication.

* Below, the meta-information of several conventions is explained.
* In the examples, colours are indicated by their first letter:
R - Red -      ,
Y - Yellow -      ,
G - Green -      ,
B - Blue -      ,
W - White -      ,
M - Multi-colour -      ,
P - black Powder -      .
K - blacK powder -      .
* ''For example:'' Y2 means the card with number 2 and colour yellow.
* For Black, you might see P or K (P for Powder, K for blacK which is played in reverse)

=== Standard convention ===

*You can assume the following meta-information:
** Every card that gets marked, will be playable at some point.
** A card marked with a number, can be played when all "number-1" cards are played.
*** ''This is usually explained as: number-clues mean that these cards should be saved and played later on in the game.''
*** ''It is custom to play saved cards from oldest to newest.'' (Since a number-clue is often used to save a card from being discarded, the oldest card is the most valuable and should be played first.)
** A colour-clue means that the newest, previously unmarked card, is the next playable card in the sequence.
** The oldest, unmarked card is safe to discard.
*** ''Obviously, if a player has a card that they are sure they will never be able to play, for example a card on which is marked as blue when the blue pile has already been completed, such card must be discarded in priority.''

* Clues you should avoid giving (bad clues):
** Giving a clue that marks 0 new cards.
** Give a clue that tells a lie (does not conform to the meta-information above).
** As a special remark: Since every marked card is assumed playable, you shouldn't mark useless, or duplicate cards. So if you have a saved 4, you are forbidden from marking 4s, unless you are sure you are not holding a copy of that 4.
* Sometimes, a "bad" clue can't be avoided.
** ''For example:'' when you need to save a unique 3 (using a number-clue) to avoid it being discarded, but you also accidentally mark a useless card.
** Or if you are forced to give a colour-clue from a flamboyant, and you use it to mark 0 new cards.
* When a lie has been told, it needs to be corrected.
* A correction-clue can never mean "play", it can only mean "discard".

==== Example 1 ====

new -> old
P1: R1, Y1, G1, B1, W1
P2: R2, Y4, R3, B3, G'''5'''
P3: G4, Y1, R4, Y3, Y2

Table: R1, Y5, G1, B3, W4

* It's P1's turn, and P2 knows his oldest card is 5.
* P1 will give R-clue to P2.
* This will tell P2, that the newest card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be R2), and that the other red can be R3, R4, or R5 (because it must be playable at some later point in the game).

==== Example 2 ====

new -> old
P1: R1, Y1, G1, B1, W1
P2: W5, Y4, '''R'''3, B3, G'''5'''
P3: W2, G4, Y1, R4, Y3

Table: R2, Y5, G1, B3, W4

* It is P1's turn again, and P2 knows his oldest card is 5, and his middle card is R.
* P1 will give R-clue to P3.
* This will tell P3, that his middle card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be R4, because R3 is already marked).
* This will give P2 the meta-information that his saved red card, is R3.
** ''This particular move is sometimes called prompting, and is a common way to allow a card that is saved by colour to get played without re-cluing it.''

==== Example 3 ====

new -> old
P1: R1, Y1, G1, B1, W1
P2: R3, Y4, R'''2''', B3, G5
P3: G4, Y1, R4, Y3, Y2

Table: R1, Y5, G0, B3, W4

* It is P1's turn, and P2 knows his middle card is 2.
* P1 will give R-clue to P2.
* This will tell P2 that his newest card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be R3, because R2 is now visible with 100% information).

=== Finesse ===

* Finesse builds on the standard convention (making it a bit more complex).
* In the finesse convention, the timing of the clue gives you extra information.
* You can assume the following meta-information:
** Every card that gets marked, will be playable at some point.
** If the oldest, unmarked card gets marked with a number-clue, then the clue meant "save this/these card(s)". (It is custom to play saved cards from oldest to newest when appropriate.)
** A clue that doesn't mark the oldest card, means that the newest, previously unmarked card, is the next playable card in the sequence.
** The oldest, unmarked card is safe to discard unless that player is busy by having a "known" play.
*** ''Obviously, if a player has a card that they are sure they will never be able to play, for example a card on which is marked as blue when the blue and multicolor piles have already been completed, such card must be discarded in priority.''
** If a marked card gets discarded it means:
*** The copy of that card is already marked in someone else's hand, and the discarding player is the first to realize this; or
*** The copy of that card MUST be marked in a future clue (because a save-clue will be given that will mark the copy card as collateral).

==== Meaning of skipping a player / stealing clues in Finesse convention ====
* There are different approaches among finesse-convention-players about who should clue whom. So this section will be devided into sub-sections. The order does not say anything about which approach is more common on BGA. There are a lot of players following each idea.
* As of now, there is no way of saying which approach is "right" or "better". Of course it is important for success, that in a game, the group of players follows the same idea. If they get mixed, it will most likely result in bombs. If that happens, it does not mean, the other player is "bad" - it merely means, they follow a different idea. So you can only try to find a common ground for the next game or play with another group next time.
* The text within the sections are written by people who follow the idea.

===== a) Skipping / stealing should be avoided =====
* If more than 1 person are able to give the same clue, then the last possible person should give that clue.
* In finesse convention skipping (P1 clues P3, instead of P2; then P2 is skipped) means either:
*# The skipped player is forbidden from giving that clue; or
*# The skipped player has something to play.

===== b) Skipping / stealing is for discard-management =====
This style is one way of applying finesse convention. Since the primary assumption is that your CHOP is safe to discard, it might still be that said card is a nice-to-have like a non-unique 2 or 3 that is not yet playable. without knowing your chop card, it is good to handle each-other's chop situation by preferrably letting players with definitely useless chop-cards discard rather than discarding your own unknown card.
Skipping/stealing is a term that is often used for a situation, where giving a clue is not left for the last possible player to do. For example - player A saves a card on chop of player C, potentially leaving player B without a known play or a useful/necessary clue to give. Skipping players is a useful move give other players the time to play other cards or discardd.

When getting skipped without having a play or useful option to clue, it most likely means that your chop card is not very useful. These are valid reasons for skipping you:
* Your chop-card is trash (a copy of the card is already played/marked)
* Your chop-card is redundant: Another copy of it is on another player's (or your own) hand as well
* You might still have something nice on chop, but the player sitting before already received information that their chop might be something very good (from earlier discard-behaviour like NOT being skipped over by the player sitting before them on earlier turns) and they are reluctant to discard for that reason.
* The clue given is a play-clue for a card that might be in your hand so you couldn't know whether you want the other card or not. The player skipping you knows that you want it and therefore takes away the decision.

This approach sacrifices some saving-clue-tokens option (that might be achieved on a stricter dogma about who should clue whom) in order to be able to keep nice cards in the game for longer and discard useless cards instead and by that often get those cards played before they would be discarded.
* This convention is better for players, who play efficient enough to rarely struggle with clue-shortness and can therefore afford being more careful about not losing first copies.
* If a group often struggles with clue-shortness then skipping-dogma (as proposed by other conventions) might as well improve their overall results. If the problem for not achieving 30 points usually isn't clue-shortness but getting bottom-decked (or heavily delayed from losing earlier a card that could be played now), then results can get better with this discard-management convention.

Planning ahead is a vital aspect of the game. By carefully deciding on who to let clue and whom to skip, it is often possible to
* avoid twin-chops before they become an issue
* avoid not having enough clue tokens to save all necessary cards
* get the discard you were waiting for (when a player has 2 copies of the same playable card and you want them to discard before clueing it)

==== Clues you should avoid giving (bad clues) ====

* As a special remark: don't mark useless, or duplicate cards. So if you have a saved 4, you are forbidden from marking 4s, unless you are sure you are not holding a copy of that

==== Special interpretation for play-clues ====

* When receiving a clue for the "next playable card in the sequence", the linking cards are not limited to already marked cards (like in standard convention).
* The newest, unmarked cards in every player's hand should be considered as well.

====== Example ======

new -> old
P1: ??, ??, ??, ??, ??
P2: B1, Y5, B3, W1, W2
P3: R5, R2, B2, G2, Y2

Table: R0, Y0, G0, B0, W0

* P1 gives B-clue to P3.
* This gives the information that B2 is the next playable card in the sequence, and that P2 is either not allowed to give B-clue, or has something to play.
* Since P2 has no marked cards, he was not blocked from giving B-clue, so he must have something to play.
* This something, must be the missing link (B1, to enable B2) that makes B2 the next playable card.
* Since there is no logical (marked) card that could be B1, P2 must assume his newest, unmarked card is B1 and blind-plays this card.

===== Example of reversed finesse =====

new -> old
P1: ??, ??, ??, ??, ??
P2: R5, R2, B2, G2, Y2
P3: B1, Y5, B3, W1, W2

Table: R0, Y0, G0, B0, W0

* P1 gives B-clue to P2.
* This gives the information that B2 is the next playable card in the sequence.
* P2 sees that the newest, unmarked card in the hand of P3 is of the same colour (blue) '''and''' playable now. P2 concludes it is a finesse, with the players in reversed order, so his blue card must be B2.

===== Example of a bluff =====

new -> old
P1: ??, ??, ??, ??, ??
P2: W1, Y5, B3, W1, W2
P3: R5, R2, B2, G2, Y2

Table: R0, Y0, G0, B0, W0

* P1 gives B-clue to P3.
* This gives the information that B2 is the next playable card in the sequence, and that P2 is either not allowed to give B-clue, or has something to play.
* Since P2 has no marked cards, he was not blocked from giving B-clue, so he must have something to play.
* This something, must be the missing link (B1, to enable B2) that makes B2 the next playable card.
* Since there is no logical (marked) card that could be B1, P2 must assume his newest, unmarked card is B1 and blind-plays this card.
* However, at this point the "lie" is revealed (because the colour of the played card does '''not''' match the colour of the finesse-clue).
* The blind-played card is '''not''' B1, but W1. P3, up to this point, was thinking he had B1.
* The blind-play of P2 gives him extra information: his blue card is in fact B2.

=== Hat-guessing ===

* [https://github.com/hanabi/hanabi.github.io/blob/main/misc/hat-guessing.md Github hat-guessing]

=== Logical Leftism ===

* [http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/basics-level-1-a117610126 Hanabi Logic basics-level-1]
* [http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/-a163408102 Hanabi Logic logical-leftism-in-a-nutshell]

=== Closest Friend ===

* TODO

=== Secret convention ===

* TODO

=== Conventional Leftism ===

* [http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/ll-vs-cl-the-differences-a132077536 Hanabi Logic ll-vs-cl-the-differences] gives some clues, but doesn't explain Conventional Leftism from first principles.

=== Chop-focus ===

* TODO

== Strategy ==

* In addition to the convention(s), there is also some strategy to the game.
* You should '''not''' confuse strategy with convention! Strategy is '''team''' vs '''deck'''; convention is communication within the team.
* A simple example of strategy is saving 2s in 2-player games.
** Using number-2-clue to communicate that those cards need to be saved, is a convention.

=== Examples ===

* More advanced players will try to avoid losing as many "first" (non-unique) cards as possible.
* It's a good strategy to keep good cards in the game as long as possible - even if they are not yet playable.
** ''The other copy of that card might be far down the draw pile.''
* Trying to mark at least 12 cards with the first 8 clue-tokens.
** This gives 99% chance of always having enough tokens in the game.
* Not using the last two clue-tokens for "single plays".
** This avoids running out of clue-tokens in times when you need to save critical cards.

For strategy tips, see [[Tips_hanabi]]

Gamehelphanabi

2022-03-04T22:14:11Z

Silene: /* b) Skipping / stealing is for discard-management */

[[Category:Card games]]
For tips on how to play hanabi, see [[Tips_hanabi]]
== Introduction ==

* Hanabi is a cooperative game. Your goal, as a team, is to build a fabulous fireworks show.
* You do this by playing the cards in the correct order.
* However, you cannot see your own cards; you can only see the cards of your team mates.

==== Final Score Ratings ====

{| class="wikitable"
|-
!Points
!Overall impression
|-
|5 or less
|horrible, booed by the crowd...
|-
|6-10
|mediocre, just a spattering of applause.
|-
|11-15
|honourable, but will not be remembered for very long...
|-
|16-20
|excellent, crowd pleasing.
|-
|21-24
|amazing, will be remembered for a very long time!
|-
|25
|legendary, everyone left speechless, stars in their eyes
|}

== Card distribution ==

* In a game of Hanabi on '''normal difficulty''', the deck contains 50 cards.
* Each card has exactly one colour: either Red, Yellow, Green, Blue, or White.

There are 10 cards in each colour:
* three 1s
* two 2s
* two 3s
* two 4s
* one 5

=== Multicolour cards ===

* There are three variants that add a 6th colour: the multicolour.
* There are three difficulties:

==== Tricky ====

* Adds 10 multicolour cards to the normal game.
* These cards get marked by a separate multicolour clue.

==== Hard ====

* '''5''' multicolour cards to the normal game: one of each number.
* These cards get marked by a separate multicolour clue.

==== Very Difficult ====

* Adds 10 multicolour cards to the normal game.
* These cards get marked by ANY colour clue.

== Game play ==

* You each take turns.
* During a turn, a player may take one (1) of three actions.
* After your action, the turn ends and it is the next player's turn.
* The game can end in several ways:
*# All cards have been drawn from the deck. After this happens, everybody gets 1 more turn. The game ends with the score at the last turn.
*# Your team played all possible cards. In this case, the game ends immediately and you receive the maximum possible score.
*# Your team made three mistakes that caused misfires. In this case, you lose the game and get negative ten (-10) points.
*# Your team 'abandons' the game. Although discouraged, you receive zero (0) points.

== Turn ==

* During your turn, you have one (1) action.
* You can choose to do one of the following:

==== Give a colour or number clue to a teammate ====

* This costs one clue-token (-1).
* You cannot give a clue if there are zero (0) clue-tokens left.
* When you give a clue, you must indicate '''all''' cards of a certain colour, or '''all''' cards of a certain number.

==== Play a card ====

* When a card is played, it is evaluated.
* If the card fits in one of sequences, it is placed in the appropriate colour stack on the table.
* If it does not fit, it is placed in the discard pile and the team gets a misfire-token.
* Then draw a new card.

==== Discard a card ====

* When you discard, the card is placed in the discard pile and you get a clue-token (+1).
* ''Note:'' cards on the discard pile are out of the game and can never return.
* Then draw a new card.

== Options ==

=== Black Powder ===

* You may not give clues regarding the colour black.
* Black cards must be played in reverse order, from 5 to 1.
* In the deck there are three black 5s, two black 4s, two black 3s, two black 2s, and one black 1.

=== Five Flamboyants ===

After playing the last card of a colour, randomly select one of the following bonuses for immediate use:
* Gain a clue token.
* Gain a clue token and recover a life.
* Give a clue regarding a colour.
* Give a clue regarding a number.
* Shuffle a discarded card into the deck.
* Play a discarded card, if possible.

== Lingo ==

When you play with others, certain words are used to describe certain objects or situations. Here is a short list.

;Marked: A card that is highlighted by a clue.
;Unmarked: A card that is not clued.
;chop: The oldest, unmarked card. The card that you have no information on and will chop from your hand.
;draw: The newest, unmarked card. The card that you have no information on and was freshly drawn.
;To bomb: A play that causes the third misfire-token. Sometimes called '''explosion'''
;Unique: A card that has no copy (left) in the deck.
;Double discard: When consecutive players have the same card on chop. A special problem, since, to each of the consecutive players, a number to chop does not look like a unique save.
;Twin chop: 2 consecutive players have the same card on chop. Same as Double discard
;Double save: When a player has two consecutive unique cards, requiring consecutive save clues.
;Strategy: A set of rules / guidelines / conventions on how to interpret actions by players (including spending of clue-tokens).

== ELO rating ==

* If you are playing with ELO rating on, your ELO may be changed at the end of the game.
* Here is how it works:
*# Every player on the team is temporarily considered as having the average ELO rating of the team.
*# The system will generate a bot associated with the score your team has achieved (let’s call it '''''Hanabot''''').
*#* Hanabot’s ELO rating depends on the variant you are playing (50 cards, 60 cards, 60 cards multicolour), the number of players on the team and, most importantly, your team's score.
*#* All Hanabot’s ELO ratings have been set by an experienced player, they are not random or simply proportional to the score/number of players.
*# Your team (actually your team's average ELO) will now compete against Hanabot.
*#* The system will calculate your team’s ELO gain/loss as though your team had tied with Hanabot.
*#* If your score is below 18 (50-card game) or below 21 (60-card game), Hanabot's ELO is always 1000.

* You can find [http://forum.boardgamearena.com/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=4814 all bots' ELO ratings here]
* The 55-card variant (50 cards + 1 of each value in the sixth color) cannot be played with ELO rating on.
** This is because this variant is highly dependent on draw and a team’s score may not always reflect the players’ skills.
* If you achieve the perfect score and this should cost you ELO points, you will be considered as having beaten the bot associated with the score, so that you lose no ELO points.
* To be confirmed: I think the ELO-system has had an overhaul.

== About "cheating" ==

* In the "real life Hanabi", you can talk. That's why we chose to let the chat open for the online version.

* As a consequence, it is very easy to cheat at Hanabi.
** However, as you can imagine, cheating is very stupid and has no interest... except for ELO boosting.
** This is why there is no international ranking for this game (ie: best player, second best player) and no trophies associated to it.

* Abandoning: Another method of cheating is to deliberately avoid finishing games that would cause ELO to drop.
** While some argue that games become "boring" once 30 becomes impossible, it is rarely the case that games are abandoned on 29 points while waiting for the final 5 to be drawn.

== Conventions ==
* If you want to play "full information" style, meaning that you wait until you know both the colour and number of a card before you play it, you will likely be short on clue-tokens in >99% of the decks.
* The logical conclusion is, that you cannot play a full information style game, and the team must agree on some sort of convention.
** Meaning: a certain amount of meta-information is assigned to the clues.

* Many players have different kinds of conventions. (Please note that not all conventions are added to the BGA list. Please respect the convention the table creator wants to play.)

* When different players in the same team assign different meta-information to the same clue, the game becomes unplayable.
** This is why the BGA table-settings give the option to set a table convention since the end of 2020.
** Please see this [https://boardgamearena.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=102&t=18031 post] started by [https://boardgamearena.com/player?id=84207926 Romain672].
* Ideally, all players adhere to the convention, to avoid miscommunication.

* Below, the meta-information of several conventions is explained.
* In the examples, colours are indicated by their first letter:
R - Red -      ,
Y - Yellow -      ,
G - Green -      ,
B - Blue -      ,
W - White -      ,
M - Multi-colour -      ,
P - black Powder -      .
K - blacK powder -      .
* ''For example:'' Y2 means the card with number 2 and colour yellow.
* For Black, you might see P or K (P for Powder, K for blacK which is played in reverse)

=== Standard convention ===

*You can assume the following meta-information:
** Every card that gets marked, will be playable at some point.
** A card marked with a number, can be played when all "number-1" cards are played.
*** ''This is usually explained as: number-clues mean that these cards should be saved and played later on in the game.''
*** ''It is custom to play saved cards from oldest to newest.'' (Since a number-clue is often used to save a card from being discarded, the oldest card is the most valuable and should be played first.)
** A colour-clue means that the newest, previously unmarked card, is the next playable card in the sequence.
** The oldest, unmarked card is safe to discard.
*** ''Obviously, if a player has a card that they are sure they will never be able to play, for example a card on which is marked as blue when the blue pile has already been completed, such card must be discarded in priority.''

* Clues you should avoid giving (bad clues):
** Giving a clue that marks 0 new cards.
** Give a clue that tells a lie (does not conform to the meta-information above).
** As a special remark: Since every marked card is assumed playable, you shouldn't mark useless, or duplicate cards. So if you have a saved 4, you are forbidden from marking 4s, unless you are sure you are not holding a copy of that 4.
* Sometimes, a "bad" clue can't be avoided.
** ''For example:'' when you need to save a unique 3 (using a number-clue) to avoid it being discarded, but you also accidentally mark a useless card.
** Or if you are forced to give a colour-clue from a flamboyant, and you use it to mark 0 new cards.
* When a lie has been told, it needs to be corrected.
* A correction-clue can never mean "play", it can only mean "discard".

==== Example 1 ====

new -> old
P1: R1, Y1, G1, B1, W1
P2: R2, Y4, R3, B3, G'''5'''
P3: G4, Y1, R4, Y3, Y2

Table: R1, Y5, G1, B3, W4

* It's P1's turn, and P2 knows his oldest card is 5.
* P1 will give R-clue to P2.
* This will tell P2, that the newest card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be R2), and that the other red can be R3, R4, or R5 (because it must be playable at some later point in the game).

==== Example 2 ====

new -> old
P1: R1, Y1, G1, B1, W1
P2: W5, Y4, '''R'''3, B3, G'''5'''
P3: W2, G4, Y1, R4, Y3

Table: R2, Y5, G1, B3, W4

* It is P1's turn again, and P2 knows his oldest card is 5, and his middle card is R.
* P1 will give R-clue to P3.
* This will tell P3, that his middle card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be R4, because R3 is already marked).
* This will give P2 the meta-information that his saved red card, is R3.
** ''This particular move is sometimes called prompting, and is a common way to allow a card that is saved by colour to get played without re-cluing it.''

==== Example 3 ====

new -> old
P1: R1, Y1, G1, B1, W1
P2: R3, Y4, R'''2''', B3, G5
P3: G4, Y1, R4, Y3, Y2

Table: R1, Y5, G0, B3, W4

* It is P1's turn, and P2 knows his middle card is 2.
* P1 will give R-clue to P2.
* This will tell P2 that his newest card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be R3, because R2 is now visible with 100% information).

=== Finesse ===

* Finesse builds on the standard convention (making it a bit more complex).
* In the finesse convention, the timing of the clue gives you extra information.
* You can assume the following meta-information:
** Every card that gets marked, will be playable at some point.
** If the oldest, unmarked card gets marked with a number-clue, then the clue meant "save this/these card(s)". (It is custom to play saved cards from oldest to newest when appropriate.)
** A clue that doesn't mark the oldest card, means that the newest, previously unmarked card, is the next playable card in the sequence.
** The oldest, unmarked card is safe to discard unless that player is busy by having a "known" play.
*** ''Obviously, if a player has a card that they are sure they will never be able to play, for example a card on which is marked as blue when the blue and multicolor piles have already been completed, such card must be discarded in priority.''
** If a marked card gets discarded it means:
*** The copy of that card is already marked in someone else's hand, and the discarding player is the first to realize this; or
*** The copy of that card MUST be marked in a future clue (because a save-clue will be given that will mark the copy card as collateral).

==== Meaning of skipping a player / stealing clues in Finesse convention ====
* There are different approaches among finesse-convention-players about who should clue whom. So this section will be devided into sub-sections. The order does not say anything about which approach is more common on BGA. There are a lot of players following each idea.
* As of now, there is no way of saying which approach is "right" or "better". Of course it is important for success, that in a game, the group of players follows the same idea. If they get mixed, it will most likely result in bombs. If that happens, it does not mean, the other player is "bad" - it merely means, they follow a different idea. So you can only try to find a common ground for the next game or play with another group next time.
* The text within the sections are written by people who follow the idea.

===== a) Skipping / stealing should be avoided =====
* If more than 1 person are able to give the same clue, then the last possible person should give that clue.
* In finesse convention skipping (P1 clues P3, instead of P2; then P2 is skipped) means either:
*# The skipped player is forbidden from giving that clue; or
*# The skipped player has something to play.

===== b) Skipping / stealing is for discard-management =====
This style is one way of applying finesse convention. Since the primary assumption is that your CHOP is safe to discard, it might still be that said card is a nice-to-have like a non-unique 2 or 3 that is not yet playable. without knowing your chop card, it is good to handle each-other's chop situation by preferrably letting players with definitely useless chop-cards discard rather than discarding your own unknown card.
Skipping/stealing is a term that is often used for a situation, where giving a clue is not left for the last possible player to do. For example - player A saves a card on chop of player C, potentially leaving player B without a known play or a useful/necessary clue to give. Skipping players is a useful move to force another player to discard.

When getting skipped without having a play or useful option to clue, it most likely means that your chop card is not very useful. These are valid reasons for skipping you:
* Your chop-card is trash (a copy of the card is already played/marked)
* Your chop-card is redundant: Another copy of it is on another player's (or your own) hand as well
* You might still have something nice on chop, but the player sitting before already received information that their chop might be something very good (from earlier discard-behaviour like NOT being skipped over by the player sitting before them on earlier turns) and they are reluctant to discard for that reason.
* The clue given is a play-clue for a card that might be in your hand so you couldn't know whether you want the other card or not. The player skipping you knows that you want it and therefore takes away the decision.

This approach sacrifices some saving-clue-tokens option (that might be achieved on a stricter dogma about who should clue whom) in order to be able to keep nice cards in the game for longer and discard useless cards instead and by that often get those cards played before they would be discarded.
* This convention is better for players, who play efficient enough to rarely struggle with clue-shortness and can therefore afford being more careful about not losing first copies.
* If a group often struggles with clue-shortness then skipping-dogma (as proposed by other conventions) might as well improve their overall results. If the problem for not achieving 30 points usually isn't clue-shortness but getting bottom-decked (or heavily delayed from losing earlier a card that could be played now), then results can get better with this discard-management convention.

Planning ahead is a vital aspect of the game. By carefully deciding on who to let clue and whom to skip, it is often possible to
* avoid twin-chops before they become an issue
* avoid not having enough clue tokens to save all necessary cards
* get the discard you were waiting for (when a player has 2 copies of the same playable card and you want them to discard before clueing it)

==== Clues you should avoid giving (bad clues) ====

* As a special remark: don't mark useless, or duplicate cards. So if you have a saved 4, you are forbidden from marking 4s, unless you are sure you are not holding a copy of that

==== Special interpretation for play-clues ====

* When receiving a clue for the "next playable card in the sequence", the linking cards are not limited to already marked cards (like in standard convention).
* The newest, unmarked cards in every player's hand should be considered as well.

====== Example ======

new -> old
P1: ??, ??, ??, ??, ??
P2: B1, Y5, B3, W1, W2
P3: R5, R2, B2, G2, Y2

Table: R0, Y0, G0, B0, W0

* P1 gives B-clue to P3.
* This gives the information that B2 is the next playable card in the sequence, and that P2 is either not allowed to give B-clue, or has something to play.
* Since P2 has no marked cards, he was not blocked from giving B-clue, so he must have something to play.
* This something, must be the missing link (B1, to enable B2) that makes B2 the next playable card.
* Since there is no logical (marked) card that could be B1, P2 must assume his newest, unmarked card is B1 and blind-plays this card.

===== Example of reversed finesse =====

new -> old
P1: ??, ??, ??, ??, ??
P2: R5, R2, B2, G2, Y2
P3: B1, Y5, B3, W1, W2

Table: R0, Y0, G0, B0, W0

* P1 gives B-clue to P2.
* This gives the information that B2 is the next playable card in the sequence.
* P2 sees that the newest, unmarked card in the hand of P3 is of the same colour (blue) '''and''' playable now. P2 concludes it is a finesse, with the players in reversed order, so his blue card must be B2.

===== Example of a bluff =====

new -> old
P1: ??, ??, ??, ??, ??
P2: W1, Y5, B3, W1, W2
P3: R5, R2, B2, G2, Y2

Table: R0, Y0, G0, B0, W0

* P1 gives B-clue to P3.
* This gives the information that B2 is the next playable card in the sequence, and that P2 is either not allowed to give B-clue, or has something to play.
* Since P2 has no marked cards, he was not blocked from giving B-clue, so he must have something to play.
* This something, must be the missing link (B1, to enable B2) that makes B2 the next playable card.
* Since there is no logical (marked) card that could be B1, P2 must assume his newest, unmarked card is B1 and blind-plays this card.
* However, at this point the "lie" is revealed (because the colour of the played card does '''not''' match the colour of the finesse-clue).
* The blind-played card is '''not''' B1, but W1. P3, up to this point, was thinking he had B1.
* The blind-play of P2 gives him extra information: his blue card is in fact B2.

=== Hat-guessing ===

* [https://github.com/hanabi/hanabi.github.io/blob/main/misc/hat-guessing.md Github hat-guessing]

=== Logical Leftism ===

* [http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/basics-level-1-a117610126 Hanabi Logic basics-level-1]
* [http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/-a163408102 Hanabi Logic logical-leftism-in-a-nutshell]

=== Closest Friend ===

* TODO

=== Secret convention ===

* TODO

=== Conventional Leftism ===

* [http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/ll-vs-cl-the-differences-a132077536 Hanabi Logic ll-vs-cl-the-differences] gives some clues, but doesn't explain Conventional Leftism from first principles.

=== Chop-focus ===

* TODO

== Strategy ==

* In addition to the convention(s), there is also some strategy to the game.
* You should '''not''' confuse strategy with convention! Strategy is '''team''' vs '''deck'''; convention is communication within the team.
* A simple example of strategy is saving 2s in 2-player games.
** Using number-2-clue to communicate that those cards need to be saved, is a convention.

=== Examples ===

* More advanced players will try to avoid losing as many "first" (non-unique) cards as possible.
* It's a good strategy to keep good cards in the game as long as possible - even if they are not yet playable.
** ''The other copy of that card might be far down the draw pile.''
* Trying to mark at least 12 cards with the first 8 clue-tokens.
** This gives 99% chance of always having enough tokens in the game.
* Not using the last two clue-tokens for "single plays".
** This avoids running out of clue-tokens in times when you need to save critical cards.

For strategy tips, see [[Tips_hanabi]]

Gamehelphanabi

2022-03-04T22:13:39Z

Silene: /* b) Skipping / stealing is for discard-management */

[[Category:Card games]]
For tips on how to play hanabi, see [[Tips_hanabi]]
== Introduction ==

* Hanabi is a cooperative game. Your goal, as a team, is to build a fabulous fireworks show.
* You do this by playing the cards in the correct order.
* However, you cannot see your own cards; you can only see the cards of your team mates.

==== Final Score Ratings ====

{| class="wikitable"
|-
!Points
!Overall impression
|-
|5 or less
|horrible, booed by the crowd...
|-
|6-10
|mediocre, just a spattering of applause.
|-
|11-15
|honourable, but will not be remembered for very long...
|-
|16-20
|excellent, crowd pleasing.
|-
|21-24
|amazing, will be remembered for a very long time!
|-
|25
|legendary, everyone left speechless, stars in their eyes
|}

== Card distribution ==

* In a game of Hanabi on '''normal difficulty''', the deck contains 50 cards.
* Each card has exactly one colour: either Red, Yellow, Green, Blue, or White.

There are 10 cards in each colour:
* three 1s
* two 2s
* two 3s
* two 4s
* one 5

=== Multicolour cards ===

* There are three variants that add a 6th colour: the multicolour.
* There are three difficulties:

==== Tricky ====

* Adds 10 multicolour cards to the normal game.
* These cards get marked by a separate multicolour clue.

==== Hard ====

* '''5''' multicolour cards to the normal game: one of each number.
* These cards get marked by a separate multicolour clue.

==== Very Difficult ====

* Adds 10 multicolour cards to the normal game.
* These cards get marked by ANY colour clue.

== Game play ==

* You each take turns.
* During a turn, a player may take one (1) of three actions.
* After your action, the turn ends and it is the next player's turn.
* The game can end in several ways:
*# All cards have been drawn from the deck. After this happens, everybody gets 1 more turn. The game ends with the score at the last turn.
*# Your team played all possible cards. In this case, the game ends immediately and you receive the maximum possible score.
*# Your team made three mistakes that caused misfires. In this case, you lose the game and get negative ten (-10) points.
*# Your team 'abandons' the game. Although discouraged, you receive zero (0) points.

== Turn ==

* During your turn, you have one (1) action.
* You can choose to do one of the following:

==== Give a colour or number clue to a teammate ====

* This costs one clue-token (-1).
* You cannot give a clue if there are zero (0) clue-tokens left.
* When you give a clue, you must indicate '''all''' cards of a certain colour, or '''all''' cards of a certain number.

==== Play a card ====

* When a card is played, it is evaluated.
* If the card fits in one of sequences, it is placed in the appropriate colour stack on the table.
* If it does not fit, it is placed in the discard pile and the team gets a misfire-token.
* Then draw a new card.

==== Discard a card ====

* When you discard, the card is placed in the discard pile and you get a clue-token (+1).
* ''Note:'' cards on the discard pile are out of the game and can never return.
* Then draw a new card.

== Options ==

=== Black Powder ===

* You may not give clues regarding the colour black.
* Black cards must be played in reverse order, from 5 to 1.
* In the deck there are three black 5s, two black 4s, two black 3s, two black 2s, and one black 1.

=== Five Flamboyants ===

After playing the last card of a colour, randomly select one of the following bonuses for immediate use:
* Gain a clue token.
* Gain a clue token and recover a life.
* Give a clue regarding a colour.
* Give a clue regarding a number.
* Shuffle a discarded card into the deck.
* Play a discarded card, if possible.

== Lingo ==

When you play with others, certain words are used to describe certain objects or situations. Here is a short list.

;Marked: A card that is highlighted by a clue.
;Unmarked: A card that is not clued.
;chop: The oldest, unmarked card. The card that you have no information on and will chop from your hand.
;draw: The newest, unmarked card. The card that you have no information on and was freshly drawn.
;To bomb: A play that causes the third misfire-token. Sometimes called '''explosion'''
;Unique: A card that has no copy (left) in the deck.
;Double discard: When consecutive players have the same card on chop. A special problem, since, to each of the consecutive players, a number to chop does not look like a unique save.
;Twin chop: 2 consecutive players have the same card on chop. Same as Double discard
;Double save: When a player has two consecutive unique cards, requiring consecutive save clues.
;Strategy: A set of rules / guidelines / conventions on how to interpret actions by players (including spending of clue-tokens).

== ELO rating ==

* If you are playing with ELO rating on, your ELO may be changed at the end of the game.
* Here is how it works:
*# Every player on the team is temporarily considered as having the average ELO rating of the team.
*# The system will generate a bot associated with the score your team has achieved (let’s call it '''''Hanabot''''').
*#* Hanabot’s ELO rating depends on the variant you are playing (50 cards, 60 cards, 60 cards multicolour), the number of players on the team and, most importantly, your team's score.
*#* All Hanabot’s ELO ratings have been set by an experienced player, they are not random or simply proportional to the score/number of players.
*# Your team (actually your team's average ELO) will now compete against Hanabot.
*#* The system will calculate your team’s ELO gain/loss as though your team had tied with Hanabot.
*#* If your score is below 18 (50-card game) or below 21 (60-card game), Hanabot's ELO is always 1000.

* You can find [http://forum.boardgamearena.com/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=4814 all bots' ELO ratings here]
* The 55-card variant (50 cards + 1 of each value in the sixth color) cannot be played with ELO rating on.
** This is because this variant is highly dependent on draw and a team’s score may not always reflect the players’ skills.
* If you achieve the perfect score and this should cost you ELO points, you will be considered as having beaten the bot associated with the score, so that you lose no ELO points.
* To be confirmed: I think the ELO-system has had an overhaul.

== About "cheating" ==

* In the "real life Hanabi", you can talk. That's why we chose to let the chat open for the online version.

* As a consequence, it is very easy to cheat at Hanabi.
** However, as you can imagine, cheating is very stupid and has no interest... except for ELO boosting.
** This is why there is no international ranking for this game (ie: best player, second best player) and no trophies associated to it.

* Abandoning: Another method of cheating is to deliberately avoid finishing games that would cause ELO to drop.
** While some argue that games become "boring" once 30 becomes impossible, it is rarely the case that games are abandoned on 29 points while waiting for the final 5 to be drawn.

== Conventions ==
* If you want to play "full information" style, meaning that you wait until you know both the colour and number of a card before you play it, you will likely be short on clue-tokens in >99% of the decks.
* The logical conclusion is, that you cannot play a full information style game, and the team must agree on some sort of convention.
** Meaning: a certain amount of meta-information is assigned to the clues.

* Many players have different kinds of conventions. (Please note that not all conventions are added to the BGA list. Please respect the convention the table creator wants to play.)

* When different players in the same team assign different meta-information to the same clue, the game becomes unplayable.
** This is why the BGA table-settings give the option to set a table convention since the end of 2020.
** Please see this [https://boardgamearena.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=102&t=18031 post] started by [https://boardgamearena.com/player?id=84207926 Romain672].
* Ideally, all players adhere to the convention, to avoid miscommunication.

* Below, the meta-information of several conventions is explained.
* In the examples, colours are indicated by their first letter:
R - Red -      ,
Y - Yellow -      ,
G - Green -      ,
B - Blue -      ,
W - White -      ,
M - Multi-colour -      ,
P - black Powder -      .
K - blacK powder -      .
* ''For example:'' Y2 means the card with number 2 and colour yellow.
* For Black, you might see P or K (P for Powder, K for blacK which is played in reverse)

=== Standard convention ===

*You can assume the following meta-information:
** Every card that gets marked, will be playable at some point.
** A card marked with a number, can be played when all "number-1" cards are played.
*** ''This is usually explained as: number-clues mean that these cards should be saved and played later on in the game.''
*** ''It is custom to play saved cards from oldest to newest.'' (Since a number-clue is often used to save a card from being discarded, the oldest card is the most valuable and should be played first.)
** A colour-clue means that the newest, previously unmarked card, is the next playable card in the sequence.
** The oldest, unmarked card is safe to discard.
*** ''Obviously, if a player has a card that they are sure they will never be able to play, for example a card on which is marked as blue when the blue pile has already been completed, such card must be discarded in priority.''

* Clues you should avoid giving (bad clues):
** Giving a clue that marks 0 new cards.
** Give a clue that tells a lie (does not conform to the meta-information above).
** As a special remark: Since every marked card is assumed playable, you shouldn't mark useless, or duplicate cards. So if you have a saved 4, you are forbidden from marking 4s, unless you are sure you are not holding a copy of that 4.
* Sometimes, a "bad" clue can't be avoided.
** ''For example:'' when you need to save a unique 3 (using a number-clue) to avoid it being discarded, but you also accidentally mark a useless card.
** Or if you are forced to give a colour-clue from a flamboyant, and you use it to mark 0 new cards.
* When a lie has been told, it needs to be corrected.
* A correction-clue can never mean "play", it can only mean "discard".

==== Example 1 ====

new -> old
P1: R1, Y1, G1, B1, W1
P2: R2, Y4, R3, B3, G'''5'''
P3: G4, Y1, R4, Y3, Y2

Table: R1, Y5, G1, B3, W4

* It's P1's turn, and P2 knows his oldest card is 5.
* P1 will give R-clue to P2.
* This will tell P2, that the newest card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be R2), and that the other red can be R3, R4, or R5 (because it must be playable at some later point in the game).

==== Example 2 ====

new -> old
P1: R1, Y1, G1, B1, W1
P2: W5, Y4, '''R'''3, B3, G'''5'''
P3: W2, G4, Y1, R4, Y3

Table: R2, Y5, G1, B3, W4

* It is P1's turn again, and P2 knows his oldest card is 5, and his middle card is R.
* P1 will give R-clue to P3.
* This will tell P3, that his middle card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be R4, because R3 is already marked).
* This will give P2 the meta-information that his saved red card, is R3.
** ''This particular move is sometimes called prompting, and is a common way to allow a card that is saved by colour to get played without re-cluing it.''

==== Example 3 ====

new -> old
P1: R1, Y1, G1, B1, W1
P2: R3, Y4, R'''2''', B3, G5
P3: G4, Y1, R4, Y3, Y2

Table: R1, Y5, G0, B3, W4

* It is P1's turn, and P2 knows his middle card is 2.
* P1 will give R-clue to P2.
* This will tell P2 that his newest card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be R3, because R2 is now visible with 100% information).

=== Finesse ===

* Finesse builds on the standard convention (making it a bit more complex).
* In the finesse convention, the timing of the clue gives you extra information.
* You can assume the following meta-information:
** Every card that gets marked, will be playable at some point.
** If the oldest, unmarked card gets marked with a number-clue, then the clue meant "save this/these card(s)". (It is custom to play saved cards from oldest to newest when appropriate.)
** A clue that doesn't mark the oldest card, means that the newest, previously unmarked card, is the next playable card in the sequence.
** The oldest, unmarked card is safe to discard unless that player is busy by having a "known" play.
*** ''Obviously, if a player has a card that they are sure they will never be able to play, for example a card on which is marked as blue when the blue and multicolor piles have already been completed, such card must be discarded in priority.''
** If a marked card gets discarded it means:
*** The copy of that card is already marked in someone else's hand, and the discarding player is the first to realize this; or
*** The copy of that card MUST be marked in a future clue (because a save-clue will be given that will mark the copy card as collateral).

==== Meaning of skipping a player / stealing clues in Finesse convention ====
* There are different approaches among finesse-convention-players about who should clue whom. So this section will be devided into sub-sections. The order does not say anything about which approach is more common on BGA. There are a lot of players following each idea.
* As of now, there is no way of saying which approach is "right" or "better". Of course it is important for success, that in a game, the group of players follows the same idea. If they get mixed, it will most likely result in bombs. If that happens, it does not mean, the other player is "bad" - it merely means, they follow a different idea. So you can only try to find a common ground for the next game or play with another group next time.
* The text within the sections are written by people who follow the idea.

===== a) Skipping / stealing should be avoided =====
* If more than 1 person are able to give the same clue, then the last possible person should give that clue.
* In finesse convention skipping (P1 clues P3, instead of P2; then P2 is skipped) means either:
*# The skipped player is forbidden from giving that clue; or
*# The skipped player has something to play.

===== b) Skipping / stealing is for discard-management =====
'''NOTE: This style is one way of applying finesse convention. Since the primary assumption is that your CHOP is safe to discard, it might still be that said card is a nice-to-have like a non-unique 2 or 3 that is not yet playable. without knowing your chop card, it is good to handle each-other's chop situation by preferrably letting players with definitely useless chop-cards discard rather than discarding your own unknown card.'''
Skipping/stealing is a term that is often used for a situation, where giving a clue is not left for the last possible player to do. For example - player A saves a card on chop of player C, potentially leaving player B without a known play or a useful/necessary clue to give. Skipping players is a useful move to force another player to discard.

When getting skipped without having a play or useful option to clue, it most likely means that your chop card is not very useful. These are valid reasons for skipping you:
* Your chop-card is trash (a copy of the card is already played/marked)
* Your chop-card is redundant: Another copy of it is on another player's (or your own) hand as well
* You might still have something nice on chop, but the player sitting before already received information that their chop might be something very good (from earlier discard-behaviour like NOT being skipped over by the player sitting before them on earlier turns) and they are reluctant to discard for that reason.
* The clue given is a play-clue for a card that might be in your hand so you couldn't know whether you want the other card or not. The player skipping you knows that you want it and therefore takes away the decision.

This approach sacrifices some saving-clue-tokens option (that might be achieved on a stricter dogma about who should clue whom) in order to be able to keep nice cards in the game for longer and discard useless cards instead and by that often get those cards played before they would be discarded.
* This convention is better for players, who play efficient enough to rarely struggle with clue-shortness and can therefore afford being more careful about not losing first copies.
* If a group often struggles with clue-shortness then skipping-dogma (as proposed by other conventions) might as well improve their overall results. If the problem for not achieving 30 points usually isn't clue-shortness but getting bottom-decked (or heavily delayed from losing earlier a card that could be played now), then results can get better with this discard-management convention.

Planning ahead is a vital aspect of the game. By carefully deciding on who to let clue and whom to skip, it is often possible to
* avoid twin-chops before they become an issue
* avoid not having enough clue tokens to save all necessary cards
* get the discard you were waiting for (when a player has 2 copies of the same playable card and you want them to discard before clueing it)

==== Clues you should avoid giving (bad clues) ====

* As a special remark: don't mark useless, or duplicate cards. So if you have a saved 4, you are forbidden from marking 4s, unless you are sure you are not holding a copy of that

==== Special interpretation for play-clues ====

* When receiving a clue for the "next playable card in the sequence", the linking cards are not limited to already marked cards (like in standard convention).
* The newest, unmarked cards in every player's hand should be considered as well.

====== Example ======

new -> old
P1: ??, ??, ??, ??, ??
P2: B1, Y5, B3, W1, W2
P3: R5, R2, B2, G2, Y2

Table: R0, Y0, G0, B0, W0

* P1 gives B-clue to P3.
* This gives the information that B2 is the next playable card in the sequence, and that P2 is either not allowed to give B-clue, or has something to play.
* Since P2 has no marked cards, he was not blocked from giving B-clue, so he must have something to play.
* This something, must be the missing link (B1, to enable B2) that makes B2 the next playable card.
* Since there is no logical (marked) card that could be B1, P2 must assume his newest, unmarked card is B1 and blind-plays this card.

===== Example of reversed finesse =====

new -> old
P1: ??, ??, ??, ??, ??
P2: R5, R2, B2, G2, Y2
P3: B1, Y5, B3, W1, W2

Table: R0, Y0, G0, B0, W0

* P1 gives B-clue to P2.
* This gives the information that B2 is the next playable card in the sequence.
* P2 sees that the newest, unmarked card in the hand of P3 is of the same colour (blue) '''and''' playable now. P2 concludes it is a finesse, with the players in reversed order, so his blue card must be B2.

===== Example of a bluff =====

new -> old
P1: ??, ??, ??, ??, ??
P2: W1, Y5, B3, W1, W2
P3: R5, R2, B2, G2, Y2

Table: R0, Y0, G0, B0, W0

* P1 gives B-clue to P3.
* This gives the information that B2 is the next playable card in the sequence, and that P2 is either not allowed to give B-clue, or has something to play.
* Since P2 has no marked cards, he was not blocked from giving B-clue, so he must have something to play.
* This something, must be the missing link (B1, to enable B2) that makes B2 the next playable card.
* Since there is no logical (marked) card that could be B1, P2 must assume his newest, unmarked card is B1 and blind-plays this card.
* However, at this point the "lie" is revealed (because the colour of the played card does '''not''' match the colour of the finesse-clue).
* The blind-played card is '''not''' B1, but W1. P3, up to this point, was thinking he had B1.
* The blind-play of P2 gives him extra information: his blue card is in fact B2.

=== Hat-guessing ===

* [https://github.com/hanabi/hanabi.github.io/blob/main/misc/hat-guessing.md Github hat-guessing]

=== Logical Leftism ===

* [http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/basics-level-1-a117610126 Hanabi Logic basics-level-1]
* [http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/-a163408102 Hanabi Logic logical-leftism-in-a-nutshell]

=== Closest Friend ===

* TODO

=== Secret convention ===

* TODO

=== Conventional Leftism ===

* [http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/ll-vs-cl-the-differences-a132077536 Hanabi Logic ll-vs-cl-the-differences] gives some clues, but doesn't explain Conventional Leftism from first principles.

=== Chop-focus ===

* TODO

== Strategy ==

* In addition to the convention(s), there is also some strategy to the game.
* You should '''not''' confuse strategy with convention! Strategy is '''team''' vs '''deck'''; convention is communication within the team.
* A simple example of strategy is saving 2s in 2-player games.
** Using number-2-clue to communicate that those cards need to be saved, is a convention.

=== Examples ===

* More advanced players will try to avoid losing as many "first" (non-unique) cards as possible.
* It's a good strategy to keep good cards in the game as long as possible - even if they are not yet playable.
** ''The other copy of that card might be far down the draw pile.''
* Trying to mark at least 12 cards with the first 8 clue-tokens.
** This gives 99% chance of always having enough tokens in the game.
* Not using the last two clue-tokens for "single plays".
** This avoids running out of clue-tokens in times when you need to save critical cards.

For strategy tips, see [[Tips_hanabi]]

Gamehelphanabi

2022-02-22T11:30:10Z

Silene: /* a) Skipping / stealing should be avoided */

[[Category:Card games]]
For tips on how to play hanabi, see [[Tips_hanabi]]
== Introduction ==

* Hanabi is a cooperative game. Your goal, as a team, is to build a fabulous fireworks show.
* You do this by playing the cards in the correct order.
* However, you cannot see your own cards; you can only see the cards of your team mates.

==== Final Score Ratings ====

{| class="wikitable"
|-
!Points
!Overall impression
|-
|5 or less
|horrible, booed by the crowd...
|-
|6-10
|mediocre, just a spattering of applause.
|-
|11-15
|honourable, but will not be remembered for very long...
|-
|16-20
|excellent, crowd pleasing.
|-
|21-24
|amazing, will be remembered for a very long time!
|-
|25
|legendary, everyone left speechless, stars in their eyes
|}

== Card distribution ==

* In a game of Hanabi on '''normal difficulty''', the deck contains 50 cards.
* Each card has exactly one colour: either Red, Yellow, Green, Blue, or White.

There are 10 cards in each colour:
* three 1s
* two 2s
* two 3s
* two 4s
* one 5

=== Multicolour cards ===

* There are three variants that add a 6th colour: the multicolour.
* There are three difficulties:

==== Tricky ====

* Adds 10 multicolour cards to the normal game.
* These cards get marked by a separate multicolour clue.

==== Hard ====

* '''5''' multicolour cards to the normal game: one of each number.
* These cards get marked by a separate multicolour clue.

==== Very Difficult ====

* Adds 10 multicolour cards to the normal game.
* These cards get marked by ANY colour clue.

== Game play ==

* You each take turns.
* During a turn, a player may take one (1) of three actions.
* After your action, the turn ends and it is the next player's turn.
* The game can end in several ways:
*# All cards have been drawn from the deck. After this happens, everybody gets 1 more turn. The game ends with the score at the last turn.
*# Your team played all possible cards. In this case, the game ends immediately and you receive the maximum possible score.
*# Your team made three mistakes that caused misfires. In this case, you lose the game and get negative ten (-10) points.
*# Your team 'abandons' the game. Although discouraged, you receive zero (0) points.

== Turn ==

* During your turn, you have one (1) action.
* You can choose to do one of the following:

==== Give a colour or number clue to a teammate ====

* This costs one clue-token (-1).
* You cannot give a clue if there are zero (0) clue-tokens left.
* When you give a clue, you must indicate '''all''' cards of a certain colour, or '''all''' cards of a certain number.

==== Play a card ====

* When a card is played, it is evaluated.
* If the card fits in one of sequences, it is placed in the appropriate colour stack on the table.
* If it does not fit, it is placed in the discard pile and the team gets a misfire-token.
* Then draw a new card.

==== Discard a card ====

* When you discard, the card is placed in the discard pile and you get a clue-token (+1).
* ''Note:'' cards on the discard pile are out of the game and can never return.
* Then draw a new card.

== Options ==

=== Black Powder ===

* You may not give clues regarding the colour black.
* Black cards must be played in reverse order, from 5 to 1.
* In the deck there are three black 5s, two black 4s, two black 3s, two black 2s, and one black 1.

=== Five Flamboyants ===

After playing the last card of a colour, randomly select one of the following bonuses for immediate use:
* Gain a clue token.
* Gain a clue token and recover a life.
* Give a clue regarding a colour.
* Give a clue regarding a number.
* Shuffle a discarded card into the deck.
* Play a discarded card, if possible.

== Lingo ==

When you play with others, certain words are used to describe certain objects or situations. Here is a short list.

;Marked: A card that is highlighted by a clue.
;Unmarked: A card that is not clued.
;chop: The oldest, unmarked card. The card that you have no information on and will chop from your hand.
;draw: The newest, unmarked card. The card that you have no information on and was freshly drawn.
;To bomb: A play that causes the third misfire-token. Sometimes called '''explosion'''
;Unique: A card that has no copy (left) in the deck.
;Double discard: When consecutive players have the same card on chop. A special problem, since, to each of the consecutive players, a number to chop does not look like a unique save.
;Twin chop: 2 consecutive players have the same card on chop. Same as Double discard
;Double save: When a player has two consecutive unique cards, requiring consecutive save clues.
;Strategy: A set of rules / guidelines / conventions on how to interpret actions by players (including spending of clue-tokens).

== ELO rating ==

* If you are playing with ELO rating on, your ELO may be changed at the end of the game.
* Here is how it works:
*# Every player on the team is temporarily considered as having the average ELO rating of the team.
*# The system will generate a bot associated with the score your team has achieved (let’s call it '''''Hanabot''''').
*#* Hanabot’s ELO rating depends on the variant you are playing (50 cards, 60 cards, 60 cards multicolour), the number of players on the team and, most importantly, your team's score.
*#* All Hanabot’s ELO ratings have been set by an experienced player, they are not random or simply proportional to the score/number of players.
*# Your team (actually your team's average ELO) will now compete against Hanabot.
*#* The system will calculate your team’s ELO gain/loss as though your team had tied with Hanabot.
*#* If your score is below 18 (50-card game) or below 21 (60-card game), Hanabot's ELO is always 1000.

* You can find [http://forum.boardgamearena.com/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=4814 all bots' ELO ratings here]
* The 55-card variant (50 cards + 1 of each value in the sixth color) cannot be played with ELO rating on.
** This is because this variant is highly dependent on draw and a team’s score may not always reflect the players’ skills.
* If you achieve the perfect score and this should cost you ELO points, you will be considered as having beaten the bot associated with the score, so that you lose no ELO points.
* To be confirmed: I think the ELO-system has had an overhaul.

== About "cheating" ==

* In the "real life Hanabi", you can talk. That's why we chose to let the chat open for the online version.

* As a consequence, it is very easy to cheat at Hanabi.
** However, as you can imagine, cheating is very stupid and has no interest... except for ELO boosting.
** This is why there is no international ranking for this game (ie: best player, second best player) and no trophies associated to it.

* Abandoning: Another method of cheating is to deliberately avoid finishing games that would cause ELO to drop.
** While some argue that games become "boring" once 30 becomes impossible, it is rarely the case that games are abandoned on 29 points while waiting for the final 5 to be drawn.

== Conventions ==

'''Please note that these conventions are not widely used in BoardGameArena. Expert and master players in BGA tend to play very often according to the conventions in [https://docs.google.com/document/d/1VzgN6WoeYwh5NYtHECzUNZqFvpVcg-EdObU-YNMlyhc this document].'''

* If you want to play "full information" style, meaning that you wait until you know both the colour and number of a card before you play it, you will likely be short on clue-tokens in >99% of the decks.
* The logical conclusion is, that you cannot play a full information style game, and the team must agree on some sort of convention.
** Meaning: a certain amount of meta-information is assigned to the clues.

* Many players have different kinds of conventions.
* When different players in the same team assign different meta-information to the same clue, the game becomes unplayable.
** This is why the BGA table-settings give the option to set a table convention since the end of 2020.
** Please see this [https://boardgamearena.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=102&t=18031 post] started by [https://boardgamearena.com/player?id=84207926 Romain672].
* Ideally, all players adhere to the convention, to avoid miscommunication.

* Below, the meta-information of several conventions is explained.
* In the examples, colours are indicated by their first letter:
R - Red -      ,
Y - Yellow -      ,
G - Green -      ,
B - Blue -      ,
W - White -      ,
M - Multi-colour -      ,
P - black Powder -      .
K - blacK powder -      .
* ''For example:'' Y2 means the card with number 2 and colour yellow.
* For Black, you might see P or K (P for Powder, K for blacK which is played in reverse)

=== Standard convention ===

*You can assume the following meta-information:
** Every card that gets marked, will be playable at some point.
** A card marked with a number, can be played when all "number-1" cards are played.
*** ''This is usually explained as: number-clues mean that these cards should be saved and played later on in the game.''
*** ''It is custom to play saved cards from oldest to newest.''
*** ''The small minority that pushes the conventions present on this wiki claim that doing so is the best way to prevent bombs, since this convention makes it more difficult to save unique cards on CHOP without marking collateral, potential useless cards.''
*** '' '''Most BoardGameArena players do not adopt this convention.''' A number hint is generally seen as a save (i.e., marking a unique cards that is about to be discarded) when on chop, and as a hint to play as soon as possible otherwise.''
** A colour-clue means that the newest, previously unmarked card, is the next playable card in the sequence.
** The oldest, unmarked card is safe to discard.
*** ''Obviously, if a player has a card that they are sure they will never be able to play, for example a card on which is marked as blue when the blue pile has already been completed, such card must be discarded in priority.''
* Clues you should avoid giving (bad clues):
** Giving a clue that marks 0 new cards.
** Give a clue that tells a lie (does not conform to the meta-information above).
** As a special remark: Since every marked card is assumed playable, you shouldn't mark useless, or duplicate cards. So if you have a saved 4, you are forbidden from marking 4s, unless you are sure you are not holding a copy of that 4.
* Sometimes, a "bad" clue can't be avoided.
** ''For example:'' when you need to save a unique 3 (using a number-clue) to avoid it being discarded, but you also accidentally mark a useless card.
** Or if you are forced to give a colour-clue from a flamboyant, and you use it to mark 0 new cards.
* When a lie has been told, it needs to be corrected.
* A correction-clue can never mean "play", it can only mean "discard".

==== Example 1 ====

new -> old
P1: R1, Y1, G1, B1, W1
P2: R2, Y4, R3, B3, G'''5'''
P3: G4, Y1, R4, Y3, Y2

Table: R1, Y5, G1, B3, W4

* It's P1's turn, and P2 knows his oldest card is 5.
* P1 will give R-clue to P2.
* This will tell P2, that the newest card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be R2), and that the other red can be R3, R4, or R5 (because it must be playable at some later point in the game).

==== Example 2 ====

new -> old
P1: R1, Y1, G1, B1, W1
P2: W5, Y4, '''R'''3, B3, G'''5'''
P3: W2, G4, Y1, R4, Y3

Table: R2, Y5, G1, B3, W4

* It is P1's turn again, and P2 knows his oldest card is 5, and his middle card is R.
* P1 will give R-clue to P3.
* This will tell P3, that his middle card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be R4, because R3 is already marked).
* This will give P2 the meta-information that his saved red card, is R3.
** ''This particular move is sometimes called prompting, and is a common way to allow a card that is saved by colour to get played without re-cluing it.''

==== Example 3 ====

new -> old
P1: R1, Y1, G1, B1, W1
P2: R3, Y4, R'''2''', B3, G5
P3: G4, Y1, R4, Y3, Y2

Table: R1, Y5, G0, B3, W4

* It is P1's turn, and P2 knows his middle card is 2.
* P1 will give R-clue to P2.
* This will tell P2 that his newest card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be R3, because R2 is now visible with 100% information).

=== Finesse ===

* Finesse builds on the standard convention (making it a bit more complex).
* In the finesse convention, the timing of the clue gives you extra information.
* You can assume the following meta-information:
** Every card that gets marked, will be playable at some point.
** If the oldest, unmarked card gets marked with a number-clue, then the clue meant "save this/these card(s)". (It is custom to play saved cards from oldest to newest when appropriate.)
** A clue that doesn't mark the oldest card, means that the newest, previously unmarked card, is the next playable card in the sequence.
** The oldest, unmarked card is safe to discard unless that player is busy by having a "known" play.
*** ''Obviously, if a player has a card that they are sure they will never be able to play, for example a card on which is marked as blue when the blue and multicolor piles have already been completed, such card must be discarded in priority.''
** If a marked card gets discarded it means:
*** The copy of that card is already marked in someone else's hand, and the discarding player is the first to realize this; or
*** The copy of that card MUST be marked in a future clue (because a save-clue will be given that will mark the copy card as collateral).

==== Meaning of skipping a player / stealing clues in Finesse convention ====
* There are different approaches among finesse-convention-players about who should clue whom. So this section will be devided into sub-sections. The order does not say anything about which approach is more common on BGA. There are a lot of players following each idea.
* As of now, there is no way of saying which approach is "right" or "better". Of course it is important for success, that in a game, the group of players follows the same idea. If they get mixed, it will most likely result in bombs. If that happens, it does not mean, the other player is "bad" - it merely means, they follow a different idea. So you can only try to find a common ground for the next game or play with another group next time.
* The text within the sections are written by people who follow the idea.

===== a) Skipping / stealing should be avoided =====
* If more than 1 person are able to give the same clue, then the last possible person should give that clue.
* In finesse convention skipping (P1 clues P3, instead of P2; then P2 is skipped) means either:
*# The skipped player is forbidden from giving that clue; or
*# The skipped player has something to play.
*# You should also clue someone

===== b) Skipping / stealing is for discard-management =====
Skipping/stealing is a term that is often used for a situation, where giving a clue is not left for the last possible player to do. For example - player A saves a card on chop of player C, potentially leaving player B without a known play or a useful/necessary clue to give. Skipping players is a useful move to give other players the time to play other cards or discard.

When getting skipped without having a play or useful option to clue, it most likely means that your chop card is not very useful. These are valid reasons for skipping you:
* Your chop-card is trash (a copy of the card is already played/marked)
* Your chop-card is redundant: Another copy of it is on another player's (or your own) hand as well
* Your chop-card is a 4 and it's very early in the game
* You might still have something nice on chop, but the player sitting before already received information that their chop might be something very good (from earlier discard-behaviour like NOT being skipped over by the player sitting before them on earlier turns) and they are reluctant to discard for that reason.
* The clue given is a playclue for a card that might be in your hand so you couldn't know whether you want the other card or not. The player skipping you knows that you want it and therefore takes away the decision.

This approach sacrifices some saving-clue-tokens option (that might be achieved on a stricter dogma about who should clue whom) in order to be able to keep nice cards in the game for longer and discard useless cards instead and by that often get those cards played before they would be discarded.
* This convention is better for players, who play efficient enough to rarely struggle with clue-shortness and can therefore afford being more careful about not losing first copies.
* If a group often struggles with clue-shortness then skipping-dogma (as proposed by other conventions) might as well improve their overall results. If the problem for not achieving 30 points usually isn't clue-shortness but getting bottom-decked (or heavily delayed from losing earlier a card that could be played now), then results can get better with this discard-management convention.

Planning ahead is a vital aspect of the game. By carefully deciding on who to let clue and whom to skip, it is often possible to
* avoid twin-chops before they become an issue
* avoid not having enough clue tokens to save all necessary cards
* get the discard you were waiting for (when a player has 2 copies of the same playable card and you want them to discard before clueing it)

==== Clues you should avoid giving (bad clues) ====

* As a special remark: don't mark useless, or duplicate cards. So if you have a saved 4, you are forbidden from marking 4s, unless you are sure you are not holding a copy of that

==== Special interpretation for play-clues ====

* When receiving a clue for the "next playable card in the sequence", the linking cards are not limited to already marked cards (like in standard convention).
* The newest, unmarked cards in every player's hand should be considered as well.

====== Example ======

new -> old
P1: ??, ??, ??, ??, ??
P2: B1, Y5, B3, W1, W2
P3: R5, R2, B2, G2, Y2

Table: R0, Y0, G0, B0, W0

* P1 gives B-clue to P3.
* This gives the information that B2 is the next playable card in the sequence, and that P2 is either not allowed to give B-clue, or has something to play.
* Since P2 has no marked cards, he was not blocked from giving B-clue, so he must have something to play.
* This something, must be the missing link (B1, to enable B2) that makes B2 the next playable card.
* Since there is no logical (marked) card that could be B1, P2 must assume his newest, unmarked card is B1 and blind-plays this card.

===== Example of reversed finesse =====

new -> old
P1: ??, ??, ??, ??, ??
P2: R5, R2, B2, G2, Y2
P3: B1, Y5, B3, W1, W2

Table: R0, Y0, G0, B0, W0

* P1 gives B-clue to P2.
* This gives the information that B2 is the next playable card in the sequence.
* P2 sees that the newest, unmarked card in the hand of P3 is of the same colour (blue) '''and''' playable now. P2 concludes it is a finesse, with the players in reversed order, so his blue card must be B2.

===== Example of a bluff =====

new -> old
P1: ??, ??, ??, ??, ??
P2: W1, Y5, B3, W1, W2
P3: R5, R2, B2, G2, Y2

Table: R0, Y0, G0, B0, W0

* P1 gives B-clue to P3.
* This gives the information that B2 is the next playable card in the sequence, and that P2 is either not allowed to give B-clue, or has something to play.
* Since P2 has no marked cards, he was not blocked from giving B-clue, so he must have something to play.
* This something, must be the missing link (B1, to enable B2) that makes B2 the next playable card.
* Since there is no logical (marked) card that could be B1, P2 must assume his newest, unmarked card is B1 and blind-plays this card.
* However, at this point the "lie" is revealed (because the colour of the played card does '''not''' match the colour of the finesse-clue).
* The blind-played card is '''not''' B1, but W1. P3, up to this point, was thinking he had B1.
* The blind-play of P2 gives him extra information: his blue card is in fact B2.

=== Hat-guessing ===

* [https://github.com/hanabi/hanabi.github.io/blob/main/misc/hat-guessing.md Github hat-guessing]

=== Logical Leftism ===

* [http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/basics-level-1-a117610126 Hanabi Logic basics-level-1]
* [http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/-a163408102 Hanabi Logic logical-leftism-in-a-nutshell]

=== Closest Friend ===

* TODO

=== Secret convention ===

* TODO

=== Conventional Leftism ===

* [http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/ll-vs-cl-the-differences-a132077536 Hanabi Logic ll-vs-cl-the-differences] gives some clues, but doesn't explain Conventional Leftism from first principles.

=== Chop-focus ===

* TODO

== Strategy ==

* In addition to the convention(s), there is also some strategy to the game.
* You should '''not''' confuse strategy with convention! Strategy is '''team''' vs '''deck'''; convention is communication within the team.
* A simple example of strategy is saving 2s in 2-player games.
** Using number-2-clue to communicate that those cards need to be saved, is a convention.

=== Examples ===

* More advanced players will try to avoid losing as many "first" (non-unique) cards as possible.
* It's a good strategy to keep good cards in the game as long as possible - even if they are not yet playable.
** ''The other copy of that card might be far down the draw pile.''
* Trying to mark at least 12 cards with the first 8 clue-tokens.
** This gives 99% chance of always having enough tokens in the game.
* Not using the last two clue-tokens for "single plays".
** This avoids running out of clue-tokens in times when you need to save critical cards.

For strategy tips, see [[Tips_hanabi]]

Gamehelphanabi

2022-02-22T11:26:20Z

Silene: /* Meaning of skipping a player / stealing clues */

[[Category:Card games]]
For tips on how to play hanabi, see [[Tips_hanabi]]
== Introduction ==

* Hanabi is a cooperative game. Your goal, as a team, is to build a fabulous fireworks show.
* You do this by playing the cards in the correct order.
* However, you cannot see your own cards; you can only see the cards of your team mates.

==== Final Score Ratings ====

{| class="wikitable"
|-
!Points
!Overall impression
|-
|5 or less
|horrible, booed by the crowd...
|-
|6-10
|mediocre, just a spattering of applause.
|-
|11-15
|honourable, but will not be remembered for very long...
|-
|16-20
|excellent, crowd pleasing.
|-
|21-24
|amazing, will be remembered for a very long time!
|-
|25
|legendary, everyone left speechless, stars in their eyes
|}

== Card distribution ==

* In a game of Hanabi on '''normal difficulty''', the deck contains 50 cards.
* Each card has exactly one colour: either Red, Yellow, Green, Blue, or White.

There are 10 cards in each colour:
* three 1s
* two 2s
* two 3s
* two 4s
* one 5

=== Multicolour cards ===

* There are three variants that add a 6th colour: the multicolour.
* There are three difficulties:

==== Tricky ====

* Adds 10 multicolour cards to the normal game.
* These cards get marked by a separate multicolour clue.

==== Hard ====

* '''5''' multicolour cards to the normal game: one of each number.
* These cards get marked by a separate multicolour clue.

==== Very Difficult ====

* Adds 10 multicolour cards to the normal game.
* These cards get marked by ANY colour clue.

== Game play ==

* You each take turns.
* During a turn, a player may take one (1) of three actions.
* After your action, the turn ends and it is the next player's turn.
* The game can end in several ways:
*# All cards have been drawn from the deck. After this happens, everybody gets 1 more turn. The game ends with the score at the last turn.
*# Your team played all possible cards. In this case, the game ends immediately and you receive the maximum possible score.
*# Your team made three mistakes that caused misfires. In this case, you lose the game and get negative ten (-10) points.
*# Your team 'abandons' the game. Although discouraged, you receive zero (0) points.

== Turn ==

* During your turn, you have one (1) action.
* You can choose to do one of the following:

==== Give a colour or number clue to a teammate ====

* This costs one clue-token (-1).
* You cannot give a clue if there are zero (0) clue-tokens left.
* When you give a clue, you must indicate '''all''' cards of a certain colour, or '''all''' cards of a certain number.

==== Play a card ====

* When a card is played, it is evaluated.
* If the card fits in one of sequences, it is placed in the appropriate colour stack on the table.
* If it does not fit, it is placed in the discard pile and the team gets a misfire-token.
* Then draw a new card.

==== Discard a card ====

* When you discard, the card is placed in the discard pile and you get a clue-token (+1).
* ''Note:'' cards on the discard pile are out of the game and can never return.
* Then draw a new card.

== Options ==

=== Black Powder ===

* You may not give clues regarding the colour black.
* Black cards must be played in reverse order, from 5 to 1.
* In the deck there are three black 5s, two black 4s, two black 3s, two black 2s, and one black 1.

=== Five Flamboyants ===

After playing the last card of a colour, randomly select one of the following bonuses for immediate use:
* Gain a clue token.
* Gain a clue token and recover a life.
* Give a clue regarding a colour.
* Give a clue regarding a number.
* Shuffle a discarded card into the deck.
* Play a discarded card, if possible.

== Lingo ==

When you play with others, certain words are used to describe certain objects or situations. Here is a short list.

;Marked: A card that is highlighted by a clue.
;Unmarked: A card that is not clued.
;chop: The oldest, unmarked card. The card that you have no information on and will chop from your hand.
;draw: The newest, unmarked card. The card that you have no information on and was freshly drawn.
;To bomb: A play that causes the third misfire-token. Sometimes called '''explosion'''
;Unique: A card that has no copy (left) in the deck.
;Double discard: When consecutive players have the same card on chop. A special problem, since, to each of the consecutive players, a number to chop does not look like a unique save.
;Twin chop: 2 consecutive players have the same card on chop. Same as Double discard
;Double save: When a player has two consecutive unique cards, requiring consecutive save clues.
;Strategy: A set of rules / guidelines / conventions on how to interpret actions by players (including spending of clue-tokens).

== ELO rating ==

* If you are playing with ELO rating on, your ELO may be changed at the end of the game.
* Here is how it works:
*# Every player on the team is temporarily considered as having the average ELO rating of the team.
*# The system will generate a bot associated with the score your team has achieved (let’s call it '''''Hanabot''''').
*#* Hanabot’s ELO rating depends on the variant you are playing (50 cards, 60 cards, 60 cards multicolour), the number of players on the team and, most importantly, your team's score.
*#* All Hanabot’s ELO ratings have been set by an experienced player, they are not random or simply proportional to the score/number of players.
*# Your team (actually your team's average ELO) will now compete against Hanabot.
*#* The system will calculate your team’s ELO gain/loss as though your team had tied with Hanabot.
*#* If your score is below 18 (50-card game) or below 21 (60-card game), Hanabot's ELO is always 1000.

* You can find [http://forum.boardgamearena.com/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=4814 all bots' ELO ratings here]
* The 55-card variant (50 cards + 1 of each value in the sixth color) cannot be played with ELO rating on.
** This is because this variant is highly dependent on draw and a team’s score may not always reflect the players’ skills.
* If you achieve the perfect score and this should cost you ELO points, you will be considered as having beaten the bot associated with the score, so that you lose no ELO points.
* To be confirmed: I think the ELO-system has had an overhaul.

== About "cheating" ==

* In the "real life Hanabi", you can talk. That's why we chose to let the chat open for the online version.

* As a consequence, it is very easy to cheat at Hanabi.
** However, as you can imagine, cheating is very stupid and has no interest... except for ELO boosting.
** This is why there is no international ranking for this game (ie: best player, second best player) and no trophies associated to it.

* Abandoning: Another method of cheating is to deliberately avoid finishing games that would cause ELO to drop.
** While some argue that games become "boring" once 30 becomes impossible, it is rarely the case that games are abandoned on 29 points while waiting for the final 5 to be drawn.

== Conventions ==

'''Please note that these conventions are not widely used in BoardGameArena. Expert and master players in BGA tend to play very often according to the conventions in [https://docs.google.com/document/d/1VzgN6WoeYwh5NYtHECzUNZqFvpVcg-EdObU-YNMlyhc this document].'''

* If you want to play "full information" style, meaning that you wait until you know both the colour and number of a card before you play it, you will likely be short on clue-tokens in >99% of the decks.
* The logical conclusion is, that you cannot play a full information style game, and the team must agree on some sort of convention.
** Meaning: a certain amount of meta-information is assigned to the clues.

* Many players have different kinds of conventions.
* When different players in the same team assign different meta-information to the same clue, the game becomes unplayable.
** This is why the BGA table-settings give the option to set a table convention since the end of 2020.
** Please see this [https://boardgamearena.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=102&t=18031 post] started by [https://boardgamearena.com/player?id=84207926 Romain672].
* Ideally, all players adhere to the convention, to avoid miscommunication.

* Below, the meta-information of several conventions is explained.
* In the examples, colours are indicated by their first letter:
R - Red -      ,
Y - Yellow -      ,
G - Green -      ,
B - Blue -      ,
W - White -      ,
M - Multi-colour -      ,
P - black Powder -      .
K - blacK powder -      .
* ''For example:'' Y2 means the card with number 2 and colour yellow.
* For Black, you might see P or K (P for Powder, K for blacK which is played in reverse)

=== Standard convention ===

*You can assume the following meta-information:
** Every card that gets marked, will be playable at some point.
** A card marked with a number, can be played when all "number-1" cards are played.
*** ''This is usually explained as: number-clues mean that these cards should be saved and played later on in the game.''
*** ''It is custom to play saved cards from oldest to newest.''
*** ''The small minority that pushes the conventions present on this wiki claim that doing so is the best way to prevent bombs, since this convention makes it more difficult to save unique cards on CHOP without marking collateral, potential useless cards.''
*** '' '''Most BoardGameArena players do not adopt this convention.''' A number hint is generally seen as a save (i.e., marking a unique cards that is about to be discarded) when on chop, and as a hint to play as soon as possible otherwise.''
** A colour-clue means that the newest, previously unmarked card, is the next playable card in the sequence.
** The oldest, unmarked card is safe to discard.
*** ''Obviously, if a player has a card that they are sure they will never be able to play, for example a card on which is marked as blue when the blue pile has already been completed, such card must be discarded in priority.''
* Clues you should avoid giving (bad clues):
** Giving a clue that marks 0 new cards.
** Give a clue that tells a lie (does not conform to the meta-information above).
** As a special remark: Since every marked card is assumed playable, you shouldn't mark useless, or duplicate cards. So if you have a saved 4, you are forbidden from marking 4s, unless you are sure you are not holding a copy of that 4.
* Sometimes, a "bad" clue can't be avoided.
** ''For example:'' when you need to save a unique 3 (using a number-clue) to avoid it being discarded, but you also accidentally mark a useless card.
** Or if you are forced to give a colour-clue from a flamboyant, and you use it to mark 0 new cards.
* When a lie has been told, it needs to be corrected.
* A correction-clue can never mean "play", it can only mean "discard".

==== Example 1 ====

new -> old
P1: R1, Y1, G1, B1, W1
P2: R2, Y4, R3, B3, G'''5'''
P3: G4, Y1, R4, Y3, Y2

Table: R1, Y5, G1, B3, W4

* It's P1's turn, and P2 knows his oldest card is 5.
* P1 will give R-clue to P2.
* This will tell P2, that the newest card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be R2), and that the other red can be R3, R4, or R5 (because it must be playable at some later point in the game).

==== Example 2 ====

new -> old
P1: R1, Y1, G1, B1, W1
P2: W5, Y4, '''R'''3, B3, G'''5'''
P3: W2, G4, Y1, R4, Y3

Table: R2, Y5, G1, B3, W4

* It is P1's turn again, and P2 knows his oldest card is 5, and his middle card is R.
* P1 will give R-clue to P3.
* This will tell P3, that his middle card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be R4, because R3 is already marked).
* This will give P2 the meta-information that his saved red card, is R3.
** ''This particular move is sometimes called prompting, and is a common way to allow a card that is saved by colour to get played without re-cluing it.''

==== Example 3 ====

new -> old
P1: R1, Y1, G1, B1, W1
P2: R3, Y4, R'''2''', B3, G5
P3: G4, Y1, R4, Y3, Y2

Table: R1, Y5, G0, B3, W4

* It is P1's turn, and P2 knows his middle card is 2.
* P1 will give R-clue to P2.
* This will tell P2 that his newest card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be R3, because R2 is now visible with 100% information).

=== Finesse ===

* Finesse builds on the standard convention (making it a bit more complex).
* In the finesse convention, the timing of the clue gives you extra information.
* You can assume the following meta-information:
** Every card that gets marked, will be playable at some point.
** If the oldest, unmarked card gets marked with a number-clue, then the clue meant "save this/these card(s)". (It is custom to play saved cards from oldest to newest when appropriate.)
** A clue that doesn't mark the oldest card, means that the newest, previously unmarked card, is the next playable card in the sequence.
** The oldest, unmarked card is safe to discard unless that player is busy by having a "known" play.
*** ''Obviously, if a player has a card that they are sure they will never be able to play, for example a card on which is marked as blue when the blue and multicolor piles have already been completed, such card must be discarded in priority.''
** If a marked card gets discarded it means:
*** The copy of that card is already marked in someone else's hand, and the discarding player is the first to realize this; or
*** The copy of that card MUST be marked in a future clue (because a save-clue will be given that will mark the copy card as collateral).

==== Meaning of skipping a player / stealing clues in Finesse convention ====
* There are different approaches among finesse-convention-players about who should clue whom. So this section will be devided into sub-sections. The order does not say anything about which approach is more common on BGA. There are a lot of players following each idea.
* As of now, there is no way of saying which approach is "right" or "better". Of course it is important for success, that in a game, the group of players follows the same idea. If they get mixed, it will most likely result in bombs. If that happens, it does not mean, the other player is "bad" - it merely means, they follow a different idea. So you can only try to find a common ground for the next game or play with another group next time.
* The text within the sections are written by people who follow the idea.

===== a) Skipping / stealing should be avoided =====
* If more than 1 person are able to give the same clue, then the last possible person should give that clue.
* In finesse convention skipping (P1 clues P3, instead of P2; then P2 is skipped) means either:
*# The skipped player is forbidden from giving that clue; or
*# The skipped player has something to play. But it must be a marked, completely known card. If there is no known card in your hand do NOT play blind.
*# You should also clue someone

===== b) Skipping / stealing is for discard-management =====
Skipping/stealing is a term that is often used for a situation, where giving a clue is not left for the last possible player to do. For example - player A saves a card on chop of player C, potentially leaving player B without a known play or a useful/necessary clue to give. Skipping players is a useful move to give other players the time to play other cards or discard.

When getting skipped without having a play or useful option to clue, it most likely means that your chop card is not very useful. These are valid reasons for skipping you:
* Your chop-card is trash (a copy of the card is already played/marked)
* Your chop-card is redundant: Another copy of it is on another player's (or your own) hand as well
* Your chop-card is a 4 and it's very early in the game
* You might still have something nice on chop, but the player sitting before already received information that their chop might be something very good (from earlier discard-behaviour like NOT being skipped over by the player sitting before them on earlier turns) and they are reluctant to discard for that reason.
* The clue given is a playclue for a card that might be in your hand so you couldn't know whether you want the other card or not. The player skipping you knows that you want it and therefore takes away the decision.

This approach sacrifices some saving-clue-tokens option (that might be achieved on a stricter dogma about who should clue whom) in order to be able to keep nice cards in the game for longer and discard useless cards instead and by that often get those cards played before they would be discarded.
* This convention is better for players, who play efficient enough to rarely struggle with clue-shortness and can therefore afford being more careful about not losing first copies.
* If a group often struggles with clue-shortness then skipping-dogma (as proposed by other conventions) might as well improve their overall results. If the problem for not achieving 30 points usually isn't clue-shortness but getting bottom-decked (or heavily delayed from losing earlier a card that could be played now), then results can get better with this discard-management convention.

Planning ahead is a vital aspect of the game. By carefully deciding on who to let clue and whom to skip, it is often possible to
* avoid twin-chops before they become an issue
* avoid not having enough clue tokens to save all necessary cards
* get the discard you were waiting for (when a player has 2 copies of the same playable card and you want them to discard before clueing it)

==== Clues you should avoid giving (bad clues) ====

* As a special remark: don't mark useless, or duplicate cards. So if you have a saved 4, you are forbidden from marking 4s, unless you are sure you are not holding a copy of that

==== Special interpretation for play-clues ====

* When receiving a clue for the "next playable card in the sequence", the linking cards are not limited to already marked cards (like in standard convention).
* The newest, unmarked cards in every player's hand should be considered as well.

====== Example ======

new -> old
P1: ??, ??, ??, ??, ??
P2: B1, Y5, B3, W1, W2
P3: R5, R2, B2, G2, Y2

Table: R0, Y0, G0, B0, W0

* P1 gives B-clue to P3.
* This gives the information that B2 is the next playable card in the sequence, and that P2 is either not allowed to give B-clue, or has something to play.
* Since P2 has no marked cards, he was not blocked from giving B-clue, so he must have something to play.
* This something, must be the missing link (B1, to enable B2) that makes B2 the next playable card.
* Since there is no logical (marked) card that could be B1, P2 must assume his newest, unmarked card is B1 and blind-plays this card.

===== Example of reversed finesse =====

new -> old
P1: ??, ??, ??, ??, ??
P2: R5, R2, B2, G2, Y2
P3: B1, Y5, B3, W1, W2

Table: R0, Y0, G0, B0, W0

* P1 gives B-clue to P2.
* This gives the information that B2 is the next playable card in the sequence.
* P2 sees that the newest, unmarked card in the hand of P3 is of the same colour (blue) '''and''' playable now. P2 concludes it is a finesse, with the players in reversed order, so his blue card must be B2.

===== Example of a bluff =====

new -> old
P1: ??, ??, ??, ??, ??
P2: W1, Y5, B3, W1, W2
P3: R5, R2, B2, G2, Y2

Table: R0, Y0, G0, B0, W0

* P1 gives B-clue to P3.
* This gives the information that B2 is the next playable card in the sequence, and that P2 is either not allowed to give B-clue, or has something to play.
* Since P2 has no marked cards, he was not blocked from giving B-clue, so he must have something to play.
* This something, must be the missing link (B1, to enable B2) that makes B2 the next playable card.
* Since there is no logical (marked) card that could be B1, P2 must assume his newest, unmarked card is B1 and blind-plays this card.
* However, at this point the "lie" is revealed (because the colour of the played card does '''not''' match the colour of the finesse-clue).
* The blind-played card is '''not''' B1, but W1. P3, up to this point, was thinking he had B1.
* The blind-play of P2 gives him extra information: his blue card is in fact B2.

=== Hat-guessing ===

* [https://github.com/hanabi/hanabi.github.io/blob/main/misc/hat-guessing.md Github hat-guessing]

=== Logical Leftism ===

* [http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/basics-level-1-a117610126 Hanabi Logic basics-level-1]
* [http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/-a163408102 Hanabi Logic logical-leftism-in-a-nutshell]

=== Closest Friend ===

* TODO

=== Secret convention ===

* TODO

=== Conventional Leftism ===

* [http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/ll-vs-cl-the-differences-a132077536 Hanabi Logic ll-vs-cl-the-differences] gives some clues, but doesn't explain Conventional Leftism from first principles.

=== Chop-focus ===

* TODO

== Strategy ==

* In addition to the convention(s), there is also some strategy to the game.
* You should '''not''' confuse strategy with convention! Strategy is '''team''' vs '''deck'''; convention is communication within the team.
* A simple example of strategy is saving 2s in 2-player games.
** Using number-2-clue to communicate that those cards need to be saved, is a convention.

=== Examples ===

* More advanced players will try to avoid losing as many "first" (non-unique) cards as possible.
* It's a good strategy to keep good cards in the game as long as possible - even if they are not yet playable.
** ''The other copy of that card might be far down the draw pile.''
* Trying to mark at least 12 cards with the first 8 clue-tokens.
** This gives 99% chance of always having enough tokens in the game.
* Not using the last two clue-tokens for "single plays".
** This avoids running out of clue-tokens in times when you need to save critical cards.

For strategy tips, see [[Tips_hanabi]]

Gamehelphanabi

2022-02-22T11:24:16Z

Silene: /* Conventions */

[[Category:Card games]]
For tips on how to play hanabi, see [[Tips_hanabi]]
== Introduction ==

* Hanabi is a cooperative game. Your goal, as a team, is to build a fabulous fireworks show.
* You do this by playing the cards in the correct order.
* However, you cannot see your own cards; you can only see the cards of your team mates.

==== Final Score Ratings ====

{| class="wikitable"
|-
!Points
!Overall impression
|-
|5 or less
|horrible, booed by the crowd...
|-
|6-10
|mediocre, just a spattering of applause.
|-
|11-15
|honourable, but will not be remembered for very long...
|-
|16-20
|excellent, crowd pleasing.
|-
|21-24
|amazing, will be remembered for a very long time!
|-
|25
|legendary, everyone left speechless, stars in their eyes
|}

== Card distribution ==

* In a game of Hanabi on '''normal difficulty''', the deck contains 50 cards.
* Each card has exactly one colour: either Red, Yellow, Green, Blue, or White.

There are 10 cards in each colour:
* three 1s
* two 2s
* two 3s
* two 4s
* one 5

=== Multicolour cards ===

* There are three variants that add a 6th colour: the multicolour.
* There are three difficulties:

==== Tricky ====

* Adds 10 multicolour cards to the normal game.
* These cards get marked by a separate multicolour clue.

==== Hard ====

* '''5''' multicolour cards to the normal game: one of each number.
* These cards get marked by a separate multicolour clue.

==== Very Difficult ====

* Adds 10 multicolour cards to the normal game.
* These cards get marked by ANY colour clue.

== Game play ==

* You each take turns.
* During a turn, a player may take one (1) of three actions.
* After your action, the turn ends and it is the next player's turn.
* The game can end in several ways:
*# All cards have been drawn from the deck. After this happens, everybody gets 1 more turn. The game ends with the score at the last turn.
*# Your team played all possible cards. In this case, the game ends immediately and you receive the maximum possible score.
*# Your team made three mistakes that caused misfires. In this case, you lose the game and get negative ten (-10) points.
*# Your team 'abandons' the game. Although discouraged, you receive zero (0) points.

== Turn ==

* During your turn, you have one (1) action.
* You can choose to do one of the following:

==== Give a colour or number clue to a teammate ====

* This costs one clue-token (-1).
* You cannot give a clue if there are zero (0) clue-tokens left.
* When you give a clue, you must indicate '''all''' cards of a certain colour, or '''all''' cards of a certain number.

==== Play a card ====

* When a card is played, it is evaluated.
* If the card fits in one of sequences, it is placed in the appropriate colour stack on the table.
* If it does not fit, it is placed in the discard pile and the team gets a misfire-token.
* Then draw a new card.

==== Discard a card ====

* When you discard, the card is placed in the discard pile and you get a clue-token (+1).
* ''Note:'' cards on the discard pile are out of the game and can never return.
* Then draw a new card.

== Options ==

=== Black Powder ===

* You may not give clues regarding the colour black.
* Black cards must be played in reverse order, from 5 to 1.
* In the deck there are three black 5s, two black 4s, two black 3s, two black 2s, and one black 1.

=== Five Flamboyants ===

After playing the last card of a colour, randomly select one of the following bonuses for immediate use:
* Gain a clue token.
* Gain a clue token and recover a life.
* Give a clue regarding a colour.
* Give a clue regarding a number.
* Shuffle a discarded card into the deck.
* Play a discarded card, if possible.

== Lingo ==

When you play with others, certain words are used to describe certain objects or situations. Here is a short list.

;Marked: A card that is highlighted by a clue.
;Unmarked: A card that is not clued.
;chop: The oldest, unmarked card. The card that you have no information on and will chop from your hand.
;draw: The newest, unmarked card. The card that you have no information on and was freshly drawn.
;To bomb: A play that causes the third misfire-token. Sometimes called '''explosion'''
;Unique: A card that has no copy (left) in the deck.
;Double discard: When consecutive players have the same card on chop. A special problem, since, to each of the consecutive players, a number to chop does not look like a unique save.
;Twin chop: 2 consecutive players have the same card on chop. Same as Double discard
;Double save: When a player has two consecutive unique cards, requiring consecutive save clues.
;Strategy: A set of rules / guidelines / conventions on how to interpret actions by players (including spending of clue-tokens).

== ELO rating ==

* If you are playing with ELO rating on, your ELO may be changed at the end of the game.
* Here is how it works:
*# Every player on the team is temporarily considered as having the average ELO rating of the team.
*# The system will generate a bot associated with the score your team has achieved (let’s call it '''''Hanabot''''').
*#* Hanabot’s ELO rating depends on the variant you are playing (50 cards, 60 cards, 60 cards multicolour), the number of players on the team and, most importantly, your team's score.
*#* All Hanabot’s ELO ratings have been set by an experienced player, they are not random or simply proportional to the score/number of players.
*# Your team (actually your team's average ELO) will now compete against Hanabot.
*#* The system will calculate your team’s ELO gain/loss as though your team had tied with Hanabot.
*#* If your score is below 18 (50-card game) or below 21 (60-card game), Hanabot's ELO is always 1000.

* You can find [http://forum.boardgamearena.com/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=4814 all bots' ELO ratings here]
* The 55-card variant (50 cards + 1 of each value in the sixth color) cannot be played with ELO rating on.
** This is because this variant is highly dependent on draw and a team’s score may not always reflect the players’ skills.
* If you achieve the perfect score and this should cost you ELO points, you will be considered as having beaten the bot associated with the score, so that you lose no ELO points.
* To be confirmed: I think the ELO-system has had an overhaul.

== About "cheating" ==

* In the "real life Hanabi", you can talk. That's why we chose to let the chat open for the online version.

* As a consequence, it is very easy to cheat at Hanabi.
** However, as you can imagine, cheating is very stupid and has no interest... except for ELO boosting.
** This is why there is no international ranking for this game (ie: best player, second best player) and no trophies associated to it.

* Abandoning: Another method of cheating is to deliberately avoid finishing games that would cause ELO to drop.
** While some argue that games become "boring" once 30 becomes impossible, it is rarely the case that games are abandoned on 29 points while waiting for the final 5 to be drawn.

== Conventions ==

'''Please note that these conventions are not widely used in BoardGameArena. Expert and master players in BGA tend to play very often according to the conventions in [https://docs.google.com/document/d/1VzgN6WoeYwh5NYtHECzUNZqFvpVcg-EdObU-YNMlyhc this document].'''

* If you want to play "full information" style, meaning that you wait until you know both the colour and number of a card before you play it, you will likely be short on clue-tokens in >99% of the decks.
* The logical conclusion is, that you cannot play a full information style game, and the team must agree on some sort of convention.
** Meaning: a certain amount of meta-information is assigned to the clues.

* Many players have different kinds of conventions.
* When different players in the same team assign different meta-information to the same clue, the game becomes unplayable.
** This is why the BGA table-settings give the option to set a table convention since the end of 2020.
** Please see this [https://boardgamearena.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=102&t=18031 post] started by [https://boardgamearena.com/player?id=84207926 Romain672].
* Ideally, all players adhere to the convention, to avoid miscommunication.

* Below, the meta-information of several conventions is explained.
* In the examples, colours are indicated by their first letter:
R - Red -      ,
Y - Yellow -      ,
G - Green -      ,
B - Blue -      ,
W - White -      ,
M - Multi-colour -      ,
P - black Powder -      .
K - blacK powder -      .
* ''For example:'' Y2 means the card with number 2 and colour yellow.
* For Black, you might see P or K (P for Powder, K for blacK which is played in reverse)

=== Standard convention ===

*You can assume the following meta-information:
** Every card that gets marked, will be playable at some point.
** A card marked with a number, can be played when all "number-1" cards are played.
*** ''This is usually explained as: number-clues mean that these cards should be saved and played later on in the game.''
*** ''It is custom to play saved cards from oldest to newest.''
*** ''The small minority that pushes the conventions present on this wiki claim that doing so is the best way to prevent bombs, since this convention makes it more difficult to save unique cards on CHOP without marking collateral, potential useless cards.''
*** '' '''Most BoardGameArena players do not adopt this convention.''' A number hint is generally seen as a save (i.e., marking a unique cards that is about to be discarded) when on chop, and as a hint to play as soon as possible otherwise.''
** A colour-clue means that the newest, previously unmarked card, is the next playable card in the sequence.
** The oldest, unmarked card is safe to discard.
*** ''Obviously, if a player has a card that they are sure they will never be able to play, for example a card on which is marked as blue when the blue pile has already been completed, such card must be discarded in priority.''
* Clues you should avoid giving (bad clues):
** Giving a clue that marks 0 new cards.
** Give a clue that tells a lie (does not conform to the meta-information above).
** As a special remark: Since every marked card is assumed playable, you shouldn't mark useless, or duplicate cards. So if you have a saved 4, you are forbidden from marking 4s, unless you are sure you are not holding a copy of that 4.
* Sometimes, a "bad" clue can't be avoided.
** ''For example:'' when you need to save a unique 3 (using a number-clue) to avoid it being discarded, but you also accidentally mark a useless card.
** Or if you are forced to give a colour-clue from a flamboyant, and you use it to mark 0 new cards.
* When a lie has been told, it needs to be corrected.
* A correction-clue can never mean "play", it can only mean "discard".

==== Example 1 ====

new -> old
P1: R1, Y1, G1, B1, W1
P2: R2, Y4, R3, B3, G'''5'''
P3: G4, Y1, R4, Y3, Y2

Table: R1, Y5, G1, B3, W4

* It's P1's turn, and P2 knows his oldest card is 5.
* P1 will give R-clue to P2.
* This will tell P2, that the newest card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be R2), and that the other red can be R3, R4, or R5 (because it must be playable at some later point in the game).

==== Example 2 ====

new -> old
P1: R1, Y1, G1, B1, W1
P2: W5, Y4, '''R'''3, B3, G'''5'''
P3: W2, G4, Y1, R4, Y3

Table: R2, Y5, G1, B3, W4

* It is P1's turn again, and P2 knows his oldest card is 5, and his middle card is R.
* P1 will give R-clue to P3.
* This will tell P3, that his middle card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be R4, because R3 is already marked).
* This will give P2 the meta-information that his saved red card, is R3.
** ''This particular move is sometimes called prompting, and is a common way to allow a card that is saved by colour to get played without re-cluing it.''

==== Example 3 ====

new -> old
P1: R1, Y1, G1, B1, W1
P2: R3, Y4, R'''2''', B3, G5
P3: G4, Y1, R4, Y3, Y2

Table: R1, Y5, G0, B3, W4

* It is P1's turn, and P2 knows his middle card is 2.
* P1 will give R-clue to P2.
* This will tell P2 that his newest card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be R3, because R2 is now visible with 100% information).

=== Finesse ===

* Finesse builds on the standard convention (making it a bit more complex).
* In the finesse convention, the timing of the clue gives you extra information.
* You can assume the following meta-information:
** Every card that gets marked, will be playable at some point.
** If the oldest, unmarked card gets marked with a number-clue, then the clue meant "save this/these card(s)". (It is custom to play saved cards from oldest to newest when appropriate.)
** A clue that doesn't mark the oldest card, means that the newest, previously unmarked card, is the next playable card in the sequence.
** The oldest, unmarked card is safe to discard unless that player is busy by having a "known" play.
*** ''Obviously, if a player has a card that they are sure they will never be able to play, for example a card on which is marked as blue when the blue and multicolor piles have already been completed, such card must be discarded in priority.''
** If a marked card gets discarded it means:
*** The copy of that card is already marked in someone else's hand, and the discarding player is the first to realize this; or
*** The copy of that card MUST be marked in a future clue (because a save-clue will be given that will mark the copy card as collateral).

==== Meaning of skipping a player / stealing clues ====
* There are different approaches among finesse-convention-players about who should clue whom. So this section will be devided into sub-sections. The order does not say anything about which approach is more common on BGA. There are a lot of players following each idea.
* As of now, there is no way of saying which approach is "right" or "better". Of course it is important for success, that in a game, the group of players follows the same idea. If they get mixed, it will most likely result in bombs. If that happens, it does not mean, the other player is "bad" - it merely means, they follow a different idea. So you can only try to find a common ground for the next game or play with another group next time.
* The text within the sections are written by people who follow the idea.

===== a) Skipping / stealing should be avoided =====
* If more than 1 person are able to give the same clue, then the last possible person should give that clue.
* In finesse convention skipping (P1 clues P3, instead of P2; then P2 is skipped) means either:
*# The skipped player is forbidden from giving that clue; or
*# The skipped player has something to play. But it must be a marked, completely known card. If there is no known card in your hand do NOT play blind.
*# You should also clue someone

===== b) Skipping / stealing is for discard-management =====
Skipping/stealing is a term that is often used for a situation, where giving a clue is not left for the last possible player to do. For example - player A saves a card on chop of player C, potentially leaving player B without a known play or a useful/necessary clue to give. Skipping players is a useful move to give other players the time to play other cards or discard.

When getting skipped without having a play or useful option to clue, it most likely means that your chop card is not very useful. These are valid reasons for skipping you:
* Your chop-card is trash (a copy of the card is already played/marked)
* Your chop-card is redundant: Another copy of it is on another player's (or your own) hand as well
* Your chop-card is a 4 and it's very early in the game
* You might still have something nice on chop, but the player sitting before already received information that their chop might be something very good (from earlier discard-behaviour like NOT being skipped over by the player sitting before them on earlier turns) and they are reluctant to discard for that reason.
* The clue given is a playclue for a card that might be in your hand so you couldn't know whether you want the other card or not. The player skipping you knows that you want it and therefore takes away the decision.

This approach sacrifices some saving-clue-tokens option (that might be achieved on a stricter dogma about who should clue whom) in order to be able to keep nice cards in the game for longer and discard useless cards instead and by that often get those cards played before they would be discarded.
* This convention is better for players, who play efficient enough to rarely struggle with clue-shortness and can therefore afford being more careful about not losing first copies.
* If a group often struggles with clue-shortness then skipping-dogma (as proposed by other conventions) might as well improve their overall results. If the problem for not achieving 30 points usually isn't clue-shortness but getting bottom-decked (or heavily delayed from losing earlier a card that could be played now), then results can get better with this discard-management convention.

Planning ahead is a vital aspect of the game. By carefully deciding on who to let clue and whom to skip, it is often possible to
* avoid twin-chops before they become an issue
* avoid not having enough clue tokens to save all necessary cards
* get the discard you were waiting for (when a player has 2 copies of the same playable card and you want them to discard before clueing it)

==== Clues you should avoid giving (bad clues) ====

* As a special remark: don't mark useless, or duplicate cards. So if you have a saved 4, you are forbidden from marking 4s, unless you are sure you are not holding a copy of that

==== Special interpretation for play-clues ====

* When receiving a clue for the "next playable card in the sequence", the linking cards are not limited to already marked cards (like in standard convention).
* The newest, unmarked cards in every player's hand should be considered as well.

====== Example ======

new -> old
P1: ??, ??, ??, ??, ??
P2: B1, Y5, B3, W1, W2
P3: R5, R2, B2, G2, Y2

Table: R0, Y0, G0, B0, W0

* P1 gives B-clue to P3.
* This gives the information that B2 is the next playable card in the sequence, and that P2 is either not allowed to give B-clue, or has something to play.
* Since P2 has no marked cards, he was not blocked from giving B-clue, so he must have something to play.
* This something, must be the missing link (B1, to enable B2) that makes B2 the next playable card.
* Since there is no logical (marked) card that could be B1, P2 must assume his newest, unmarked card is B1 and blind-plays this card.

===== Example of reversed finesse =====

new -> old
P1: ??, ??, ??, ??, ??
P2: R5, R2, B2, G2, Y2
P3: B1, Y5, B3, W1, W2

Table: R0, Y0, G0, B0, W0

* P1 gives B-clue to P2.
* This gives the information that B2 is the next playable card in the sequence.
* P2 sees that the newest, unmarked card in the hand of P3 is of the same colour (blue) '''and''' playable now. P2 concludes it is a finesse, with the players in reversed order, so his blue card must be B2.

===== Example of a bluff =====

new -> old
P1: ??, ??, ??, ??, ??
P2: W1, Y5, B3, W1, W2
P3: R5, R2, B2, G2, Y2

Table: R0, Y0, G0, B0, W0

* P1 gives B-clue to P3.
* This gives the information that B2 is the next playable card in the sequence, and that P2 is either not allowed to give B-clue, or has something to play.
* Since P2 has no marked cards, he was not blocked from giving B-clue, so he must have something to play.
* This something, must be the missing link (B1, to enable B2) that makes B2 the next playable card.
* Since there is no logical (marked) card that could be B1, P2 must assume his newest, unmarked card is B1 and blind-plays this card.
* However, at this point the "lie" is revealed (because the colour of the played card does '''not''' match the colour of the finesse-clue).
* The blind-played card is '''not''' B1, but W1. P3, up to this point, was thinking he had B1.
* The blind-play of P2 gives him extra information: his blue card is in fact B2.

=== Hat-guessing ===

* [https://github.com/hanabi/hanabi.github.io/blob/main/misc/hat-guessing.md Github hat-guessing]

=== Logical Leftism ===

* [http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/basics-level-1-a117610126 Hanabi Logic basics-level-1]
* [http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/-a163408102 Hanabi Logic logical-leftism-in-a-nutshell]

=== Closest Friend ===

* TODO

=== Secret convention ===

* TODO

=== Conventional Leftism ===

* [http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/ll-vs-cl-the-differences-a132077536 Hanabi Logic ll-vs-cl-the-differences] gives some clues, but doesn't explain Conventional Leftism from first principles.

=== Chop-focus ===

* TODO

== Strategy ==

* In addition to the convention(s), there is also some strategy to the game.
* You should '''not''' confuse strategy with convention! Strategy is '''team''' vs '''deck'''; convention is communication within the team.
* A simple example of strategy is saving 2s in 2-player games.
** Using number-2-clue to communicate that those cards need to be saved, is a convention.

=== Examples ===

* More advanced players will try to avoid losing as many "first" (non-unique) cards as possible.
* It's a good strategy to keep good cards in the game as long as possible - even if they are not yet playable.
** ''The other copy of that card might be far down the draw pile.''
* Trying to mark at least 12 cards with the first 8 clue-tokens.
** This gives 99% chance of always having enough tokens in the game.
* Not using the last two clue-tokens for "single plays".
** This avoids running out of clue-tokens in times when you need to save critical cards.

For strategy tips, see [[Tips_hanabi]]

Gamehelphanabi

2022-02-22T11:23:53Z

Silene: /* Conventions */

[[Category:Card games]]
For tips on how to play hanabi, see [[Tips_hanabi]]
== Introduction ==

* Hanabi is a cooperative game. Your goal, as a team, is to build a fabulous fireworks show.
* You do this by playing the cards in the correct order.
* However, you cannot see your own cards; you can only see the cards of your team mates.

==== Final Score Ratings ====

{| class="wikitable"
|-
!Points
!Overall impression
|-
|5 or less
|horrible, booed by the crowd...
|-
|6-10
|mediocre, just a spattering of applause.
|-
|11-15
|honourable, but will not be remembered for very long...
|-
|16-20
|excellent, crowd pleasing.
|-
|21-24
|amazing, will be remembered for a very long time!
|-
|25
|legendary, everyone left speechless, stars in their eyes
|}

== Card distribution ==

* In a game of Hanabi on '''normal difficulty''', the deck contains 50 cards.
* Each card has exactly one colour: either Red, Yellow, Green, Blue, or White.

There are 10 cards in each colour:
* three 1s
* two 2s
* two 3s
* two 4s
* one 5

=== Multicolour cards ===

* There are three variants that add a 6th colour: the multicolour.
* There are three difficulties:

==== Tricky ====

* Adds 10 multicolour cards to the normal game.
* These cards get marked by a separate multicolour clue.

==== Hard ====

* '''5''' multicolour cards to the normal game: one of each number.
* These cards get marked by a separate multicolour clue.

==== Very Difficult ====

* Adds 10 multicolour cards to the normal game.
* These cards get marked by ANY colour clue.

== Game play ==

* You each take turns.
* During a turn, a player may take one (1) of three actions.
* After your action, the turn ends and it is the next player's turn.
* The game can end in several ways:
*# All cards have been drawn from the deck. After this happens, everybody gets 1 more turn. The game ends with the score at the last turn.
*# Your team played all possible cards. In this case, the game ends immediately and you receive the maximum possible score.
*# Your team made three mistakes that caused misfires. In this case, you lose the game and get negative ten (-10) points.
*# Your team 'abandons' the game. Although discouraged, you receive zero (0) points.

== Turn ==

* During your turn, you have one (1) action.
* You can choose to do one of the following:

==== Give a colour or number clue to a teammate ====

* This costs one clue-token (-1).
* You cannot give a clue if there are zero (0) clue-tokens left.
* When you give a clue, you must indicate '''all''' cards of a certain colour, or '''all''' cards of a certain number.

==== Play a card ====

* When a card is played, it is evaluated.
* If the card fits in one of sequences, it is placed in the appropriate colour stack on the table.
* If it does not fit, it is placed in the discard pile and the team gets a misfire-token.
* Then draw a new card.

==== Discard a card ====

* When you discard, the card is placed in the discard pile and you get a clue-token (+1).
* ''Note:'' cards on the discard pile are out of the game and can never return.
* Then draw a new card.

== Options ==

=== Black Powder ===

* You may not give clues regarding the colour black.
* Black cards must be played in reverse order, from 5 to 1.
* In the deck there are three black 5s, two black 4s, two black 3s, two black 2s, and one black 1.

=== Five Flamboyants ===

After playing the last card of a colour, randomly select one of the following bonuses for immediate use:
* Gain a clue token.
* Gain a clue token and recover a life.
* Give a clue regarding a colour.
* Give a clue regarding a number.
* Shuffle a discarded card into the deck.
* Play a discarded card, if possible.

== Lingo ==

When you play with others, certain words are used to describe certain objects or situations. Here is a short list.

;Marked: A card that is highlighted by a clue.
;Unmarked: A card that is not clued.
;chop: The oldest, unmarked card. The card that you have no information on and will chop from your hand.
;draw: The newest, unmarked card. The card that you have no information on and was freshly drawn.
;To bomb: A play that causes the third misfire-token. Sometimes called '''explosion'''
;Unique: A card that has no copy (left) in the deck.
;Double discard: When consecutive players have the same card on chop. A special problem, since, to each of the consecutive players, a number to chop does not look like a unique save.
;Twin chop: 2 consecutive players have the same card on chop. Same as Double discard
;Double save: When a player has two consecutive unique cards, requiring consecutive save clues.
;Strategy: A set of rules / guidelines / conventions on how to interpret actions by players (including spending of clue-tokens).

== ELO rating ==

* If you are playing with ELO rating on, your ELO may be changed at the end of the game.
* Here is how it works:
*# Every player on the team is temporarily considered as having the average ELO rating of the team.
*# The system will generate a bot associated with the score your team has achieved (let’s call it '''''Hanabot''''').
*#* Hanabot’s ELO rating depends on the variant you are playing (50 cards, 60 cards, 60 cards multicolour), the number of players on the team and, most importantly, your team's score.
*#* All Hanabot’s ELO ratings have been set by an experienced player, they are not random or simply proportional to the score/number of players.
*# Your team (actually your team's average ELO) will now compete against Hanabot.
*#* The system will calculate your team’s ELO gain/loss as though your team had tied with Hanabot.
*#* If your score is below 18 (50-card game) or below 21 (60-card game), Hanabot's ELO is always 1000.

* You can find [http://forum.boardgamearena.com/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=4814 all bots' ELO ratings here]
* The 55-card variant (50 cards + 1 of each value in the sixth color) cannot be played with ELO rating on.
** This is because this variant is highly dependent on draw and a team’s score may not always reflect the players’ skills.
* If you achieve the perfect score and this should cost you ELO points, you will be considered as having beaten the bot associated with the score, so that you lose no ELO points.
* To be confirmed: I think the ELO-system has had an overhaul.

== About "cheating" ==

* In the "real life Hanabi", you can talk. That's why we chose to let the chat open for the online version.

* As a consequence, it is very easy to cheat at Hanabi.
** However, as you can imagine, cheating is very stupid and has no interest... except for ELO boosting.
** This is why there is no international ranking for this game (ie: best player, second best player) and no trophies associated to it.

* Abandoning: Another method of cheating is to deliberately avoid finishing games that would cause ELO to drop.
** While some argue that games become "boring" once 30 becomes impossible, it is rarely the case that games are abandoned on 29 points while waiting for the final 5 to be drawn.

== Conventions ==

'''Please note that these conventions are not widely used in BoardGameArena. Expert and master players in BGA tend to play very often according to the conventions in [https://docs.google.com/document/d/1VzgN6WoeYwh5NYtHECzUNZqFvpVcg-EdObU-YNMlyhc this document].'''

* If you want to play "full information" style, meaning that you wait until you know both the colour and number of a card before you play it, you will likely be short on clue-tokens in >99% of the decks.
* The logical conclusion is, that you cannot play a full information style game, and the team must agree on some sort of convention.
** Meaning: a certain amount of meta-information is assigned to the clues.

* Many players have different kinds of conventions.
* When different players in the same team assign different meta-information to the same clue, the game becomes unplayable.
** This is why the BGA table-settings give the option to set a table convention since the end of 2020.
** Please see this [https://boardgamearena.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=102&t=18031 post] started by [https://boardgamearena.com/player?id=84207926 Romain672].
* Ideally, all players adhere to the convention, to avoid miscommunication.

* Below, the meta-information of several conventions is explained.
* In the examples, colours are indicated by their first letter:
R - Red -      ,
Y - Yellow -      ,
G - Green -      ,
B - Blue -      ,
W - White -      ,
M - Multi-colour -      ,
P - black Powder -      .
K - blacK powder -      .
** ''For example:'' Y2 means the card with number 2 and colour yellow.
** For Black, you might see P or K (P for Powder, K for blacK which is played in reverse)

=== Standard convention ===

*You can assume the following meta-information:
** Every card that gets marked, will be playable at some point.
** A card marked with a number, can be played when all "number-1" cards are played.
*** ''This is usually explained as: number-clues mean that these cards should be saved and played later on in the game.''
*** ''It is custom to play saved cards from oldest to newest.''
*** ''The small minority that pushes the conventions present on this wiki claim that doing so is the best way to prevent bombs, since this convention makes it more difficult to save unique cards on CHOP without marking collateral, potential useless cards.''
*** '' '''Most BoardGameArena players do not adopt this convention.''' A number hint is generally seen as a save (i.e., marking a unique cards that is about to be discarded) when on chop, and as a hint to play as soon as possible otherwise.''
** A colour-clue means that the newest, previously unmarked card, is the next playable card in the sequence.
** The oldest, unmarked card is safe to discard.
*** ''Obviously, if a player has a card that they are sure they will never be able to play, for example a card on which is marked as blue when the blue pile has already been completed, such card must be discarded in priority.''
* Clues you should avoid giving (bad clues):
** Giving a clue that marks 0 new cards.
** Give a clue that tells a lie (does not conform to the meta-information above).
** As a special remark: Since every marked card is assumed playable, you shouldn't mark useless, or duplicate cards. So if you have a saved 4, you are forbidden from marking 4s, unless you are sure you are not holding a copy of that 4.
* Sometimes, a "bad" clue can't be avoided.
** ''For example:'' when you need to save a unique 3 (using a number-clue) to avoid it being discarded, but you also accidentally mark a useless card.
** Or if you are forced to give a colour-clue from a flamboyant, and you use it to mark 0 new cards.
* When a lie has been told, it needs to be corrected.
* A correction-clue can never mean "play", it can only mean "discard".

==== Example 1 ====

new -> old
P1: R1, Y1, G1, B1, W1
P2: R2, Y4, R3, B3, G'''5'''
P3: G4, Y1, R4, Y3, Y2

Table: R1, Y5, G1, B3, W4

* It's P1's turn, and P2 knows his oldest card is 5.
* P1 will give R-clue to P2.
* This will tell P2, that the newest card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be R2), and that the other red can be R3, R4, or R5 (because it must be playable at some later point in the game).

==== Example 2 ====

new -> old
P1: R1, Y1, G1, B1, W1
P2: W5, Y4, '''R'''3, B3, G'''5'''
P3: W2, G4, Y1, R4, Y3

Table: R2, Y5, G1, B3, W4

* It is P1's turn again, and P2 knows his oldest card is 5, and his middle card is R.
* P1 will give R-clue to P3.
* This will tell P3, that his middle card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be R4, because R3 is already marked).
* This will give P2 the meta-information that his saved red card, is R3.
** ''This particular move is sometimes called prompting, and is a common way to allow a card that is saved by colour to get played without re-cluing it.''

==== Example 3 ====

new -> old
P1: R1, Y1, G1, B1, W1
P2: R3, Y4, R'''2''', B3, G5
P3: G4, Y1, R4, Y3, Y2

Table: R1, Y5, G0, B3, W4

* It is P1's turn, and P2 knows his middle card is 2.
* P1 will give R-clue to P2.
* This will tell P2 that his newest card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be R3, because R2 is now visible with 100% information).

=== Finesse ===

* Finesse builds on the standard convention (making it a bit more complex).
* In the finesse convention, the timing of the clue gives you extra information.
* You can assume the following meta-information:
** Every card that gets marked, will be playable at some point.
** If the oldest, unmarked card gets marked with a number-clue, then the clue meant "save this/these card(s)". (It is custom to play saved cards from oldest to newest when appropriate.)
** A clue that doesn't mark the oldest card, means that the newest, previously unmarked card, is the next playable card in the sequence.
** The oldest, unmarked card is safe to discard unless that player is busy by having a "known" play.
*** ''Obviously, if a player has a card that they are sure they will never be able to play, for example a card on which is marked as blue when the blue and multicolor piles have already been completed, such card must be discarded in priority.''
** If a marked card gets discarded it means:
*** The copy of that card is already marked in someone else's hand, and the discarding player is the first to realize this; or
*** The copy of that card MUST be marked in a future clue (because a save-clue will be given that will mark the copy card as collateral).

==== Meaning of skipping a player / stealing clues ====
* There are different approaches among finesse-convention-players about who should clue whom. So this section will be devided into sub-sections. The order does not say anything about which approach is more common on BGA. There are a lot of players following each idea.
* As of now, there is no way of saying which approach is "right" or "better". Of course it is important for success, that in a game, the group of players follows the same idea. If they get mixed, it will most likely result in bombs. If that happens, it does not mean, the other player is "bad" - it merely means, they follow a different idea. So you can only try to find a common ground for the next game or play with another group next time.
* The text within the sections are written by people who follow the idea.

===== a) Skipping / stealing should be avoided =====
* If more than 1 person are able to give the same clue, then the last possible person should give that clue.
* In finesse convention skipping (P1 clues P3, instead of P2; then P2 is skipped) means either:
*# The skipped player is forbidden from giving that clue; or
*# The skipped player has something to play. But it must be a marked, completely known card. If there is no known card in your hand do NOT play blind.
*# You should also clue someone

===== b) Skipping / stealing is for discard-management =====
Skipping/stealing is a term that is often used for a situation, where giving a clue is not left for the last possible player to do. For example - player A saves a card on chop of player C, potentially leaving player B without a known play or a useful/necessary clue to give. Skipping players is a useful move to give other players the time to play other cards or discard.

When getting skipped without having a play or useful option to clue, it most likely means that your chop card is not very useful. These are valid reasons for skipping you:
* Your chop-card is trash (a copy of the card is already played/marked)
* Your chop-card is redundant: Another copy of it is on another player's (or your own) hand as well
* Your chop-card is a 4 and it's very early in the game
* You might still have something nice on chop, but the player sitting before already received information that their chop might be something very good (from earlier discard-behaviour like NOT being skipped over by the player sitting before them on earlier turns) and they are reluctant to discard for that reason.
* The clue given is a playclue for a card that might be in your hand so you couldn't know whether you want the other card or not. The player skipping you knows that you want it and therefore takes away the decision.

This approach sacrifices some saving-clue-tokens option (that might be achieved on a stricter dogma about who should clue whom) in order to be able to keep nice cards in the game for longer and discard useless cards instead and by that often get those cards played before they would be discarded.
* This convention is better for players, who play efficient enough to rarely struggle with clue-shortness and can therefore afford being more careful about not losing first copies.
* If a group often struggles with clue-shortness then skipping-dogma (as proposed by other conventions) might as well improve their overall results. If the problem for not achieving 30 points usually isn't clue-shortness but getting bottom-decked (or heavily delayed from losing earlier a card that could be played now), then results can get better with this discard-management convention.

Planning ahead is a vital aspect of the game. By carefully deciding on who to let clue and whom to skip, it is often possible to
* avoid twin-chops before they become an issue
* avoid not having enough clue tokens to save all necessary cards
* get the discard you were waiting for (when a player has 2 copies of the same playable card and you want them to discard before clueing it)

==== Clues you should avoid giving (bad clues) ====

* As a special remark: don't mark useless, or duplicate cards. So if you have a saved 4, you are forbidden from marking 4s, unless you are sure you are not holding a copy of that

==== Special interpretation for play-clues ====

* When receiving a clue for the "next playable card in the sequence", the linking cards are not limited to already marked cards (like in standard convention).
* The newest, unmarked cards in every player's hand should be considered as well.

====== Example ======

new -> old
P1: ??, ??, ??, ??, ??
P2: B1, Y5, B3, W1, W2
P3: R5, R2, B2, G2, Y2

Table: R0, Y0, G0, B0, W0

* P1 gives B-clue to P3.
* This gives the information that B2 is the next playable card in the sequence, and that P2 is either not allowed to give B-clue, or has something to play.
* Since P2 has no marked cards, he was not blocked from giving B-clue, so he must have something to play.
* This something, must be the missing link (B1, to enable B2) that makes B2 the next playable card.
* Since there is no logical (marked) card that could be B1, P2 must assume his newest, unmarked card is B1 and blind-plays this card.

===== Example of reversed finesse =====

new -> old
P1: ??, ??, ??, ??, ??
P2: R5, R2, B2, G2, Y2
P3: B1, Y5, B3, W1, W2

Table: R0, Y0, G0, B0, W0

* P1 gives B-clue to P2.
* This gives the information that B2 is the next playable card in the sequence.
* P2 sees that the newest, unmarked card in the hand of P3 is of the same colour (blue) '''and''' playable now. P2 concludes it is a finesse, with the players in reversed order, so his blue card must be B2.

===== Example of a bluff =====

new -> old
P1: ??, ??, ??, ??, ??
P2: W1, Y5, B3, W1, W2
P3: R5, R2, B2, G2, Y2

Table: R0, Y0, G0, B0, W0

* P1 gives B-clue to P3.
* This gives the information that B2 is the next playable card in the sequence, and that P2 is either not allowed to give B-clue, or has something to play.
* Since P2 has no marked cards, he was not blocked from giving B-clue, so he must have something to play.
* This something, must be the missing link (B1, to enable B2) that makes B2 the next playable card.
* Since there is no logical (marked) card that could be B1, P2 must assume his newest, unmarked card is B1 and blind-plays this card.
* However, at this point the "lie" is revealed (because the colour of the played card does '''not''' match the colour of the finesse-clue).
* The blind-played card is '''not''' B1, but W1. P3, up to this point, was thinking he had B1.
* The blind-play of P2 gives him extra information: his blue card is in fact B2.

=== Hat-guessing ===

* [https://github.com/hanabi/hanabi.github.io/blob/main/misc/hat-guessing.md Github hat-guessing]

=== Logical Leftism ===

* [http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/basics-level-1-a117610126 Hanabi Logic basics-level-1]
* [http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/-a163408102 Hanabi Logic logical-leftism-in-a-nutshell]

=== Closest Friend ===

* TODO

=== Secret convention ===

* TODO

=== Conventional Leftism ===

* [http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/ll-vs-cl-the-differences-a132077536 Hanabi Logic ll-vs-cl-the-differences] gives some clues, but doesn't explain Conventional Leftism from first principles.

=== Chop-focus ===

* TODO

== Strategy ==

* In addition to the convention(s), there is also some strategy to the game.
* You should '''not''' confuse strategy with convention! Strategy is '''team''' vs '''deck'''; convention is communication within the team.
* A simple example of strategy is saving 2s in 2-player games.
** Using number-2-clue to communicate that those cards need to be saved, is a convention.

=== Examples ===

* More advanced players will try to avoid losing as many "first" (non-unique) cards as possible.
* It's a good strategy to keep good cards in the game as long as possible - even if they are not yet playable.
** ''The other copy of that card might be far down the draw pile.''
* Trying to mark at least 12 cards with the first 8 clue-tokens.
** This gives 99% chance of always having enough tokens in the game.
* Not using the last two clue-tokens for "single plays".
** This avoids running out of clue-tokens in times when you need to save critical cards.

For strategy tips, see [[Tips_hanabi]]

Gamehelphanabi

2022-02-22T11:22:45Z

Silene: /* Conventions */

[[Category:Card games]]
For tips on how to play hanabi, see [[Tips_hanabi]]
== Introduction ==

* Hanabi is a cooperative game. Your goal, as a team, is to build a fabulous fireworks show.
* You do this by playing the cards in the correct order.
* However, you cannot see your own cards; you can only see the cards of your team mates.

==== Final Score Ratings ====

{| class="wikitable"
|-
!Points
!Overall impression
|-
|5 or less
|horrible, booed by the crowd...
|-
|6-10
|mediocre, just a spattering of applause.
|-
|11-15
|honourable, but will not be remembered for very long...
|-
|16-20
|excellent, crowd pleasing.
|-
|21-24
|amazing, will be remembered for a very long time!
|-
|25
|legendary, everyone left speechless, stars in their eyes
|}

== Card distribution ==

* In a game of Hanabi on '''normal difficulty''', the deck contains 50 cards.
* Each card has exactly one colour: either Red, Yellow, Green, Blue, or White.

There are 10 cards in each colour:
* three 1s
* two 2s
* two 3s
* two 4s
* one 5

=== Multicolour cards ===

* There are three variants that add a 6th colour: the multicolour.
* There are three difficulties:

==== Tricky ====

* Adds 10 multicolour cards to the normal game.
* These cards get marked by a separate multicolour clue.

==== Hard ====

* '''5''' multicolour cards to the normal game: one of each number.
* These cards get marked by a separate multicolour clue.

==== Very Difficult ====

* Adds 10 multicolour cards to the normal game.
* These cards get marked by ANY colour clue.

== Game play ==

* You each take turns.
* During a turn, a player may take one (1) of three actions.
* After your action, the turn ends and it is the next player's turn.
* The game can end in several ways:
*# All cards have been drawn from the deck. After this happens, everybody gets 1 more turn. The game ends with the score at the last turn.
*# Your team played all possible cards. In this case, the game ends immediately and you receive the maximum possible score.
*# Your team made three mistakes that caused misfires. In this case, you lose the game and get negative ten (-10) points.
*# Your team 'abandons' the game. Although discouraged, you receive zero (0) points.

== Turn ==

* During your turn, you have one (1) action.
* You can choose to do one of the following:

==== Give a colour or number clue to a teammate ====

* This costs one clue-token (-1).
* You cannot give a clue if there are zero (0) clue-tokens left.
* When you give a clue, you must indicate '''all''' cards of a certain colour, or '''all''' cards of a certain number.

==== Play a card ====

* When a card is played, it is evaluated.
* If the card fits in one of sequences, it is placed in the appropriate colour stack on the table.
* If it does not fit, it is placed in the discard pile and the team gets a misfire-token.
* Then draw a new card.

==== Discard a card ====

* When you discard, the card is placed in the discard pile and you get a clue-token (+1).
* ''Note:'' cards on the discard pile are out of the game and can never return.
* Then draw a new card.

== Options ==

=== Black Powder ===

* You may not give clues regarding the colour black.
* Black cards must be played in reverse order, from 5 to 1.
* In the deck there are three black 5s, two black 4s, two black 3s, two black 2s, and one black 1.

=== Five Flamboyants ===

After playing the last card of a colour, randomly select one of the following bonuses for immediate use:
* Gain a clue token.
* Gain a clue token and recover a life.
* Give a clue regarding a colour.
* Give a clue regarding a number.
* Shuffle a discarded card into the deck.
* Play a discarded card, if possible.

== Lingo ==

When you play with others, certain words are used to describe certain objects or situations. Here is a short list.

;Marked: A card that is highlighted by a clue.
;Unmarked: A card that is not clued.
;chop: The oldest, unmarked card. The card that you have no information on and will chop from your hand.
;draw: The newest, unmarked card. The card that you have no information on and was freshly drawn.
;To bomb: A play that causes the third misfire-token. Sometimes called '''explosion'''
;Unique: A card that has no copy (left) in the deck.
;Double discard: When consecutive players have the same card on chop. A special problem, since, to each of the consecutive players, a number to chop does not look like a unique save.
;Twin chop: 2 consecutive players have the same card on chop. Same as Double discard
;Double save: When a player has two consecutive unique cards, requiring consecutive save clues.
;Strategy: A set of rules / guidelines / conventions on how to interpret actions by players (including spending of clue-tokens).

== ELO rating ==

* If you are playing with ELO rating on, your ELO may be changed at the end of the game.
* Here is how it works:
*# Every player on the team is temporarily considered as having the average ELO rating of the team.
*# The system will generate a bot associated with the score your team has achieved (let’s call it '''''Hanabot''''').
*#* Hanabot’s ELO rating depends on the variant you are playing (50 cards, 60 cards, 60 cards multicolour), the number of players on the team and, most importantly, your team's score.
*#* All Hanabot’s ELO ratings have been set by an experienced player, they are not random or simply proportional to the score/number of players.
*# Your team (actually your team's average ELO) will now compete against Hanabot.
*#* The system will calculate your team’s ELO gain/loss as though your team had tied with Hanabot.
*#* If your score is below 18 (50-card game) or below 21 (60-card game), Hanabot's ELO is always 1000.

* You can find [http://forum.boardgamearena.com/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=4814 all bots' ELO ratings here]
* The 55-card variant (50 cards + 1 of each value in the sixth color) cannot be played with ELO rating on.
** This is because this variant is highly dependent on draw and a team’s score may not always reflect the players’ skills.
* If you achieve the perfect score and this should cost you ELO points, you will be considered as having beaten the bot associated with the score, so that you lose no ELO points.
* To be confirmed: I think the ELO-system has had an overhaul.

== About "cheating" ==

* In the "real life Hanabi", you can talk. That's why we chose to let the chat open for the online version.

* As a consequence, it is very easy to cheat at Hanabi.
** However, as you can imagine, cheating is very stupid and has no interest... except for ELO boosting.
** This is why there is no international ranking for this game (ie: best player, second best player) and no trophies associated to it.

* Abandoning: Another method of cheating is to deliberately avoid finishing games that would cause ELO to drop.
** While some argue that games become "boring" once 30 becomes impossible, it is rarely the case that games are abandoned on 29 points while waiting for the final 5 to be drawn.

== Conventions ==

'''Please note that these conventions are not widely used in BoardGameArena. Expert and master players in BGA tend to play very often according to the conventions in [https://docs.google.com/document/d/1VzgN6WoeYwh5NYtHECzUNZqFvpVcg-EdObU-YNMlyhc this document].'''

* If you want to play "full information" style, meaning that you wait until you know both the colour and number of a card before you play it, you will likely be short on clue-tokens in >99% of the decks.
* The logical conclusion is, that you cannot play a full information style game, and the team must agree on some sort of convention.
** Meaning: a certain amount of meta-information is assigned to the clues.

* Many players have different kinds of conventions.
* When different players in the same team assign different meta-information to the same clue, the game becomes unplayable.
** This is why the BGA table-settings give the option to set a table convention since the end of 2020.
** Please see this [https://boardgamearena.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=102&t=18031 post] started by [https://boardgamearena.com/player?id=84207926 Romain672].
* Ideally, all players adhere to the convention, to avoid miscommunication.

* Below, the meta-information of several conventions is explained.
* In the examples, colours are indicated by their first letter:
R - Red -      ,
Y - Yellow -      ,
G - Green -      ,
B - Blue -      ,
W - White -      ,
M - Multi-colour -      ,
P - black Powder -      .
K - blacK powder -      .
** ''For example:'' Y2 means the card with number 2 and colour yellow.

=== Standard convention ===

*You can assume the following meta-information:
** Every card that gets marked, will be playable at some point.
** A card marked with a number, can be played when all "number-1" cards are played.
*** ''This is usually explained as: number-clues mean that these cards should be saved and played later on in the game.''
*** ''It is custom to play saved cards from oldest to newest.''
*** ''The small minority that pushes the conventions present on this wiki claim that doing so is the best way to prevent bombs, since this convention makes it more difficult to save unique cards on CHOP without marking collateral, potential useless cards.''
*** '' '''Most BoardGameArena players do not adopt this convention.''' A number hint is generally seen as a save (i.e., marking a unique cards that is about to be discarded) when on chop, and as a hint to play as soon as possible otherwise.''
** A colour-clue means that the newest, previously unmarked card, is the next playable card in the sequence.
** The oldest, unmarked card is safe to discard.
*** ''Obviously, if a player has a card that they are sure they will never be able to play, for example a card on which is marked as blue when the blue pile has already been completed, such card must be discarded in priority.''
* Clues you should avoid giving (bad clues):
** Giving a clue that marks 0 new cards.
** Give a clue that tells a lie (does not conform to the meta-information above).
** As a special remark: Since every marked card is assumed playable, you shouldn't mark useless, or duplicate cards. So if you have a saved 4, you are forbidden from marking 4s, unless you are sure you are not holding a copy of that 4.
* Sometimes, a "bad" clue can't be avoided.
** ''For example:'' when you need to save a unique 3 (using a number-clue) to avoid it being discarded, but you also accidentally mark a useless card.
** Or if you are forced to give a colour-clue from a flamboyant, and you use it to mark 0 new cards.
* When a lie has been told, it needs to be corrected.
* A correction-clue can never mean "play", it can only mean "discard".

==== Example 1 ====

new -> old
P1: R1, Y1, G1, B1, W1
P2: R2, Y4, R3, B3, G'''5'''
P3: G4, Y1, R4, Y3, Y2

Table: R1, Y5, G1, B3, W4

* It's P1's turn, and P2 knows his oldest card is 5.
* P1 will give R-clue to P2.
* This will tell P2, that the newest card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be R2), and that the other red can be R3, R4, or R5 (because it must be playable at some later point in the game).

==== Example 2 ====

new -> old
P1: R1, Y1, G1, B1, W1
P2: W5, Y4, '''R'''3, B3, G'''5'''
P3: W2, G4, Y1, R4, Y3

Table: R2, Y5, G1, B3, W4

* It is P1's turn again, and P2 knows his oldest card is 5, and his middle card is R.
* P1 will give R-clue to P3.
* This will tell P3, that his middle card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be R4, because R3 is already marked).
* This will give P2 the meta-information that his saved red card, is R3.
** ''This particular move is sometimes called prompting, and is a common way to allow a card that is saved by colour to get played without re-cluing it.''

==== Example 3 ====

new -> old
P1: R1, Y1, G1, B1, W1
P2: R3, Y4, R'''2''', B3, G5
P3: G4, Y1, R4, Y3, Y2

Table: R1, Y5, G0, B3, W4

* It is P1's turn, and P2 knows his middle card is 2.
* P1 will give R-clue to P2.
* This will tell P2 that his newest card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be R3, because R2 is now visible with 100% information).

=== Finesse ===

* Finesse builds on the standard convention (making it a bit more complex).
* In the finesse convention, the timing of the clue gives you extra information.
* You can assume the following meta-information:
** Every card that gets marked, will be playable at some point.
** If the oldest, unmarked card gets marked with a number-clue, then the clue meant "save this/these card(s)". (It is custom to play saved cards from oldest to newest when appropriate.)
** A clue that doesn't mark the oldest card, means that the newest, previously unmarked card, is the next playable card in the sequence.
** The oldest, unmarked card is safe to discard unless that player is busy by having a "known" play.
*** ''Obviously, if a player has a card that they are sure they will never be able to play, for example a card on which is marked as blue when the blue and multicolor piles have already been completed, such card must be discarded in priority.''
** If a marked card gets discarded it means:
*** The copy of that card is already marked in someone else's hand, and the discarding player is the first to realize this; or
*** The copy of that card MUST be marked in a future clue (because a save-clue will be given that will mark the copy card as collateral).

==== Meaning of skipping a player / stealing clues ====
* There are different approaches among finesse-convention-players about who should clue whom. So this section will be devided into sub-sections. The order does not say anything about which approach is more common on BGA. There are a lot of players following each idea.
* As of now, there is no way of saying which approach is "right" or "better". Of course it is important for success, that in a game, the group of players follows the same idea. If they get mixed, it will most likely result in bombs. If that happens, it does not mean, the other player is "bad" - it merely means, they follow a different idea. So you can only try to find a common ground for the next game or play with another group next time.
* The text within the sections are written by people who follow the idea.

===== a) Skipping / stealing should be avoided =====
* If more than 1 person are able to give the same clue, then the last possible person should give that clue.
* In finesse convention skipping (P1 clues P3, instead of P2; then P2 is skipped) means either:
*# The skipped player is forbidden from giving that clue; or
*# The skipped player has something to play. But it must be a marked, completely known card. If there is no known card in your hand do NOT play blind.
*# You should also clue someone

===== b) Skipping / stealing is for discard-management =====
Skipping/stealing is a term that is often used for a situation, where giving a clue is not left for the last possible player to do. For example - player A saves a card on chop of player C, potentially leaving player B without a known play or a useful/necessary clue to give. Skipping players is a useful move to give other players the time to play other cards or discard.

When getting skipped without having a play or useful option to clue, it most likely means that your chop card is not very useful. These are valid reasons for skipping you:
* Your chop-card is trash (a copy of the card is already played/marked)
* Your chop-card is redundant: Another copy of it is on another player's (or your own) hand as well
* Your chop-card is a 4 and it's very early in the game
* You might still have something nice on chop, but the player sitting before already received information that their chop might be something very good (from earlier discard-behaviour like NOT being skipped over by the player sitting before them on earlier turns) and they are reluctant to discard for that reason.
* The clue given is a playclue for a card that might be in your hand so you couldn't know whether you want the other card or not. The player skipping you knows that you want it and therefore takes away the decision.

This approach sacrifices some saving-clue-tokens option (that might be achieved on a stricter dogma about who should clue whom) in order to be able to keep nice cards in the game for longer and discard useless cards instead and by that often get those cards played before they would be discarded.
* This convention is better for players, who play efficient enough to rarely struggle with clue-shortness and can therefore afford being more careful about not losing first copies.
* If a group often struggles with clue-shortness then skipping-dogma (as proposed by other conventions) might as well improve their overall results. If the problem for not achieving 30 points usually isn't clue-shortness but getting bottom-decked (or heavily delayed from losing earlier a card that could be played now), then results can get better with this discard-management convention.

Planning ahead is a vital aspect of the game. By carefully deciding on who to let clue and whom to skip, it is often possible to
* avoid twin-chops before they become an issue
* avoid not having enough clue tokens to save all necessary cards
* get the discard you were waiting for (when a player has 2 copies of the same playable card and you want them to discard before clueing it)

==== Clues you should avoid giving (bad clues) ====

* As a special remark: don't mark useless, or duplicate cards. So if you have a saved 4, you are forbidden from marking 4s, unless you are sure you are not holding a copy of that

==== Special interpretation for play-clues ====

* When receiving a clue for the "next playable card in the sequence", the linking cards are not limited to already marked cards (like in standard convention).
* The newest, unmarked cards in every player's hand should be considered as well.

====== Example ======

new -> old
P1: ??, ??, ??, ??, ??
P2: B1, Y5, B3, W1, W2
P3: R5, R2, B2, G2, Y2

Table: R0, Y0, G0, B0, W0

* P1 gives B-clue to P3.
* This gives the information that B2 is the next playable card in the sequence, and that P2 is either not allowed to give B-clue, or has something to play.
* Since P2 has no marked cards, he was not blocked from giving B-clue, so he must have something to play.
* This something, must be the missing link (B1, to enable B2) that makes B2 the next playable card.
* Since there is no logical (marked) card that could be B1, P2 must assume his newest, unmarked card is B1 and blind-plays this card.

===== Example of reversed finesse =====

new -> old
P1: ??, ??, ??, ??, ??
P2: R5, R2, B2, G2, Y2
P3: B1, Y5, B3, W1, W2

Table: R0, Y0, G0, B0, W0

* P1 gives B-clue to P2.
* This gives the information that B2 is the next playable card in the sequence.
* P2 sees that the newest, unmarked card in the hand of P3 is of the same colour (blue) '''and''' playable now. P2 concludes it is a finesse, with the players in reversed order, so his blue card must be B2.

===== Example of a bluff =====

new -> old
P1: ??, ??, ??, ??, ??
P2: W1, Y5, B3, W1, W2
P3: R5, R2, B2, G2, Y2

Table: R0, Y0, G0, B0, W0

* P1 gives B-clue to P3.
* This gives the information that B2 is the next playable card in the sequence, and that P2 is either not allowed to give B-clue, or has something to play.
* Since P2 has no marked cards, he was not blocked from giving B-clue, so he must have something to play.
* This something, must be the missing link (B1, to enable B2) that makes B2 the next playable card.
* Since there is no logical (marked) card that could be B1, P2 must assume his newest, unmarked card is B1 and blind-plays this card.
* However, at this point the "lie" is revealed (because the colour of the played card does '''not''' match the colour of the finesse-clue).
* The blind-played card is '''not''' B1, but W1. P3, up to this point, was thinking he had B1.
* The blind-play of P2 gives him extra information: his blue card is in fact B2.

=== Hat-guessing ===

* [https://github.com/hanabi/hanabi.github.io/blob/main/misc/hat-guessing.md Github hat-guessing]

=== Logical Leftism ===

* [http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/basics-level-1-a117610126 Hanabi Logic basics-level-1]
* [http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/-a163408102 Hanabi Logic logical-leftism-in-a-nutshell]

=== Closest Friend ===

* TODO

=== Secret convention ===

* TODO

=== Conventional Leftism ===

* [http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/ll-vs-cl-the-differences-a132077536 Hanabi Logic ll-vs-cl-the-differences] gives some clues, but doesn't explain Conventional Leftism from first principles.

=== Chop-focus ===

* TODO

== Strategy ==

* In addition to the convention(s), there is also some strategy to the game.
* You should '''not''' confuse strategy with convention! Strategy is '''team''' vs '''deck'''; convention is communication within the team.
* A simple example of strategy is saving 2s in 2-player games.
** Using number-2-clue to communicate that those cards need to be saved, is a convention.

=== Examples ===

* More advanced players will try to avoid losing as many "first" (non-unique) cards as possible.
* It's a good strategy to keep good cards in the game as long as possible - even if they are not yet playable.
** ''The other copy of that card might be far down the draw pile.''
* Trying to mark at least 12 cards with the first 8 clue-tokens.
** This gives 99% chance of always having enough tokens in the game.
* Not using the last two clue-tokens for "single plays".
** This avoids running out of clue-tokens in times when you need to save critical cards.

For strategy tips, see [[Tips_hanabi]]

Gamehelphanabi

2022-02-22T11:20:25Z

Silene: /* About "cheating" */

[[Category:Card games]]
For tips on how to play hanabi, see [[Tips_hanabi]]
== Introduction ==

* Hanabi is a cooperative game. Your goal, as a team, is to build a fabulous fireworks show.
* You do this by playing the cards in the correct order.
* However, you cannot see your own cards; you can only see the cards of your team mates.

==== Final Score Ratings ====

{| class="wikitable"
|-
!Points
!Overall impression
|-
|5 or less
|horrible, booed by the crowd...
|-
|6-10
|mediocre, just a spattering of applause.
|-
|11-15
|honourable, but will not be remembered for very long...
|-
|16-20
|excellent, crowd pleasing.
|-
|21-24
|amazing, will be remembered for a very long time!
|-
|25
|legendary, everyone left speechless, stars in their eyes
|}

== Card distribution ==

* In a game of Hanabi on '''normal difficulty''', the deck contains 50 cards.
* Each card has exactly one colour: either Red, Yellow, Green, Blue, or White.

There are 10 cards in each colour:
* three 1s
* two 2s
* two 3s
* two 4s
* one 5

=== Multicolour cards ===

* There are three variants that add a 6th colour: the multicolour.
* There are three difficulties:

==== Tricky ====

* Adds 10 multicolour cards to the normal game.
* These cards get marked by a separate multicolour clue.

==== Hard ====

* '''5''' multicolour cards to the normal game: one of each number.
* These cards get marked by a separate multicolour clue.

==== Very Difficult ====

* Adds 10 multicolour cards to the normal game.
* These cards get marked by ANY colour clue.

== Game play ==

* You each take turns.
* During a turn, a player may take one (1) of three actions.
* After your action, the turn ends and it is the next player's turn.
* The game can end in several ways:
*# All cards have been drawn from the deck. After this happens, everybody gets 1 more turn. The game ends with the score at the last turn.
*# Your team played all possible cards. In this case, the game ends immediately and you receive the maximum possible score.
*# Your team made three mistakes that caused misfires. In this case, you lose the game and get negative ten (-10) points.
*# Your team 'abandons' the game. Although discouraged, you receive zero (0) points.

== Turn ==

* During your turn, you have one (1) action.
* You can choose to do one of the following:

==== Give a colour or number clue to a teammate ====

* This costs one clue-token (-1).
* You cannot give a clue if there are zero (0) clue-tokens left.
* When you give a clue, you must indicate '''all''' cards of a certain colour, or '''all''' cards of a certain number.

==== Play a card ====

* When a card is played, it is evaluated.
* If the card fits in one of sequences, it is placed in the appropriate colour stack on the table.
* If it does not fit, it is placed in the discard pile and the team gets a misfire-token.
* Then draw a new card.

==== Discard a card ====

* When you discard, the card is placed in the discard pile and you get a clue-token (+1).
* ''Note:'' cards on the discard pile are out of the game and can never return.
* Then draw a new card.

== Options ==

=== Black Powder ===

* You may not give clues regarding the colour black.
* Black cards must be played in reverse order, from 5 to 1.
* In the deck there are three black 5s, two black 4s, two black 3s, two black 2s, and one black 1.

=== Five Flamboyants ===

After playing the last card of a colour, randomly select one of the following bonuses for immediate use:
* Gain a clue token.
* Gain a clue token and recover a life.
* Give a clue regarding a colour.
* Give a clue regarding a number.
* Shuffle a discarded card into the deck.
* Play a discarded card, if possible.

== Lingo ==

When you play with others, certain words are used to describe certain objects or situations. Here is a short list.

;Marked: A card that is highlighted by a clue.
;Unmarked: A card that is not clued.
;chop: The oldest, unmarked card. The card that you have no information on and will chop from your hand.
;draw: The newest, unmarked card. The card that you have no information on and was freshly drawn.
;To bomb: A play that causes the third misfire-token. Sometimes called '''explosion'''
;Unique: A card that has no copy (left) in the deck.
;Double discard: When consecutive players have the same card on chop. A special problem, since, to each of the consecutive players, a number to chop does not look like a unique save.
;Twin chop: 2 consecutive players have the same card on chop. Same as Double discard
;Double save: When a player has two consecutive unique cards, requiring consecutive save clues.
;Strategy: A set of rules / guidelines / conventions on how to interpret actions by players (including spending of clue-tokens).

== ELO rating ==

* If you are playing with ELO rating on, your ELO may be changed at the end of the game.
* Here is how it works:
*# Every player on the team is temporarily considered as having the average ELO rating of the team.
*# The system will generate a bot associated with the score your team has achieved (let’s call it '''''Hanabot''''').
*#* Hanabot’s ELO rating depends on the variant you are playing (50 cards, 60 cards, 60 cards multicolour), the number of players on the team and, most importantly, your team's score.
*#* All Hanabot’s ELO ratings have been set by an experienced player, they are not random or simply proportional to the score/number of players.
*# Your team (actually your team's average ELO) will now compete against Hanabot.
*#* The system will calculate your team’s ELO gain/loss as though your team had tied with Hanabot.
*#* If your score is below 18 (50-card game) or below 21 (60-card game), Hanabot's ELO is always 1000.

* You can find [http://forum.boardgamearena.com/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=4814 all bots' ELO ratings here]
* The 55-card variant (50 cards + 1 of each value in the sixth color) cannot be played with ELO rating on.
** This is because this variant is highly dependent on draw and a team’s score may not always reflect the players’ skills.
* If you achieve the perfect score and this should cost you ELO points, you will be considered as having beaten the bot associated with the score, so that you lose no ELO points.
* To be confirmed: I think the ELO-system has had an overhaul.

== About "cheating" ==

* In the "real life Hanabi", you can talk. That's why we chose to let the chat open for the online version.

* As a consequence, it is very easy to cheat at Hanabi.
** However, as you can imagine, cheating is very stupid and has no interest... except for ELO boosting.
** This is why there is no international ranking for this game (ie: best player, second best player) and no trophies associated to it.

* Abandoning: Another method of cheating is to deliberately avoid finishing games that would cause ELO to drop.
** While some argue that games become "boring" once 30 becomes impossible, it is rarely the case that games are abandoned on 29 points while waiting for the final 5 to be drawn.

== Conventions ==

'''Please note that these conventions are not widely used in BoardGameArena. Expert and master players in BGA tend to play very often according to the conventions in [https://docs.google.com/document/d/1VzgN6WoeYwh5NYtHECzUNZqFvpVcg-EdObU-YNMlyhc this document].'''

* If you want to play "full information" style, meaning that you wait until you know both the colour and number of a card before you play it, you will likely be short on clue-tokens in >99% of the decks.
* The logical conclusion is, that you cannot play a full information style game, and the team must agree on some sort of convention.
** Meaning: a certain amount of meta-information is assigned to the clues.

* Many players have different kinds of conventions.
* When different players in the same team assign different meta-information to the same clue, the game becomes unplayable.
** This is why the BGA table-settings give the option to set a table convention since the end of 2020.
** Please see this [https://boardgamearena.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=102&t=18031 post] started by [https://boardgamearena.com/player?id=84207926 Romain672].
* Ideally, all players adhere to the convention, to avoid miscommunication.

* Below, the meta-information of several conventions is explained.
* In the examples, colours are indicated by their first letter:
R - Red -      ,
Y - Yellow -      ,
G - Green -      ,
B - Blue -      ,
W - White -      ,
M - Multi-colour -      ,
P - black Powder -      .
** ''For example:'' Y2 means the card with number 2 and colour yellow.

=== Standard convention ===

*You can assume the following meta-information:
** Every card that gets marked, will be playable at some point.
** A card marked with a number, can be played when all "number-1" cards are played.
*** ''This is usually explained as: number-clues mean that these cards should be saved and played later on in the game.''
*** ''It is custom to play saved cards from oldest to newest.''
*** ''The small minority that pushes the conventions present on this wiki claim that doing so is the best way to prevent bombs, since this convention makes it more difficult to save unique cards on CHOP without marking collateral, potential useless cards.''
*** '' '''Most BoardGameArena players do not adopt this convention.''' A number hint is generally seen as a save (i.e., marking a unique cards that is about to be discarded) when on chop, and as a hint to play as soon as possible otherwise.''
** A colour-clue means that the newest, previously unmarked card, is the next playable card in the sequence.
** The oldest, unmarked card is safe to discard.
*** ''Obviously, if a player has a card that they are sure they will never be able to play, for example a card on which is marked as blue when the blue pile has already been completed, such card must be discarded in priority.''
* Clues you should avoid giving (bad clues):
** Giving a clue that marks 0 new cards.
** Give a clue that tells a lie (does not conform to the meta-information above).
** As a special remark: Since every marked card is assumed playable, you shouldn't mark useless, or duplicate cards. So if you have a saved 4, you are forbidden from marking 4s, unless you are sure you are not holding a copy of that 4.
* Sometimes, a "bad" clue can't be avoided.
** ''For example:'' when you need to save a unique 3 (using a number-clue) to avoid it being discarded, but you also accidentally mark a useless card.
** Or if you are forced to give a colour-clue from a flamboyant, and you use it to mark 0 new cards.
* When a lie has been told, it needs to be corrected.
* A correction-clue can never mean "play", it can only mean "discard".

==== Example 1 ====

new -> old
P1: R1, Y1, G1, B1, W1
P2: R2, Y4, R3, B3, G'''5'''
P3: G4, Y1, R4, Y3, Y2

Table: R1, Y5, G1, B3, W4

* It's P1's turn, and P2 knows his oldest card is 5.
* P1 will give R-clue to P2.
* This will tell P2, that the newest card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be R2), and that the other red can be R3, R4, or R5 (because it must be playable at some later point in the game).

==== Example 2 ====

new -> old
P1: R1, Y1, G1, B1, W1
P2: W5, Y4, '''R'''3, B3, G'''5'''
P3: W2, G4, Y1, R4, Y3

Table: R2, Y5, G1, B3, W4

* It is P1's turn again, and P2 knows his oldest card is 5, and his middle card is R.
* P1 will give R-clue to P3.
* This will tell P3, that his middle card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be R4, because R3 is already marked).
* This will give P2 the meta-information that his saved red card, is R3.
** ''This particular move is sometimes called prompting, and is a common way to allow a card that is saved by colour to get played without re-cluing it.''

==== Example 3 ====

new -> old
P1: R1, Y1, G1, B1, W1
P2: R3, Y4, R'''2''', B3, G5
P3: G4, Y1, R4, Y3, Y2

Table: R1, Y5, G0, B3, W4

* It is P1's turn, and P2 knows his middle card is 2.
* P1 will give R-clue to P2.
* This will tell P2 that his newest card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be R3, because R2 is now visible with 100% information).

=== Finesse ===

* Finesse builds on the standard convention (making it a bit more complex).
* In the finesse convention, the timing of the clue gives you extra information.
* You can assume the following meta-information:
** Every card that gets marked, will be playable at some point.
** If the oldest, unmarked card gets marked with a number-clue, then the clue meant "save this/these card(s)". (It is custom to play saved cards from oldest to newest when appropriate.)
** A clue that doesn't mark the oldest card, means that the newest, previously unmarked card, is the next playable card in the sequence.
** The oldest, unmarked card is safe to discard unless that player is busy by having a "known" play.
*** ''Obviously, if a player has a card that they are sure they will never be able to play, for example a card on which is marked as blue when the blue and multicolor piles have already been completed, such card must be discarded in priority.''
** If a marked card gets discarded it means:
*** The copy of that card is already marked in someone else's hand, and the discarding player is the first to realize this; or
*** The copy of that card MUST be marked in a future clue (because a save-clue will be given that will mark the copy card as collateral).

==== Meaning of skipping a player / stealing clues ====
* There are different approaches among finesse-convention-players about who should clue whom. So this section will be devided into sub-sections. The order does not say anything about which approach is more common on BGA. There are a lot of players following each idea.
* As of now, there is no way of saying which approach is "right" or "better". Of course it is important for success, that in a game, the group of players follows the same idea. If they get mixed, it will most likely result in bombs. If that happens, it does not mean, the other player is "bad" - it merely means, they follow a different idea. So you can only try to find a common ground for the next game or play with another group next time.
* The text within the sections are written by people who follow the idea.

===== a) Skipping / stealing should be avoided =====
* If more than 1 person are able to give the same clue, then the last possible person should give that clue.
* In finesse convention skipping (P1 clues P3, instead of P2; then P2 is skipped) means either:
*# The skipped player is forbidden from giving that clue; or
*# The skipped player has something to play. But it must be a marked, completely known card. If there is no known card in your hand do NOT play blind.
*# You should also clue someone

===== b) Skipping / stealing is for discard-management =====
Skipping/stealing is a term that is often used for a situation, where giving a clue is not left for the last possible player to do. For example - player A saves a card on chop of player C, potentially leaving player B without a known play or a useful/necessary clue to give. Skipping players is a useful move to give other players the time to play other cards or discard.

When getting skipped without having a play or useful option to clue, it most likely means that your chop card is not very useful. These are valid reasons for skipping you:
* Your chop-card is trash (a copy of the card is already played/marked)
* Your chop-card is redundant: Another copy of it is on another player's (or your own) hand as well
* Your chop-card is a 4 and it's very early in the game
* You might still have something nice on chop, but the player sitting before already received information that their chop might be something very good (from earlier discard-behaviour like NOT being skipped over by the player sitting before them on earlier turns) and they are reluctant to discard for that reason.
* The clue given is a playclue for a card that might be in your hand so you couldn't know whether you want the other card or not. The player skipping you knows that you want it and therefore takes away the decision.

This approach sacrifices some saving-clue-tokens option (that might be achieved on a stricter dogma about who should clue whom) in order to be able to keep nice cards in the game for longer and discard useless cards instead and by that often get those cards played before they would be discarded.
* This convention is better for players, who play efficient enough to rarely struggle with clue-shortness and can therefore afford being more careful about not losing first copies.
* If a group often struggles with clue-shortness then skipping-dogma (as proposed by other conventions) might as well improve their overall results. If the problem for not achieving 30 points usually isn't clue-shortness but getting bottom-decked (or heavily delayed from losing earlier a card that could be played now), then results can get better with this discard-management convention.

Planning ahead is a vital aspect of the game. By carefully deciding on who to let clue and whom to skip, it is often possible to
* avoid twin-chops before they become an issue
* avoid not having enough clue tokens to save all necessary cards
* get the discard you were waiting for (when a player has 2 copies of the same playable card and you want them to discard before clueing it)

==== Clues you should avoid giving (bad clues) ====

* As a special remark: don't mark useless, or duplicate cards. So if you have a saved 4, you are forbidden from marking 4s, unless you are sure you are not holding a copy of that

==== Special interpretation for play-clues ====

* When receiving a clue for the "next playable card in the sequence", the linking cards are not limited to already marked cards (like in standard convention).
* The newest, unmarked cards in every player's hand should be considered as well.

====== Example ======

new -> old
P1: ??, ??, ??, ??, ??
P2: B1, Y5, B3, W1, W2
P3: R5, R2, B2, G2, Y2

Table: R0, Y0, G0, B0, W0

* P1 gives B-clue to P3.
* This gives the information that B2 is the next playable card in the sequence, and that P2 is either not allowed to give B-clue, or has something to play.
* Since P2 has no marked cards, he was not blocked from giving B-clue, so he must have something to play.
* This something, must be the missing link (B1, to enable B2) that makes B2 the next playable card.
* Since there is no logical (marked) card that could be B1, P2 must assume his newest, unmarked card is B1 and blind-plays this card.

===== Example of reversed finesse =====

new -> old
P1: ??, ??, ??, ??, ??
P2: R5, R2, B2, G2, Y2
P3: B1, Y5, B3, W1, W2

Table: R0, Y0, G0, B0, W0

* P1 gives B-clue to P2.
* This gives the information that B2 is the next playable card in the sequence.
* P2 sees that the newest, unmarked card in the hand of P3 is of the same colour (blue) '''and''' playable now. P2 concludes it is a finesse, with the players in reversed order, so his blue card must be B2.

===== Example of a bluff =====

new -> old
P1: ??, ??, ??, ??, ??
P2: W1, Y5, B3, W1, W2
P3: R5, R2, B2, G2, Y2

Table: R0, Y0, G0, B0, W0

* P1 gives B-clue to P3.
* This gives the information that B2 is the next playable card in the sequence, and that P2 is either not allowed to give B-clue, or has something to play.
* Since P2 has no marked cards, he was not blocked from giving B-clue, so he must have something to play.
* This something, must be the missing link (B1, to enable B2) that makes B2 the next playable card.
* Since there is no logical (marked) card that could be B1, P2 must assume his newest, unmarked card is B1 and blind-plays this card.
* However, at this point the "lie" is revealed (because the colour of the played card does '''not''' match the colour of the finesse-clue).
* The blind-played card is '''not''' B1, but W1. P3, up to this point, was thinking he had B1.
* The blind-play of P2 gives him extra information: his blue card is in fact B2.

=== Hat-guessing ===

* [https://github.com/hanabi/hanabi.github.io/blob/main/misc/hat-guessing.md Github hat-guessing]

=== Logical Leftism ===

* [http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/basics-level-1-a117610126 Hanabi Logic basics-level-1]
* [http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/-a163408102 Hanabi Logic logical-leftism-in-a-nutshell]

=== Closest Friend ===

* TODO

=== Secret convention ===

* TODO

=== Conventional Leftism ===

* [http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/ll-vs-cl-the-differences-a132077536 Hanabi Logic ll-vs-cl-the-differences] gives some clues, but doesn't explain Conventional Leftism from first principles.

=== Chop-focus ===

* TODO

== Strategy ==

* In addition to the convention(s), there is also some strategy to the game.
* You should '''not''' confuse strategy with convention! Strategy is '''team''' vs '''deck'''; convention is communication within the team.
* A simple example of strategy is saving 2s in 2-player games.
** Using number-2-clue to communicate that those cards need to be saved, is a convention.

=== Examples ===

* More advanced players will try to avoid losing as many "first" (non-unique) cards as possible.
* It's a good strategy to keep good cards in the game as long as possible - even if they are not yet playable.
** ''The other copy of that card might be far down the draw pile.''
* Trying to mark at least 12 cards with the first 8 clue-tokens.
** This gives 99% chance of always having enough tokens in the game.
* Not using the last two clue-tokens for "single plays".
** This avoids running out of clue-tokens in times when you need to save critical cards.

For strategy tips, see [[Tips_hanabi]]

Gamehelphanabi

2022-02-22T11:18:47Z

Silene: /* Lingo */

[[Category:Card games]]
For tips on how to play hanabi, see [[Tips_hanabi]]
== Introduction ==

* Hanabi is a cooperative game. Your goal, as a team, is to build a fabulous fireworks show.
* You do this by playing the cards in the correct order.
* However, you cannot see your own cards; you can only see the cards of your team mates.

==== Final Score Ratings ====

{| class="wikitable"
|-
!Points
!Overall impression
|-
|5 or less
|horrible, booed by the crowd...
|-
|6-10
|mediocre, just a spattering of applause.
|-
|11-15
|honourable, but will not be remembered for very long...
|-
|16-20
|excellent, crowd pleasing.
|-
|21-24
|amazing, will be remembered for a very long time!
|-
|25
|legendary, everyone left speechless, stars in their eyes
|}

== Card distribution ==

* In a game of Hanabi on '''normal difficulty''', the deck contains 50 cards.
* Each card has exactly one colour: either Red, Yellow, Green, Blue, or White.

There are 10 cards in each colour:
* three 1s
* two 2s
* two 3s
* two 4s
* one 5

=== Multicolour cards ===

* There are three variants that add a 6th colour: the multicolour.
* There are three difficulties:

==== Tricky ====

* Adds 10 multicolour cards to the normal game.
* These cards get marked by a separate multicolour clue.

==== Hard ====

* '''5''' multicolour cards to the normal game: one of each number.
* These cards get marked by a separate multicolour clue.

==== Very Difficult ====

* Adds 10 multicolour cards to the normal game.
* These cards get marked by ANY colour clue.

== Game play ==

* You each take turns.
* During a turn, a player may take one (1) of three actions.
* After your action, the turn ends and it is the next player's turn.
* The game can end in several ways:
*# All cards have been drawn from the deck. After this happens, everybody gets 1 more turn. The game ends with the score at the last turn.
*# Your team played all possible cards. In this case, the game ends immediately and you receive the maximum possible score.
*# Your team made three mistakes that caused misfires. In this case, you lose the game and get negative ten (-10) points.
*# Your team 'abandons' the game. Although discouraged, you receive zero (0) points.

== Turn ==

* During your turn, you have one (1) action.
* You can choose to do one of the following:

==== Give a colour or number clue to a teammate ====

* This costs one clue-token (-1).
* You cannot give a clue if there are zero (0) clue-tokens left.
* When you give a clue, you must indicate '''all''' cards of a certain colour, or '''all''' cards of a certain number.

==== Play a card ====

* When a card is played, it is evaluated.
* If the card fits in one of sequences, it is placed in the appropriate colour stack on the table.
* If it does not fit, it is placed in the discard pile and the team gets a misfire-token.
* Then draw a new card.

==== Discard a card ====

* When you discard, the card is placed in the discard pile and you get a clue-token (+1).
* ''Note:'' cards on the discard pile are out of the game and can never return.
* Then draw a new card.

== Options ==

=== Black Powder ===

* You may not give clues regarding the colour black.
* Black cards must be played in reverse order, from 5 to 1.
* In the deck there are three black 5s, two black 4s, two black 3s, two black 2s, and one black 1.

=== Five Flamboyants ===

After playing the last card of a colour, randomly select one of the following bonuses for immediate use:
* Gain a clue token.
* Gain a clue token and recover a life.
* Give a clue regarding a colour.
* Give a clue regarding a number.
* Shuffle a discarded card into the deck.
* Play a discarded card, if possible.

== Lingo ==

When you play with others, certain words are used to describe certain objects or situations. Here is a short list.

;Marked: A card that is highlighted by a clue.
;Unmarked: A card that is not clued.
;chop: The oldest, unmarked card. The card that you have no information on and will chop from your hand.
;draw: The newest, unmarked card. The card that you have no information on and was freshly drawn.
;To bomb: A play that causes the third misfire-token. Sometimes called '''explosion'''
;Unique: A card that has no copy (left) in the deck.
;Double discard: When consecutive players have the same card on chop. A special problem, since, to each of the consecutive players, a number to chop does not look like a unique save.
;Twin chop: 2 consecutive players have the same card on chop. Same as Double discard
;Double save: When a player has two consecutive unique cards, requiring consecutive save clues.
;Strategy: A set of rules / guidelines / conventions on how to interpret actions by players (including spending of clue-tokens).

== ELO rating ==

* If you are playing with ELO rating on, your ELO may be changed at the end of the game.
* Here is how it works:
*# Every player on the team is temporarily considered as having the average ELO rating of the team.
*# The system will generate a bot associated with the score your team has achieved (let’s call it '''''Hanabot''''').
*#* Hanabot’s ELO rating depends on the variant you are playing (50 cards, 60 cards, 60 cards multicolour), the number of players on the team and, most importantly, your team's score.
*#* All Hanabot’s ELO ratings have been set by an experienced player, they are not random or simply proportional to the score/number of players.
*# Your team (actually your team's average ELO) will now compete against Hanabot.
*#* The system will calculate your team’s ELO gain/loss as though your team had tied with Hanabot.
*#* If your score is below 18 (50-card game) or below 21 (60-card game), Hanabot's ELO is always 1000.

* You can find [http://forum.boardgamearena.com/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=4814 all bots' ELO ratings here]
* The 55-card variant (50 cards + 1 of each value in the sixth color) cannot be played with ELO rating on.
** This is because this variant is highly dependent on draw and a team’s score may not always reflect the players’ skills.
* If you achieve the perfect score and this should cost you ELO points, you will be considered as having beaten the bot associated with the score, so that you lose no ELO points.
* To be confirmed: I think the ELO-system has had an overhaul.

== About "cheating" ==

* In the "real life Hanabi", you can talk. That's why we chose to let the chat open for the online version.

* As a consequence, it is very easy to cheat at Hanabi.
** However, as you can imagine, cheating is very stupid and has no interest... except for ELO boosting.
** This is why there is no international ranking for this game (ie: best player, second best player) and no trophies associated to it.

* Another method of cheating is to deliberately avoid finishing games that would cause ELO to drop.
** While some argue that games become "boring" once 30 becomes impossible, it is rarely the case that games are abandoned on 29 points while waiting for the final 5 to be drawn.

== Conventions ==

'''Please note that these conventions are not widely used in BoardGameArena. Expert and master players in BGA tend to play very often according to the conventions in [https://docs.google.com/document/d/1VzgN6WoeYwh5NYtHECzUNZqFvpVcg-EdObU-YNMlyhc this document].'''

* If you want to play "full information" style, meaning that you wait until you know both the colour and number of a card before you play it, you will likely be short on clue-tokens in >99% of the decks.
* The logical conclusion is, that you cannot play a full information style game, and the team must agree on some sort of convention.
** Meaning: a certain amount of meta-information is assigned to the clues.

* Many players have different kinds of conventions.
* When different players in the same team assign different meta-information to the same clue, the game becomes unplayable.
** This is why the BGA table-settings give the option to set a table convention since the end of 2020.
** Please see this [https://boardgamearena.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=102&t=18031 post] started by [https://boardgamearena.com/player?id=84207926 Romain672].
* Ideally, all players adhere to the convention, to avoid miscommunication.

* Below, the meta-information of several conventions is explained.
* In the examples, colours are indicated by their first letter:
R - Red -      ,
Y - Yellow -      ,
G - Green -      ,
B - Blue -      ,
W - White -      ,
M - Multi-colour -      ,
P - black Powder -      .
** ''For example:'' Y2 means the card with number 2 and colour yellow.

=== Standard convention ===

*You can assume the following meta-information:
** Every card that gets marked, will be playable at some point.
** A card marked with a number, can be played when all "number-1" cards are played.
*** ''This is usually explained as: number-clues mean that these cards should be saved and played later on in the game.''
*** ''It is custom to play saved cards from oldest to newest.''
*** ''The small minority that pushes the conventions present on this wiki claim that doing so is the best way to prevent bombs, since this convention makes it more difficult to save unique cards on CHOP without marking collateral, potential useless cards.''
*** '' '''Most BoardGameArena players do not adopt this convention.''' A number hint is generally seen as a save (i.e., marking a unique cards that is about to be discarded) when on chop, and as a hint to play as soon as possible otherwise.''
** A colour-clue means that the newest, previously unmarked card, is the next playable card in the sequence.
** The oldest, unmarked card is safe to discard.
*** ''Obviously, if a player has a card that they are sure they will never be able to play, for example a card on which is marked as blue when the blue pile has already been completed, such card must be discarded in priority.''
* Clues you should avoid giving (bad clues):
** Giving a clue that marks 0 new cards.
** Give a clue that tells a lie (does not conform to the meta-information above).
** As a special remark: Since every marked card is assumed playable, you shouldn't mark useless, or duplicate cards. So if you have a saved 4, you are forbidden from marking 4s, unless you are sure you are not holding a copy of that 4.
* Sometimes, a "bad" clue can't be avoided.
** ''For example:'' when you need to save a unique 3 (using a number-clue) to avoid it being discarded, but you also accidentally mark a useless card.
** Or if you are forced to give a colour-clue from a flamboyant, and you use it to mark 0 new cards.
* When a lie has been told, it needs to be corrected.
* A correction-clue can never mean "play", it can only mean "discard".

==== Example 1 ====

new -> old
P1: R1, Y1, G1, B1, W1
P2: R2, Y4, R3, B3, G'''5'''
P3: G4, Y1, R4, Y3, Y2

Table: R1, Y5, G1, B3, W4

* It's P1's turn, and P2 knows his oldest card is 5.
* P1 will give R-clue to P2.
* This will tell P2, that the newest card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be R2), and that the other red can be R3, R4, or R5 (because it must be playable at some later point in the game).

==== Example 2 ====

new -> old
P1: R1, Y1, G1, B1, W1
P2: W5, Y4, '''R'''3, B3, G'''5'''
P3: W2, G4, Y1, R4, Y3

Table: R2, Y5, G1, B3, W4

* It is P1's turn again, and P2 knows his oldest card is 5, and his middle card is R.
* P1 will give R-clue to P3.
* This will tell P3, that his middle card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be R4, because R3 is already marked).
* This will give P2 the meta-information that his saved red card, is R3.
** ''This particular move is sometimes called prompting, and is a common way to allow a card that is saved by colour to get played without re-cluing it.''

==== Example 3 ====

new -> old
P1: R1, Y1, G1, B1, W1
P2: R3, Y4, R'''2''', B3, G5
P3: G4, Y1, R4, Y3, Y2

Table: R1, Y5, G0, B3, W4

* It is P1's turn, and P2 knows his middle card is 2.
* P1 will give R-clue to P2.
* This will tell P2 that his newest card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be R3, because R2 is now visible with 100% information).

=== Finesse ===

* Finesse builds on the standard convention (making it a bit more complex).
* In the finesse convention, the timing of the clue gives you extra information.
* You can assume the following meta-information:
** Every card that gets marked, will be playable at some point.
** If the oldest, unmarked card gets marked with a number-clue, then the clue meant "save this/these card(s)". (It is custom to play saved cards from oldest to newest when appropriate.)
** A clue that doesn't mark the oldest card, means that the newest, previously unmarked card, is the next playable card in the sequence.
** The oldest, unmarked card is safe to discard unless that player is busy by having a "known" play.
*** ''Obviously, if a player has a card that they are sure they will never be able to play, for example a card on which is marked as blue when the blue and multicolor piles have already been completed, such card must be discarded in priority.''
** If a marked card gets discarded it means:
*** The copy of that card is already marked in someone else's hand, and the discarding player is the first to realize this; or
*** The copy of that card MUST be marked in a future clue (because a save-clue will be given that will mark the copy card as collateral).

==== Meaning of skipping a player / stealing clues ====
* There are different approaches among finesse-convention-players about who should clue whom. So this section will be devided into sub-sections. The order does not say anything about which approach is more common on BGA. There are a lot of players following each idea.
* As of now, there is no way of saying which approach is "right" or "better". Of course it is important for success, that in a game, the group of players follows the same idea. If they get mixed, it will most likely result in bombs. If that happens, it does not mean, the other player is "bad" - it merely means, they follow a different idea. So you can only try to find a common ground for the next game or play with another group next time.
* The text within the sections are written by people who follow the idea.

===== a) Skipping / stealing should be avoided =====
* If more than 1 person are able to give the same clue, then the last possible person should give that clue.
* In finesse convention skipping (P1 clues P3, instead of P2; then P2 is skipped) means either:
*# The skipped player is forbidden from giving that clue; or
*# The skipped player has something to play. But it must be a marked, completely known card. If there is no known card in your hand do NOT play blind.
*# You should also clue someone

===== b) Skipping / stealing is for discard-management =====
Skipping/stealing is a term that is often used for a situation, where giving a clue is not left for the last possible player to do. For example - player A saves a card on chop of player C, potentially leaving player B without a known play or a useful/necessary clue to give. Skipping players is a useful move to give other players the time to play other cards or discard.

When getting skipped without having a play or useful option to clue, it most likely means that your chop card is not very useful. These are valid reasons for skipping you:
* Your chop-card is trash (a copy of the card is already played/marked)
* Your chop-card is redundant: Another copy of it is on another player's (or your own) hand as well
* Your chop-card is a 4 and it's very early in the game
* You might still have something nice on chop, but the player sitting before already received information that their chop might be something very good (from earlier discard-behaviour like NOT being skipped over by the player sitting before them on earlier turns) and they are reluctant to discard for that reason.
* The clue given is a playclue for a card that might be in your hand so you couldn't know whether you want the other card or not. The player skipping you knows that you want it and therefore takes away the decision.

This approach sacrifices some saving-clue-tokens option (that might be achieved on a stricter dogma about who should clue whom) in order to be able to keep nice cards in the game for longer and discard useless cards instead and by that often get those cards played before they would be discarded.
* This convention is better for players, who play efficient enough to rarely struggle with clue-shortness and can therefore afford being more careful about not losing first copies.
* If a group often struggles with clue-shortness then skipping-dogma (as proposed by other conventions) might as well improve their overall results. If the problem for not achieving 30 points usually isn't clue-shortness but getting bottom-decked (or heavily delayed from losing earlier a card that could be played now), then results can get better with this discard-management convention.

Planning ahead is a vital aspect of the game. By carefully deciding on who to let clue and whom to skip, it is often possible to
* avoid twin-chops before they become an issue
* avoid not having enough clue tokens to save all necessary cards
* get the discard you were waiting for (when a player has 2 copies of the same playable card and you want them to discard before clueing it)

==== Clues you should avoid giving (bad clues) ====

* As a special remark: don't mark useless, or duplicate cards. So if you have a saved 4, you are forbidden from marking 4s, unless you are sure you are not holding a copy of that

==== Special interpretation for play-clues ====

* When receiving a clue for the "next playable card in the sequence", the linking cards are not limited to already marked cards (like in standard convention).
* The newest, unmarked cards in every player's hand should be considered as well.

====== Example ======

new -> old
P1: ??, ??, ??, ??, ??
P2: B1, Y5, B3, W1, W2
P3: R5, R2, B2, G2, Y2

Table: R0, Y0, G0, B0, W0

* P1 gives B-clue to P3.
* This gives the information that B2 is the next playable card in the sequence, and that P2 is either not allowed to give B-clue, or has something to play.
* Since P2 has no marked cards, he was not blocked from giving B-clue, so he must have something to play.
* This something, must be the missing link (B1, to enable B2) that makes B2 the next playable card.
* Since there is no logical (marked) card that could be B1, P2 must assume his newest, unmarked card is B1 and blind-plays this card.

===== Example of reversed finesse =====

new -> old
P1: ??, ??, ??, ??, ??
P2: R5, R2, B2, G2, Y2
P3: B1, Y5, B3, W1, W2

Table: R0, Y0, G0, B0, W0

* P1 gives B-clue to P2.
* This gives the information that B2 is the next playable card in the sequence.
* P2 sees that the newest, unmarked card in the hand of P3 is of the same colour (blue) '''and''' playable now. P2 concludes it is a finesse, with the players in reversed order, so his blue card must be B2.

===== Example of a bluff =====

new -> old
P1: ??, ??, ??, ??, ??
P2: W1, Y5, B3, W1, W2
P3: R5, R2, B2, G2, Y2

Table: R0, Y0, G0, B0, W0

* P1 gives B-clue to P3.
* This gives the information that B2 is the next playable card in the sequence, and that P2 is either not allowed to give B-clue, or has something to play.
* Since P2 has no marked cards, he was not blocked from giving B-clue, so he must have something to play.
* This something, must be the missing link (B1, to enable B2) that makes B2 the next playable card.
* Since there is no logical (marked) card that could be B1, P2 must assume his newest, unmarked card is B1 and blind-plays this card.
* However, at this point the "lie" is revealed (because the colour of the played card does '''not''' match the colour of the finesse-clue).
* The blind-played card is '''not''' B1, but W1. P3, up to this point, was thinking he had B1.
* The blind-play of P2 gives him extra information: his blue card is in fact B2.

=== Hat-guessing ===

* [https://github.com/hanabi/hanabi.github.io/blob/main/misc/hat-guessing.md Github hat-guessing]

=== Logical Leftism ===

* [http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/basics-level-1-a117610126 Hanabi Logic basics-level-1]
* [http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/-a163408102 Hanabi Logic logical-leftism-in-a-nutshell]

=== Closest Friend ===

* TODO

=== Secret convention ===

* TODO

=== Conventional Leftism ===

* [http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/ll-vs-cl-the-differences-a132077536 Hanabi Logic ll-vs-cl-the-differences] gives some clues, but doesn't explain Conventional Leftism from first principles.

=== Chop-focus ===

* TODO

== Strategy ==

* In addition to the convention(s), there is also some strategy to the game.
* You should '''not''' confuse strategy with convention! Strategy is '''team''' vs '''deck'''; convention is communication within the team.
* A simple example of strategy is saving 2s in 2-player games.
** Using number-2-clue to communicate that those cards need to be saved, is a convention.

=== Examples ===

* More advanced players will try to avoid losing as many "first" (non-unique) cards as possible.
* It's a good strategy to keep good cards in the game as long as possible - even if they are not yet playable.
** ''The other copy of that card might be far down the draw pile.''
* Trying to mark at least 12 cards with the first 8 clue-tokens.
** This gives 99% chance of always having enough tokens in the game.
* Not using the last two clue-tokens for "single plays".
** This avoids running out of clue-tokens in times when you need to save critical cards.

For strategy tips, see [[Tips_hanabi]]

Gamehelphanabi

2022-02-22T11:17:45Z

Silene: /* Lingo */

[[Category:Card games]]
For tips on how to play hanabi, see [[Tips_hanabi]]
== Introduction ==

* Hanabi is a cooperative game. Your goal, as a team, is to build a fabulous fireworks show.
* You do this by playing the cards in the correct order.
* However, you cannot see your own cards; you can only see the cards of your team mates.

==== Final Score Ratings ====

{| class="wikitable"
|-
!Points
!Overall impression
|-
|5 or less
|horrible, booed by the crowd...
|-
|6-10
|mediocre, just a spattering of applause.
|-
|11-15
|honourable, but will not be remembered for very long...
|-
|16-20
|excellent, crowd pleasing.
|-
|21-24
|amazing, will be remembered for a very long time!
|-
|25
|legendary, everyone left speechless, stars in their eyes
|}

== Card distribution ==

* In a game of Hanabi on '''normal difficulty''', the deck contains 50 cards.
* Each card has exactly one colour: either Red, Yellow, Green, Blue, or White.

There are 10 cards in each colour:
* three 1s
* two 2s
* two 3s
* two 4s
* one 5

=== Multicolour cards ===

* There are three variants that add a 6th colour: the multicolour.
* There are three difficulties:

==== Tricky ====

* Adds 10 multicolour cards to the normal game.
* These cards get marked by a separate multicolour clue.

==== Hard ====

* '''5''' multicolour cards to the normal game: one of each number.
* These cards get marked by a separate multicolour clue.

==== Very Difficult ====

* Adds 10 multicolour cards to the normal game.
* These cards get marked by ANY colour clue.

== Game play ==

* You each take turns.
* During a turn, a player may take one (1) of three actions.
* After your action, the turn ends and it is the next player's turn.
* The game can end in several ways:
*# All cards have been drawn from the deck. After this happens, everybody gets 1 more turn. The game ends with the score at the last turn.
*# Your team played all possible cards. In this case, the game ends immediately and you receive the maximum possible score.
*# Your team made three mistakes that caused misfires. In this case, you lose the game and get negative ten (-10) points.
*# Your team 'abandons' the game. Although discouraged, you receive zero (0) points.

== Turn ==

* During your turn, you have one (1) action.
* You can choose to do one of the following:

==== Give a colour or number clue to a teammate ====

* This costs one clue-token (-1).
* You cannot give a clue if there are zero (0) clue-tokens left.
* When you give a clue, you must indicate '''all''' cards of a certain colour, or '''all''' cards of a certain number.

==== Play a card ====

* When a card is played, it is evaluated.
* If the card fits in one of sequences, it is placed in the appropriate colour stack on the table.
* If it does not fit, it is placed in the discard pile and the team gets a misfire-token.
* Then draw a new card.

==== Discard a card ====

* When you discard, the card is placed in the discard pile and you get a clue-token (+1).
* ''Note:'' cards on the discard pile are out of the game and can never return.
* Then draw a new card.

== Options ==

=== Black Powder ===

* You may not give clues regarding the colour black.
* Black cards must be played in reverse order, from 5 to 1.
* In the deck there are three black 5s, two black 4s, two black 3s, two black 2s, and one black 1.

=== Five Flamboyants ===

After playing the last card of a colour, randomly select one of the following bonuses for immediate use:
* Gain a clue token.
* Gain a clue token and recover a life.
* Give a clue regarding a colour.
* Give a clue regarding a number.
* Shuffle a discarded card into the deck.
* Play a discarded card, if possible.

== Lingo ==

When you play with others, certain words are used to describe certain objects or situations. Here is a short list.

;Marked: A card that is highlighted by a clue.
;Unmarked: A card that is not clued.
;chop: The oldest, unmarked card. The card that you have no information on and will chop from your hand.
;draw: The newest, unmarked card. The card that you have no information on and was freshly drawn.
;To bomb: A play that causes the third misfire-token. Sometimes called '''explosion'''
;Unique: A card that has no copy (left) in the deck.
;Double discard: When consecutive players have the same card on chop. A special problem, since, to each of the consecutive players, a number to chop does not look like a unique save.
;Twin chop: same as double discard
;Double save: When a player has two consecutive unique cards, requiring consecutive save clues.
;Strategy: A set of rules / guidelines / conventions on how to interpret actions by players (including spending of clue-tokens).

== ELO rating ==

* If you are playing with ELO rating on, your ELO may be changed at the end of the game.
* Here is how it works:
*# Every player on the team is temporarily considered as having the average ELO rating of the team.
*# The system will generate a bot associated with the score your team has achieved (let’s call it '''''Hanabot''''').
*#* Hanabot’s ELO rating depends on the variant you are playing (50 cards, 60 cards, 60 cards multicolour), the number of players on the team and, most importantly, your team's score.
*#* All Hanabot’s ELO ratings have been set by an experienced player, they are not random or simply proportional to the score/number of players.
*# Your team (actually your team's average ELO) will now compete against Hanabot.
*#* The system will calculate your team’s ELO gain/loss as though your team had tied with Hanabot.
*#* If your score is below 18 (50-card game) or below 21 (60-card game), Hanabot's ELO is always 1000.

* You can find [http://forum.boardgamearena.com/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=4814 all bots' ELO ratings here]
* The 55-card variant (50 cards + 1 of each value in the sixth color) cannot be played with ELO rating on.
** This is because this variant is highly dependent on draw and a team’s score may not always reflect the players’ skills.
* If you achieve the perfect score and this should cost you ELO points, you will be considered as having beaten the bot associated with the score, so that you lose no ELO points.
* To be confirmed: I think the ELO-system has had an overhaul.

== About "cheating" ==

* In the "real life Hanabi", you can talk. That's why we chose to let the chat open for the online version.

* As a consequence, it is very easy to cheat at Hanabi.
** However, as you can imagine, cheating is very stupid and has no interest... except for ELO boosting.
** This is why there is no international ranking for this game (ie: best player, second best player) and no trophies associated to it.

* Another method of cheating is to deliberately avoid finishing games that would cause ELO to drop.
** While some argue that games become "boring" once 30 becomes impossible, it is rarely the case that games are abandoned on 29 points while waiting for the final 5 to be drawn.

== Conventions ==

'''Please note that these conventions are not widely used in BoardGameArena. Expert and master players in BGA tend to play very often according to the conventions in [https://docs.google.com/document/d/1VzgN6WoeYwh5NYtHECzUNZqFvpVcg-EdObU-YNMlyhc this document].'''

* If you want to play "full information" style, meaning that you wait until you know both the colour and number of a card before you play it, you will likely be short on clue-tokens in >99% of the decks.
* The logical conclusion is, that you cannot play a full information style game, and the team must agree on some sort of convention.
** Meaning: a certain amount of meta-information is assigned to the clues.

* Many players have different kinds of conventions.
* When different players in the same team assign different meta-information to the same clue, the game becomes unplayable.
** This is why the BGA table-settings give the option to set a table convention since the end of 2020.
** Please see this [https://boardgamearena.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=102&t=18031 post] started by [https://boardgamearena.com/player?id=84207926 Romain672].
* Ideally, all players adhere to the convention, to avoid miscommunication.

* Below, the meta-information of several conventions is explained.
* In the examples, colours are indicated by their first letter:
R - Red -      ,
Y - Yellow -      ,
G - Green -      ,
B - Blue -      ,
W - White -      ,
M - Multi-colour -      ,
P - black Powder -      .
** ''For example:'' Y2 means the card with number 2 and colour yellow.

=== Standard convention ===

*You can assume the following meta-information:
** Every card that gets marked, will be playable at some point.
** A card marked with a number, can be played when all "number-1" cards are played.
*** ''This is usually explained as: number-clues mean that these cards should be saved and played later on in the game.''
*** ''It is custom to play saved cards from oldest to newest.''
*** ''The small minority that pushes the conventions present on this wiki claim that doing so is the best way to prevent bombs, since this convention makes it more difficult to save unique cards on CHOP without marking collateral, potential useless cards.''
*** '' '''Most BoardGameArena players do not adopt this convention.''' A number hint is generally seen as a save (i.e., marking a unique cards that is about to be discarded) when on chop, and as a hint to play as soon as possible otherwise.''
** A colour-clue means that the newest, previously unmarked card, is the next playable card in the sequence.
** The oldest, unmarked card is safe to discard.
*** ''Obviously, if a player has a card that they are sure they will never be able to play, for example a card on which is marked as blue when the blue pile has already been completed, such card must be discarded in priority.''
* Clues you should avoid giving (bad clues):
** Giving a clue that marks 0 new cards.
** Give a clue that tells a lie (does not conform to the meta-information above).
** As a special remark: Since every marked card is assumed playable, you shouldn't mark useless, or duplicate cards. So if you have a saved 4, you are forbidden from marking 4s, unless you are sure you are not holding a copy of that 4.
* Sometimes, a "bad" clue can't be avoided.
** ''For example:'' when you need to save a unique 3 (using a number-clue) to avoid it being discarded, but you also accidentally mark a useless card.
** Or if you are forced to give a colour-clue from a flamboyant, and you use it to mark 0 new cards.
* When a lie has been told, it needs to be corrected.
* A correction-clue can never mean "play", it can only mean "discard".

==== Example 1 ====

new -> old
P1: R1, Y1, G1, B1, W1
P2: R2, Y4, R3, B3, G'''5'''
P3: G4, Y1, R4, Y3, Y2

Table: R1, Y5, G1, B3, W4

* It's P1's turn, and P2 knows his oldest card is 5.
* P1 will give R-clue to P2.
* This will tell P2, that the newest card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be R2), and that the other red can be R3, R4, or R5 (because it must be playable at some later point in the game).

==== Example 2 ====

new -> old
P1: R1, Y1, G1, B1, W1
P2: W5, Y4, '''R'''3, B3, G'''5'''
P3: W2, G4, Y1, R4, Y3

Table: R2, Y5, G1, B3, W4

* It is P1's turn again, and P2 knows his oldest card is 5, and his middle card is R.
* P1 will give R-clue to P3.
* This will tell P3, that his middle card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be R4, because R3 is already marked).
* This will give P2 the meta-information that his saved red card, is R3.
** ''This particular move is sometimes called prompting, and is a common way to allow a card that is saved by colour to get played without re-cluing it.''

==== Example 3 ====

new -> old
P1: R1, Y1, G1, B1, W1
P2: R3, Y4, R'''2''', B3, G5
P3: G4, Y1, R4, Y3, Y2

Table: R1, Y5, G0, B3, W4

* It is P1's turn, and P2 knows his middle card is 2.
* P1 will give R-clue to P2.
* This will tell P2 that his newest card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be R3, because R2 is now visible with 100% information).

=== Finesse ===

* Finesse builds on the standard convention (making it a bit more complex).
* In the finesse convention, the timing of the clue gives you extra information.
* You can assume the following meta-information:
** Every card that gets marked, will be playable at some point.
** If the oldest, unmarked card gets marked with a number-clue, then the clue meant "save this/these card(s)". (It is custom to play saved cards from oldest to newest when appropriate.)
** A clue that doesn't mark the oldest card, means that the newest, previously unmarked card, is the next playable card in the sequence.
** The oldest, unmarked card is safe to discard unless that player is busy by having a "known" play.
*** ''Obviously, if a player has a card that they are sure they will never be able to play, for example a card on which is marked as blue when the blue and multicolor piles have already been completed, such card must be discarded in priority.''
** If a marked card gets discarded it means:
*** The copy of that card is already marked in someone else's hand, and the discarding player is the first to realize this; or
*** The copy of that card MUST be marked in a future clue (because a save-clue will be given that will mark the copy card as collateral).

==== Meaning of skipping a player / stealing clues ====
* There are different approaches among finesse-convention-players about who should clue whom. So this section will be devided into sub-sections. The order does not say anything about which approach is more common on BGA. There are a lot of players following each idea.
* As of now, there is no way of saying which approach is "right" or "better". Of course it is important for success, that in a game, the group of players follows the same idea. If they get mixed, it will most likely result in bombs. If that happens, it does not mean, the other player is "bad" - it merely means, they follow a different idea. So you can only try to find a common ground for the next game or play with another group next time.
* The text within the sections are written by people who follow the idea.

===== a) Skipping / stealing should be avoided =====
* If more than 1 person are able to give the same clue, then the last possible person should give that clue.
* In finesse convention skipping (P1 clues P3, instead of P2; then P2 is skipped) means either:
*# The skipped player is forbidden from giving that clue; or
*# The skipped player has something to play. But it must be a marked, completely known card. If there is no known card in your hand do NOT play blind.
*# You should also clue someone

===== b) Skipping / stealing is for discard-management =====
Skipping/stealing is a term that is often used for a situation, where giving a clue is not left for the last possible player to do. For example - player A saves a card on chop of player C, potentially leaving player B without a known play or a useful/necessary clue to give. Skipping players is a useful move to give other players the time to play other cards or discard.

When getting skipped without having a play or useful option to clue, it most likely means that your chop card is not very useful. These are valid reasons for skipping you:
* Your chop-card is trash (a copy of the card is already played/marked)
* Your chop-card is redundant: Another copy of it is on another player's (or your own) hand as well
* Your chop-card is a 4 and it's very early in the game
* You might still have something nice on chop, but the player sitting before already received information that their chop might be something very good (from earlier discard-behaviour like NOT being skipped over by the player sitting before them on earlier turns) and they are reluctant to discard for that reason.
* The clue given is a playclue for a card that might be in your hand so you couldn't know whether you want the other card or not. The player skipping you knows that you want it and therefore takes away the decision.

This approach sacrifices some saving-clue-tokens option (that might be achieved on a stricter dogma about who should clue whom) in order to be able to keep nice cards in the game for longer and discard useless cards instead and by that often get those cards played before they would be discarded.
* This convention is better for players, who play efficient enough to rarely struggle with clue-shortness and can therefore afford being more careful about not losing first copies.
* If a group often struggles with clue-shortness then skipping-dogma (as proposed by other conventions) might as well improve their overall results. If the problem for not achieving 30 points usually isn't clue-shortness but getting bottom-decked (or heavily delayed from losing earlier a card that could be played now), then results can get better with this discard-management convention.

Planning ahead is a vital aspect of the game. By carefully deciding on who to let clue and whom to skip, it is often possible to
* avoid twin-chops before they become an issue
* avoid not having enough clue tokens to save all necessary cards
* get the discard you were waiting for (when a player has 2 copies of the same playable card and you want them to discard before clueing it)

==== Clues you should avoid giving (bad clues) ====

* As a special remark: don't mark useless, or duplicate cards. So if you have a saved 4, you are forbidden from marking 4s, unless you are sure you are not holding a copy of that

==== Special interpretation for play-clues ====

* When receiving a clue for the "next playable card in the sequence", the linking cards are not limited to already marked cards (like in standard convention).
* The newest, unmarked cards in every player's hand should be considered as well.

====== Example ======

new -> old
P1: ??, ??, ??, ??, ??
P2: B1, Y5, B3, W1, W2
P3: R5, R2, B2, G2, Y2

Table: R0, Y0, G0, B0, W0

* P1 gives B-clue to P3.
* This gives the information that B2 is the next playable card in the sequence, and that P2 is either not allowed to give B-clue, or has something to play.
* Since P2 has no marked cards, he was not blocked from giving B-clue, so he must have something to play.
* This something, must be the missing link (B1, to enable B2) that makes B2 the next playable card.
* Since there is no logical (marked) card that could be B1, P2 must assume his newest, unmarked card is B1 and blind-plays this card.

===== Example of reversed finesse =====

new -> old
P1: ??, ??, ??, ??, ??
P2: R5, R2, B2, G2, Y2
P3: B1, Y5, B3, W1, W2

Table: R0, Y0, G0, B0, W0

* P1 gives B-clue to P2.
* This gives the information that B2 is the next playable card in the sequence.
* P2 sees that the newest, unmarked card in the hand of P3 is of the same colour (blue) '''and''' playable now. P2 concludes it is a finesse, with the players in reversed order, so his blue card must be B2.

===== Example of a bluff =====

new -> old
P1: ??, ??, ??, ??, ??
P2: W1, Y5, B3, W1, W2
P3: R5, R2, B2, G2, Y2

Table: R0, Y0, G0, B0, W0

* P1 gives B-clue to P3.
* This gives the information that B2 is the next playable card in the sequence, and that P2 is either not allowed to give B-clue, or has something to play.
* Since P2 has no marked cards, he was not blocked from giving B-clue, so he must have something to play.
* This something, must be the missing link (B1, to enable B2) that makes B2 the next playable card.
* Since there is no logical (marked) card that could be B1, P2 must assume his newest, unmarked card is B1 and blind-plays this card.
* However, at this point the "lie" is revealed (because the colour of the played card does '''not''' match the colour of the finesse-clue).
* The blind-played card is '''not''' B1, but W1. P3, up to this point, was thinking he had B1.
* The blind-play of P2 gives him extra information: his blue card is in fact B2.

=== Hat-guessing ===

* [https://github.com/hanabi/hanabi.github.io/blob/main/misc/hat-guessing.md Github hat-guessing]

=== Logical Leftism ===

* [http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/basics-level-1-a117610126 Hanabi Logic basics-level-1]
* [http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/-a163408102 Hanabi Logic logical-leftism-in-a-nutshell]

=== Closest Friend ===

* TODO

=== Secret convention ===

* TODO

=== Conventional Leftism ===

* [http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/ll-vs-cl-the-differences-a132077536 Hanabi Logic ll-vs-cl-the-differences] gives some clues, but doesn't explain Conventional Leftism from first principles.

=== Chop-focus ===

* TODO

== Strategy ==

* In addition to the convention(s), there is also some strategy to the game.
* You should '''not''' confuse strategy with convention! Strategy is '''team''' vs '''deck'''; convention is communication within the team.
* A simple example of strategy is saving 2s in 2-player games.
** Using number-2-clue to communicate that those cards need to be saved, is a convention.

=== Examples ===

* More advanced players will try to avoid losing as many "first" (non-unique) cards as possible.
* It's a good strategy to keep good cards in the game as long as possible - even if they are not yet playable.
** ''The other copy of that card might be far down the draw pile.''
* Trying to mark at least 12 cards with the first 8 clue-tokens.
** This gives 99% chance of always having enough tokens in the game.
* Not using the last two clue-tokens for "single plays".
** This avoids running out of clue-tokens in times when you need to save critical cards.

For strategy tips, see [[Tips_hanabi]]

Gamehelphanabi

2022-02-22T11:11:27Z

Silene: /* b) Skipping / stealing is for discard-management */

[[Category:Card games]]
For tips on how to play hanabi, see [[Tips_hanabi]]
== Introduction ==

* Hanabi is a cooperative game. Your goal, as a team, is to build a fabulous fireworks show.
* You do this by playing the cards in the correct order.
* However, you cannot see your own cards; you can only see the cards of your team mates.

==== Final Score Ratings ====

{| class="wikitable"
|-
!Points
!Overall impression
|-
|5 or less
|horrible, booed by the crowd...
|-
|6-10
|mediocre, just a spattering of applause.
|-
|11-15
|honourable, but will not be remembered for very long...
|-
|16-20
|excellent, crowd pleasing.
|-
|21-24
|amazing, will be remembered for a very long time!
|-
|25
|legendary, everyone left speechless, stars in their eyes
|}

== Card distribution ==

* In a game of Hanabi on '''normal difficulty''', the deck contains 50 cards.
* Each card has exactly one colour: either Red, Yellow, Green, Blue, or White.

There are 10 cards in each colour:
* three 1s
* two 2s
* two 3s
* two 4s
* one 5

=== Multicolour cards ===

* There are three variants that add a 6th colour: the multicolour.
* There are three difficulties:

==== Tricky ====

* Adds 10 multicolour cards to the normal game.
* These cards get marked by a separate multicolour clue.

==== Hard ====

* '''5''' multicolour cards to the normal game: one of each number.
* These cards get marked by a separate multicolour clue.

==== Very Difficult ====

* Adds 10 multicolour cards to the normal game.
* These cards get marked by ANY colour clue.

== Game play ==

* You each take turns.
* During a turn, a player may take one (1) of three actions.
* After your action, the turn ends and it is the next player's turn.
* The game can end in several ways:
*# All cards have been drawn from the deck. After this happens, everybody gets 1 more turn. The game ends with the score at the last turn.
*# Your team played all possible cards. In this case, the game ends immediately and you receive the maximum possible score.
*# Your team made three mistakes that caused misfires. In this case, you lose the game and get negative ten (-10) points.
*# Your team 'abandons' the game. Although discouraged, you receive zero (0) points.

== Turn ==

* During your turn, you have one (1) action.
* You can choose to do one of the following:

==== Give a colour or number clue to a teammate ====

* This costs one clue-token (-1).
* You cannot give a clue if there are zero (0) clue-tokens left.
* When you give a clue, you must indicate '''all''' cards of a certain colour, or '''all''' cards of a certain number.

==== Play a card ====

* When a card is played, it is evaluated.
* If the card fits in one of sequences, it is placed in the appropriate colour stack on the table.
* If it does not fit, it is placed in the discard pile and the team gets a misfire-token.
* Then draw a new card.

==== Discard a card ====

* When you discard, the card is placed in the discard pile and you get a clue-token (+1).
* ''Note:'' cards on the discard pile are out of the game and can never return.
* Then draw a new card.

== Options ==

=== Black Powder ===

* You may not give clues regarding the colour black.
* Black cards must be played in reverse order, from 5 to 1.
* In the deck there are three black 5s, two black 4s, two black 3s, two black 2s, and one black 1.

=== Five Flamboyants ===

After playing the last card of a colour, randomly select one of the following bonuses for immediate use:
* Gain a clue token.
* Gain a clue token and recover a life.
* Give a clue regarding a colour.
* Give a clue regarding a number.
* Shuffle a discarded card into the deck.
* Play a discarded card, if possible.

== Lingo ==

When you play with others, certain words are used to describe certain objects or situations. Here is a short list.

;Marked: A card that is highlighted by a clue.
;Unmarked: A card that is not clued.
;chop: The oldest, unmarked card. The card that you have no information on and will chop from your hand.
;draw: The newest, unmarked card. The card that you have no information on and was freshly drawn.
;To bomb: A play that causes the third misfire-token. Sometimes called '''explosion'''
;Unique: A card that has no copy (left) in the deck.
;Double discard: When consecutive players have the same card on chop. A special problem, since, to each of the consecutive players, a number to chop does not look like a unique save.
;Double save: When a player has two consecutive unique cards, requiring consecutive save clues.
;Strategy: A set of rules / guidelines / conventions on how to interpret actions by players (including spending of clue-tokens).

== ELO rating ==

* If you are playing with ELO rating on, your ELO may be changed at the end of the game.
* Here is how it works:
*# Every player on the team is temporarily considered as having the average ELO rating of the team.
*# The system will generate a bot associated with the score your team has achieved (let’s call it '''''Hanabot''''').
*#* Hanabot’s ELO rating depends on the variant you are playing (50 cards, 60 cards, 60 cards multicolour), the number of players on the team and, most importantly, your team's score.
*#* All Hanabot’s ELO ratings have been set by an experienced player, they are not random or simply proportional to the score/number of players.
*# Your team (actually your team's average ELO) will now compete against Hanabot.
*#* The system will calculate your team’s ELO gain/loss as though your team had tied with Hanabot.
*#* If your score is below 18 (50-card game) or below 21 (60-card game), Hanabot's ELO is always 1000.

* You can find [http://forum.boardgamearena.com/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=4814 all bots' ELO ratings here]
* The 55-card variant (50 cards + 1 of each value in the sixth color) cannot be played with ELO rating on.
** This is because this variant is highly dependent on draw and a team’s score may not always reflect the players’ skills.
* If you achieve the perfect score and this should cost you ELO points, you will be considered as having beaten the bot associated with the score, so that you lose no ELO points.
* To be confirmed: I think the ELO-system has had an overhaul.

== About "cheating" ==

* In the "real life Hanabi", you can talk. That's why we chose to let the chat open for the online version.

* As a consequence, it is very easy to cheat at Hanabi.
** However, as you can imagine, cheating is very stupid and has no interest... except for ELO boosting.
** This is why there is no international ranking for this game (ie: best player, second best player) and no trophies associated to it.

* Another method of cheating is to deliberately avoid finishing games that would cause ELO to drop.
** While some argue that games become "boring" once 30 becomes impossible, it is rarely the case that games are abandoned on 29 points while waiting for the final 5 to be drawn.

== Conventions ==

'''Please note that these conventions are not widely used in BoardGameArena. Expert and master players in BGA tend to play very often according to the conventions in [https://docs.google.com/document/d/1VzgN6WoeYwh5NYtHECzUNZqFvpVcg-EdObU-YNMlyhc this document].'''

* If you want to play "full information" style, meaning that you wait until you know both the colour and number of a card before you play it, you will likely be short on clue-tokens in >99% of the decks.
* The logical conclusion is, that you cannot play a full information style game, and the team must agree on some sort of convention.
** Meaning: a certain amount of meta-information is assigned to the clues.

* Many players have different kinds of conventions.
* When different players in the same team assign different meta-information to the same clue, the game becomes unplayable.
** This is why the BGA table-settings give the option to set a table convention since the end of 2020.
** Please see this [https://boardgamearena.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=102&t=18031 post] started by [https://boardgamearena.com/player?id=84207926 Romain672].
* Ideally, all players adhere to the convention, to avoid miscommunication.

* Below, the meta-information of several conventions is explained.
* In the examples, colours are indicated by their first letter:
R - Red -      ,
Y - Yellow -      ,
G - Green -      ,
B - Blue -      ,
W - White -      ,
M - Multi-colour -      ,
P - black Powder -      .
** ''For example:'' Y2 means the card with number 2 and colour yellow.

=== Standard convention ===

*You can assume the following meta-information:
** Every card that gets marked, will be playable at some point.
** A card marked with a number, can be played when all "number-1" cards are played.
*** ''This is usually explained as: number-clues mean that these cards should be saved and played later on in the game.''
*** ''It is custom to play saved cards from oldest to newest.''
*** ''The small minority that pushes the conventions present on this wiki claim that doing so is the best way to prevent bombs, since this convention makes it more difficult to save unique cards on CHOP without marking collateral, potential useless cards.''
*** '' '''Most BoardGameArena players do not adopt this convention.''' A number hint is generally seen as a save (i.e., marking a unique cards that is about to be discarded) when on chop, and as a hint to play as soon as possible otherwise.''
** A colour-clue means that the newest, previously unmarked card, is the next playable card in the sequence.
** The oldest, unmarked card is safe to discard.
*** ''Obviously, if a player has a card that they are sure they will never be able to play, for example a card on which is marked as blue when the blue pile has already been completed, such card must be discarded in priority.''
* Clues you should avoid giving (bad clues):
** Giving a clue that marks 0 new cards.
** Give a clue that tells a lie (does not conform to the meta-information above).
** As a special remark: Since every marked card is assumed playable, you shouldn't mark useless, or duplicate cards. So if you have a saved 4, you are forbidden from marking 4s, unless you are sure you are not holding a copy of that 4.
* Sometimes, a "bad" clue can't be avoided.
** ''For example:'' when you need to save a unique 3 (using a number-clue) to avoid it being discarded, but you also accidentally mark a useless card.
** Or if you are forced to give a colour-clue from a flamboyant, and you use it to mark 0 new cards.
* When a lie has been told, it needs to be corrected.
* A correction-clue can never mean "play", it can only mean "discard".

==== Example 1 ====

new -> old
P1: R1, Y1, G1, B1, W1
P2: R2, Y4, R3, B3, G'''5'''
P3: G4, Y1, R4, Y3, Y2

Table: R1, Y5, G1, B3, W4

* It's P1's turn, and P2 knows his oldest card is 5.
* P1 will give R-clue to P2.
* This will tell P2, that the newest card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be R2), and that the other red can be R3, R4, or R5 (because it must be playable at some later point in the game).

==== Example 2 ====

new -> old
P1: R1, Y1, G1, B1, W1
P2: W5, Y4, '''R'''3, B3, G'''5'''
P3: W2, G4, Y1, R4, Y3

Table: R2, Y5, G1, B3, W4

* It is P1's turn again, and P2 knows his oldest card is 5, and his middle card is R.
* P1 will give R-clue to P3.
* This will tell P3, that his middle card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be R4, because R3 is already marked).
* This will give P2 the meta-information that his saved red card, is R3.
** ''This particular move is sometimes called prompting, and is a common way to allow a card that is saved by colour to get played without re-cluing it.''

==== Example 3 ====

new -> old
P1: R1, Y1, G1, B1, W1
P2: R3, Y4, R'''2''', B3, G5
P3: G4, Y1, R4, Y3, Y2

Table: R1, Y5, G0, B3, W4

* It is P1's turn, and P2 knows his middle card is 2.
* P1 will give R-clue to P2.
* This will tell P2 that his newest card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be R3, because R2 is now visible with 100% information).

=== Finesse ===

* Finesse builds on the standard convention (making it a bit more complex).
* In the finesse convention, the timing of the clue gives you extra information.
* You can assume the following meta-information:
** Every card that gets marked, will be playable at some point.
** If the oldest, unmarked card gets marked with a number-clue, then the clue meant "save this/these card(s)". (It is custom to play saved cards from oldest to newest when appropriate.)
** A clue that doesn't mark the oldest card, means that the newest, previously unmarked card, is the next playable card in the sequence.
** The oldest, unmarked card is safe to discard unless that player is busy by having a "known" play.
*** ''Obviously, if a player has a card that they are sure they will never be able to play, for example a card on which is marked as blue when the blue and multicolor piles have already been completed, such card must be discarded in priority.''
** If a marked card gets discarded it means:
*** The copy of that card is already marked in someone else's hand, and the discarding player is the first to realize this; or
*** The copy of that card MUST be marked in a future clue (because a save-clue will be given that will mark the copy card as collateral).

==== Meaning of skipping a player / stealing clues ====
* There are different approaches among finesse-convention-players about who should clue whom. So this section will be devided into sub-sections. The order does not say anything about which approach is more common on BGA. There are a lot of players following each idea.
* As of now, there is no way of saying which approach is "right" or "better". Of course it is important for success, that in a game, the group of players follows the same idea. If they get mixed, it will most likely result in bombs. If that happens, it does not mean, the other player is "bad" - it merely means, they follow a different idea. So you can only try to find a common ground for the next game or play with another group next time.
* The text within the sections are written by people who follow the idea.

===== a) Skipping / stealing should be avoided =====
* If more than 1 person are able to give the same clue, then the last possible person should give that clue.
* In finesse convention skipping (P1 clues P3, instead of P2; then P2 is skipped) means either:
*# The skipped player is forbidden from giving that clue; or
*# The skipped player has something to play. But it must be a marked, completely known card. If there is no known card in your hand do NOT play blind.
*# You should also clue someone

===== b) Skipping / stealing is for discard-management =====
Skipping/stealing is a term that is often used for a situation, where giving a clue is not left for the last possible player to do. For example - player A saves a card on chop of player C, potentially leaving player B without a known play or a useful/necessary clue to give. Skipping players is a useful move to give other players the time to play other cards or discard.

When getting skipped without having a play or useful option to clue, it most likely means that your chop card is not very useful. These are valid reasons for skipping you:
* Your chop-card is trash (a copy of the card is already played/marked)
* Your chop-card is redundant: Another copy of it is on another player's (or your own) hand as well
* Your chop-card is a 4 and it's very early in the game
* You might still have something nice on chop, but the player sitting before already received information that their chop might be something very good (from earlier discard-behaviour like NOT being skipped over by the player sitting before them on earlier turns) and they are reluctant to discard for that reason.
* The clue given is a playclue for a card that might be in your hand so you couldn't know whether you want the other card or not. The player skipping you knows that you want it and therefore takes away the decision.

This approach sacrifices some saving-clue-tokens option (that might be achieved on a stricter dogma about who should clue whom) in order to be able to keep nice cards in the game for longer and discard useless cards instead and by that often get those cards played before they would be discarded.
* This convention is better for players, who play efficient enough to rarely struggle with clue-shortness and can therefore afford being more careful about not losing first copies.
* If a group often struggles with clue-shortness then skipping-dogma (as proposed by other conventions) might as well improve their overall results. If the problem for not achieving 30 points usually isn't clue-shortness but getting bottom-decked (or heavily delayed from losing earlier a card that could be played now), then results can get better with this discard-management convention.

Planning ahead is a vital aspect of the game. By carefully deciding on who to let clue and whom to skip, it is often possible to
* avoid twin-chops before they become an issue
* avoid not having enough clue tokens to save all necessary cards
* get the discard you were waiting for (when a player has 2 copies of the same playable card and you want them to discard before clueing it)

==== Clues you should avoid giving (bad clues) ====

* As a special remark: don't mark useless, or duplicate cards. So if you have a saved 4, you are forbidden from marking 4s, unless you are sure you are not holding a copy of that

==== Special interpretation for play-clues ====

* When receiving a clue for the "next playable card in the sequence", the linking cards are not limited to already marked cards (like in standard convention).
* The newest, unmarked cards in every player's hand should be considered as well.

====== Example ======

new -> old
P1: ??, ??, ??, ??, ??
P2: B1, Y5, B3, W1, W2
P3: R5, R2, B2, G2, Y2

Table: R0, Y0, G0, B0, W0

* P1 gives B-clue to P3.
* This gives the information that B2 is the next playable card in the sequence, and that P2 is either not allowed to give B-clue, or has something to play.
* Since P2 has no marked cards, he was not blocked from giving B-clue, so he must have something to play.
* This something, must be the missing link (B1, to enable B2) that makes B2 the next playable card.
* Since there is no logical (marked) card that could be B1, P2 must assume his newest, unmarked card is B1 and blind-plays this card.

===== Example of reversed finesse =====

new -> old
P1: ??, ??, ??, ??, ??
P2: R5, R2, B2, G2, Y2
P3: B1, Y5, B3, W1, W2

Table: R0, Y0, G0, B0, W0

* P1 gives B-clue to P2.
* This gives the information that B2 is the next playable card in the sequence.
* P2 sees that the newest, unmarked card in the hand of P3 is of the same colour (blue) '''and''' playable now. P2 concludes it is a finesse, with the players in reversed order, so his blue card must be B2.

===== Example of a bluff =====

new -> old
P1: ??, ??, ??, ??, ??
P2: W1, Y5, B3, W1, W2
P3: R5, R2, B2, G2, Y2

Table: R0, Y0, G0, B0, W0

* P1 gives B-clue to P3.
* This gives the information that B2 is the next playable card in the sequence, and that P2 is either not allowed to give B-clue, or has something to play.
* Since P2 has no marked cards, he was not blocked from giving B-clue, so he must have something to play.
* This something, must be the missing link (B1, to enable B2) that makes B2 the next playable card.
* Since there is no logical (marked) card that could be B1, P2 must assume his newest, unmarked card is B1 and blind-plays this card.
* However, at this point the "lie" is revealed (because the colour of the played card does '''not''' match the colour of the finesse-clue).
* The blind-played card is '''not''' B1, but W1. P3, up to this point, was thinking he had B1.
* The blind-play of P2 gives him extra information: his blue card is in fact B2.

=== Hat-guessing ===

* [https://github.com/hanabi/hanabi.github.io/blob/main/misc/hat-guessing.md Github hat-guessing]

=== Logical Leftism ===

* [http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/basics-level-1-a117610126 Hanabi Logic basics-level-1]
* [http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/-a163408102 Hanabi Logic logical-leftism-in-a-nutshell]

=== Closest Friend ===

* TODO

=== Secret convention ===

* TODO

=== Conventional Leftism ===

* [http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/ll-vs-cl-the-differences-a132077536 Hanabi Logic ll-vs-cl-the-differences] gives some clues, but doesn't explain Conventional Leftism from first principles.

=== Chop-focus ===

* TODO

== Strategy ==

* In addition to the convention(s), there is also some strategy to the game.
* You should '''not''' confuse strategy with convention! Strategy is '''team''' vs '''deck'''; convention is communication within the team.
* A simple example of strategy is saving 2s in 2-player games.
** Using number-2-clue to communicate that those cards need to be saved, is a convention.

=== Examples ===

* More advanced players will try to avoid losing as many "first" (non-unique) cards as possible.
* It's a good strategy to keep good cards in the game as long as possible - even if they are not yet playable.
** ''The other copy of that card might be far down the draw pile.''
* Trying to mark at least 12 cards with the first 8 clue-tokens.
** This gives 99% chance of always having enough tokens in the game.
* Not using the last two clue-tokens for "single plays".
** This avoids running out of clue-tokens in times when you need to save critical cards.

For strategy tips, see [[Tips_hanabi]]

Gamehelphanabi

2022-02-22T11:07:25Z

Silene: /* Finesse */

[[Category:Card games]]
For tips on how to play hanabi, see [[Tips_hanabi]]
== Introduction ==

* Hanabi is a cooperative game. Your goal, as a team, is to build a fabulous fireworks show.
* You do this by playing the cards in the correct order.
* However, you cannot see your own cards; you can only see the cards of your team mates.

==== Final Score Ratings ====

{| class="wikitable"
|-
!Points
!Overall impression
|-
|5 or less
|horrible, booed by the crowd...
|-
|6-10
|mediocre, just a spattering of applause.
|-
|11-15
|honourable, but will not be remembered for very long...
|-
|16-20
|excellent, crowd pleasing.
|-
|21-24
|amazing, will be remembered for a very long time!
|-
|25
|legendary, everyone left speechless, stars in their eyes
|}

== Card distribution ==

* In a game of Hanabi on '''normal difficulty''', the deck contains 50 cards.
* Each card has exactly one colour: either Red, Yellow, Green, Blue, or White.

There are 10 cards in each colour:
* three 1s
* two 2s
* two 3s
* two 4s
* one 5

=== Multicolour cards ===

* There are three variants that add a 6th colour: the multicolour.
* There are three difficulties:

==== Tricky ====

* Adds 10 multicolour cards to the normal game.
* These cards get marked by a separate multicolour clue.

==== Hard ====

* '''5''' multicolour cards to the normal game: one of each number.
* These cards get marked by a separate multicolour clue.

==== Very Difficult ====

* Adds 10 multicolour cards to the normal game.
* These cards get marked by ANY colour clue.

== Game play ==

* You each take turns.
* During a turn, a player may take one (1) of three actions.
* After your action, the turn ends and it is the next player's turn.
* The game can end in several ways:
*# All cards have been drawn from the deck. After this happens, everybody gets 1 more turn. The game ends with the score at the last turn.
*# Your team played all possible cards. In this case, the game ends immediately and you receive the maximum possible score.
*# Your team made three mistakes that caused misfires. In this case, you lose the game and get negative ten (-10) points.
*# Your team 'abandons' the game. Although discouraged, you receive zero (0) points.

== Turn ==

* During your turn, you have one (1) action.
* You can choose to do one of the following:

==== Give a colour or number clue to a teammate ====

* This costs one clue-token (-1).
* You cannot give a clue if there are zero (0) clue-tokens left.
* When you give a clue, you must indicate '''all''' cards of a certain colour, or '''all''' cards of a certain number.

==== Play a card ====

* When a card is played, it is evaluated.
* If the card fits in one of sequences, it is placed in the appropriate colour stack on the table.
* If it does not fit, it is placed in the discard pile and the team gets a misfire-token.
* Then draw a new card.

==== Discard a card ====

* When you discard, the card is placed in the discard pile and you get a clue-token (+1).
* ''Note:'' cards on the discard pile are out of the game and can never return.
* Then draw a new card.

== Options ==

=== Black Powder ===

* You may not give clues regarding the colour black.
* Black cards must be played in reverse order, from 5 to 1.
* In the deck there are three black 5s, two black 4s, two black 3s, two black 2s, and one black 1.

=== Five Flamboyants ===

After playing the last card of a colour, randomly select one of the following bonuses for immediate use:
* Gain a clue token.
* Gain a clue token and recover a life.
* Give a clue regarding a colour.
* Give a clue regarding a number.
* Shuffle a discarded card into the deck.
* Play a discarded card, if possible.

== Lingo ==

When you play with others, certain words are used to describe certain objects or situations. Here is a short list.

;Marked: A card that is highlighted by a clue.
;Unmarked: A card that is not clued.
;chop: The oldest, unmarked card. The card that you have no information on and will chop from your hand.
;draw: The newest, unmarked card. The card that you have no information on and was freshly drawn.
;To bomb: A play that causes the third misfire-token. Sometimes called '''explosion'''
;Unique: A card that has no copy (left) in the deck.
;Double discard: When consecutive players have the same card on chop. A special problem, since, to each of the consecutive players, a number to chop does not look like a unique save.
;Double save: When a player has two consecutive unique cards, requiring consecutive save clues.
;Strategy: A set of rules / guidelines / conventions on how to interpret actions by players (including spending of clue-tokens).

== ELO rating ==

* If you are playing with ELO rating on, your ELO may be changed at the end of the game.
* Here is how it works:
*# Every player on the team is temporarily considered as having the average ELO rating of the team.
*# The system will generate a bot associated with the score your team has achieved (let’s call it '''''Hanabot''''').
*#* Hanabot’s ELO rating depends on the variant you are playing (50 cards, 60 cards, 60 cards multicolour), the number of players on the team and, most importantly, your team's score.
*#* All Hanabot’s ELO ratings have been set by an experienced player, they are not random or simply proportional to the score/number of players.
*# Your team (actually your team's average ELO) will now compete against Hanabot.
*#* The system will calculate your team’s ELO gain/loss as though your team had tied with Hanabot.
*#* If your score is below 18 (50-card game) or below 21 (60-card game), Hanabot's ELO is always 1000.

* You can find [http://forum.boardgamearena.com/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=4814 all bots' ELO ratings here]
* The 55-card variant (50 cards + 1 of each value in the sixth color) cannot be played with ELO rating on.
** This is because this variant is highly dependent on draw and a team’s score may not always reflect the players’ skills.
* If you achieve the perfect score and this should cost you ELO points, you will be considered as having beaten the bot associated with the score, so that you lose no ELO points.
* To be confirmed: I think the ELO-system has had an overhaul.

== About "cheating" ==

* In the "real life Hanabi", you can talk. That's why we chose to let the chat open for the online version.

* As a consequence, it is very easy to cheat at Hanabi.
** However, as you can imagine, cheating is very stupid and has no interest... except for ELO boosting.
** This is why there is no international ranking for this game (ie: best player, second best player) and no trophies associated to it.

* Another method of cheating is to deliberately avoid finishing games that would cause ELO to drop.
** While some argue that games become "boring" once 30 becomes impossible, it is rarely the case that games are abandoned on 29 points while waiting for the final 5 to be drawn.

== Conventions ==

'''Please note that these conventions are not widely used in BoardGameArena. Expert and master players in BGA tend to play very often according to the conventions in [https://docs.google.com/document/d/1VzgN6WoeYwh5NYtHECzUNZqFvpVcg-EdObU-YNMlyhc this document].'''

* If you want to play "full information" style, meaning that you wait until you know both the colour and number of a card before you play it, you will likely be short on clue-tokens in >99% of the decks.
* The logical conclusion is, that you cannot play a full information style game, and the team must agree on some sort of convention.
** Meaning: a certain amount of meta-information is assigned to the clues.

* Many players have different kinds of conventions.
* When different players in the same team assign different meta-information to the same clue, the game becomes unplayable.
** This is why the BGA table-settings give the option to set a table convention since the end of 2020.
** Please see this [https://boardgamearena.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=102&t=18031 post] started by [https://boardgamearena.com/player?id=84207926 Romain672].
* Ideally, all players adhere to the convention, to avoid miscommunication.

* Below, the meta-information of several conventions is explained.
* In the examples, colours are indicated by their first letter:
R - Red -      ,
Y - Yellow -      ,
G - Green -      ,
B - Blue -      ,
W - White -      ,
M - Multi-colour -      ,
P - black Powder -      .
** ''For example:'' Y2 means the card with number 2 and colour yellow.

=== Standard convention ===

*You can assume the following meta-information:
** Every card that gets marked, will be playable at some point.
** A card marked with a number, can be played when all "number-1" cards are played.
*** ''This is usually explained as: number-clues mean that these cards should be saved and played later on in the game.''
*** ''It is custom to play saved cards from oldest to newest.''
*** ''The small minority that pushes the conventions present on this wiki claim that doing so is the best way to prevent bombs, since this convention makes it more difficult to save unique cards on CHOP without marking collateral, potential useless cards.''
*** '' '''Most BoardGameArena players do not adopt this convention.''' A number hint is generally seen as a save (i.e., marking a unique cards that is about to be discarded) when on chop, and as a hint to play as soon as possible otherwise.''
** A colour-clue means that the newest, previously unmarked card, is the next playable card in the sequence.
** The oldest, unmarked card is safe to discard.
*** ''Obviously, if a player has a card that they are sure they will never be able to play, for example a card on which is marked as blue when the blue pile has already been completed, such card must be discarded in priority.''
* Clues you should avoid giving (bad clues):
** Giving a clue that marks 0 new cards.
** Give a clue that tells a lie (does not conform to the meta-information above).
** As a special remark: Since every marked card is assumed playable, you shouldn't mark useless, or duplicate cards. So if you have a saved 4, you are forbidden from marking 4s, unless you are sure you are not holding a copy of that 4.
* Sometimes, a "bad" clue can't be avoided.
** ''For example:'' when you need to save a unique 3 (using a number-clue) to avoid it being discarded, but you also accidentally mark a useless card.
** Or if you are forced to give a colour-clue from a flamboyant, and you use it to mark 0 new cards.
* When a lie has been told, it needs to be corrected.
* A correction-clue can never mean "play", it can only mean "discard".

==== Example 1 ====

new -> old
P1: R1, Y1, G1, B1, W1
P2: R2, Y4, R3, B3, G'''5'''
P3: G4, Y1, R4, Y3, Y2

Table: R1, Y5, G1, B3, W4

* It's P1's turn, and P2 knows his oldest card is 5.
* P1 will give R-clue to P2.
* This will tell P2, that the newest card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be R2), and that the other red can be R3, R4, or R5 (because it must be playable at some later point in the game).

==== Example 2 ====

new -> old
P1: R1, Y1, G1, B1, W1
P2: W5, Y4, '''R'''3, B3, G'''5'''
P3: W2, G4, Y1, R4, Y3

Table: R2, Y5, G1, B3, W4

* It is P1's turn again, and P2 knows his oldest card is 5, and his middle card is R.
* P1 will give R-clue to P3.
* This will tell P3, that his middle card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be R4, because R3 is already marked).
* This will give P2 the meta-information that his saved red card, is R3.
** ''This particular move is sometimes called prompting, and is a common way to allow a card that is saved by colour to get played without re-cluing it.''

==== Example 3 ====

new -> old
P1: R1, Y1, G1, B1, W1
P2: R3, Y4, R'''2''', B3, G5
P3: G4, Y1, R4, Y3, Y2

Table: R1, Y5, G0, B3, W4

* It is P1's turn, and P2 knows his middle card is 2.
* P1 will give R-clue to P2.
* This will tell P2 that his newest card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be R3, because R2 is now visible with 100% information).

=== Finesse ===

* Finesse builds on the standard convention (making it a bit more complex).
* In the finesse convention, the timing of the clue gives you extra information.
* You can assume the following meta-information:
** Every card that gets marked, will be playable at some point.
** If the oldest, unmarked card gets marked with a number-clue, then the clue meant "save this/these card(s)". (It is custom to play saved cards from oldest to newest when appropriate.)
** A clue that doesn't mark the oldest card, means that the newest, previously unmarked card, is the next playable card in the sequence.
** The oldest, unmarked card is safe to discard unless that player is busy by having a "known" play.
*** ''Obviously, if a player has a card that they are sure they will never be able to play, for example a card on which is marked as blue when the blue and multicolor piles have already been completed, such card must be discarded in priority.''
** If a marked card gets discarded it means:
*** The copy of that card is already marked in someone else's hand, and the discarding player is the first to realize this; or
*** The copy of that card MUST be marked in a future clue (because a save-clue will be given that will mark the copy card as collateral).

==== Meaning of skipping a player / stealing clues ====
* There are different approaches among finesse-convention-players about who should clue whom. So this section will be devided into sub-sections. The order does not say anything about which approach is more common on BGA. There are a lot of players following each idea.
* As of now, there is no way of saying which approach is "right" or "better". Of course it is important for success, that in a game, the group of players follows the same idea. If they get mixed, it will most likely result in bombs. If that happens, it does not mean, the other player is "bad" - it merely means, they follow a different idea. So you can only try to find a common ground for the next game or play with another group next time.
* The text within the sections are written by people who follow the idea.

===== a) Skipping / stealing should be avoided =====
* If more than 1 person are able to give the same clue, then the last possible person should give that clue.
* In finesse convention skipping (P1 clues P3, instead of P2; then P2 is skipped) means either:
*# The skipped player is forbidden from giving that clue; or
*# The skipped player has something to play. But it must be a marked, completely known card. If there is no known card in your hand do NOT play blind.
*# You should also clue someone

===== b) Skipping / stealing is for discard-management =====
Skipping/stealing is a term that is often used for a situation, where giving a clue is not left for the last possible player to do. For example - player A saves a card on chop of player C, potentially leaving player B without a known play or a useful/necessary clue to give. Skipping players is a useful move to give other players the time to play other cards or discard.

When getting skipped without having a play or useful option to clue, it most likely means that your chop card is not very useful. These are valid reasons for skipping you:
* Your chop-card is trash (a copy of the card is already played/marked)
* Your chop-card is redundant: Another copy of it is on another player's (or your own) hand as well
* Your chop-card is a 4 and it's very early in the game
* You might still have something nice on chop, but the player sitting before already received information that their chop might be something very good (from earlier discard-behaviour like NOT being skipped over by the player sitting before them on earlier turns) and they are reluctant to discard for that reason.

This approach sacrifices some saving-clue-tokens option (that might be achieved on a stricter dogma about who should clue whom) in order to be able to keep nice cards in the game for longer and discard useless cards instead and by that often get those cards played before they would be discarded.
* This convention is better for players, who play efficient enough to rarely struggle with clue-shortness and can therefore afford being more careful about not losing first copies.
* If a group often struggles with clue-shortness then skipping-dogma (as proposed by other conventions) might as well improve their overall results. If the problem for not achieving 30 points usually isn't clue-shortness but getting bottom-decked (or heavily delayed from losing earlier a card that could be played now), then results can get better with this discard-management convention.

Planning ahead is a vital aspect of the game. By carefully deciding on who to let clue and whom to skip, it is often possible to
* avoid twin-chops before they become an issue
* avoid not having enough clue tokens to save all necessary cards
* get the discard you were waiting for (when a player has 2 copies of the same playable card and you want them to discard before clueing it)

==== Clues you should avoid giving (bad clues) ====

* As a special remark: don't mark useless, or duplicate cards. So if you have a saved 4, you are forbidden from marking 4s, unless you are sure you are not holding a copy of that

==== Special interpretation for play-clues ====

* When receiving a clue for the "next playable card in the sequence", the linking cards are not limited to already marked cards (like in standard convention).
* The newest, unmarked cards in every player's hand should be considered as well.

====== Example ======

new -> old
P1: ??, ??, ??, ??, ??
P2: B1, Y5, B3, W1, W2
P3: R5, R2, B2, G2, Y2

Table: R0, Y0, G0, B0, W0

* P1 gives B-clue to P3.
* This gives the information that B2 is the next playable card in the sequence, and that P2 is either not allowed to give B-clue, or has something to play.
* Since P2 has no marked cards, he was not blocked from giving B-clue, so he must have something to play.
* This something, must be the missing link (B1, to enable B2) that makes B2 the next playable card.
* Since there is no logical (marked) card that could be B1, P2 must assume his newest, unmarked card is B1 and blind-plays this card.

===== Example of reversed finesse =====

new -> old
P1: ??, ??, ??, ??, ??
P2: R5, R2, B2, G2, Y2
P3: B1, Y5, B3, W1, W2

Table: R0, Y0, G0, B0, W0

* P1 gives B-clue to P2.
* This gives the information that B2 is the next playable card in the sequence.
* P2 sees that the newest, unmarked card in the hand of P3 is of the same colour (blue) '''and''' playable now. P2 concludes it is a finesse, with the players in reversed order, so his blue card must be B2.

===== Example of a bluff =====

new -> old
P1: ??, ??, ??, ??, ??
P2: W1, Y5, B3, W1, W2
P3: R5, R2, B2, G2, Y2

Table: R0, Y0, G0, B0, W0

* P1 gives B-clue to P3.
* This gives the information that B2 is the next playable card in the sequence, and that P2 is either not allowed to give B-clue, or has something to play.
* Since P2 has no marked cards, he was not blocked from giving B-clue, so he must have something to play.
* This something, must be the missing link (B1, to enable B2) that makes B2 the next playable card.
* Since there is no logical (marked) card that could be B1, P2 must assume his newest, unmarked card is B1 and blind-plays this card.
* However, at this point the "lie" is revealed (because the colour of the played card does '''not''' match the colour of the finesse-clue).
* The blind-played card is '''not''' B1, but W1. P3, up to this point, was thinking he had B1.
* The blind-play of P2 gives him extra information: his blue card is in fact B2.

=== Hat-guessing ===

* [https://github.com/hanabi/hanabi.github.io/blob/main/misc/hat-guessing.md Github hat-guessing]

=== Logical Leftism ===

* [http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/basics-level-1-a117610126 Hanabi Logic basics-level-1]
* [http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/-a163408102 Hanabi Logic logical-leftism-in-a-nutshell]

=== Closest Friend ===

* TODO

=== Secret convention ===

* TODO

=== Conventional Leftism ===

* [http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/ll-vs-cl-the-differences-a132077536 Hanabi Logic ll-vs-cl-the-differences] gives some clues, but doesn't explain Conventional Leftism from first principles.

=== Chop-focus ===

* TODO

== Strategy ==

* In addition to the convention(s), there is also some strategy to the game.
* You should '''not''' confuse strategy with convention! Strategy is '''team''' vs '''deck'''; convention is communication within the team.
* A simple example of strategy is saving 2s in 2-player games.
** Using number-2-clue to communicate that those cards need to be saved, is a convention.

=== Examples ===

* More advanced players will try to avoid losing as many "first" (non-unique) cards as possible.
* It's a good strategy to keep good cards in the game as long as possible - even if they are not yet playable.
** ''The other copy of that card might be far down the draw pile.''
* Trying to mark at least 12 cards with the first 8 clue-tokens.
** This gives 99% chance of always having enough tokens in the game.
* Not using the last two clue-tokens for "single plays".
** This avoids running out of clue-tokens in times when you need to save critical cards.

For strategy tips, see [[Tips_hanabi]]

Gamehelphanabi

2022-02-22T11:04:19Z

Silene: /* b) Skipping / stealing is for discard-management */

[[Category:Card games]]
For tips on how to play hanabi, see [[Tips_hanabi]]
== Introduction ==

* Hanabi is a cooperative game. Your goal, as a team, is to build a fabulous fireworks show.
* You do this by playing the cards in the correct order.
* However, you cannot see your own cards; you can only see the cards of your team mates.

==== Final Score Ratings ====

{| class="wikitable"
|-
!Points
!Overall impression
|-
|5 or less
|horrible, booed by the crowd...
|-
|6-10
|mediocre, just a spattering of applause.
|-
|11-15
|honourable, but will not be remembered for very long...
|-
|16-20
|excellent, crowd pleasing.
|-
|21-24
|amazing, will be remembered for a very long time!
|-
|25
|legendary, everyone left speechless, stars in their eyes
|}

== Card distribution ==

* In a game of Hanabi on '''normal difficulty''', the deck contains 50 cards.
* Each card has exactly one colour: either Red, Yellow, Green, Blue, or White.

There are 10 cards in each colour:
* three 1s
* two 2s
* two 3s
* two 4s
* one 5

=== Multicolour cards ===

* There are three variants that add a 6th colour: the multicolour.
* There are three difficulties:

==== Tricky ====

* Adds 10 multicolour cards to the normal game.
* These cards get marked by a separate multicolour clue.

==== Hard ====

* '''5''' multicolour cards to the normal game: one of each number.
* These cards get marked by a separate multicolour clue.

==== Very Difficult ====

* Adds 10 multicolour cards to the normal game.
* These cards get marked by ANY colour clue.

== Game play ==

* You each take turns.
* During a turn, a player may take one (1) of three actions.
* After your action, the turn ends and it is the next player's turn.
* The game can end in several ways:
*# All cards have been drawn from the deck. After this happens, everybody gets 1 more turn. The game ends with the score at the last turn.
*# Your team played all possible cards. In this case, the game ends immediately and you receive the maximum possible score.
*# Your team made three mistakes that caused misfires. In this case, you lose the game and get negative ten (-10) points.
*# Your team 'abandons' the game. Although discouraged, you receive zero (0) points.

== Turn ==

* During your turn, you have one (1) action.
* You can choose to do one of the following:

==== Give a colour or number clue to a teammate ====

* This costs one clue-token (-1).
* You cannot give a clue if there are zero (0) clue-tokens left.
* When you give a clue, you must indicate '''all''' cards of a certain colour, or '''all''' cards of a certain number.

==== Play a card ====

* When a card is played, it is evaluated.
* If the card fits in one of sequences, it is placed in the appropriate colour stack on the table.
* If it does not fit, it is placed in the discard pile and the team gets a misfire-token.
* Then draw a new card.

==== Discard a card ====

* When you discard, the card is placed in the discard pile and you get a clue-token (+1).
* ''Note:'' cards on the discard pile are out of the game and can never return.
* Then draw a new card.

== Options ==

=== Black Powder ===

* You may not give clues regarding the colour black.
* Black cards must be played in reverse order, from 5 to 1.
* In the deck there are three black 5s, two black 4s, two black 3s, two black 2s, and one black 1.

=== Five Flamboyants ===

After playing the last card of a colour, randomly select one of the following bonuses for immediate use:
* Gain a clue token.
* Gain a clue token and recover a life.
* Give a clue regarding a colour.
* Give a clue regarding a number.
* Shuffle a discarded card into the deck.
* Play a discarded card, if possible.

== Lingo ==

When you play with others, certain words are used to describe certain objects or situations. Here is a short list.

;Marked: A card that is highlighted by a clue.
;Unmarked: A card that is not clued.
;chop: The oldest, unmarked card. The card that you have no information on and will chop from your hand.
;draw: The newest, unmarked card. The card that you have no information on and was freshly drawn.
;To bomb: A play that causes the third misfire-token. Sometimes called '''explosion'''
;Unique: A card that has no copy (left) in the deck.
;Double discard: When consecutive players have the same card on chop. A special problem, since, to each of the consecutive players, a number to chop does not look like a unique save.
;Double save: When a player has two consecutive unique cards, requiring consecutive save clues.
;Strategy: A set of rules / guidelines / conventions on how to interpret actions by players (including spending of clue-tokens).

== ELO rating ==

* If you are playing with ELO rating on, your ELO may be changed at the end of the game.
* Here is how it works:
*# Every player on the team is temporarily considered as having the average ELO rating of the team.
*# The system will generate a bot associated with the score your team has achieved (let’s call it '''''Hanabot''''').
*#* Hanabot’s ELO rating depends on the variant you are playing (50 cards, 60 cards, 60 cards multicolour), the number of players on the team and, most importantly, your team's score.
*#* All Hanabot’s ELO ratings have been set by an experienced player, they are not random or simply proportional to the score/number of players.
*# Your team (actually your team's average ELO) will now compete against Hanabot.
*#* The system will calculate your team’s ELO gain/loss as though your team had tied with Hanabot.
*#* If your score is below 18 (50-card game) or below 21 (60-card game), Hanabot's ELO is always 1000.

* You can find [http://forum.boardgamearena.com/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=4814 all bots' ELO ratings here]
* The 55-card variant (50 cards + 1 of each value in the sixth color) cannot be played with ELO rating on.
** This is because this variant is highly dependent on draw and a team’s score may not always reflect the players’ skills.
* If you achieve the perfect score and this should cost you ELO points, you will be considered as having beaten the bot associated with the score, so that you lose no ELO points.
* To be confirmed: I think the ELO-system has had an overhaul.

== About "cheating" ==

* In the "real life Hanabi", you can talk. That's why we chose to let the chat open for the online version.

* As a consequence, it is very easy to cheat at Hanabi.
** However, as you can imagine, cheating is very stupid and has no interest... except for ELO boosting.
** This is why there is no international ranking for this game (ie: best player, second best player) and no trophies associated to it.

* Another method of cheating is to deliberately avoid finishing games that would cause ELO to drop.
** While some argue that games become "boring" once 30 becomes impossible, it is rarely the case that games are abandoned on 29 points while waiting for the final 5 to be drawn.

== Conventions ==

'''Please note that these conventions are not widely used in BoardGameArena. Expert and master players in BGA tend to play very often according to the conventions in [https://docs.google.com/document/d/1VzgN6WoeYwh5NYtHECzUNZqFvpVcg-EdObU-YNMlyhc this document].'''

* If you want to play "full information" style, meaning that you wait until you know both the colour and number of a card before you play it, you will likely be short on clue-tokens in >99% of the decks.
* The logical conclusion is, that you cannot play a full information style game, and the team must agree on some sort of convention.
** Meaning: a certain amount of meta-information is assigned to the clues.

* Many players have different kinds of conventions.
* When different players in the same team assign different meta-information to the same clue, the game becomes unplayable.
** This is why the BGA table-settings give the option to set a table convention since the end of 2020.
** Please see this [https://boardgamearena.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=102&t=18031 post] started by [https://boardgamearena.com/player?id=84207926 Romain672].
* Ideally, all players adhere to the convention, to avoid miscommunication.

* Below, the meta-information of several conventions is explained.
* In the examples, colours are indicated by their first letter:
R - Red -      ,
Y - Yellow -      ,
G - Green -      ,
B - Blue -      ,
W - White -      ,
M - Multi-colour -      ,
P - black Powder -      .
** ''For example:'' Y2 means the card with number 2 and colour yellow.

=== Standard convention ===

*You can assume the following meta-information:
** Every card that gets marked, will be playable at some point.
** A card marked with a number, can be played when all "number-1" cards are played.
*** ''This is usually explained as: number-clues mean that these cards should be saved and played later on in the game.''
*** ''It is custom to play saved cards from oldest to newest.''
*** ''The small minority that pushes the conventions present on this wiki claim that doing so is the best way to prevent bombs, since this convention makes it more difficult to save unique cards on CHOP without marking collateral, potential useless cards.''
*** '' '''Most BoardGameArena players do not adopt this convention.''' A number hint is generally seen as a save (i.e., marking a unique cards that is about to be discarded) when on chop, and as a hint to play as soon as possible otherwise.''
** A colour-clue means that the newest, previously unmarked card, is the next playable card in the sequence.
** The oldest, unmarked card is safe to discard.
*** ''Obviously, if a player has a card that they are sure they will never be able to play, for example a card on which is marked as blue when the blue pile has already been completed, such card must be discarded in priority.''
* Clues you should avoid giving (bad clues):
** Giving a clue that marks 0 new cards.
** Give a clue that tells a lie (does not conform to the meta-information above).
** As a special remark: Since every marked card is assumed playable, you shouldn't mark useless, or duplicate cards. So if you have a saved 4, you are forbidden from marking 4s, unless you are sure you are not holding a copy of that 4.
* Sometimes, a "bad" clue can't be avoided.
** ''For example:'' when you need to save a unique 3 (using a number-clue) to avoid it being discarded, but you also accidentally mark a useless card.
** Or if you are forced to give a colour-clue from a flamboyant, and you use it to mark 0 new cards.
* When a lie has been told, it needs to be corrected.
* A correction-clue can never mean "play", it can only mean "discard".

==== Example 1 ====

new -> old
P1: R1, Y1, G1, B1, W1
P2: R2, Y4, R3, B3, G'''5'''
P3: G4, Y1, R4, Y3, Y2

Table: R1, Y5, G1, B3, W4

* It's P1's turn, and P2 knows his oldest card is 5.
* P1 will give R-clue to P2.
* This will tell P2, that the newest card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be R2), and that the other red can be R3, R4, or R5 (because it must be playable at some later point in the game).

==== Example 2 ====

new -> old
P1: R1, Y1, G1, B1, W1
P2: W5, Y4, '''R'''3, B3, G'''5'''
P3: W2, G4, Y1, R4, Y3

Table: R2, Y5, G1, B3, W4

* It is P1's turn again, and P2 knows his oldest card is 5, and his middle card is R.
* P1 will give R-clue to P3.
* This will tell P3, that his middle card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be R4, because R3 is already marked).
* This will give P2 the meta-information that his saved red card, is R3.
** ''This particular move is sometimes called prompting, and is a common way to allow a card that is saved by colour to get played without re-cluing it.''

==== Example 3 ====

new -> old
P1: R1, Y1, G1, B1, W1
P2: R3, Y4, R'''2''', B3, G5
P3: G4, Y1, R4, Y3, Y2

Table: R1, Y5, G0, B3, W4

* It is P1's turn, and P2 knows his middle card is 2.
* P1 will give R-clue to P2.
* This will tell P2 that his newest card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be R3, because R2 is now visible with 100% information).

=== Finesse ===

* Finesse builds on the standard convention (making it a bit more complex).
* In the finesse convention, the timing of the clue gives you extra information.
* You can assume the following meta-information:
** Every card that gets marked, will be playable at some point.
** If the oldest, unmarked card gets marked with a number-clue, then the clue meant "save this/these card(s)". (It is custom to play saved cards from oldest to newest when appropriate.)
** A clue that doesn't mark the oldest card, means that the newest, previously unmarked card, is the next playable card in the sequence.
** The oldest, unmarked card is safe to discard unless that player is busy by having a "known" play.
*** ''Obviously, if a player has a card that they are sure they will never be able to play, for example a card on which is marked as blue when the blue pile has already been completed, such card must be discarded in priority.''
** If a marked card gets discarded it means:
*** The copy of that card is already marked in someone else's hand, and the discarding player is the first to realize this; or
*** The copy of that card MUST be marked in a future clue (because a save-clue will be given that will mark the copy card as collateral).

==== Meaning of skipping a player / stealing clues ====
* There are different approaches among finesse-convention-players about who should clue whom. So this section will be devided into sub-sections. The order does not say anything about which approach is more common on BGA. There are a lot of players following each idea.
* As of now, there is no way of saying which approach is "right" or "better". Of course it is important for success, that in a game, the group of players follows the same idea. If they get mixed, it will most likely result in bombs. If that happens, it does not mean, the other player is "bad" - it merely means, they follow a different idea. So you can only try to find a common ground for the next game or play with another group next time.
* The text within the sections are written by people who follow the idea.

===== a) Skipping / stealing should be avoided =====
* If more than 1 person are able to give the same clue, then the last possible person should give that clue.
* In finesse convention skipping (P1 clues P3, instead of P2; then P2 is skipped) means either:
*# The skipped player is forbidden from giving that clue; or
*# The skipped player has something to play. But it must be a marked, completely known card. If there is no known card in your hand do NOT play blind.
*# You should also clue someone

===== b) Skipping / stealing is for discard-management =====
Skipping/stealing is a term that is often used for a situation, where giving a clue is not left for the last possible player to do. For example - player A saves a card on chop of player C, potentially leaving player B without a known play or a useful/necessary clue to give. Skipping players is a useful move to give other players the time to play other cards or discard.

When getting skipped without having a play or useful option to clue, it most likely means that your chop card is not very useful. These are valid reasons for skipping you:
* Your chop-card is trash (a copy of the card is already played/marked)
* Your chop-card is redundant: Another copy of it is on another player's (or your own) hand as well
* Your chop-card is a 4 and it's very early in the game
* You might still have something nice on chop, but the player sitting before already received information that their chop might be something very good (from earlier discard-behaviour like NOT being skipped over by the player sitting before them on earlier turns) and they are reluctant to discard for that reason.

This approach sacrifices some saving-clue-tokens option (that might be achieved on a stricter dogma about who should clue whom) in order to be able to keep nice cards in the game for longer and discard useless cards instead and by that often get those cards played before they would be discarded.
* This convention is better for players, who play efficient enough to rarely struggle with clue-shortness and can therefore afford being more careful about not losing first copies.
* If a group often struggles with clue-shortness then skipping-dogma (as proposed by other conventions) might as well improve their overall results. If the problem for not achieving 30 points usually isn't clue-shortness but getting bottom-decked (or heavily delayed from losing earlier a card that could be played now), then results can get better with this discard-management convention.

Planning ahead is a vital aspect of the game. By carefully deciding on who to let clue and whom to skip, it is often possible to
* avoid twin-chops before they become an issue
* avoid not having enough clue tokens to save all necessary cards
* get the discard you were waiting for (when a player has 2 copies of the same playable card and you want them to discard before clueing it)

==== Clues you should avoid giving (bad clues) ====

* As a special remark: don't mark useless, or duplicate cards. So if you have a saved 4, you are forbidden from marking 4s, unless you are sure you are not holding a copy of that

==== Special interpretation for play-clues ====

* When receiving a clue for the "next playable card in the sequence", the linking cards are not limited to already marked cards (like in standard convention).
* The newest, unmarked cards in every player's hand should be considered as well.

====== Example ======

new -> old
P1: ??, ??, ??, ??, ??
P2: B1, Y5, B3, W1, W2
P3: R5, R2, B2, G2, Y2

Table: R0, Y0, G0, B0, W0

* P1 gives B-clue to P3.
* This gives the information that B2 is the next playable card in the sequence, and that P2 is either not allowed to give B-clue, or has something to play.
* Since P2 has no marked cards, he was not blocked from giving B-clue, so he must have something to play.
* This something, must be the missing link (B1, to enable B2) that makes B2 the next playable card.
* Since there is no logical (marked) card that could be B1, P2 must assume his newest, unmarked card is B1 and blind-plays this card.

===== Example of reversed finesse =====

new -> old
P1: ??, ??, ??, ??, ??
P2: R5, R2, B2, G2, Y2
P3: B1, Y5, B3, W1, W2

Table: R0, Y0, G0, B0, W0

* P1 gives B-clue to P2.
* This gives the information that B2 is the next playable card in the sequence.
* P2 sees that the newest, unmarked card in the hand of P3 is of the same colour (blue) '''and''' playable now. P2 concludes it is a finesse, with the players in reversed order, so his blue card must be B2.

===== Example of a bluff =====

new -> old
P1: ??, ??, ??, ??, ??
P2: W1, Y5, B3, W1, W2
P3: R5, R2, B2, G2, Y2

Table: R0, Y0, G0, B0, W0

* P1 gives B-clue to P3.
* This gives the information that B2 is the next playable card in the sequence, and that P2 is either not allowed to give B-clue, or has something to play.
* Since P2 has no marked cards, he was not blocked from giving B-clue, so he must have something to play.
* This something, must be the missing link (B1, to enable B2) that makes B2 the next playable card.
* Since there is no logical (marked) card that could be B1, P2 must assume his newest, unmarked card is B1 and blind-plays this card.
* However, at this point the "lie" is revealed (because the colour of the played card does '''not''' match the colour of the finesse-clue).
* The blind-played card is '''not''' B1, but W1. P3, up to this point, was thinking he had B1.
* The blind-play of P2 gives him extra information: his blue card is in fact B2.

=== Hat-guessing ===

* [https://github.com/hanabi/hanabi.github.io/blob/main/misc/hat-guessing.md Github hat-guessing]

=== Logical Leftism ===

* [http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/basics-level-1-a117610126 Hanabi Logic basics-level-1]
* [http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/-a163408102 Hanabi Logic logical-leftism-in-a-nutshell]

=== Closest Friend ===

* TODO

=== Secret convention ===

* TODO

=== Conventional Leftism ===

* [http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/ll-vs-cl-the-differences-a132077536 Hanabi Logic ll-vs-cl-the-differences] gives some clues, but doesn't explain Conventional Leftism from first principles.

=== Chop-focus ===

* TODO

== Strategy ==

* In addition to the convention(s), there is also some strategy to the game.
* You should '''not''' confuse strategy with convention! Strategy is '''team''' vs '''deck'''; convention is communication within the team.
* A simple example of strategy is saving 2s in 2-player games.
** Using number-2-clue to communicate that those cards need to be saved, is a convention.

=== Examples ===

* More advanced players will try to avoid losing as many "first" (non-unique) cards as possible.
* It's a good strategy to keep good cards in the game as long as possible - even if they are not yet playable.
** ''The other copy of that card might be far down the draw pile.''
* Trying to mark at least 12 cards with the first 8 clue-tokens.
** This gives 99% chance of always having enough tokens in the game.
* Not using the last two clue-tokens for "single plays".
** This avoids running out of clue-tokens in times when you need to save critical cards.

For strategy tips, see [[Tips_hanabi]]

Gamehelphanabi

2022-02-22T10:57:07Z

Silene: /* b) Skipping / stealing is for discard-management */

Gamehelphanabi

2022-02-22T10:50:09Z

Silene: /* b) Skipping / stealing is for discard-management */

[[Category:Card games]]
For tips on how to play hanabi, see [[Tips_hanabi]]
== Introduction ==

* Hanabi is a cooperative game. Your goal, as a team, is to build a fabulous fireworks show.
* You do this by playing the cards in the correct order.
* However, you cannot see your own cards; you can only see the cards of your team mates.

==== Final Score Ratings ====

{| class="wikitable"
|-
!Points
!Overall impression
|-
|5 or less
|horrible, booed by the crowd...
|-
|6-10
|mediocre, just a spattering of applause.
|-
|11-15
|honourable, but will not be remembered for very long...
|-
|16-20
|excellent, crowd pleasing.
|-
|21-24
|amazing, will be remembered for a very long time!
|-
|25
|legendary, everyone left speechless, stars in their eyes
|}

== Card distribution ==

* In a game of Hanabi on '''normal difficulty''', the deck contains 50 cards.
* Each card has exactly one colour: either Red, Yellow, Green, Blue, or White.

There are 10 cards in each colour:
* three 1s
* two 2s
* two 3s
* two 4s
* one 5

=== Multicolour cards ===

* There are three variants that add a 6th colour: the multicolour.
* There are three difficulties:

==== Tricky ====

* Adds 10 multicolour cards to the normal game.
* These cards get marked by a separate multicolour clue.

==== Hard ====

* '''5''' multicolour cards to the normal game: one of each number.
* These cards get marked by a separate multicolour clue.

==== Very Difficult ====

* Adds 10 multicolour cards to the normal game.
* These cards get marked by ANY colour clue.

== Game play ==

* You each take turns.
* During a turn, a player may take one (1) of three actions.
* After your action, the turn ends and it is the next player's turn.
* The game can end in several ways:
*# All cards have been drawn from the deck. After this happens, everybody gets 1 more turn. The game ends with the score at the last turn.
*# Your team played all possible cards. In this case, the game ends immediately and you receive the maximum possible score.
*# Your team made three mistakes that caused misfires. In this case, you lose the game and get negative ten (-10) points.
*# Your team 'abandons' the game. Although discouraged, you receive zero (0) points.

== Turn ==

* During your turn, you have one (1) action.
* You can choose to do one of the following:

==== Give a colour or number clue to a teammate ====

* This costs one clue-token (-1).
* You cannot give a clue if there are zero (0) clue-tokens left.
* When you give a clue, you must indicate '''all''' cards of a certain colour, or '''all''' cards of a certain number.

==== Play a card ====

* When a card is played, it is evaluated.
* If the card fits in one of sequences, it is placed in the appropriate colour stack on the table.
* If it does not fit, it is placed in the discard pile and the team gets a misfire-token.
* Then draw a new card.

==== Discard a card ====

* When you discard, the card is placed in the discard pile and you get a clue-token (+1).
* ''Note:'' cards on the discard pile are out of the game and can never return.
* Then draw a new card.

== Options ==

=== Black Powder ===

* You may not give clues regarding the colour black.
* Black cards must be played in reverse order, from 5 to 1.
* In the deck there are three black 5s, two black 4s, two black 3s, two black 2s, and one black 1.

=== Five Flamboyants ===

After playing the last card of a colour, randomly select one of the following bonuses for immediate use:
* Gain a clue token.
* Gain a clue token and recover a life.
* Give a clue regarding a colour.
* Give a clue regarding a number.
* Shuffle a discarded card into the deck.
* Play a discarded card, if possible.

== Lingo ==

When you play with others, certain words are used to describe certain objects or situations. Here is a short list.

;Marked: A card that is highlighted by a clue.
;Unmarked: A card that is not clued.
;chop: The oldest, unmarked card. The card that you have no information on and will chop from your hand.
;draw: The newest, unmarked card. The card that you have no information on and was freshly drawn.
;To bomb: A play that causes the third misfire-token. Sometimes called '''explosion'''
;Unique: A card that has no copy (left) in the deck.
;Double discard: When consecutive players have the same card on chop. A special problem, since, to each of the consecutive players, a number to chop does not look like a unique save.
;Double save: When a player has two consecutive unique cards, requiring consecutive save clues.
;Strategy: A set of rules / guidelines / conventions on how to interpret actions by players (including spending of clue-tokens).

== ELO rating ==

* If you are playing with ELO rating on, your ELO may be changed at the end of the game.
* Here is how it works:
*# Every player on the team is temporarily considered as having the average ELO rating of the team.
*# The system will generate a bot associated with the score your team has achieved (let’s call it '''''Hanabot''''').
*#* Hanabot’s ELO rating depends on the variant you are playing (50 cards, 60 cards, 60 cards multicolour), the number of players on the team and, most importantly, your team's score.
*#* All Hanabot’s ELO ratings have been set by an experienced player, they are not random or simply proportional to the score/number of players.
*# Your team (actually your team's average ELO) will now compete against Hanabot.
*#* The system will calculate your team’s ELO gain/loss as though your team had tied with Hanabot.
*#* If your score is below 18 (50-card game) or below 21 (60-card game), Hanabot's ELO is always 1000.

* You can find [http://forum.boardgamearena.com/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=4814 all bots' ELO ratings here]
* The 55-card variant (50 cards + 1 of each value in the sixth color) cannot be played with ELO rating on.
** This is because this variant is highly dependent on draw and a team’s score may not always reflect the players’ skills.
* If you achieve the perfect score and this should cost you ELO points, you will be considered as having beaten the bot associated with the score, so that you lose no ELO points.
* To be confirmed: I think the ELO-system has had an overhaul.

== About "cheating" ==

* In the "real life Hanabi", you can talk. That's why we chose to let the chat open for the online version.

* As a consequence, it is very easy to cheat at Hanabi.
** However, as you can imagine, cheating is very stupid and has no interest... except for ELO boosting.
** This is why there is no international ranking for this game (ie: best player, second best player) and no trophies associated to it.

* Another method of cheating is to deliberately avoid finishing games that would cause ELO to drop.
** While some argue that games become "boring" once 30 becomes impossible, it is rarely the case that games are abandoned on 29 points while waiting for the final 5 to be drawn.

== Conventions ==

'''Please note that these conventions are not widely used in BoardGameArena. Expert and master players in BGA tend to play very often according to the conventions in [https://docs.google.com/document/d/1VzgN6WoeYwh5NYtHECzUNZqFvpVcg-EdObU-YNMlyhc this document].'''

* If you want to play "full information" style, meaning that you wait until you know both the colour and number of a card before you play it, you will likely be short on clue-tokens in >99% of the decks.
* The logical conclusion is, that you cannot play a full information style game, and the team must agree on some sort of convention.
** Meaning: a certain amount of meta-information is assigned to the clues.

* Many players have different kinds of conventions.
* When different players in the same team assign different meta-information to the same clue, the game becomes unplayable.
** This is why the BGA table-settings give the option to set a table convention since the end of 2020.
** Please see this [https://boardgamearena.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=102&t=18031 post] started by [https://boardgamearena.com/player?id=84207926 Romain672].
* Ideally, all players adhere to the convention, to avoid miscommunication.

* Below, the meta-information of several conventions is explained.
* In the examples, colours are indicated by their first letter:
R - Red -      ,
Y - Yellow -      ,
G - Green -      ,
B - Blue -      ,
W - White -      ,
M - Multi-colour -      ,
P - black Powder -      .
** ''For example:'' Y2 means the card with number 2 and colour yellow.

=== Standard convention ===

*You can assume the following meta-information:
** Every card that gets marked, will be playable at some point.
** A card marked with a number, can be played when all "number-1" cards are played.
*** ''This is usually explained as: number-clues mean that these cards should be saved and played later on in the game.''
*** ''It is custom to play saved cards from oldest to newest.''
*** ''The small minority that pushes the conventions present on this wiki claim that doing so is the best way to prevent bombs, since this convention makes it more difficult to save unique cards on CHOP without marking collateral, potential useless cards.''
*** '' '''Most BoardGameArena players do not adopt this convention.''' A number hint is generally seen as a save (i.e., marking a unique cards that is about to be discarded) when on chop, and as a hint to play as soon as possible otherwise.''
** A colour-clue means that the newest, previously unmarked card, is the next playable card in the sequence.
** The oldest, unmarked card is safe to discard.
*** ''Obviously, if a player has a card that they are sure they will never be able to play, for example a card on which is marked as blue when the blue pile has already been completed, such card must be discarded in priority.''
* Clues you should avoid giving (bad clues):
** Giving a clue that marks 0 new cards.
** Give a clue that tells a lie (does not conform to the meta-information above).
** As a special remark: Since every marked card is assumed playable, you shouldn't mark useless, or duplicate cards. So if you have a saved 4, you are forbidden from marking 4s, unless you are sure you are not holding a copy of that 4.
* Sometimes, a "bad" clue can't be avoided.
** ''For example:'' when you need to save a unique 3 (using a number-clue) to avoid it being discarded, but you also accidentally mark a useless card.
** Or if you are forced to give a colour-clue from a flamboyant, and you use it to mark 0 new cards.
* When a lie has been told, it needs to be corrected.
* A correction-clue can never mean "play", it can only mean "discard".

==== Example 1 ====

new -> old
P1: R1, Y1, G1, B1, W1
P2: R2, Y4, R3, B3, G'''5'''
P3: G4, Y1, R4, Y3, Y2

Table: R1, Y5, G1, B3, W4

* It's P1's turn, and P2 knows his oldest card is 5.
* P1 will give R-clue to P2.
* This will tell P2, that the newest card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be R2), and that the other red can be R3, R4, or R5 (because it must be playable at some later point in the game).

==== Example 2 ====

new -> old
P1: R1, Y1, G1, B1, W1
P2: W5, Y4, '''R'''3, B3, G'''5'''
P3: W2, G4, Y1, R4, Y3

Table: R2, Y5, G1, B3, W4

* It is P1's turn again, and P2 knows his oldest card is 5, and his middle card is R.
* P1 will give R-clue to P3.
* This will tell P3, that his middle card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be R4, because R3 is already marked).
* This will give P2 the meta-information that his saved red card, is R3.
** ''This particular move is sometimes called prompting, and is a common way to allow a card that is saved by colour to get played without re-cluing it.''

==== Example 3 ====

new -> old
P1: R1, Y1, G1, B1, W1
P2: R3, Y4, R'''2''', B3, G5
P3: G4, Y1, R4, Y3, Y2

Table: R1, Y5, G0, B3, W4

* It is P1's turn, and P2 knows his middle card is 2.
* P1 will give R-clue to P2.
* This will tell P2 that his newest card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be R3, because R2 is now visible with 100% information).

=== Finesse ===

* Finesse builds on the standard convention (making it a bit more complex).
* In the finesse convention, the timing of the clue gives you extra information.
* You can assume the following meta-information:
** Every card that gets marked, will be playable at some point.
** If the oldest, unmarked card gets marked with a number-clue, then the clue meant "save this/these card(s)". (It is custom to play saved cards from oldest to newest when appropriate.)
** A clue that doesn't mark the oldest card, means that the newest, previously unmarked card, is the next playable card in the sequence.
** The oldest, unmarked card is safe to discard unless that player is busy by having a "known" play.
*** ''Obviously, if a player has a card that they are sure they will never be able to play, for example a card on which is marked as blue when the blue pile has already been completed, such card must be discarded in priority.''
** If a marked card gets discarded it means:
*** The copy of that card is already marked in someone else's hand, and the discarding player is the first to realize this; or
*** The copy of that card MUST be marked in a future clue (because a save-clue will be given that will mark the copy card as collateral).

==== Meaning of skipping a player / stealing clues ====
* There are different approaches among finesse-convention-players about who should clue whom. So this section will be devided into sub-sections. The order does not say anything about which approach is more common on BGA. There are a lot of players following each idea.
* As of now, there is no way of saying which approach is "right" or "better". Of course it is important for success, that in a game, the group of players follows the same idea. If they get mixed, it will most likely result in bombs. If that happens, it does not mean, the other player is "bad" - it merely means, they follow a different idea. So you can only try to find a common ground for the next game or play with another group next time.
* The text within the sections are written by people who follow the idea.

===== a) Skipping / stealing should be avoided =====
* If more than 1 person are able to give the same clue, then the last possible person should give that clue.
* In finesse convention skipping (P1 clues P3, instead of P2; then P2 is skipped) means either:
*# The skipped player is forbidden from giving that clue; or
*# The skipped player has something to play. But it must be a marked, completely known card. If there is no known card in your hand do NOT play blind.
*# You should also clue someone

===== b) Skipping / stealing is for discard-management =====
Skipping/stealing is a term that is often used for a situation, where giving a clue is not left for the last possible player to do. For example - player A saves a card on chop of player C, potentially leaving player B without a known play or a useful/necessary clue to give. Skipping players is a useful move to give other players the time to play other cards or discard.
When getting skipped without having a play or useful option to clue, it most likely means that your chop card is not very useful. These are valid reasons for skipping you:
* You have a card on chop that's already played/marked
* You have a card on chop of which another copy is on another player's (or your own) hand as well
* You have a 4 and it's very early in the game
* You might still have something nice on chop, but the player sitting before already received information that their chop might be something very good (from earlier discard-behaviour like NOT being skipped over by the player sitting before them on earlier turns) and they are reluctant to discard for that reason.

This approach sacrifices some saving-clue-tokens option (that might be achieved on a stricter dogma about who should clue whom) in order to be able to keep nice cards in the game for longer and discard useless cards instead and by that often get those cards played before they would be discarded.
* This convention is for players, who play efficient enough to rarely struggle with clue-shortness and can therefore affort being more careful about not losing first copies.
* If a group often struggles with clue-shortness then skipping-dogma (as proposed by other conventions) might improve their overall results. If the problem for not achieving 30 usually isn't clue-shortness but getting bottom-decked (or heavily delayed from losing earlier a card that could be played now), then results will get better with discard-management-convention.
* If overall the group is very skilled and uses finesse, bluff, chains, timing, good touch, gd etc. in perfection, then usually discard management is the better approach. This involves:
** Finesse in second line
** Finesse from the same hand
** Know when reverse-bluff is possible (even though in most cases it's impossible)

==== Clues you should avoid giving (bad clues) ====

* As a special remark: don't mark useless, or duplicate cards. So if you have a saved 4, you are forbidden from marking 4s, unless you are sure you are not holding a copy of that

==== Special interpretation for play-clues ====

* When receiving a clue for the "next playable card in the sequence", the linking cards are not limited to already marked cards (like in standard convention).
* The newest, unmarked cards in every player's hand should be considered as well.

====== Example ======

new -> old
P1: ??, ??, ??, ??, ??
P2: B1, Y5, B3, W1, W2
P3: R5, R2, B2, G2, Y2

Table: R0, Y0, G0, B0, W0

* P1 gives B-clue to P3.
* This gives the information that B2 is the next playable card in the sequence, and that P2 is either not allowed to give B-clue, or has something to play.
* Since P2 has no marked cards, he was not blocked from giving B-clue, so he must have something to play.
* This something, must be the missing link (B1, to enable B2) that makes B2 the next playable card.
* Since there is no logical (marked) card that could be B1, P2 must assume his newest, unmarked card is B1 and blind-plays this card.

===== Example of reversed finesse =====

new -> old
P1: ??, ??, ??, ??, ??
P2: R5, R2, B2, G2, Y2
P3: B1, Y5, B3, W1, W2

Table: R0, Y0, G0, B0, W0

* P1 gives B-clue to P2.
* This gives the information that B2 is the next playable card in the sequence.
* P2 sees that the newest, unmarked card in the hand of P3 is of the same colour (blue) '''and''' playable now. P2 concludes it is a finesse, with the players in reversed order, so his blue card must be B2.

===== Example of a bluff =====

new -> old
P1: ??, ??, ??, ??, ??
P2: W1, Y5, B3, W1, W2
P3: R5, R2, B2, G2, Y2

Table: R0, Y0, G0, B0, W0

* P1 gives B-clue to P3.
* This gives the information that B2 is the next playable card in the sequence, and that P2 is either not allowed to give B-clue, or has something to play.
* Since P2 has no marked cards, he was not blocked from giving B-clue, so he must have something to play.
* This something, must be the missing link (B1, to enable B2) that makes B2 the next playable card.
* Since there is no logical (marked) card that could be B1, P2 must assume his newest, unmarked card is B1 and blind-plays this card.
* However, at this point the "lie" is revealed (because the colour of the played card does '''not''' match the colour of the finesse-clue).
* The blind-played card is '''not''' B1, but W1. P3, up to this point, was thinking he had B1.
* The blind-play of P2 gives him extra information: his blue card is in fact B2.

=== Hat-guessing ===

* [https://github.com/hanabi/hanabi.github.io/blob/main/misc/hat-guessing.md Github hat-guessing]

=== Logical Leftism ===

* [http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/basics-level-1-a117610126 Hanabi Logic basics-level-1]
* [http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/-a163408102 Hanabi Logic logical-leftism-in-a-nutshell]

=== Closest Friend ===

* TODO

=== Secret convention ===

* TODO

=== Conventional Leftism ===

* [http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/ll-vs-cl-the-differences-a132077536 Hanabi Logic ll-vs-cl-the-differences] gives some clues, but doesn't explain Conventional Leftism from first principles.

=== Chop-focus ===

* TODO

== Strategy ==

* In addition to the convention(s), there is also some strategy to the game.
* You should '''not''' confuse strategy with convention! Strategy is '''team''' vs '''deck'''; convention is communication within the team.
* A simple example of strategy is saving 2s in 2-player games.
** Using number-2-clue to communicate that those cards need to be saved, is a convention.

=== Examples ===

* More advanced players will try to avoid losing as many "first" (non-unique) cards as possible.
* It's a good strategy to keep good cards in the game as long as possible - even if they are not yet playable.
** ''The other copy of that card might be far down the draw pile.''
* Trying to mark at least 12 cards with the first 8 clue-tokens.
** This gives 99% chance of always having enough tokens in the game.
* Not using the last two clue-tokens for "single plays".
** This avoids running out of clue-tokens in times when you need to save critical cards.

For strategy tips, see [[Tips_hanabi]]

Gamehelphanabi

2022-02-22T10:48:30Z

Silene: /* b) Skipping / stealing is for discard-management */

[[Category:Card games]]
For tips on how to play hanabi, see [[Tips_hanabi]]
== Introduction ==

* Hanabi is a cooperative game. Your goal, as a team, is to build a fabulous fireworks show.
* You do this by playing the cards in the correct order.
* However, you cannot see your own cards; you can only see the cards of your team mates.

==== Final Score Ratings ====

{| class="wikitable"
|-
!Points
!Overall impression
|-
|5 or less
|horrible, booed by the crowd...
|-
|6-10
|mediocre, just a spattering of applause.
|-
|11-15
|honourable, but will not be remembered for very long...
|-
|16-20
|excellent, crowd pleasing.
|-
|21-24
|amazing, will be remembered for a very long time!
|-
|25
|legendary, everyone left speechless, stars in their eyes
|}

== Card distribution ==

* In a game of Hanabi on '''normal difficulty''', the deck contains 50 cards.
* Each card has exactly one colour: either Red, Yellow, Green, Blue, or White.

There are 10 cards in each colour:
* three 1s
* two 2s
* two 3s
* two 4s
* one 5

=== Multicolour cards ===

* There are three variants that add a 6th colour: the multicolour.
* There are three difficulties:

==== Tricky ====

* Adds 10 multicolour cards to the normal game.
* These cards get marked by a separate multicolour clue.

==== Hard ====

* '''5''' multicolour cards to the normal game: one of each number.
* These cards get marked by a separate multicolour clue.

==== Very Difficult ====

* Adds 10 multicolour cards to the normal game.
* These cards get marked by ANY colour clue.

== Game play ==

* You each take turns.
* During a turn, a player may take one (1) of three actions.
* After your action, the turn ends and it is the next player's turn.
* The game can end in several ways:
*# All cards have been drawn from the deck. After this happens, everybody gets 1 more turn. The game ends with the score at the last turn.
*# Your team played all possible cards. In this case, the game ends immediately and you receive the maximum possible score.
*# Your team made three mistakes that caused misfires. In this case, you lose the game and get negative ten (-10) points.
*# Your team 'abandons' the game. Although discouraged, you receive zero (0) points.

== Turn ==

* During your turn, you have one (1) action.
* You can choose to do one of the following:

==== Give a colour or number clue to a teammate ====

* This costs one clue-token (-1).
* You cannot give a clue if there are zero (0) clue-tokens left.
* When you give a clue, you must indicate '''all''' cards of a certain colour, or '''all''' cards of a certain number.

==== Play a card ====

* When a card is played, it is evaluated.
* If the card fits in one of sequences, it is placed in the appropriate colour stack on the table.
* If it does not fit, it is placed in the discard pile and the team gets a misfire-token.
* Then draw a new card.

==== Discard a card ====

* When you discard, the card is placed in the discard pile and you get a clue-token (+1).
* ''Note:'' cards on the discard pile are out of the game and can never return.
* Then draw a new card.

== Options ==

=== Black Powder ===

* You may not give clues regarding the colour black.
* Black cards must be played in reverse order, from 5 to 1.
* In the deck there are three black 5s, two black 4s, two black 3s, two black 2s, and one black 1.

=== Five Flamboyants ===

After playing the last card of a colour, randomly select one of the following bonuses for immediate use:
* Gain a clue token.
* Gain a clue token and recover a life.
* Give a clue regarding a colour.
* Give a clue regarding a number.
* Shuffle a discarded card into the deck.
* Play a discarded card, if possible.

== Lingo ==

When you play with others, certain words are used to describe certain objects or situations. Here is a short list.

;Marked: A card that is highlighted by a clue.
;Unmarked: A card that is not clued.
;chop: The oldest, unmarked card. The card that you have no information on and will chop from your hand.
;draw: The newest, unmarked card. The card that you have no information on and was freshly drawn.
;To bomb: A play that causes the third misfire-token. Sometimes called '''explosion'''
;Unique: A card that has no copy (left) in the deck.
;Double discard: When consecutive players have the same card on chop. A special problem, since, to each of the consecutive players, a number to chop does not look like a unique save.
;Double save: When a player has two consecutive unique cards, requiring consecutive save clues.
;Strategy: A set of rules / guidelines / conventions on how to interpret actions by players (including spending of clue-tokens).

== ELO rating ==

* If you are playing with ELO rating on, your ELO may be changed at the end of the game.
* Here is how it works:
*# Every player on the team is temporarily considered as having the average ELO rating of the team.
*# The system will generate a bot associated with the score your team has achieved (let’s call it '''''Hanabot''''').
*#* Hanabot’s ELO rating depends on the variant you are playing (50 cards, 60 cards, 60 cards multicolour), the number of players on the team and, most importantly, your team's score.
*#* All Hanabot’s ELO ratings have been set by an experienced player, they are not random or simply proportional to the score/number of players.
*# Your team (actually your team's average ELO) will now compete against Hanabot.
*#* The system will calculate your team’s ELO gain/loss as though your team had tied with Hanabot.
*#* If your score is below 18 (50-card game) or below 21 (60-card game), Hanabot's ELO is always 1000.

* You can find [http://forum.boardgamearena.com/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=4814 all bots' ELO ratings here]
* The 55-card variant (50 cards + 1 of each value in the sixth color) cannot be played with ELO rating on.
** This is because this variant is highly dependent on draw and a team’s score may not always reflect the players’ skills.
* If you achieve the perfect score and this should cost you ELO points, you will be considered as having beaten the bot associated with the score, so that you lose no ELO points.
* To be confirmed: I think the ELO-system has had an overhaul.

== About "cheating" ==

* In the "real life Hanabi", you can talk. That's why we chose to let the chat open for the online version.

* As a consequence, it is very easy to cheat at Hanabi.
** However, as you can imagine, cheating is very stupid and has no interest... except for ELO boosting.
** This is why there is no international ranking for this game (ie: best player, second best player) and no trophies associated to it.

* Another method of cheating is to deliberately avoid finishing games that would cause ELO to drop.
** While some argue that games become "boring" once 30 becomes impossible, it is rarely the case that games are abandoned on 29 points while waiting for the final 5 to be drawn.

== Conventions ==

'''Please note that these conventions are not widely used in BoardGameArena. Expert and master players in BGA tend to play very often according to the conventions in [https://docs.google.com/document/d/1VzgN6WoeYwh5NYtHECzUNZqFvpVcg-EdObU-YNMlyhc this document].'''

* If you want to play "full information" style, meaning that you wait until you know both the colour and number of a card before you play it, you will likely be short on clue-tokens in >99% of the decks.
* The logical conclusion is, that you cannot play a full information style game, and the team must agree on some sort of convention.
** Meaning: a certain amount of meta-information is assigned to the clues.

* Many players have different kinds of conventions.
* When different players in the same team assign different meta-information to the same clue, the game becomes unplayable.
** This is why the BGA table-settings give the option to set a table convention since the end of 2020.
** Please see this [https://boardgamearena.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=102&t=18031 post] started by [https://boardgamearena.com/player?id=84207926 Romain672].
* Ideally, all players adhere to the convention, to avoid miscommunication.

* Below, the meta-information of several conventions is explained.
* In the examples, colours are indicated by their first letter:
R - Red -      ,
Y - Yellow -      ,
G - Green -      ,
B - Blue -      ,
W - White -      ,
M - Multi-colour -      ,
P - black Powder -      .
** ''For example:'' Y2 means the card with number 2 and colour yellow.

=== Standard convention ===

*You can assume the following meta-information:
** Every card that gets marked, will be playable at some point.
** A card marked with a number, can be played when all "number-1" cards are played.
*** ''This is usually explained as: number-clues mean that these cards should be saved and played later on in the game.''
*** ''It is custom to play saved cards from oldest to newest.''
*** ''The small minority that pushes the conventions present on this wiki claim that doing so is the best way to prevent bombs, since this convention makes it more difficult to save unique cards on CHOP without marking collateral, potential useless cards.''
*** '' '''Most BoardGameArena players do not adopt this convention.''' A number hint is generally seen as a save (i.e., marking a unique cards that is about to be discarded) when on chop, and as a hint to play as soon as possible otherwise.''
** A colour-clue means that the newest, previously unmarked card, is the next playable card in the sequence.
** The oldest, unmarked card is safe to discard.
*** ''Obviously, if a player has a card that they are sure they will never be able to play, for example a card on which is marked as blue when the blue pile has already been completed, such card must be discarded in priority.''
* Clues you should avoid giving (bad clues):
** Giving a clue that marks 0 new cards.
** Give a clue that tells a lie (does not conform to the meta-information above).
** As a special remark: Since every marked card is assumed playable, you shouldn't mark useless, or duplicate cards. So if you have a saved 4, you are forbidden from marking 4s, unless you are sure you are not holding a copy of that 4.
* Sometimes, a "bad" clue can't be avoided.
** ''For example:'' when you need to save a unique 3 (using a number-clue) to avoid it being discarded, but you also accidentally mark a useless card.
** Or if you are forced to give a colour-clue from a flamboyant, and you use it to mark 0 new cards.
* When a lie has been told, it needs to be corrected.
* A correction-clue can never mean "play", it can only mean "discard".

==== Example 1 ====

new -> old
P1: R1, Y1, G1, B1, W1
P2: R2, Y4, R3, B3, G'''5'''
P3: G4, Y1, R4, Y3, Y2

Table: R1, Y5, G1, B3, W4

* It's P1's turn, and P2 knows his oldest card is 5.
* P1 will give R-clue to P2.
* This will tell P2, that the newest card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be R2), and that the other red can be R3, R4, or R5 (because it must be playable at some later point in the game).

==== Example 2 ====

new -> old
P1: R1, Y1, G1, B1, W1
P2: W5, Y4, '''R'''3, B3, G'''5'''
P3: W2, G4, Y1, R4, Y3

Table: R2, Y5, G1, B3, W4

* It is P1's turn again, and P2 knows his oldest card is 5, and his middle card is R.
* P1 will give R-clue to P3.
* This will tell P3, that his middle card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be R4, because R3 is already marked).
* This will give P2 the meta-information that his saved red card, is R3.
** ''This particular move is sometimes called prompting, and is a common way to allow a card that is saved by colour to get played without re-cluing it.''

==== Example 3 ====

new -> old
P1: R1, Y1, G1, B1, W1
P2: R3, Y4, R'''2''', B3, G5
P3: G4, Y1, R4, Y3, Y2

Table: R1, Y5, G0, B3, W4

* It is P1's turn, and P2 knows his middle card is 2.
* P1 will give R-clue to P2.
* This will tell P2 that his newest card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be R3, because R2 is now visible with 100% information).

=== Finesse ===

* Finesse builds on the standard convention (making it a bit more complex).
* In the finesse convention, the timing of the clue gives you extra information.
* You can assume the following meta-information:
** Every card that gets marked, will be playable at some point.
** If the oldest, unmarked card gets marked with a number-clue, then the clue meant "save this/these card(s)". (It is custom to play saved cards from oldest to newest when appropriate.)
** A clue that doesn't mark the oldest card, means that the newest, previously unmarked card, is the next playable card in the sequence.
** The oldest, unmarked card is safe to discard unless that player is busy by having a "known" play.
*** ''Obviously, if a player has a card that they are sure they will never be able to play, for example a card on which is marked as blue when the blue pile has already been completed, such card must be discarded in priority.''
** If a marked card gets discarded it means:
*** The copy of that card is already marked in someone else's hand, and the discarding player is the first to realize this; or
*** The copy of that card MUST be marked in a future clue (because a save-clue will be given that will mark the copy card as collateral).

==== Meaning of skipping a player / stealing clues ====
* There are different approaches among finesse-convention-players about who should clue whom. So this section will be devided into sub-sections. The order does not say anything about which approach is more common on BGA. There are a lot of players following each idea.
* As of now, there is no way of saying which approach is "right" or "better". Of course it is important for success, that in a game, the group of players follows the same idea. If they get mixed, it will most likely result in bombs. If that happens, it does not mean, the other player is "bad" - it merely means, they follow a different idea. So you can only try to find a common ground for the next game or play with another group next time.
* The text within the sections are written by people who follow the idea.

===== a) Skipping / stealing should be avoided =====
* If more than 1 person are able to give the same clue, then the last possible person should give that clue.
* In finesse convention skipping (P1 clues P3, instead of P2; then P2 is skipped) means either:
*# The skipped player is forbidden from giving that clue; or
*# The skipped player has something to play. But it must be a marked, completely known card. If there is no known card in your hand do NOT play blind.
*# You should also clue someone

===== b) Skipping / stealing is for discard-management =====
Skipping/stealing is a term that is often used for a situation, where giving a clue is not left for the last possible player to do. In example player A saves a card on chop of player C, potentially leaving player B without a useful/necessary clue to give. Skipping players is a useful move to give other players the time to play other cards or discard.
When getting skipped without having a play or useful option to clue, it most likely means that your chop card is not very useful. These are valid reasons for skipping you:
* You have a card on chop that's already played/marked
* You have a card on chop of which another copy is on another player's (or your own) hand as well
* You have a 4 and it's very early in the game
* You might still have something nice on chop, but the player sitting before already received information that their chop might be something very good (from earlier discard-behaviour like NOT being skipped over by the player sitting before them on earlier turns) and they are reluctant to discard for that reason.

This approach sacrifices some saving-clue-tokens option (that might be achieved on a stricter dogma about who should clue whom) in order to be able to keep nice cards in the game for longer and discard useless cards instead and by that often get those cards played before they would be discarded.
* This convention is for players, who play efficient enough to rarely struggle with clue-shortness and can therefore affort being more careful about not losing first copies.
* If a group often struggles with clue-shortness then skipping-dogma (as proposed by other conventions) might improve their overall results. If the problem for not achieving 30 usually isn't clue-shortness but getting bottom-decked (or heavily delayed from losing earlier a card that could be played now), then results will get better with discard-management-convention.
* If overall the group is very skilled and uses finesse, bluff, chains, timing, good touch, gd etc. in perfection, then usually discard management is the better approach. This involves:
** Finesse in second line
** Finesse from the same hand
** Know when reverse-bluff is possible (even though in most cases it's impossible)

==== Clues you should avoid giving (bad clues) ====

* As a special remark: don't mark useless, or duplicate cards. So if you have a saved 4, you are forbidden from marking 4s, unless you are sure you are not holding a copy of that

==== Special interpretation for play-clues ====

* When receiving a clue for the "next playable card in the sequence", the linking cards are not limited to already marked cards (like in standard convention).
* The newest, unmarked cards in every player's hand should be considered as well.

====== Example ======

new -> old
P1: ??, ??, ??, ??, ??
P2: B1, Y5, B3, W1, W2
P3: R5, R2, B2, G2, Y2

Table: R0, Y0, G0, B0, W0

* P1 gives B-clue to P3.
* This gives the information that B2 is the next playable card in the sequence, and that P2 is either not allowed to give B-clue, or has something to play.
* Since P2 has no marked cards, he was not blocked from giving B-clue, so he must have something to play.
* This something, must be the missing link (B1, to enable B2) that makes B2 the next playable card.
* Since there is no logical (marked) card that could be B1, P2 must assume his newest, unmarked card is B1 and blind-plays this card.

===== Example of reversed finesse =====

new -> old
P1: ??, ??, ??, ??, ??
P2: R5, R2, B2, G2, Y2
P3: B1, Y5, B3, W1, W2

Table: R0, Y0, G0, B0, W0

* P1 gives B-clue to P2.
* This gives the information that B2 is the next playable card in the sequence.
* P2 sees that the newest, unmarked card in the hand of P3 is of the same colour (blue) '''and''' playable now. P2 concludes it is a finesse, with the players in reversed order, so his blue card must be B2.

===== Example of a bluff =====

new -> old
P1: ??, ??, ??, ??, ??
P2: W1, Y5, B3, W1, W2
P3: R5, R2, B2, G2, Y2

Table: R0, Y0, G0, B0, W0

* P1 gives B-clue to P3.
* This gives the information that B2 is the next playable card in the sequence, and that P2 is either not allowed to give B-clue, or has something to play.
* Since P2 has no marked cards, he was not blocked from giving B-clue, so he must have something to play.
* This something, must be the missing link (B1, to enable B2) that makes B2 the next playable card.
* Since there is no logical (marked) card that could be B1, P2 must assume his newest, unmarked card is B1 and blind-plays this card.
* However, at this point the "lie" is revealed (because the colour of the played card does '''not''' match the colour of the finesse-clue).
* The blind-played card is '''not''' B1, but W1. P3, up to this point, was thinking he had B1.
* The blind-play of P2 gives him extra information: his blue card is in fact B2.

=== Hat-guessing ===

* [https://github.com/hanabi/hanabi.github.io/blob/main/misc/hat-guessing.md Github hat-guessing]

=== Logical Leftism ===

* [http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/basics-level-1-a117610126 Hanabi Logic basics-level-1]
* [http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/-a163408102 Hanabi Logic logical-leftism-in-a-nutshell]

=== Closest Friend ===

* TODO

=== Secret convention ===

* TODO

=== Conventional Leftism ===

* [http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/ll-vs-cl-the-differences-a132077536 Hanabi Logic ll-vs-cl-the-differences] gives some clues, but doesn't explain Conventional Leftism from first principles.

=== Chop-focus ===

* TODO

== Strategy ==

* In addition to the convention(s), there is also some strategy to the game.
* You should '''not''' confuse strategy with convention! Strategy is '''team''' vs '''deck'''; convention is communication within the team.
* A simple example of strategy is saving 2s in 2-player games.
** Using number-2-clue to communicate that those cards need to be saved, is a convention.

=== Examples ===

* More advanced players will try to avoid losing as many "first" (non-unique) cards as possible.
* It's a good strategy to keep good cards in the game as long as possible - even if they are not yet playable.
** ''The other copy of that card might be far down the draw pile.''
* Trying to mark at least 12 cards with the first 8 clue-tokens.
** This gives 99% chance of always having enough tokens in the game.
* Not using the last two clue-tokens for "single plays".
** This avoids running out of clue-tokens in times when you need to save critical cards.

For strategy tips, see [[Tips_hanabi]]

Gamehelphanabi

2022-02-22T10:46:26Z

Silene: /* Finesse */

[[Category:Card games]]
For tips on how to play hanabi, see [[Tips_hanabi]]
== Introduction ==

* Hanabi is a cooperative game. Your goal, as a team, is to build a fabulous fireworks show.
* You do this by playing the cards in the correct order.
* However, you cannot see your own cards; you can only see the cards of your team mates.

==== Final Score Ratings ====

{| class="wikitable"
|-
!Points
!Overall impression
|-
|5 or less
|horrible, booed by the crowd...
|-
|6-10
|mediocre, just a spattering of applause.
|-
|11-15
|honourable, but will not be remembered for very long...
|-
|16-20
|excellent, crowd pleasing.
|-
|21-24
|amazing, will be remembered for a very long time!
|-
|25
|legendary, everyone left speechless, stars in their eyes
|}

== Card distribution ==

* In a game of Hanabi on '''normal difficulty''', the deck contains 50 cards.
* Each card has exactly one colour: either Red, Yellow, Green, Blue, or White.

There are 10 cards in each colour:
* three 1s
* two 2s
* two 3s
* two 4s
* one 5

=== Multicolour cards ===

* There are three variants that add a 6th colour: the multicolour.
* There are three difficulties:

==== Tricky ====

* Adds 10 multicolour cards to the normal game.
* These cards get marked by a separate multicolour clue.

==== Hard ====

* '''5''' multicolour cards to the normal game: one of each number.
* These cards get marked by a separate multicolour clue.

==== Very Difficult ====

* Adds 10 multicolour cards to the normal game.
* These cards get marked by ANY colour clue.

== Game play ==

* You each take turns.
* During a turn, a player may take one (1) of three actions.
* After your action, the turn ends and it is the next player's turn.
* The game can end in several ways:
*# All cards have been drawn from the deck. After this happens, everybody gets 1 more turn. The game ends with the score at the last turn.
*# Your team played all possible cards. In this case, the game ends immediately and you receive the maximum possible score.
*# Your team made three mistakes that caused misfires. In this case, you lose the game and get negative ten (-10) points.
*# Your team 'abandons' the game. Although discouraged, you receive zero (0) points.

== Turn ==

* During your turn, you have one (1) action.
* You can choose to do one of the following:

==== Give a colour or number clue to a teammate ====

* This costs one clue-token (-1).
* You cannot give a clue if there are zero (0) clue-tokens left.
* When you give a clue, you must indicate '''all''' cards of a certain colour, or '''all''' cards of a certain number.

==== Play a card ====

* When a card is played, it is evaluated.
* If the card fits in one of sequences, it is placed in the appropriate colour stack on the table.
* If it does not fit, it is placed in the discard pile and the team gets a misfire-token.
* Then draw a new card.

==== Discard a card ====

* When you discard, the card is placed in the discard pile and you get a clue-token (+1).
* ''Note:'' cards on the discard pile are out of the game and can never return.
* Then draw a new card.

== Options ==

=== Black Powder ===

* You may not give clues regarding the colour black.
* Black cards must be played in reverse order, from 5 to 1.
* In the deck there are three black 5s, two black 4s, two black 3s, two black 2s, and one black 1.

=== Five Flamboyants ===

After playing the last card of a colour, randomly select one of the following bonuses for immediate use:
* Gain a clue token.
* Gain a clue token and recover a life.
* Give a clue regarding a colour.
* Give a clue regarding a number.
* Shuffle a discarded card into the deck.
* Play a discarded card, if possible.

== Lingo ==

When you play with others, certain words are used to describe certain objects or situations. Here is a short list.

;Marked: A card that is highlighted by a clue.
;Unmarked: A card that is not clued.
;chop: The oldest, unmarked card. The card that you have no information on and will chop from your hand.
;draw: The newest, unmarked card. The card that you have no information on and was freshly drawn.
;To bomb: A play that causes the third misfire-token. Sometimes called '''explosion'''
;Unique: A card that has no copy (left) in the deck.
;Double discard: When consecutive players have the same card on chop. A special problem, since, to each of the consecutive players, a number to chop does not look like a unique save.
;Double save: When a player has two consecutive unique cards, requiring consecutive save clues.
;Strategy: A set of rules / guidelines / conventions on how to interpret actions by players (including spending of clue-tokens).

== ELO rating ==

* If you are playing with ELO rating on, your ELO may be changed at the end of the game.
* Here is how it works:
*# Every player on the team is temporarily considered as having the average ELO rating of the team.
*# The system will generate a bot associated with the score your team has achieved (let’s call it '''''Hanabot''''').
*#* Hanabot’s ELO rating depends on the variant you are playing (50 cards, 60 cards, 60 cards multicolour), the number of players on the team and, most importantly, your team's score.
*#* All Hanabot’s ELO ratings have been set by an experienced player, they are not random or simply proportional to the score/number of players.
*# Your team (actually your team's average ELO) will now compete against Hanabot.
*#* The system will calculate your team’s ELO gain/loss as though your team had tied with Hanabot.
*#* If your score is below 18 (50-card game) or below 21 (60-card game), Hanabot's ELO is always 1000.

* You can find [http://forum.boardgamearena.com/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=4814 all bots' ELO ratings here]
* The 55-card variant (50 cards + 1 of each value in the sixth color) cannot be played with ELO rating on.
** This is because this variant is highly dependent on draw and a team’s score may not always reflect the players’ skills.
* If you achieve the perfect score and this should cost you ELO points, you will be considered as having beaten the bot associated with the score, so that you lose no ELO points.
* To be confirmed: I think the ELO-system has had an overhaul.

== About "cheating" ==

* In the "real life Hanabi", you can talk. That's why we chose to let the chat open for the online version.

* As a consequence, it is very easy to cheat at Hanabi.
** However, as you can imagine, cheating is very stupid and has no interest... except for ELO boosting.
** This is why there is no international ranking for this game (ie: best player, second best player) and no trophies associated to it.

* Another method of cheating is to deliberately avoid finishing games that would cause ELO to drop.
** While some argue that games become "boring" once 30 becomes impossible, it is rarely the case that games are abandoned on 29 points while waiting for the final 5 to be drawn.

== Conventions ==

'''Please note that these conventions are not widely used in BoardGameArena. Expert and master players in BGA tend to play very often according to the conventions in [https://docs.google.com/document/d/1VzgN6WoeYwh5NYtHECzUNZqFvpVcg-EdObU-YNMlyhc this document].'''

* If you want to play "full information" style, meaning that you wait until you know both the colour and number of a card before you play it, you will likely be short on clue-tokens in >99% of the decks.
* The logical conclusion is, that you cannot play a full information style game, and the team must agree on some sort of convention.
** Meaning: a certain amount of meta-information is assigned to the clues.

* Many players have different kinds of conventions.
* When different players in the same team assign different meta-information to the same clue, the game becomes unplayable.
** This is why the BGA table-settings give the option to set a table convention since the end of 2020.
** Please see this [https://boardgamearena.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=102&t=18031 post] started by [https://boardgamearena.com/player?id=84207926 Romain672].
* Ideally, all players adhere to the convention, to avoid miscommunication.

* Below, the meta-information of several conventions is explained.
* In the examples, colours are indicated by their first letter:
R - Red -      ,
Y - Yellow -      ,
G - Green -      ,
B - Blue -      ,
W - White -      ,
M - Multi-colour -      ,
P - black Powder -      .
** ''For example:'' Y2 means the card with number 2 and colour yellow.

=== Standard convention ===

*You can assume the following meta-information:
** Every card that gets marked, will be playable at some point.
** A card marked with a number, can be played when all "number-1" cards are played.
*** ''This is usually explained as: number-clues mean that these cards should be saved and played later on in the game.''
*** ''It is custom to play saved cards from oldest to newest.''
*** ''The small minority that pushes the conventions present on this wiki claim that doing so is the best way to prevent bombs, since this convention makes it more difficult to save unique cards on CHOP without marking collateral, potential useless cards.''
*** '' '''Most BoardGameArena players do not adopt this convention.''' A number hint is generally seen as a save (i.e., marking a unique cards that is about to be discarded) when on chop, and as a hint to play as soon as possible otherwise.''
** A colour-clue means that the newest, previously unmarked card, is the next playable card in the sequence.
** The oldest, unmarked card is safe to discard.
*** ''Obviously, if a player has a card that they are sure they will never be able to play, for example a card on which is marked as blue when the blue pile has already been completed, such card must be discarded in priority.''
* Clues you should avoid giving (bad clues):
** Giving a clue that marks 0 new cards.
** Give a clue that tells a lie (does not conform to the meta-information above).
** As a special remark: Since every marked card is assumed playable, you shouldn't mark useless, or duplicate cards. So if you have a saved 4, you are forbidden from marking 4s, unless you are sure you are not holding a copy of that 4.
* Sometimes, a "bad" clue can't be avoided.
** ''For example:'' when you need to save a unique 3 (using a number-clue) to avoid it being discarded, but you also accidentally mark a useless card.
** Or if you are forced to give a colour-clue from a flamboyant, and you use it to mark 0 new cards.
* When a lie has been told, it needs to be corrected.
* A correction-clue can never mean "play", it can only mean "discard".

==== Example 1 ====

new -> old
P1: R1, Y1, G1, B1, W1
P2: R2, Y4, R3, B3, G'''5'''
P3: G4, Y1, R4, Y3, Y2

Table: R1, Y5, G1, B3, W4

* It's P1's turn, and P2 knows his oldest card is 5.
* P1 will give R-clue to P2.
* This will tell P2, that the newest card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be R2), and that the other red can be R3, R4, or R5 (because it must be playable at some later point in the game).

==== Example 2 ====

new -> old
P1: R1, Y1, G1, B1, W1
P2: W5, Y4, '''R'''3, B3, G'''5'''
P3: W2, G4, Y1, R4, Y3

Table: R2, Y5, G1, B3, W4

* It is P1's turn again, and P2 knows his oldest card is 5, and his middle card is R.
* P1 will give R-clue to P3.
* This will tell P3, that his middle card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be R4, because R3 is already marked).
* This will give P2 the meta-information that his saved red card, is R3.
** ''This particular move is sometimes called prompting, and is a common way to allow a card that is saved by colour to get played without re-cluing it.''

==== Example 3 ====

new -> old
P1: R1, Y1, G1, B1, W1
P2: R3, Y4, R'''2''', B3, G5
P3: G4, Y1, R4, Y3, Y2

Table: R1, Y5, G0, B3, W4

* It is P1's turn, and P2 knows his middle card is 2.
* P1 will give R-clue to P2.
* This will tell P2 that his newest card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be R3, because R2 is now visible with 100% information).

=== Finesse ===

* Finesse builds on the standard convention (making it a bit more complex).
* In the finesse convention, the timing of the clue gives you extra information.
* You can assume the following meta-information:
** Every card that gets marked, will be playable at some point.
** If the oldest, unmarked card gets marked with a number-clue, then the clue meant "save this/these card(s)". (It is custom to play saved cards from oldest to newest when appropriate.)
** A clue that doesn't mark the oldest card, means that the newest, previously unmarked card, is the next playable card in the sequence.
** The oldest, unmarked card is safe to discard unless that player is busy by having a "known" play.
*** ''Obviously, if a player has a card that they are sure they will never be able to play, for example a card on which is marked as blue when the blue pile has already been completed, such card must be discarded in priority.''
** If a marked card gets discarded it means:
*** The copy of that card is already marked in someone else's hand, and the discarding player is the first to realize this; or
*** The copy of that card MUST be marked in a future clue (because a save-clue will be given that will mark the copy card as collateral).

==== Meaning of skipping a player / stealing clues ====
* There are different approaches among finesse-convention-players about who should clue whom. So this section will be devided into sub-sections. The order does not say anything about which approach is more common on BGA. There are a lot of players following each idea.
* As of now, there is no way of saying which approach is "right" or "better". Of course it is important for success, that in a game, the group of players follows the same idea. If they get mixed, it will most likely result in bombs. If that happens, it does not mean, the other player is "bad" - it merely means, they follow a different idea. So you can only try to find a common ground for the next game or play with another group next time.
* The text within the sections are written by people who follow the idea.

===== a) Skipping / stealing should be avoided =====
* If more than 1 person are able to give the same clue, then the last possible person should give that clue.
* In finesse convention skipping (P1 clues P3, instead of P2; then P2 is skipped) means either:
*# The skipped player is forbidden from giving that clue; or
*# The skipped player has something to play. But it must be a marked, completely known card. If there is no known card in your hand do NOT play blind.
*# You should also clue someone

===== b) Skipping / stealing is for discard-management =====
Skipping/stealing is a term that is often used for a situation, where giving a clue is not left for the last possible player to do. In example player A saves a card on chop of player C, potentially leaving player B without a useful/necessary clue to give. Skipping players is a useful move to give other players the time to play other cards or discard.
When getting skipped without having a play or useful option to clue, it most likely means that your chop card is not very useful. These are valid reasons for skipping you:
** You have a card on chop that's already played/marked
** You have a card on chop of which another copy is on another player's (or your own) hand as well
** You have a 4 and it's very early in the game
** You might still have something nice on chop, but the player sitting before already received information that their chop might be something very good (from earlier discard-behaviour like NOT being skipped over by the player sitting before them on earlier turns) and they are reluctant to discard for that reason.

This approach sacrifices some saving-clue-tokens option (that might be achieved on a stricter dogma about who should clue whom) in order to be able to keep nice cards in the game for longer and discard useless cards instead and by that often get those cards played before they would be discarded.
* This convention is for players, who play efficient enough to rarely struggle with clue-shortness and can therefore affort being more careful about not losing first copies.
* If a group often struggles with clue-shortness then skipping-dogma (as proposed by other conventions) might improve their overall results. If the problem for not achieving 30 usually isn't clue-shortness but getting bottom-decked (or heavily delayed from losing earlier a card that could be played now), then results will get better with discard-management-convention.
* If overall the group is very skilled and uses finesse, bluff, chains, timing, good touch, gd etc. in perfection, then usually discard management is the better approach. This involves:
** Finesse in second line
** Finesse from the same hand
** Know when reverse-bluff is possible (even though in most cases it's impossible)

==== Clues you should avoid giving (bad clues) ====

* As a special remark: don't mark useless, or duplicate cards. So if you have a saved 4, you are forbidden from marking 4s, unless you are sure you are not holding a copy of that

==== Special interpretation for play-clues ====

* When receiving a clue for the "next playable card in the sequence", the linking cards are not limited to already marked cards (like in standard convention).
* The newest, unmarked cards in every player's hand should be considered as well.

====== Example ======

new -> old
P1: ??, ??, ??, ??, ??
P2: B1, Y5, B3, W1, W2
P3: R5, R2, B2, G2, Y2

Table: R0, Y0, G0, B0, W0

* P1 gives B-clue to P3.
* This gives the information that B2 is the next playable card in the sequence, and that P2 is either not allowed to give B-clue, or has something to play.
* Since P2 has no marked cards, he was not blocked from giving B-clue, so he must have something to play.
* This something, must be the missing link (B1, to enable B2) that makes B2 the next playable card.
* Since there is no logical (marked) card that could be B1, P2 must assume his newest, unmarked card is B1 and blind-plays this card.

===== Example of reversed finesse =====

new -> old
P1: ??, ??, ??, ??, ??
P2: R5, R2, B2, G2, Y2
P3: B1, Y5, B3, W1, W2

Table: R0, Y0, G0, B0, W0

* P1 gives B-clue to P2.
* This gives the information that B2 is the next playable card in the sequence.
* P2 sees that the newest, unmarked card in the hand of P3 is of the same colour (blue) '''and''' playable now. P2 concludes it is a finesse, with the players in reversed order, so his blue card must be B2.

===== Example of a bluff =====

new -> old
P1: ??, ??, ??, ??, ??
P2: W1, Y5, B3, W1, W2
P3: R5, R2, B2, G2, Y2

Table: R0, Y0, G0, B0, W0

* P1 gives B-clue to P3.
* This gives the information that B2 is the next playable card in the sequence, and that P2 is either not allowed to give B-clue, or has something to play.
* Since P2 has no marked cards, he was not blocked from giving B-clue, so he must have something to play.
* This something, must be the missing link (B1, to enable B2) that makes B2 the next playable card.
* Since there is no logical (marked) card that could be B1, P2 must assume his newest, unmarked card is B1 and blind-plays this card.
* However, at this point the "lie" is revealed (because the colour of the played card does '''not''' match the colour of the finesse-clue).
* The blind-played card is '''not''' B1, but W1. P3, up to this point, was thinking he had B1.
* The blind-play of P2 gives him extra information: his blue card is in fact B2.

=== Hat-guessing ===

* [https://github.com/hanabi/hanabi.github.io/blob/main/misc/hat-guessing.md Github hat-guessing]

=== Logical Leftism ===

* [http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/basics-level-1-a117610126 Hanabi Logic basics-level-1]
* [http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/-a163408102 Hanabi Logic logical-leftism-in-a-nutshell]

=== Closest Friend ===

* TODO

=== Secret convention ===

* TODO

=== Conventional Leftism ===

* [http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/ll-vs-cl-the-differences-a132077536 Hanabi Logic ll-vs-cl-the-differences] gives some clues, but doesn't explain Conventional Leftism from first principles.

=== Chop-focus ===

* TODO

== Strategy ==

* In addition to the convention(s), there is also some strategy to the game.
* You should '''not''' confuse strategy with convention! Strategy is '''team''' vs '''deck'''; convention is communication within the team.
* A simple example of strategy is saving 2s in 2-player games.
** Using number-2-clue to communicate that those cards need to be saved, is a convention.

=== Examples ===

* More advanced players will try to avoid losing as many "first" (non-unique) cards as possible.
* It's a good strategy to keep good cards in the game as long as possible - even if they are not yet playable.
** ''The other copy of that card might be far down the draw pile.''
* Trying to mark at least 12 cards with the first 8 clue-tokens.
** This gives 99% chance of always having enough tokens in the game.
* Not using the last two clue-tokens for "single plays".
** This avoids running out of clue-tokens in times when you need to save critical cards.

For strategy tips, see [[Tips_hanabi]]

Gamehelpkingdomino

2022-01-31T09:34:49Z

Silene: /* End of game */

Kingdomino is a tile drafting game in which players use domino-like landscape tiles to create the highest scoring kingdom. The game consists of 1 starting 1x1 tile for each player, 48 1x2 dominoes ranked from 1-48 (with higher ranked dominoes tending to be more valuable), and 1 king meeple for each player (2 in the 2 player game) used to indicate the dominoes drafted by each player for the next round.

__NOTOC__
== Objective ==

Players will take turns drafting and placing dominoes into their kingdom. Players will be placing these dominoes into their kingdom in order to fill a 5x5 grid (7x7 in the 2 player Mighty Duel variant, see below). Each square of a domino will be one of 6 landscape types: Wheat fields, grasslands, forests, lakes, swamps, or mines. Additionally, some squares on dominoes will feature 1-3 crown icons on them. At the end of the game, players will score each distinct contiguous region of dominoes of the same type, by multiplying the number of squares in that region by the number of crowns in that region. Thus, a grasslands region consisting of 3 squares and having 2 crowns will be worth 6 points, while a wheat fields region of 6 squares but 0 crowns will be worth nothing. Players add together the values of every region in their kingdom to determine their final score.

''Note: Each terrain type has a different distribution in the deck. Grasslands and forest squares are plentiful, but have very few squares with crowns. Mines are rare but have lots of crowns. Press the "Dominoes list" button in game to see the breakdown of landscape squares in the game.''

== Gameplay ==
----
'''''These rules are written for a standard 4 player game. 2-3 player rules, and game variants, are listed at the end of these rules.'''''
----

=== First turn ===

At the beginning of the game, each player receives a 1x1 starting tile in their play area. 4 dominoes are randomly drawn and arranged in order, from lowest rank to highest rank (these ranks are not displayed on the BGA interface, but can be seen in the game log). The turn order for the first turn is randomly determined. Beginning with the first player, each player places their king meeple on one of the 4 dominoes. Each domino may only be claimed by one player.

=== Subsequent turns ===

A new set of 4 dominoes are randomly drawn and placed to the right of the previous set of dominoes. Then, starting with the player who claimed the lowest-ranked (top) domino in the previous turn, each player places their chosen domino into their kingdom, and places their king meeple onto one of the available dominoes from the new set. Higher-ranked dominoes are more likely to have crowns or rare terrain types, but tend to give the players who choose them a later spot in the turn order on the next round.

When placing a domino into their kingdom, the placed domino can be rotated freely and placed in a horizontal or vertical orientation. However, players must obey these two restrictions:

1. Dominoes must be placed so that at least one square of the domino is orthogonally adjacent to either another square of the same terrain type, or the starting tile.

2. The player's kingdom must fit within the constraints of a 5x5 grid (or 7x7 in the Mighty Duel variant, see below). If a domino placement would cause the grid to have more than 5 rows or columns, that placement may not be made. There are no restrictions on where the player's starting tile resides within the kingdom. It may be in the middle, in a corner, or anywhere else.

If a player is unable to legally place their chosen domino, the domino is discarded (and the player will have gaps in their kingdom at the end of the game). A player may not elect to discard a domino if they have a legal placement.

=== End of game ===

The game ends once the supply of dominoes is exhausted. Players then score their kingdoms as outlined in the "objective" section above. Highest score wins! In the event of a tie, the player with the largest territory (contiguous set of the same landscape type) wins. If there is still a tie, the player with the most crowns wins. If there is still a tie, the players share the victory.

== Variants ==
=== Three player ===

4 dominoes are placed each round, as described above. However, after each of the three players places their meeple on a domino, the remaining domino is discarded

=== Two player ===

Half (24) of the dominoes are randomly discarded at the beginning of the game. 4 dominoes are placed each round, however, players now have 2 king meeples to place each round instead of one. Thus, each player drafts and places 2 tiles each round instead of one, and there are only 6 rounds instead of 12 like in a regular game.

=== The Mighty Duel ===

Follow the Two player variant rules above, but do not discard any dominoes at the beginning of the game. Players will each acquire 24 dominoes over the course of the game instead of 12, to form a 7x7 kingdom instead of a 5x5 kingdom.

=== Harmony ===

At the end of the game, players will receive 5 bonus points for having no gaps in their kingdom (meaning they were not forced to discard any dominoes).

=== Middle Kingdom ===

At the end of the game, players will receive 10 bonus points if their starting 1x1 tile is in the exact center of their kingdom. Gaps in the kingdom are permitted.

Gamehelphanabi

2021-06-21T14:02:53Z

Silene: /* Finesse */

== Introduction ==
Hanabi is a cooperative game. Your goal, as a team, is to build a fabulous fireworks show. You do this by playing the cards in the correct order. However, you cannot see your own cards; you can only see the cards of your team mates.

'''Final Score Ratings'''

{| class="wikitable"
|-
!Points
!Overall impression
|-
|5 or less
|horrible, booed by the crowd...
|-
|6-10
|mediocre, just a spattering of applause.
|-
|11-15
|honourable, but will not be remembered for very long...
|-
|16-20
|excellent, crowd pleasing.
|-
|21-24
|amazing, will be remembered for a very long time!
|-
|25
|legendary, everyone left speechless, stars in their eyes
|}

== Card distribution ==
In a game of Hanabi on NORMAL DIFFICULTY, the deck contains 50 cards. Each has exactly one colour: either Red, Yellow, Green, Blue, or White.

There are 10 cards in each colour:
* three 1s
* two 2s
* two 3s
* two 4s
* one 5

===Multicolour cards===
There are three variants that add a 6th colour: the multicolour.

# TRICKY DIFFICULTY adds 10 multicolour cards to the normal game. These cards get marked by a separate multicolour clue.
# HARD DIFFICULTY adds '''5''' multicolour cards to the normal game: one of each number. These cards get marked by a separate multicolour clue.
# VERY DIFFICULT DIFFICULTY adds 10 multicolour cards to the normal game. These cards get marked by ANY colour clue.

== Gameplay ==
You each take turns. During a turn, a player may take one (1) of three actions. After your action, the turn ends and it is the next player's turn.

The game can end in several ways:

#All cards have been drawn from the deck. After this happens, everybody gets 1 more turn. The game ends with the score at the last turn.
#Your team played all possible cards. In this case, the game ends immediately and you receive the maximum possible score.
#Your team made three mistakes that caused misfires. In this case, you lose the game and get negative ten (-10) points.
#Your team 'abandons' the game. Although discouraged, you receive zero (0) points.

== Turn ==
During your turn, you have one (1) action. You can choose to do one of the following:

#'''Give a colour or number clue to a teammate:''' This costs one clue-token (-1). You cannot give a clue if there are zero (0) clue-tokens left. When you give a clue, you must indicate ALL cards of a certain colour, or ALL cards of a certain number.
#'''Play a card:''' When a card is played, it is evaluated. If the card fits in one of sequences, it is placed in the appropriate colour stack on the table. If it does not, it is placed in the discard pile and the team gets a misfire-token.
#'''Discard a card:''' When you discard, the card is placed in the discard pile and you get a clue-token (+1). Note: cards on the discard pile are out of the game and can never return.

When you remove a card from your hand, by either playing or discarding, at the end of your turn, you draw a new card.

== Options ==

=== Black Powder ===

* You may not give clues regarding the colour black.
* Black cards must be played in reverse order, from 5 to 1.
* In the deck there are three black 5s, two black 4s, two black 3s, two black 2s, and one black 1.

=== Five Flamboyants ===

After playing the last card of a colour, randomly select one of the following bonuses for immediate use:

* Gain a clue token.
* Gain a clue token and recover a life.
* Give a clue regarding a colour.
* Give a clue regarding a number.
* Shuffle a discarded card into the deck.
* Play a discarded card, if possible.

== Lingo ==
When you play with others, certain words are used to describe certain objects or situations. Here is a short list.

*'''MARKED''': A card that is highlighted by a clue.
*'''UNMARKED''': A card that is not clued.
*'''CHOP''': The oldest, unmarked card. The card that you have no information on and will chop from your hand.
*'''DRAW''': The newest, unmarked card. The card that you have no information on and was freshly drawn.
*'''TO BOMB''': A play that causes the third misfire-token. Sometimes called '''EXPLOSION'''
*'''UNIQUE''': A card that has no copy (left) in the deck.
*'''DOUBLE DISCARD''': Discarding the (usually CHOP) card when it can be Unique (or the last copy of the card in the discard pile).
*'''DOUBLE SAVE''': To mark a card that is useless, because the copy of the card is already played, or marked.
*'''STRATEGY''': A set of rules / guidelines / conventions on how to interpret actions by players (including spending of clue-tokens).

== ELO rating ==
If you are playing with ELO rating on, your ELO may be changed at the end of the game.

Here is how it works:

#Every player on the team is temporarily considered as having the average ELO rating of the team.
#The system will generate a bot associated with the score your team has achieved (let’s call it '''Hanabot'''). Hanabot’s ELO rating depends on the variant you are playing (50 cards, 60 cards, 60 cards multicolor), the number of players on the team and, most importantly, your team's score. All Hanabot’s ELO ratings have been set by an experienced player, they are not random or simply proportional to the score/number of players.
#Your team (actually your team's average ELO) will now compete against Hanabot. The system will calculate your team’s ELO gain/loss as though your team had tied with Hanabot.

If your score is below 18 (50-card game) or below 21 (60-card game), Hanabot's ELO is always 1000.

<code>
You can find all bots' ELO ratings here: http://forum.boardgamearena.com/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=4814

The 55-card variant (50 cards + 1 of each value in the sixth color) cannot be played with ELO rating on. This is because this variant is highly dependent on draw and a team’s score may not always reflect the players’ skills.

If you achieve the perfect score and this should cost you ELO points, you will be considered as having beaten the bot associated with the score, so that you lose no ELO points.
</code> 
To be confirmed: I think the ELO-system has had an overhaul.

== About "cheating" ==
In the "real life Hanabi", you can talk. That's why we chose to let the chat open for the online version.

As a consequence, it is very easy to cheat at Hanabi. However, as you can imagine, cheating is very stupid and has no interest... except for ELO boosting. This is why there is no international ranking for this game (ie: best player, second best player) and no trophies associated to it.

==CONVENTIONS==
If you want to play "full information" style, meaning that you wait until you know both the colour and number of a card before you play it, you will likely be short on clue-tokens in >99% of the decks. The logical conclusion is, that you cannot play a full information style game, and the team must agree on some sort of convention. Meaning: a certain amount of meta-information is assigned to the clues.

Many players have different kinds of conventions. When different players in the same team assign different meta-information to the same clue, the game becomes unplayable. This is why the BGA table-settings give the option to set a table convention since the end of 2020. Please see this [https://boardgamearena.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=102&t=18031 post] started by [https://boardgamearena.com/player?id=84207926 Romain672]. Ideally, all players adhere to the convention, to avoid miscommunication.

Below, the meta-information of several conventions is explained. In the examples, colours are indicated by their first letter : R - Red -      , Y - Yellow -      , G - Green -      , B - Blue -      , W - White -      , M - Multi-colour -      , P - black Powder -      . For example, Y2 means the card with number 2 and colour yellow.

===Standard convention===
You can assume the following meta-information:
* Every card that gets marked, will be playable at some point.
* A card marked with a number, can be played when all "number-1" cards are played. (This is usually explained as: number-clues mean that these cards should be saved and played later on in the game. It is custom to play saved cards from oldest to newest.)
* A colour-clue means that the newest, previously unmarked card, is the next playable card in the sequence.
* The oldest, unmarked card is safe to discard. (Obviously, if a player has a card that he is sure he will never be able to play, for example a card on which is marked as blue when the blue pile has already been completed, such card must be discarded in priority.)

Clues you should avoid giving (bad clues):
* Giving a clue that marks 0 new cards.
* Give a clue that tells a lie (does not conform to the meta-information above).
* As a special remark: don't mark useless, or duplicate cards. So if you have a saved 4, you are forbidden from marking 4s, unless you are sure you are not holding a copy of that 4.

Sometimes, a "bad" clue can't be avoided. For example, when you need to save a unique 3 (using a number-clue) to avoid it being discarded. But you accidentally mark a useless card. Or if you are forced to give a colour-clue from a flamboyant, and you use it to mark 0 new cards.

When a lie has been told, it needs to be corrected. A correction-clue can never mean "play", it can only mean "discard".

Example 1:
new -> old
P1: R1, Y1, G1, B1, W1
P2: R2, Y4, R3, B3, G'''5'''
P3: G4, Y1, R4, Y3, Y2

Table: R1, Y5, G1, B3, W4

It's P1's turn, and P2 knows his oldest card is 5.
P1 will give R-clue to P2. This will tell P2, that the newest card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be R2), and that the other red can be R3, R4, or R5 (because it must be playable at some later point in the game).

Example 2:
new -> old
P1: R1, Y1, G1, B1, W1
P2: W5, Y4, '''R'''3, B3, G'''5'''
P3: W2, G4, Y1, R4, Y3

Table: R2, Y5, G1, B3, W4

It is P1's turn again, and P2 knows his oldest card is 5, and his middle card is R.
P1 will give R-clue to P3. This will tell P3, that his middle card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be R4, because R3 is already marked). This will give P2 the meta-information that his saved red card, is R3. (This particular move is sometimes called prompting, and is a common way to allow a card that is saved by colour to get played without re-cluing it.)

Example 3:
new -> old
P1: R1, Y1, G1, B1, W1
P2: R3, Y4, R'''2''', B3, G5
P3: G4, Y1, R4, Y3, Y2

Table: R1, Y5, G0, B3, W4

It is P1's turn, and P2 knows his middle card is 2.
P1 will give R-clue to P2. This will tell P2 that his newest card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be R3, because R2 is now visible with 100% information).

====''Finesse''====
Finesse is a more complex version of the standard convention. In the finesse convention, the timing of the clue gives you extra information.
You can assume the following meta-information:
* Every card that gets marked, will be playable at some point.
* If the oldest, unmarked card gets marked with a number-clue, then the clue meant "save this/these card(s)". (It is custom to play saved cards from oldest to newest when appropriate.)
* A clue that doesn't mark the oldest card, means that the newest, previously unmarked card, is the next playable card in the sequence.
* The oldest, unmarked card is safe to discard unless that player is busy like having a known play or being forced to do a save on the following player's hand. (Obviously, if a player has a card that he is sure he will never be able to play, for example a card on which is marked as blue when the blue pile has already been completed, such card must be discarded in priority.)
* In order to avoid losing too many good - but not unique - cards, it is necessary to plan ahead who is gonna play and who is gonna discard. It's a good strategy to keep good cards in the game as long as possible - even if they are not yet playable (the other copy of that card might be far down the draw pile).
* If more than 1 person are able to give the same clue, then the last possible person should give that clue. Note: This approach is highly disputed. Many players prefer to play an everyone-is-allowed-to-clue-everything-style in order to achieve a good discard management and not lose nice but unplayable cards too early.
* If a player gets skipped (P1 clues P3, instead of P2; then P2 is skipped), it means either:
*# The skipped player has a card on chop which P1 considers ok to be discarded.
*# The skipped player is forbidden from giving that clue; or
*# The skipped player has something to play.

Clues you should avoid giving (bad clues):
* Giving a clue that marks 0 new cards.
* Give a clue that tells a lie (does not conform to the meta-information above).
* As a special remark: don't mark useless, or duplicate cards. So if you have a saved 4, you are forbidden from marking 4s, unless you are sure you are not holding a copy of that 4. (Exceptions remain: circumstances might make it a good move for you to do it anyway. Maybe because others are also "forbidden" to clue that card or because others can't see why it is important to get it clued right now to not lose a card that's following it)

Special interpretation for play-clues:
* When receiving a clue for the "next playable card in the sequence", the linking cards are not limited to already marked cards (like in standard convention). The newest, unmarked cards in every player's hand should be considered as well.

===== Example =====
new -> old
P1: ??, ??, ??, ??, ??
P2: B1, Y5, B3, W1, W2
P3: R5, R2, B2, G2, Y2

Table: R0, Y0, G0, B0, W0

P1 gives B-clue to P3. This gives the information that B2 is the next playable card in the sequence, and that P2 is either not allowed to give B-clue, or has something to play. Since P2 has no marked cards, he was not blocked from giving B-clue, so he must have something to play. This something, must be the missing link (B1, to enable B2) that makes B2 the next playable card. Since there is no logical (marked) card that could be B1, P2 must assume his newest, unmarked card is B1 and blind-plays this card.

===== Example of reversed finesse =====
new -> old
P1: ??, ??, ??, ??, ??
P2: R5, R2, B2, G2, Y2
P3: B1, Y5, B3, W1, W2

Table: R0, Y0, G0, B0, W0

P1 gives B-clue to P2. This gives the information that B2 is the next playable card in the sequence. P2 sees that the newest, unmarked card in the hand of P3 is of the same colour (blue) AND playable now. P2 concludes it is a finesse, with the players in reversed order, so his blue card must be B2.

===== Example of a bluff =====

new -> old
P1: ??, ??, ??, ??, ??
P2: W1, Y5, B3, W1, W2
P3: R5, R2, B2, G2, Y2

Table: R0, Y0, G0, B0, W0

P1 gives B-clue to P3. This gives the information that B2 is the next playable card in the sequence, and that P2 is either not allowed to give B-clue, or has something to play. Since P2 has no marked cards, he was not blocked from giving B-clue, so he must have something to play. This something, must be the missing link (B1, to enable B2) that makes B2 the next playable card. Since there is no logical (marked) card that could be B1, P2 must assume his newest, unmarked card is B1 and blind-plays this card.

However, at this point the "lie" is revealed (because the colour of the played card does NOT match the colour of the finesse-clue). The blind-played card is NOT B1, but W1. P3, upto this point, was thinking he had B1. The blind-play of P2 gives him extra information: his blue card is in fact B2.

==== ''Off discard'' ====
It happens that in his turn a player no longer has a clue token and that a card must absolutely be played, it is then possible for him to discard another card than his card furthest to the right. This move tells the next player to play the card in the same position as the one that was discarded.

Example: it's player 1's turn, there are no more clue tokens, a 1B has already been played and a 2B card has already been discarded (in bold the clues known by the players):

#a? b? c? d? e?
#4Y 5R 2R 2B 2'''G'''
#2G 1'''B''' 5Y 3'''B''' 3W

Player 1 discards card d? instead of the e? card. This indicates to the player that he must play his card in the same position (therefore 2B), which avoids losing it and thus condemning the blue pile.

This movement is risky because the discarded card can be important or even blocking for the rest of the game. This movement should therefore only be used if there is no other solution.
It is up to the other players to make sure, before leaving a player without a clue token, that the card he could discard to give this clue is not essential for the rest of the game.

=== Hat-guessing ===

See https://github.com/hanabi/hanabi.github.io/blob/main/misc/hat-guessing.md.

=== Logical Leftism ===

See http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/basics-level-1-a117610126 and http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/logical-leftism-in-a-nutshell-a163408102.

=== Closest Friend ===

TODO

=== Secret convention ===

TODO

=== Conventional Leftism ===

http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/ll-vs-cl-the-differences-a132077536 gives some clues, but doesn't explain Conventional Leftism from first principles.

=== Chop-focus ===

TODO

Gamehelphanabi

2021-06-21T14:00:29Z

Silene: /* Finesse */

== Introduction ==
Hanabi is a cooperative game. Your goal, as a team, is to build a fabulous fireworks show. You do this by playing the cards in the correct order. However, you cannot see your own cards; you can only see the cards of your team mates.

'''Final Score Ratings'''

{| class="wikitable"
|-
!Points
!Overall impression
|-
|5 or less
|horrible, booed by the crowd...
|-
|6-10
|mediocre, just a spattering of applause.
|-
|11-15
|honourable, but will not be remembered for very long...
|-
|16-20
|excellent, crowd pleasing.
|-
|21-24
|amazing, will be remembered for a very long time!
|-
|25
|legendary, everyone left speechless, stars in their eyes
|}

== Card distribution ==
In a game of Hanabi on NORMAL DIFFICULTY, the deck contains 50 cards. Each has exactly one colour: either Red, Yellow, Green, Blue, or White.

There are 10 cards in each colour:
* three 1s
* two 2s
* two 3s
* two 4s
* one 5

===Multicolour cards===
There are three variants that add a 6th colour: the multicolour.

# TRICKY DIFFICULTY adds 10 multicolour cards to the normal game. These cards get marked by a separate multicolour clue.
# HARD DIFFICULTY adds '''5''' multicolour cards to the normal game: one of each number. These cards get marked by a separate multicolour clue.
# VERY DIFFICULT DIFFICULTY adds 10 multicolour cards to the normal game. These cards get marked by ANY colour clue.

== Gameplay ==
You each take turns. During a turn, a player may take one (1) of three actions. After your action, the turn ends and it is the next player's turn.

The game can end in several ways:

#All cards have been drawn from the deck. After this happens, everybody gets 1 more turn. The game ends with the score at the last turn.
#Your team played all possible cards. In this case, the game ends immediately and you receive the maximum possible score.
#Your team made three mistakes that caused misfires. In this case, you lose the game and get negative ten (-10) points.
#Your team 'abandons' the game. Although discouraged, you receive zero (0) points.

== Turn ==
During your turn, you have one (1) action. You can choose to do one of the following:

#'''Give a colour or number clue to a teammate:''' This costs one clue-token (-1). You cannot give a clue if there are zero (0) clue-tokens left. When you give a clue, you must indicate ALL cards of a certain colour, or ALL cards of a certain number.
#'''Play a card:''' When a card is played, it is evaluated. If the card fits in one of sequences, it is placed in the appropriate colour stack on the table. If it does not, it is placed in the discard pile and the team gets a misfire-token.
#'''Discard a card:''' When you discard, the card is placed in the discard pile and you get a clue-token (+1). Note: cards on the discard pile are out of the game and can never return.

When you remove a card from your hand, by either playing or discarding, at the end of your turn, you draw a new card.

== Options ==

=== Black Powder ===

* You may not give clues regarding the colour black.
* Black cards must be played in reverse order, from 5 to 1.
* In the deck there are three black 5s, two black 4s, two black 3s, two black 2s, and one black 1.

=== Five Flamboyants ===

After playing the last card of a colour, randomly select one of the following bonuses for immediate use:

* Gain a clue token.
* Gain a clue token and recover a life.
* Give a clue regarding a colour.
* Give a clue regarding a number.
* Shuffle a discarded card into the deck.
* Play a discarded card, if possible.

== Lingo ==
When you play with others, certain words are used to describe certain objects or situations. Here is a short list.

*'''MARKED''': A card that is highlighted by a clue.
*'''UNMARKED''': A card that is not clued.
*'''CHOP''': The oldest, unmarked card. The card that you have no information on and will chop from your hand.
*'''DRAW''': The newest, unmarked card. The card that you have no information on and was freshly drawn.
*'''TO BOMB''': A play that causes the third misfire-token. Sometimes called '''EXPLOSION'''
*'''UNIQUE''': A card that has no copy (left) in the deck.
*'''DOUBLE DISCARD''': Discarding the (usually CHOP) card when it can be Unique (or the last copy of the card in the discard pile).
*'''DOUBLE SAVE''': To mark a card that is useless, because the copy of the card is already played, or marked.
*'''STRATEGY''': A set of rules / guidelines / conventions on how to interpret actions by players (including spending of clue-tokens).

== ELO rating ==
If you are playing with ELO rating on, your ELO may be changed at the end of the game.

Here is how it works:

#Every player on the team is temporarily considered as having the average ELO rating of the team.
#The system will generate a bot associated with the score your team has achieved (let’s call it '''Hanabot'''). Hanabot’s ELO rating depends on the variant you are playing (50 cards, 60 cards, 60 cards multicolor), the number of players on the team and, most importantly, your team's score. All Hanabot’s ELO ratings have been set by an experienced player, they are not random or simply proportional to the score/number of players.
#Your team (actually your team's average ELO) will now compete against Hanabot. The system will calculate your team’s ELO gain/loss as though your team had tied with Hanabot.

If your score is below 18 (50-card game) or below 21 (60-card game), Hanabot's ELO is always 1000.

<code>
You can find all bots' ELO ratings here: http://forum.boardgamearena.com/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=4814

The 55-card variant (50 cards + 1 of each value in the sixth color) cannot be played with ELO rating on. This is because this variant is highly dependent on draw and a team’s score may not always reflect the players’ skills.

If you achieve the perfect score and this should cost you ELO points, you will be considered as having beaten the bot associated with the score, so that you lose no ELO points.
</code> 
To be confirmed: I think the ELO-system has had an overhaul.

== About "cheating" ==
In the "real life Hanabi", you can talk. That's why we chose to let the chat open for the online version.

As a consequence, it is very easy to cheat at Hanabi. However, as you can imagine, cheating is very stupid and has no interest... except for ELO boosting. This is why there is no international ranking for this game (ie: best player, second best player) and no trophies associated to it.

==CONVENTIONS==
If you want to play "full information" style, meaning that you wait until you know both the colour and number of a card before you play it, you will likely be short on clue-tokens in >99% of the decks. The logical conclusion is, that you cannot play a full information style game, and the team must agree on some sort of convention. Meaning: a certain amount of meta-information is assigned to the clues.

Many players have different kinds of conventions. When different players in the same team assign different meta-information to the same clue, the game becomes unplayable. This is why the BGA table-settings give the option to set a table convention since the end of 2020. Please see this [https://boardgamearena.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=102&t=18031 post] started by [https://boardgamearena.com/player?id=84207926 Romain672]. Ideally, all players adhere to the convention, to avoid miscommunication.

Below, the meta-information of several conventions is explained. In the examples, colours are indicated by their first letter : R - Red -      , Y - Yellow -      , G - Green -      , B - Blue -      , W - White -      , M - Multi-colour -      , P - black Powder -      . For example, Y2 means the card with number 2 and colour yellow.

===Standard convention===
You can assume the following meta-information:
* Every card that gets marked, will be playable at some point.
* A card marked with a number, can be played when all "number-1" cards are played. (This is usually explained as: number-clues mean that these cards should be saved and played later on in the game. It is custom to play saved cards from oldest to newest.)
* A colour-clue means that the newest, previously unmarked card, is the next playable card in the sequence.
* The oldest, unmarked card is safe to discard. (Obviously, if a player has a card that he is sure he will never be able to play, for example a card on which is marked as blue when the blue pile has already been completed, such card must be discarded in priority.)

Clues you should avoid giving (bad clues):
* Giving a clue that marks 0 new cards.
* Give a clue that tells a lie (does not conform to the meta-information above).
* As a special remark: don't mark useless, or duplicate cards. So if you have a saved 4, you are forbidden from marking 4s, unless you are sure you are not holding a copy of that 4.

Sometimes, a "bad" clue can't be avoided. For example, when you need to save a unique 3 (using a number-clue) to avoid it being discarded. But you accidentally mark a useless card. Or if you are forced to give a colour-clue from a flamboyant, and you use it to mark 0 new cards.

When a lie has been told, it needs to be corrected. A correction-clue can never mean "play", it can only mean "discard".

Example 1:
new -> old
P1: R1, Y1, G1, B1, W1
P2: R2, Y4, R3, B3, G'''5'''
P3: G4, Y1, R4, Y3, Y2

Table: R1, Y5, G1, B3, W4

It's P1's turn, and P2 knows his oldest card is 5.
P1 will give R-clue to P2. This will tell P2, that the newest card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be R2), and that the other red can be R3, R4, or R5 (because it must be playable at some later point in the game).

Example 2:
new -> old
P1: R1, Y1, G1, B1, W1
P2: W5, Y4, '''R'''3, B3, G'''5'''
P3: W2, G4, Y1, R4, Y3

Table: R2, Y5, G1, B3, W4

It is P1's turn again, and P2 knows his oldest card is 5, and his middle card is R.
P1 will give R-clue to P3. This will tell P3, that his middle card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be R4, because R3 is already marked). This will give P2 the meta-information that his saved red card, is R3. (This particular move is sometimes called prompting, and is a common way to allow a card that is saved by colour to get played without re-cluing it.)

Example 3:
new -> old
P1: R1, Y1, G1, B1, W1
P2: R3, Y4, R'''2''', B3, G5
P3: G4, Y1, R4, Y3, Y2

Table: R1, Y5, G0, B3, W4

It is P1's turn, and P2 knows his middle card is 2.
P1 will give R-clue to P2. This will tell P2 that his newest card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be R3, because R2 is now visible with 100% information).

====''Finesse''====
Finesse is a more complex version of the standard convention. In the finesse convention, the timing of the clue gives you extra information.
You can assume the following meta-information:
* Every card that gets marked, will be playable at some point.
* If the oldest, unmarked card gets marked with a number-clue, then the clue meant "save this/these card(s)". (It is custom to play saved cards from oldest to newest when appropriate.)
* A clue that doesn't mark the oldest card, means that the newest, previously unmarked card, is the next playable card in the sequence.
* The oldest, unmarked card is safe to discard. (Obviously, if a player has a card that he is sure he will never be able to play, for example a card on which is marked as blue when the blue pile has already been completed, such card must be discarded in priority.)
* In order to avoid losing too many good - but not unique - cards, it is necessary to plan ahead who is gonna play and who is gonna discard. It's a good strategy to keep good cards in the game as long as possible - even if they are not yet playable (the other copy of that card might be far down the draw pile).
* If more than 1 person are able to give the same clue, then the last possible person should give that clue. Note: This approach is highly disputed. Many players prefer to play an everyone-is-allowed-to-clue-everything-style in order to achieve a good discard management and not lose nice but unplayable cards too early.
* If a player gets skipped (P1 clues P3, instead of P2; then P2 is skipped), it means either:
*# The skipped player has a card on chop which P1 considers ok to be discarded.
*# The skipped player is forbidden from giving that clue; or
*# The skipped player has something to play.

Clues you should avoid giving (bad clues):
* Giving a clue that marks 0 new cards.
* Give a clue that tells a lie (does not conform to the meta-information above).
* As a special remark: don't mark useless, or duplicate cards. So if you have a saved 4, you are forbidden from marking 4s, unless you are sure you are not holding a copy of that 4. (Exceptions remain: circumstances might make it a good move for you to do it anyway. Maybe because others are also "forbidden" to clue that card or because others can't see why it is important to get it clued right now to not lose a card that's following it)

Special interpretation for play-clues:
* When receiving a clue for the "next playable card in the sequence", the linking cards are not limited to already marked cards (like in standard convention). The newest, unmarked cards in every player's hand should be considered as well.

===== Example =====
new -> old
P1: ??, ??, ??, ??, ??
P2: B1, Y5, B3, W1, W2
P3: R5, R2, B2, G2, Y2

Table: R0, Y0, G0, B0, W0

P1 gives B-clue to P3. This gives the information that B2 is the next playable card in the sequence, and that P2 is either not allowed to give B-clue, or has something to play. Since P2 has no marked cards, he was not blocked from giving B-clue, so he must have something to play. This something, must be the missing link (B1, to enable B2) that makes B2 the next playable card. Since there is no logical (marked) card that could be B1, P2 must assume his newest, unmarked card is B1 and blind-plays this card.

===== Example of reversed finesse =====
new -> old
P1: ??, ??, ??, ??, ??
P2: R5, R2, B2, G2, Y2
P3: B1, Y5, B3, W1, W2

Table: R0, Y0, G0, B0, W0

P1 gives B-clue to P2. This gives the information that B2 is the next playable card in the sequence. P2 sees that the newest, unmarked card in the hand of P3 is of the same colour (blue) AND playable now. P2 concludes it is a finesse, with the players in reversed order, so his blue card must be B2.

===== Example of a bluff =====

new -> old
P1: ??, ??, ??, ??, ??
P2: W1, Y5, B3, W1, W2
P3: R5, R2, B2, G2, Y2

Table: R0, Y0, G0, B0, W0

P1 gives B-clue to P3. This gives the information that B2 is the next playable card in the sequence, and that P2 is either not allowed to give B-clue, or has something to play. Since P2 has no marked cards, he was not blocked from giving B-clue, so he must have something to play. This something, must be the missing link (B1, to enable B2) that makes B2 the next playable card. Since there is no logical (marked) card that could be B1, P2 must assume his newest, unmarked card is B1 and blind-plays this card.

However, at this point the "lie" is revealed (because the colour of the played card does NOT match the colour of the finesse-clue). The blind-played card is NOT B1, but W1. P3, upto this point, was thinking he had B1. The blind-play of P2 gives him extra information: his blue card is in fact B2.

==== ''Off discard'' ====
It happens that in his turn a player no longer has a clue token and that a card must absolutely be played, it is then possible for him to discard another card than his card furthest to the right. This move tells the next player to play the card in the same position as the one that was discarded.

Example: it's player 1's turn, there are no more clue tokens, a 1B has already been played and a 2B card has already been discarded (in bold the clues known by the players):

#a? b? c? d? e?
#4Y 5R 2R 2B 2'''G'''
#2G 1'''B''' 5Y 3'''B''' 3W

Player 1 discards card d? instead of the e? card. This indicates to the player that he must play his card in the same position (therefore 2B), which avoids losing it and thus condemning the blue pile.

This movement is risky because the discarded card can be important or even blocking for the rest of the game. This movement should therefore only be used if there is no other solution.
It is up to the other players to make sure, before leaving a player without a clue token, that the card he could discard to give this clue is not essential for the rest of the game.

=== Hat-guessing ===

See https://github.com/hanabi/hanabi.github.io/blob/main/misc/hat-guessing.md.

=== Logical Leftism ===

See http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/basics-level-1-a117610126 and http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/logical-leftism-in-a-nutshell-a163408102.

=== Closest Friend ===

TODO

=== Secret convention ===

TODO

=== Conventional Leftism ===

http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/ll-vs-cl-the-differences-a132077536 gives some clues, but doesn't explain Conventional Leftism from first principles.

=== Chop-focus ===

TODO

Gamehelphanabi

2021-06-21T13:56:48Z

Silene: /* Finesse */

== Introduction ==
Hanabi is a cooperative game. Your goal, as a team, is to build a fabulous fireworks show. You do this by playing the cards in the correct order. However, you cannot see your own cards; you can only see the cards of your team mates.

'''Final Score Ratings'''

{| class="wikitable"
|-
!Points
!Overall impression
|-
|5 or less
|horrible, booed by the crowd...
|-
|6-10
|mediocre, just a spattering of applause.
|-
|11-15
|honourable, but will not be remembered for very long...
|-
|16-20
|excellent, crowd pleasing.
|-
|21-24
|amazing, will be remembered for a very long time!
|-
|25
|legendary, everyone left speechless, stars in their eyes
|}

== Card distribution ==
In a game of Hanabi on NORMAL DIFFICULTY, the deck contains 50 cards. Each has exactly one colour: either Red, Yellow, Green, Blue, or White.

There are 10 cards in each colour:
* three 1s
* two 2s
* two 3s
* two 4s
* one 5

===Multicolour cards===
There are three variants that add a 6th colour: the multicolour.

# TRICKY DIFFICULTY adds 10 multicolour cards to the normal game. These cards get marked by a separate multicolour clue.
# HARD DIFFICULTY adds '''5''' multicolour cards to the normal game: one of each number. These cards get marked by a separate multicolour clue.
# VERY DIFFICULT DIFFICULTY adds 10 multicolour cards to the normal game. These cards get marked by ANY colour clue.

== Gameplay ==
You each take turns. During a turn, a player may take one (1) of three actions. After your action, the turn ends and it is the next player's turn.

The game can end in several ways:

#All cards have been drawn from the deck. After this happens, everybody gets 1 more turn. The game ends with the score at the last turn.
#Your team played all possible cards. In this case, the game ends immediately and you receive the maximum possible score.
#Your team made three mistakes that caused misfires. In this case, you lose the game and get negative ten (-10) points.
#Your team 'abandons' the game. Although discouraged, you receive zero (0) points.

== Turn ==
During your turn, you have one (1) action. You can choose to do one of the following:

#'''Give a colour or number clue to a teammate:''' This costs one clue-token (-1). You cannot give a clue if there are zero (0) clue-tokens left. When you give a clue, you must indicate ALL cards of a certain colour, or ALL cards of a certain number.
#'''Play a card:''' When a card is played, it is evaluated. If the card fits in one of sequences, it is placed in the appropriate colour stack on the table. If it does not, it is placed in the discard pile and the team gets a misfire-token.
#'''Discard a card:''' When you discard, the card is placed in the discard pile and you get a clue-token (+1). Note: cards on the discard pile are out of the game and can never return.

When you remove a card from your hand, by either playing or discarding, at the end of your turn, you draw a new card.

== Options ==

=== Black Powder ===

* You may not give clues regarding the colour black.
* Black cards must be played in reverse order, from 5 to 1.
* In the deck there are three black 5s, two black 4s, two black 3s, two black 2s, and one black 1.

=== Five Flamboyants ===

After playing the last card of a colour, randomly select one of the following bonuses for immediate use:

* Gain a clue token.
* Gain a clue token and recover a life.
* Give a clue regarding a colour.
* Give a clue regarding a number.
* Shuffle a discarded card into the deck.
* Play a discarded card, if possible.

== Lingo ==
When you play with others, certain words are used to describe certain objects or situations. Here is a short list.

*'''MARKED''': A card that is highlighted by a clue.
*'''UNMARKED''': A card that is not clued.
*'''CHOP''': The oldest, unmarked card. The card that you have no information on and will chop from your hand.
*'''DRAW''': The newest, unmarked card. The card that you have no information on and was freshly drawn.
*'''TO BOMB''': A play that causes the third misfire-token. Sometimes called '''EXPLOSION'''
*'''UNIQUE''': A card that has no copy (left) in the deck.
*'''DOUBLE DISCARD''': Discarding the (usually CHOP) card when it can be Unique (or the last copy of the card in the discard pile).
*'''DOUBLE SAVE''': To mark a card that is useless, because the copy of the card is already played, or marked.
*'''STRATEGY''': A set of rules / guidelines / conventions on how to interpret actions by players (including spending of clue-tokens).

== ELO rating ==
If you are playing with ELO rating on, your ELO may be changed at the end of the game.

Here is how it works:

#Every player on the team is temporarily considered as having the average ELO rating of the team.
#The system will generate a bot associated with the score your team has achieved (let’s call it '''Hanabot'''). Hanabot’s ELO rating depends on the variant you are playing (50 cards, 60 cards, 60 cards multicolor), the number of players on the team and, most importantly, your team's score. All Hanabot’s ELO ratings have been set by an experienced player, they are not random or simply proportional to the score/number of players.
#Your team (actually your team's average ELO) will now compete against Hanabot. The system will calculate your team’s ELO gain/loss as though your team had tied with Hanabot.

If your score is below 18 (50-card game) or below 21 (60-card game), Hanabot's ELO is always 1000.

<code>
You can find all bots' ELO ratings here: http://forum.boardgamearena.com/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=4814

The 55-card variant (50 cards + 1 of each value in the sixth color) cannot be played with ELO rating on. This is because this variant is highly dependent on draw and a team’s score may not always reflect the players’ skills.

If you achieve the perfect score and this should cost you ELO points, you will be considered as having beaten the bot associated with the score, so that you lose no ELO points.
</code> 
To be confirmed: I think the ELO-system has had an overhaul.

== About "cheating" ==
In the "real life Hanabi", you can talk. That's why we chose to let the chat open for the online version.

As a consequence, it is very easy to cheat at Hanabi. However, as you can imagine, cheating is very stupid and has no interest... except for ELO boosting. This is why there is no international ranking for this game (ie: best player, second best player) and no trophies associated to it.

==CONVENTIONS==
If you want to play "full information" style, meaning that you wait until you know both the colour and number of a card before you play it, you will likely be short on clue-tokens in >99% of the decks. The logical conclusion is, that you cannot play a full information style game, and the team must agree on some sort of convention. Meaning: a certain amount of meta-information is assigned to the clues.

Many players have different kinds of conventions. When different players in the same team assign different meta-information to the same clue, the game becomes unplayable. This is why the BGA table-settings give the option to set a table convention since the end of 2020. Please see this [https://boardgamearena.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=102&t=18031 post] started by [https://boardgamearena.com/player?id=84207926 Romain672]. Ideally, all players adhere to the convention, to avoid miscommunication.

Below, the meta-information of several conventions is explained. In the examples, colours are indicated by their first letter : R - Red -      , Y - Yellow -      , G - Green -      , B - Blue -      , W - White -      , M - Multi-colour -      , P - black Powder -      . For example, Y2 means the card with number 2 and colour yellow.

===Standard convention===
You can assume the following meta-information:
* Every card that gets marked, will be playable at some point.
* A card marked with a number, can be played when all "number-1" cards are played. (This is usually explained as: number-clues mean that these cards should be saved and played later on in the game. It is custom to play saved cards from oldest to newest.)
* A colour-clue means that the newest, previously unmarked card, is the next playable card in the sequence.
* The oldest, unmarked card is safe to discard. (Obviously, if a player has a card that he is sure he will never be able to play, for example a card on which is marked as blue when the blue pile has already been completed, such card must be discarded in priority.)

Clues you should avoid giving (bad clues):
* Giving a clue that marks 0 new cards.
* Give a clue that tells a lie (does not conform to the meta-information above).
* As a special remark: don't mark useless, or duplicate cards. So if you have a saved 4, you are forbidden from marking 4s, unless you are sure you are not holding a copy of that 4.

Sometimes, a "bad" clue can't be avoided. For example, when you need to save a unique 3 (using a number-clue) to avoid it being discarded. But you accidentally mark a useless card. Or if you are forced to give a colour-clue from a flamboyant, and you use it to mark 0 new cards.

When a lie has been told, it needs to be corrected. A correction-clue can never mean "play", it can only mean "discard".

Example 1:
new -> old
P1: R1, Y1, G1, B1, W1
P2: R2, Y4, R3, B3, G'''5'''
P3: G4, Y1, R4, Y3, Y2

Table: R1, Y5, G1, B3, W4

It's P1's turn, and P2 knows his oldest card is 5.
P1 will give R-clue to P2. This will tell P2, that the newest card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be R2), and that the other red can be R3, R4, or R5 (because it must be playable at some later point in the game).

Example 2:
new -> old
P1: R1, Y1, G1, B1, W1
P2: W5, Y4, '''R'''3, B3, G'''5'''
P3: W2, G4, Y1, R4, Y3

Table: R2, Y5, G1, B3, W4

It is P1's turn again, and P2 knows his oldest card is 5, and his middle card is R.
P1 will give R-clue to P3. This will tell P3, that his middle card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be R4, because R3 is already marked). This will give P2 the meta-information that his saved red card, is R3. (This particular move is sometimes called prompting, and is a common way to allow a card that is saved by colour to get played without re-cluing it.)

Example 3:
new -> old
P1: R1, Y1, G1, B1, W1
P2: R3, Y4, R'''2''', B3, G5
P3: G4, Y1, R4, Y3, Y2

Table: R1, Y5, G0, B3, W4

It is P1's turn, and P2 knows his middle card is 2.
P1 will give R-clue to P2. This will tell P2 that his newest card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be R3, because R2 is now visible with 100% information).

====''Finesse''====
Finesse is a more complex version of the standard convention. In the finesse convention, the timing of the clue gives you extra information.
You can assume the following meta-information:
* Every card that gets marked, will be playable at some point.
* If the oldest, unmarked card gets marked with a number-clue, then the clue meant "save this/these card(s)". (It is custom to play saved cards from oldest to newest when appropriate.)
* A clue that doesn't mark the oldest card, means that the newest, previously unmarked card, is the next playable card in the sequence.
* The oldest, unmarked card is safe to discard. (Obviously, if a player has a card that he is sure he will never be able to play, for example a card on which is marked as blue when the blue pile has already been completed, such card must be discarded in priority.)
* In order to avoid losing too many good - but not unique - cards, it is necessary to plan ahead who is gonna play and who is gonna discard. It's a good strategy to keep good cards in the game as long as possible - even if they are not yet playable (the other copy of that card might be far down the draw pile).
* If more than 1 person are able to give the same clue, then the last possible person should give that clue. Note: This approach is highly disputed. Many players prefer to play an everyone-is-allowed-to-clue-everything-style in order to achieve a good discard management and not lose nice but unplayable cards too early.
* If a player gets skipped (P1 clues P3, instead of P2; then P2 is skipped), it means either:
*# The skipped player has a card on chop which P1 considers ok to be discarded.
*# The skipped player is forbidden from giving that clue; or
*# The skipped player has something to play.

Clues you should avoid giving (bad clues):
* Giving a clue that marks 0 new cards.
* Give a clue that tells a lie (does not conform to the meta-information above).
* As a special remark: don't mark useless, or duplicate cards. So if you have a saved 4, you are forbidden from marking 4s, unless you are sure you are not holding a copy of that 4.

Special interpretation for play-clues:
* When receiving a clue for the "next playable card in the sequence", the linking cards are not limited to already marked cards (like in standard convention). The newest, unmarked cards in every player's hand should be considered as well.

===== Example =====
new -> old
P1: ??, ??, ??, ??, ??
P2: B1, Y5, B3, W1, W2
P3: R5, R2, B2, G2, Y2

Table: R0, Y0, G0, B0, W0

P1 gives B-clue to P3. This gives the information that B2 is the next playable card in the sequence, and that P2 is either not allowed to give B-clue, or has something to play. Since P2 has no marked cards, he was not blocked from giving B-clue, so he must have something to play. This something, must be the missing link (B1, to enable B2) that makes B2 the next playable card. Since there is no logical (marked) card that could be B1, P2 must assume his newest, unmarked card is B1 and blind-plays this card.

===== Example of reversed finesse =====
new -> old
P1: ??, ??, ??, ??, ??
P2: R5, R2, B2, G2, Y2
P3: B1, Y5, B3, W1, W2

Table: R0, Y0, G0, B0, W0

P1 gives B-clue to P2. This gives the information that B2 is the next playable card in the sequence. P2 sees that the newest, unmarked card in the hand of P3 is of the same colour (blue) AND playable now. P2 concludes it is a finesse, with the players in reversed order, so his blue card must be B2.

===== Example of a bluff =====

new -> old
P1: ??, ??, ??, ??, ??
P2: W1, Y5, B3, W1, W2
P3: R5, R2, B2, G2, Y2

Table: R0, Y0, G0, B0, W0

P1 gives B-clue to P3. This gives the information that B2 is the next playable card in the sequence, and that P2 is either not allowed to give B-clue, or has something to play. Since P2 has no marked cards, he was not blocked from giving B-clue, so he must have something to play. This something, must be the missing link (B1, to enable B2) that makes B2 the next playable card. Since there is no logical (marked) card that could be B1, P2 must assume his newest, unmarked card is B1 and blind-plays this card.

However, at this point the "lie" is revealed (because the colour of the played card does NOT match the colour of the finesse-clue). The blind-played card is NOT B1, but W1. P3, upto this point, was thinking he had B1. The blind-play of P2 gives him extra information: his blue card is in fact B2.

==== ''Off discard'' ====
It happens that in his turn a player no longer has a clue token and that a card must absolutely be played, it is then possible for him to discard another card than his card furthest to the right. This move tells the next player to play the card in the same position as the one that was discarded.

Example: it's player 1's turn, there are no more clue tokens, a 1B has already been played and a 2B card has already been discarded (in bold the clues known by the players):

#a? b? c? d? e?
#4Y 5R 2R 2B 2'''G'''
#2G 1'''B''' 5Y 3'''B''' 3W

Player 1 discards card d? instead of the e? card. This indicates to the player that he must play his card in the same position (therefore 2B), which avoids losing it and thus condemning the blue pile.

This movement is risky because the discarded card can be important or even blocking for the rest of the game. This movement should therefore only be used if there is no other solution.
It is up to the other players to make sure, before leaving a player without a clue token, that the card he could discard to give this clue is not essential for the rest of the game.

=== Hat-guessing ===

See https://github.com/hanabi/hanabi.github.io/blob/main/misc/hat-guessing.md.

=== Logical Leftism ===

See http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/basics-level-1-a117610126 and http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/logical-leftism-in-a-nutshell-a163408102.

=== Closest Friend ===

TODO

=== Secret convention ===

TODO

=== Conventional Leftism ===

http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/ll-vs-cl-the-differences-a132077536 gives some clues, but doesn't explain Conventional Leftism from first principles.

=== Chop-focus ===

TODO

Gamehelphanabi

2021-06-21T13:53:49Z

Silene: /* Finesse */

== Introduction ==
Hanabi is a cooperative game. Your goal, as a team, is to build a fabulous fireworks show. You do this by playing the cards in the correct order. However, you cannot see your own cards; you can only see the cards of your team mates.

'''Final Score Ratings'''

{| class="wikitable"
|-
!Points
!Overall impression
|-
|5 or less
|horrible, booed by the crowd...
|-
|6-10
|mediocre, just a spattering of applause.
|-
|11-15
|honourable, but will not be remembered for very long...
|-
|16-20
|excellent, crowd pleasing.
|-
|21-24
|amazing, will be remembered for a very long time!
|-
|25
|legendary, everyone left speechless, stars in their eyes
|}

== Card distribution ==
In a game of Hanabi on NORMAL DIFFICULTY, the deck contains 50 cards. Each has exactly one colour: either Red, Yellow, Green, Blue, or White.

There are 10 cards in each colour:
* three 1s
* two 2s
* two 3s
* two 4s
* one 5

===Multicolour cards===
There are three variants that add a 6th colour: the multicolour.

# TRICKY DIFFICULTY adds 10 multicolour cards to the normal game. These cards get marked by a separate multicolour clue.
# HARD DIFFICULTY adds '''5''' multicolour cards to the normal game: one of each number. These cards get marked by a separate multicolour clue.
# VERY DIFFICULT DIFFICULTY adds 10 multicolour cards to the normal game. These cards get marked by ANY colour clue.

== Gameplay ==
You each take turns. During a turn, a player may take one (1) of three actions. After your action, the turn ends and it is the next player's turn.

The game can end in several ways:

#All cards have been drawn from the deck. After this happens, everybody gets 1 more turn. The game ends with the score at the last turn.
#Your team played all possible cards. In this case, the game ends immediately and you receive the maximum possible score.
#Your team made three mistakes that caused misfires. In this case, you lose the game and get negative ten (-10) points.
#Your team 'abandons' the game. Although discouraged, you receive zero (0) points.

== Turn ==
During your turn, you have one (1) action. You can choose to do one of the following:

#'''Give a colour or number clue to a teammate:''' This costs one clue-token (-1). You cannot give a clue if there are zero (0) clue-tokens left. When you give a clue, you must indicate ALL cards of a certain colour, or ALL cards of a certain number.
#'''Play a card:''' When a card is played, it is evaluated. If the card fits in one of sequences, it is placed in the appropriate colour stack on the table. If it does not, it is placed in the discard pile and the team gets a misfire-token.
#'''Discard a card:''' When you discard, the card is placed in the discard pile and you get a clue-token (+1). Note: cards on the discard pile are out of the game and can never return.

When you remove a card from your hand, by either playing or discarding, at the end of your turn, you draw a new card.

== Options ==

=== Black Powder ===

* You may not give clues regarding the colour black.
* Black cards must be played in reverse order, from 5 to 1.
* In the deck there are three black 5s, two black 4s, two black 3s, two black 2s, and one black 1.

=== Five Flamboyants ===

After playing the last card of a colour, randomly select one of the following bonuses for immediate use:

* Gain a clue token.
* Gain a clue token and recover a life.
* Give a clue regarding a colour.
* Give a clue regarding a number.
* Shuffle a discarded card into the deck.
* Play a discarded card, if possible.

== Lingo ==
When you play with others, certain words are used to describe certain objects or situations. Here is a short list.

*'''MARKED''': A card that is highlighted by a clue.
*'''UNMARKED''': A card that is not clued.
*'''CHOP''': The oldest, unmarked card. The card that you have no information on and will chop from your hand.
*'''DRAW''': The newest, unmarked card. The card that you have no information on and was freshly drawn.
*'''TO BOMB''': A play that causes the third misfire-token. Sometimes called '''EXPLOSION'''
*'''UNIQUE''': A card that has no copy (left) in the deck.
*'''DOUBLE DISCARD''': Discarding the (usually CHOP) card when it can be Unique (or the last copy of the card in the discard pile).
*'''DOUBLE SAVE''': To mark a card that is useless, because the copy of the card is already played, or marked.
*'''STRATEGY''': A set of rules / guidelines / conventions on how to interpret actions by players (including spending of clue-tokens).

== ELO rating ==
If you are playing with ELO rating on, your ELO may be changed at the end of the game.

Here is how it works:

#Every player on the team is temporarily considered as having the average ELO rating of the team.
#The system will generate a bot associated with the score your team has achieved (let’s call it '''Hanabot'''). Hanabot’s ELO rating depends on the variant you are playing (50 cards, 60 cards, 60 cards multicolor), the number of players on the team and, most importantly, your team's score. All Hanabot’s ELO ratings have been set by an experienced player, they are not random or simply proportional to the score/number of players.
#Your team (actually your team's average ELO) will now compete against Hanabot. The system will calculate your team’s ELO gain/loss as though your team had tied with Hanabot.

If your score is below 18 (50-card game) or below 21 (60-card game), Hanabot's ELO is always 1000.

<code>
You can find all bots' ELO ratings here: http://forum.boardgamearena.com/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=4814

The 55-card variant (50 cards + 1 of each value in the sixth color) cannot be played with ELO rating on. This is because this variant is highly dependent on draw and a team’s score may not always reflect the players’ skills.

If you achieve the perfect score and this should cost you ELO points, you will be considered as having beaten the bot associated with the score, so that you lose no ELO points.
</code> 
To be confirmed: I think the ELO-system has had an overhaul.

== About "cheating" ==
In the "real life Hanabi", you can talk. That's why we chose to let the chat open for the online version.

As a consequence, it is very easy to cheat at Hanabi. However, as you can imagine, cheating is very stupid and has no interest... except for ELO boosting. This is why there is no international ranking for this game (ie: best player, second best player) and no trophies associated to it.

==CONVENTIONS==
If you want to play "full information" style, meaning that you wait until you know both the colour and number of a card before you play it, you will likely be short on clue-tokens in >99% of the decks. The logical conclusion is, that you cannot play a full information style game, and the team must agree on some sort of convention. Meaning: a certain amount of meta-information is assigned to the clues.

Many players have different kinds of conventions. When different players in the same team assign different meta-information to the same clue, the game becomes unplayable. This is why the BGA table-settings give the option to set a table convention since the end of 2020. Please see this [https://boardgamearena.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=102&t=18031 post] started by [https://boardgamearena.com/player?id=84207926 Romain672]. Ideally, all players adhere to the convention, to avoid miscommunication.

Below, the meta-information of several conventions is explained. In the examples, colours are indicated by their first letter : R - Red -      , Y - Yellow -      , G - Green -      , B - Blue -      , W - White -      , M - Multi-colour -      , P - black Powder -      . For example, Y2 means the card with number 2 and colour yellow.

===Standard convention===
You can assume the following meta-information:
* Every card that gets marked, will be playable at some point.
* A card marked with a number, can be played when all "number-1" cards are played. (This is usually explained as: number-clues mean that these cards should be saved and played later on in the game. It is custom to play saved cards from oldest to newest.)
* A colour-clue means that the newest, previously unmarked card, is the next playable card in the sequence.
* The oldest, unmarked card is safe to discard. (Obviously, if a player has a card that he is sure he will never be able to play, for example a card on which is marked as blue when the blue pile has already been completed, such card must be discarded in priority.)

Clues you should avoid giving (bad clues):
* Giving a clue that marks 0 new cards.
* Give a clue that tells a lie (does not conform to the meta-information above).
* As a special remark: don't mark useless, or duplicate cards. So if you have a saved 4, you are forbidden from marking 4s, unless you are sure you are not holding a copy of that 4.

Sometimes, a "bad" clue can't be avoided. For example, when you need to save a unique 3 (using a number-clue) to avoid it being discarded. But you accidentally mark a useless card. Or if you are forced to give a colour-clue from a flamboyant, and you use it to mark 0 new cards.

When a lie has been told, it needs to be corrected. A correction-clue can never mean "play", it can only mean "discard".

Example 1:
new -> old
P1: R1, Y1, G1, B1, W1
P2: R2, Y4, R3, B3, G'''5'''
P3: G4, Y1, R4, Y3, Y2

Table: R1, Y5, G1, B3, W4

It's P1's turn, and P2 knows his oldest card is 5.
P1 will give R-clue to P2. This will tell P2, that the newest card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be R2), and that the other red can be R3, R4, or R5 (because it must be playable at some later point in the game).

Example 2:
new -> old
P1: R1, Y1, G1, B1, W1
P2: W5, Y4, '''R'''3, B3, G'''5'''
P3: W2, G4, Y1, R4, Y3

Table: R2, Y5, G1, B3, W4

It is P1's turn again, and P2 knows his oldest card is 5, and his middle card is R.
P1 will give R-clue to P3. This will tell P3, that his middle card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be R4, because R3 is already marked). This will give P2 the meta-information that his saved red card, is R3. (This particular move is sometimes called prompting, and is a common way to allow a card that is saved by colour to get played without re-cluing it.)

Example 3:
new -> old
P1: R1, Y1, G1, B1, W1
P2: R3, Y4, R'''2''', B3, G5
P3: G4, Y1, R4, Y3, Y2

Table: R1, Y5, G0, B3, W4

It is P1's turn, and P2 knows his middle card is 2.
P1 will give R-clue to P2. This will tell P2 that his newest card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be R3, because R2 is now visible with 100% information).

====''Finesse''====
Finesse is a more complex version of the standard convention. In the finesse convention, the timing of the clue gives you extra information.
You can assume the following meta-information:
* Every card that gets marked, will be playable at some point.
* If the oldest, unmarked card gets marked with a number-clue, then the clue meant "save this/these card(s)". (It is custom to play saved cards from oldest to newest when appropriate.)
* A clue that doesn't mark the oldest card, means that the newest, previously unmarked card, is the next playable card in the sequence.
* The oldest, unmarked card is safe to discard. (Obviously, if a player has a card that he is sure he will never be able to play, for example a card on which is marked as blue when the blue pile has already been completed, such card must be discarded in priority.)
* In order to avoid losing too many good - but not unique - cards, it is necessary to plan ahead who is gonna play and who is gonna discard. It's a good strategy to keep good cards in the game as long as possible - even if they are not yet playable (the other copy of that card might be far down the draw pile).
* If more than 1 person are able to give the same clue, then the last possible person should give that clue.
* If a player gets skipped (P1 clues P3, instead of P2; then P2 is skipped), it means either:
*# The skipped player has a card on chop which P1 considers ok to be discarded.
*# The skipped player is forbidden from giving that clue; or
*# The skipped player has something to play.

Clues you should avoid giving (bad clues):
* Giving a clue that marks 0 new cards.
* Give a clue that tells a lie (does not conform to the meta-information above).
* As a special remark: don't mark useless, or duplicate cards. So if you have a saved 4, you are forbidden from marking 4s, unless you are sure you are not holding a copy of that 4.

Special interpretation for play-clues:
* When receiving a clue for the "next playable card in the sequence", the linking cards are not limited to already marked cards (like in standard convention). The newest, unmarked cards in every player's hand should be considered as well.

===== Example =====
new -> old
P1: ??, ??, ??, ??, ??
P2: B1, Y5, B3, W1, W2
P3: R5, R2, B2, G2, Y2

Table: R0, Y0, G0, B0, W0

P1 gives B-clue to P3. This gives the information that B2 is the next playable card in the sequence, and that P2 is either not allowed to give B-clue, or has something to play. Since P2 has no marked cards, he was not blocked from giving B-clue, so he must have something to play. This something, must be the missing link (B1, to enable B2) that makes B2 the next playable card. Since there is no logical (marked) card that could be B1, P2 must assume his newest, unmarked card is B1 and blind-plays this card.

===== Example of reversed finesse =====
new -> old
P1: ??, ??, ??, ??, ??
P2: R5, R2, B2, G2, Y2
P3: B1, Y5, B3, W1, W2

Table: R0, Y0, G0, B0, W0

P1 gives B-clue to P2. This gives the information that B2 is the next playable card in the sequence. P2 sees that the newest, unmarked card in the hand of P3 is of the same colour (blue) AND playable now. P2 concludes it is a finesse, with the players in reversed order, so his blue card must be B2.

===== Example of a bluff =====

new -> old
P1: ??, ??, ??, ??, ??
P2: W1, Y5, B3, W1, W2
P3: R5, R2, B2, G2, Y2

Table: R0, Y0, G0, B0, W0

P1 gives B-clue to P3. This gives the information that B2 is the next playable card in the sequence, and that P2 is either not allowed to give B-clue, or has something to play. Since P2 has no marked cards, he was not blocked from giving B-clue, so he must have something to play. This something, must be the missing link (B1, to enable B2) that makes B2 the next playable card. Since there is no logical (marked) card that could be B1, P2 must assume his newest, unmarked card is B1 and blind-plays this card.

However, at this point the "lie" is revealed (because the colour of the played card does NOT match the colour of the finesse-clue). The blind-played card is NOT B1, but W1. P3, upto this point, was thinking he had B1. The blind-play of P2 gives him extra information: his blue card is in fact B2.

==== ''Off discard'' ====
It happens that in his turn a player no longer has a clue token and that a card must absolutely be played, it is then possible for him to discard another card than his card furthest to the right. This move tells the next player to play the card in the same position as the one that was discarded.

Example: it's player 1's turn, there are no more clue tokens, a 1B has already been played and a 2B card has already been discarded (in bold the clues known by the players):

#a? b? c? d? e?
#4Y 5R 2R 2B 2'''G'''
#2G 1'''B''' 5Y 3'''B''' 3W

Player 1 discards card d? instead of the e? card. This indicates to the player that he must play his card in the same position (therefore 2B), which avoids losing it and thus condemning the blue pile.

This movement is risky because the discarded card can be important or even blocking for the rest of the game. This movement should therefore only be used if there is no other solution.
It is up to the other players to make sure, before leaving a player without a clue token, that the card he could discard to give this clue is not essential for the rest of the game.

=== Hat-guessing ===

See https://github.com/hanabi/hanabi.github.io/blob/main/misc/hat-guessing.md.

=== Logical Leftism ===

See http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/basics-level-1-a117610126 and http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/logical-leftism-in-a-nutshell-a163408102.

=== Closest Friend ===

TODO

=== Secret convention ===

TODO

=== Conventional Leftism ===

http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/ll-vs-cl-the-differences-a132077536 gives some clues, but doesn't explain Conventional Leftism from first principles.

=== Chop-focus ===

TODO

Gamehelphanabi

2021-06-21T13:36:25Z

Silene: /* Finesse */

== Introduction ==
Hanabi is a cooperative game. Your goal, as a team, is to build a fabulous fireworks show. You do this by playing the cards in the correct order. However, you cannot see your own cards; you can only see the cards of your team mates.

'''Final Score Ratings'''

{| class="wikitable"
|-
!Points
!Overall impression
|-
|5 or less
|horrible, booed by the crowd...
|-
|6-10
|mediocre, just a spattering of applause.
|-
|11-15
|honourable, but will not be remembered for very long...
|-
|16-20
|excellent, crowd pleasing.
|-
|21-24
|amazing, will be remembered for a very long time!
|-
|25
|legendary, everyone left speechless, stars in their eyes
|}

== Card distribution ==
In a game of Hanabi on NORMAL DIFFICULTY, the deck contains 50 cards. Each has exactly one colour: either Red, Yellow, Green, Blue, or White.

There are 10 cards in each colour:
* three 1s
* two 2s
* two 3s
* two 4s
* one 5

===Multicolour cards===
There are three variants that add a 6th colour: the multicolour.

# TRICKY DIFFICULTY adds 10 multicolour cards to the normal game. These cards get marked by a separate multicolour clue.
# HARD DIFFICULTY adds '''5''' multicolour cards to the normal game: one of each number. These cards get marked by a separate multicolour clue.
# VERY DIFFICULT DIFFICULTY adds 10 multicolour cards to the normal game. These cards get marked by ANY colour clue.

== Gameplay ==
You each take turns. During a turn, a player may take one (1) of three actions. After your action, the turn ends and it is the next player's turn.

The game can end in several ways:

#All cards have been drawn from the deck. After this happens, everybody gets 1 more turn. The game ends with the score at the last turn.
#Your team played all possible cards. In this case, the game ends immediately and you receive the maximum possible score.
#Your team made three mistakes that caused misfires. In this case, you lose the game and get negative ten (-10) points.
#Your team 'abandons' the game. Although discouraged, you receive zero (0) points.

== Turn ==
During your turn, you have one (1) action. You can choose to do one of the following:

#'''Give a colour or number clue to a teammate:''' This costs one clue-token (-1). You cannot give a clue if there are zero (0) clue-tokens left. When you give a clue, you must indicate ALL cards of a certain colour, or ALL cards of a certain number.
#'''Play a card:''' When a card is played, it is evaluated. If the card fits in one of sequences, it is placed in the appropriate colour stack on the table. If it does not, it is placed in the discard pile and the team gets a misfire-token.
#'''Discard a card:''' When you discard, the card is placed in the discard pile and you get a clue-token (+1). Note: cards on the discard pile are out of the game and can never return.

When you remove a card from your hand, by either playing or discarding, at the end of your turn, you draw a new card.

== Options ==

=== Black Powder ===

* You may not give clues regarding the colour black.
* Black cards must be played in reverse order, from 5 to 1.
* In the deck there are three black 5s, two black 4s, two black 3s, two black 2s, and one black 1.

=== Five Flamboyants ===

After playing the last card of a colour, randomly select one of the following bonuses for immediate use:

* Gain a clue token.
* Gain a clue token and recover a life.
* Give a clue regarding a colour.
* Give a clue regarding a number.
* Shuffle a discarded card into the deck.
* Play a discarded card, if possible.

== Lingo ==
When you play with others, certain words are used to describe certain objects or situations. Here is a short list.

*'''MARKED''': A card that is highlighted by a clue.
*'''UNMARKED''': A card that is not clued.
*'''CHOP''': The oldest, unmarked card. The card that you have no information on and will chop from your hand.
*'''DRAW''': The newest, unmarked card. The card that you have no information on and was freshly drawn.
*'''TO BOMB''': A play that causes the third misfire-token. Sometimes called '''EXPLOSION'''
*'''UNIQUE''': A card that has no copy (left) in the deck.
*'''DOUBLE DISCARD''': Discarding the (usually CHOP) card when it can be Unique (or the last copy of the card in the discard pile).
*'''DOUBLE SAVE''': To mark a card that is useless, because the copy of the card is already played, or marked.
*'''STRATEGY''': A set of rules / guidelines / conventions on how to interpret actions by players (including spending of clue-tokens).

== ELO rating ==
If you are playing with ELO rating on, your ELO may be changed at the end of the game.

Here is how it works:

#Every player on the team is temporarily considered as having the average ELO rating of the team.
#The system will generate a bot associated with the score your team has achieved (let’s call it '''Hanabot'''). Hanabot’s ELO rating depends on the variant you are playing (50 cards, 60 cards, 60 cards multicolor), the number of players on the team and, most importantly, your team's score. All Hanabot’s ELO ratings have been set by an experienced player, they are not random or simply proportional to the score/number of players.
#Your team (actually your team's average ELO) will now compete against Hanabot. The system will calculate your team’s ELO gain/loss as though your team had tied with Hanabot.

If your score is below 18 (50-card game) or below 21 (60-card game), Hanabot's ELO is always 1000.

<code>
You can find all bots' ELO ratings here: http://forum.boardgamearena.com/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=4814

The 55-card variant (50 cards + 1 of each value in the sixth color) cannot be played with ELO rating on. This is because this variant is highly dependent on draw and a team’s score may not always reflect the players’ skills.

If you achieve the perfect score and this should cost you ELO points, you will be considered as having beaten the bot associated with the score, so that you lose no ELO points.
</code> 
To be confirmed: I think the ELO-system has had an overhaul.

== About "cheating" ==
In the "real life Hanabi", you can talk. That's why we chose to let the chat open for the online version.

As a consequence, it is very easy to cheat at Hanabi. However, as you can imagine, cheating is very stupid and has no interest... except for ELO boosting. This is why there is no international ranking for this game (ie: best player, second best player) and no trophies associated to it.

==CONVENTIONS==
If you want to play "full information" style, meaning that you wait until you know both the colour and number of a card before you play it, you will likely be short on clue-tokens in >99% of the decks. The logical conclusion is, that you cannot play a full information style game, and the team must agree on some sort of convention. Meaning: a certain amount of meta-information is assigned to the clues.

Many players have different kinds of conventions. When different players in the same team assign different meta-information to the same clue, the game becomes unplayable. This is why the BGA table-settings give the option to set a table convention since the end of 2020. Please see this [https://boardgamearena.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=102&t=18031 post] started by [https://boardgamearena.com/player?id=84207926 Romain672]. Ideally, all players adhere to the convention, to avoid miscommunication.

Below, the meta-information of several conventions is explained. In the examples, colours are indicated by their first letter : R - Red -      , Y - Yellow -      , G - Green -      , B - Blue -      , W - White -      , M - Multi-colour -      , P - black Powder -      . For example, Y2 means the card with number 2 and colour yellow.

===Standard convention===
You can assume the following meta-information:
* Every card that gets marked, will be playable at some point.
* A card marked with a number, can be played when all "number-1" cards are played. (This is usually explained as: number-clues mean that these cards should be saved and played later on in the game. It is custom to play saved cards from oldest to newest.)
* A colour-clue means that the newest, previously unmarked card, is the next playable card in the sequence.
* The oldest, unmarked card is safe to discard. (Obviously, if a player has a card that he is sure he will never be able to play, for example a card on which is marked as blue when the blue pile has already been completed, such card must be discarded in priority.)

Clues you should avoid giving (bad clues):
* Giving a clue that marks 0 new cards.
* Give a clue that tells a lie (does not conform to the meta-information above).
* As a special remark: don't mark useless, or duplicate cards. So if you have a saved 4, you are forbidden from marking 4s, unless you are sure you are not holding a copy of that 4.

Sometimes, a "bad" clue can't be avoided. For example, when you need to save a unique 3 (using a number-clue) to avoid it being discarded. But you accidentally mark a useless card. Or if you are forced to give a colour-clue from a flamboyant, and you use it to mark 0 new cards.

When a lie has been told, it needs to be corrected. A correction-clue can never mean "play", it can only mean "discard".

Example 1:
new -> old
P1: R1, Y1, G1, B1, W1
P2: R2, Y4, R3, B3, G'''5'''
P3: G4, Y1, R4, Y3, Y2

Table: R1, Y5, G1, B3, W4

It's P1's turn, and P2 knows his oldest card is 5.
P1 will give R-clue to P2. This will tell P2, that the newest card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be R2), and that the other red can be R3, R4, or R5 (because it must be playable at some later point in the game).

Example 2:
new -> old
P1: R1, Y1, G1, B1, W1
P2: W5, Y4, '''R'''3, B3, G'''5'''
P3: W2, G4, Y1, R4, Y3

Table: R2, Y5, G1, B3, W4

It is P1's turn again, and P2 knows his oldest card is 5, and his middle card is R.
P1 will give R-clue to P3. This will tell P3, that his middle card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be R4, because R3 is already marked). This will give P2 the meta-information that his saved red card, is R3. (This particular move is sometimes called prompting, and is a common way to allow a card that is saved by colour to get played without re-cluing it.)

Example 3:
new -> old
P1: R1, Y1, G1, B1, W1
P2: R3, Y4, R'''2''', B3, G5
P3: G4, Y1, R4, Y3, Y2

Table: R1, Y5, G0, B3, W4

It is P1's turn, and P2 knows his middle card is 2.
P1 will give R-clue to P2. This will tell P2 that his newest card is the next playable in the sequence (so must be R3, because R2 is now visible with 100% information).

====''Finesse''====
Finesse is a more complex version of the standard convention. In the finesse convention, the timing of the clue gives you extra information.
You can assume the following meta-information:
* Every card that gets marked, will be playable at some point.
* If the oldest, unmarked card gets marked with a number-clue, then the clue meant "save this/these card(s)". (It is custom to play saved cards from oldest to newest when appropriate.)
* A clue that doesn't mark the oldest card, means that the newest, previously unmarked card, is the next playable card in the sequence.
* The oldest, unmarked card is safe to discard. (Obviously, if a player has a card that he is sure he will never be able to play, for example a card on which is marked as blue when the blue pile has already been completed, such card must be discarded in priority.)
* If more than 1 person are able to give the same clue, then the last possible person should give that clue.
* If a player gets skipped (P1 clues P3, instead of P2; then P2 is skipped), it means either:
*# The skipped player has a card on chop which P1 considers ok to be discarded.
*# The skipped player is forbidden from giving that clue; or
*# The skipped player has something to play.

Clues you should avoid giving (bad clues):
* Giving a clue that marks 0 new cards.
* Give a clue that tells a lie (does not conform to the meta-information above).
* As a special remark: don't mark useless, or duplicate cards. So if you have a saved 4, you are forbidden from marking 4s, unless you are sure you are not holding a copy of that 4.

Special interpretation for play-clues:
* When receiving a clue for the "next playable card in the sequence", the linking cards are not limited to already marked cards (like in standard convention). The newest, unmarked cards in every player's hand should be considered as well.

===== Example =====
new -> old
P1: ??, ??, ??, ??, ??
P2: B1, Y5, B3, W1, W2
P3: R5, R2, B2, G2, Y2

Table: R0, Y0, G0, B0, W0

P1 gives B-clue to P3. This gives the information that B2 is the next playable card in the sequence, and that P2 is either not allowed to give B-clue, or has something to play. Since P2 has no marked cards, he was not blocked from giving B-clue, so he must have something to play. This something, must be the missing link (B1, to enable B2) that makes B2 the next playable card. Since there is no logical (marked) card that could be B1, P2 must assume his newest, unmarked card is B1 and blind-plays this card.

===== Example of reversed finesse =====
new -> old
P1: ??, ??, ??, ??, ??
P2: R5, R2, B2, G2, Y2
P3: B1, Y5, B3, W1, W2

Table: R0, Y0, G0, B0, W0

P1 gives B-clue to P2. This gives the information that B2 is the next playable card in the sequence. P2 sees that the newest, unmarked card in the hand of P3 is of the same colour (blue) AND playable now. P2 concludes it is a finesse, with the players in reversed order, so his blue card must be B2.

===== Example of a bluff =====

new -> old
P1: ??, ??, ??, ??, ??
P2: W1, Y5, B3, W1, W2
P3: R5, R2, B2, G2, Y2

Table: R0, Y0, G0, B0, W0

P1 gives B-clue to P3. This gives the information that B2 is the next playable card in the sequence, and that P2 is either not allowed to give B-clue, or has something to play. Since P2 has no marked cards, he was not blocked from giving B-clue, so he must have something to play. This something, must be the missing link (B1, to enable B2) that makes B2 the next playable card. Since there is no logical (marked) card that could be B1, P2 must assume his newest, unmarked card is B1 and blind-plays this card.

However, at this point the "lie" is revealed (because the colour of the played card does NOT match the colour of the finesse-clue). The blind-played card is NOT B1, but W1. P3, upto this point, was thinking he had B1. The blind-play of P2 gives him extra information: his blue card is in fact B2.

==== ''Off discard'' ====
It happens that in his turn a player no longer has a clue token and that a card must absolutely be played, it is then possible for him to discard another card than his card furthest to the right. This move tells the next player to play the card in the same position as the one that was discarded.

Example: it's player 1's turn, there are no more clue tokens, a 1B has already been played and a 2B card has already been discarded (in bold the clues known by the players):

#a? b? c? d? e?
#4Y 5R 2R 2B 2'''G'''
#2G 1'''B''' 5Y 3'''B''' 3W

Player 1 discards card d? instead of the e? card. This indicates to the player that he must play his card in the same position (therefore 2B), which avoids losing it and thus condemning the blue pile.

This movement is risky because the discarded card can be important or even blocking for the rest of the game. This movement should therefore only be used if there is no other solution.
It is up to the other players to make sure, before leaving a player without a clue token, that the card he could discard to give this clue is not essential for the rest of the game.

=== Hat-guessing ===

See https://github.com/hanabi/hanabi.github.io/blob/main/misc/hat-guessing.md.

=== Logical Leftism ===

See http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/basics-level-1-a117610126 and http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/logical-leftism-in-a-nutshell-a163408102.

=== Closest Friend ===

TODO

=== Secret convention ===

TODO

=== Conventional Leftism ===

http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/ll-vs-cl-the-differences-a132077536 gives some clues, but doesn't explain Conventional Leftism from first principles.

=== Chop-focus ===

TODO

Tips hanabi

2016-12-18T21:27:42Z

Silene: Hanabi Strategy guide

This guide is for strategy tips: How to interpret clues, how to give clues, how to decide to play, discard or clue.

== Basics ==

'''1. Basic Rule for Clues:''' '''Every clue given is for either a) save useful card(s) or b) get the clued card played.'''

Most hanabi-players on BGA play by this main rule. So when a clue is given, ask yourself "Is this clue to save something"? If not, it is to get played.
Saving cards is important because there are only 2 cards of each kind (only one of each 5 though). To not get stuck on that color it is urgent to keep the last copy of a card safe (prevent from discarding it).

'''2. Basic Rule for Discarding:''' '''Discard first what you know is useless (like a clued 1 when all 1s are already played). After that: discard your oldest unclued card.'''

On BGA new cards move in on the left side. So you should discard from the right side. Most players will expect you to do so from the beginning even though there is no oldest card among first 4 cards.

'''3. Basic Rule for Playing:''' '''Play the newer clued card'''

When you get multiple cards clued and you can identify it is in fact a clue for play (see Basic Rule 1) - it is more likely that your newer card is the playable card. So most people on BGA expect you to play the clued card on the left. The rest of the cards are just to be kept on your hand.
Beware that there are different approaches and not all players play by this convention

[to be continued...]

== Advanced ==

[to be added...]