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Undo last edit + clarification for discard clue. Note to editors: 'Known trash clue' ≠ 'Discard clue'. Some known trash clues cause plays instead of discards.
 
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This guide is for strategy tips: How to interpret clues, how to give clues, how to decide to play, discard or clue.
==Definitions and Terminology==


== General ==
{|class="wikitable" style="width:auto;text-align:left;" border="2"
On BGA, there is no 1-strategy-to-be-played. However, if people start playing different strategies in 1 game, the game is doomed to fail. That is why communication in advance is very important, and why most hanabi-players get a lot of red thumbs. (Different strategy is interpreted as ruining the game.)
|+Basic
|-style="background:#ccd4;font-weight:600;"
!
!Definition
!Examples
|-
!style="background:#ccd4;text-align:center;font-weight:600;"|Convention
|style="text-align:left;"|Agreed set of clue, play, and discard interpretations.
|style="text-align:left;"|
<ul class="bulletlist" style="margin:1em 0;padding-inline-start:40px;">
  <li>Discard the rightmost unmarked card in your hand.
  <li>Color clues mean 'play this card'.
  <li>Number clues that mark a chop card mean<br>'save this card for later, don't discard it'
</ul>
|-
!style="background:#ccd4;text-align:center;font-weight:600;"|Strategy
|style="text-align:left;"|Plan to achieve the highest score.
|style="text-align:left;"|Mark first copies of cards.
|-
!style="background:#ccd4;text-align:center;font-weight:600;"|Chop
|style="text-align:left;"|The oldest (rightmost), unmarked card in a hand.
|style="text-align:left;"|{{cardholder|{{hw|3}}{{hw|4}}{{hw|4}}{{hr|5|p=🡅}} |Bob 🡲}} {{cardholder|{{hg|1}}{{hw|3}}{{hw|4|p=🡅}}{{hr|5|n=}} |Bob 🡲}}
|-
!style="background:#ccd4;text-align:center;font-weight:600;"|Draw
|style="text-align:left;"|The newest (leftmost) card in a hand.
|style="text-align:left;"|{{cardholder|{{hw|3|p=🡅}}{{hw|4}}{{hw|4}}{{hr|5}} }} {{cardholder|{{hg|1|c=|p=🡅}}{{hw|3}}{{hw|4}}{{hr|5}} }}
|-
!style="background:#ccd4;text-align:center;font-weight:600;"|Trash
|style="text-align:left;"|A card that can never be played successfully.
|style="text-align:left;"|{{hTable|3|3|3|3|3}} {{cardholder|{{hr|1|p=🡅}}{{hy|2|p=🡅}}{{hg|2|p=🡅}}{{hb|4}} }}
|-
!style="background:#ccd4;text-align:center;font-weight:600;"|Playable
|style="text-align:left;"|A card that can be marked by a play clue.
|style="text-align:left;"|{{hTable|1|1|1|1|1}} {{cardholder|{{hr|1|p=❌}}{{hy|2|p=🡅}}{{hg|2|p=🡅}}{{hb|4|p=❌}} }}
|-
!style="background:#ccd4;text-align:center;font-weight:600;"|Critical
/ Unique
|style="text-align:left;"|The last remaining card of its rank and color (that can be played successfully at some point).
|style="text-align:left;"|{{hw|4}} when the other {{hw|4}} was discarded.
|-
!style="background:#ccd4;text-align:center;font-weight:600;"|Marked
|style="text-align:left;"|A card touched by a clue.
|style="text-align:left;"|{{cardholder|{{hr|1|c=|p=🡅}}{{hr|2|c=|p=🡅}}{{hy|2}}{{hw|5|n=|p=🡅}} }}
|-
!style="background:#ccd4;text-align:center;font-weight:600;"|Save
|style="text-align:left;"|A number¹ clue that marks a chop card to prevent discard.
{{reminder|In 2-player games where one player must perform more than one consecutive save, a save may occur before it reaches the chop position.}}
|style="text-align:left;"|{{cardholder|{{hw|3}}{{hw|4}}{{hw|4}}{{hr|5}} |Bob 🡲}}


Alice to Bob: "This card is a 5."


== Basics ==
{{cardholder|{{hw|3}}{{hw|4}}{{hw|4}}{{hr|5|n=}} |Bob 🡲}}
|-
!style="background:#ccd4;text-align:center;font-weight:600;"|Play clue
|style="text-align:left;"|Clue that marks a card to play i.e. cannot be a save clue.
|style="text-align:left;"|Alice to Bob: "This card is green."


The basic game, plays with 50 cards: 10 for each colour. If you want to get the maximum score of 25 points, you need to play 25 cards. Some of the cards are left in the players hands at the end of the game. Depending on the number of players, this will be 8, 12, 12, or 15 (for 2p, 3p, 4p, and 5p respectively). This means in the entire game, there are 17, 13, or 10 cards that can be discarded for clues. You also get 8 clue tokens at the start, making the total number of clues in the entire game 25, 21, or 18. This gives the logical conclusion that you can not clue the colour AND number for every card in your hand, because there are simply not enough clues.
{{cardholder|{{hr|1}}{{hy|2}}{{hg|2|c=}}{{hb|4}} |Bob 🡲}}
|-
!style="background:#ccd4;text-align:center;font-weight:600;"|Focus
|style="text-align:left;"|The target card of a clue.
|style="text-align:left;"|Alice to Bob: "These 2 cards are 5."


It is therefore paramount, that only useful cards are clued. If you mark a card that you know will not be played, it will cost another clue (-1) to make your team mate discard that card to gain a clue (+1), which is a net result of 0. If the card is not marked, your team mate will discard it eventually to gain a clue (+1), which is a net result of +1.
{{cardholder|{{hr|5|n=}}{{hb|4}}{{hw|4}}{{hy|5|n=|p=🡅}} }}


This clue can be a save so the focus is the chop card.


This leads to '''Basic Rule #1''' (cluing).
----
 
Alice to Bob: "These 2 cards are 2."
 
{{cardholder|{{hy|2|n=|p=🡅}}{{hg|2|n=}}{{hb|4}}{{hw|4}} }}
 
This clue cannot be a save so the focus is the newer (leftmost) card.
|-
!style="background:#ccd4;text-align:center;font-weight:600;"|Bomb
|style="text-align:left;"|A play that causes a misfire.
|style="text-align:left;"|{{hTable|1|1|1|1|1}} Alice plays {{hb|3}}
|-
!style="background:#ccd4;text-align:center;font-weight:600;"|Splash
|style="text-align:left;"|Additional new color or rank information of cards that are not the focus.
|style="text-align:left;"|{{hTable|1|1|1|1|1}}
 
{{cardholder|{{hg|2}}{{hb|3}}{{hw|4}}{{hg|4}} |Bob 🡲}}
 
Alice to Bob: "These 2 cards are green."
 
{{cardholder|{{hg|2|c=}}{{hb|3}}{{hw|4}}{{hg|4|c=|p=🡅}} |Bob 🡲}}
 
----
 
{{hTable|3|2|2|2|2}}
 
{{cardholder|{{hr|4}}{{hr|3|n=}}{{hw|3|n=}}{{hb|3|n=}} |Bob 🡲}}
 
Alice to Bob: "These 2 cards are red."
 
{{cardholder|{{hr|4|c=}}{{hr|3|n=|c=}}{{hw|3|n=}}{{hb|3|n=}} |Bob 🡲}}
 
Play clue for {{hr|4}} which splashes {{hr|3}}.
|-
!style="background:#ccd4;text-align:center;font-weight:600;"|Reclue
|style="text-align:left;"|A repeated clue that causes marked card(s) to play.
|style="text-align:left;"|{{hTable|2|1}} {{cardholder|{{hr|2}}{{hg|4}}{{hw|4}}{{hy|2|c=}} |Bob 🡲}}
 
Bob does not yet know his marked yellow is playable.
 
Alice to Bob: "This card is yellow."
|-
!style="background:#ccd4;text-align:center;font-weight:600;"|Fix clue
|style="text-align:left;"|Follow-up clue required to change the focus of a play clue (and prevent a misfire).
|style="text-align:left;"|{{hTable|1}}
 
Alice to Cathy: "These 2 cards are white."
 
{{cardholder|{{hw|2|c=}}{{hw|1|c=}}{{hr|1}}{{hb|3}} |Cathy 🡲}}
 
Bob to Cathy:  "This card is a 2."
 
{{cardholder|{{hw|2|c=|n=}}{{hw|1|c=}}{{hr|1}}{{hb|3}} |Cathy 🡲}}
|-
!style="background:#ccd4;text-align:center;font-weight:600;"|Prompt
|style="text-align:left;"|A play clue that causes connecting marked card(s) to play.
|style="text-align:left;"|{{hTable|2|5|1|3|4}}
 
{{cardholder|{{hb|5}}{{hy|4}}{{hr|3|c=}}{{hw|5}} |Bob 🡲}}
{{cardholder|{{hw|2}}{{hw|4}}{{hy|1}}{{hr|4}} |Cathy 🡲}}
 
Alice to Cathy: "This card is red."
 
{{cardholder|{{hb|5}}{{hy|4}}{{hr|3|c=}}{{hw|5}} |Bob 🡲}}
{{cardholder|{{hw|2}}{{hw|4}}{{hy|1}}{{hr|4|c=}} |Cathy 🡲}}
 
Bob plays {{hr|3|c=}}.
Cathy plays {{hr|4|c=}}.
|}
¹Some uncommon convention sets allow color saves.
 
{{infoBox
|maxWidth=
|state=collapsed
|title=Save clue thought process
|body=
{{hTable|1|1|1|1|}} {{hDiscard|w=2}}
 
{{cardholder|{{hr|2}}{{hy|4}}{{hr|3}}{{hw|5}} |Bob 🡲}}
{{cardholder|{{hr|4}}{{hy|3}}{{hr|4}}{{hw|2}} |Cathy 🡲}}
 
Alice to Bob: "This card is a 5."
 
{{cardholder|{{hr|2}}{{hy|4}}{{hr|3}}{{hw|5|n=}} |Bob 🡲}}
{{cardholder|{{hr|4}}{{hy|3}}{{hr|4}}{{hw|2}} |Cathy 🡲}}
 
Bob knows that there is only one 5 of each color in the deck, so all 5s need to be marked to keep them from being discarded. Bob sees Cathy's oldest card is {{hw|2}} and checks the discard pile to see if he needs to save it from being discarded. There is already a {{hw|2}} in the discard pile and Bob knows there are only two 2s of each color, so Cathy has the last remaining {{hw|2}} and Bob must save it.
 
Bob to Cathy: "This card is a 2."
 
Good job, Bob.
 
{{cardholder|{{hr|2}}{{hy|4}}{{hr|3}}{{hw|5|n=}} |Bob 🡲}}
{{cardholder|{{hr|4}}{{hy|3}}{{hr|4}}{{hw|2|n=}} |Cathy 🡲}}
 
Cathy looks at the played cards to see if 2s are all playable. The {{hw|1}} has not been played yet, so she cannot be sure it is playable yet. Next, Cathy looks at the discard pile to see if there is a 2 in the discard pile. There is a {{hw|2}} discarded, so she interprets this number clue marking her oldest card as a save clue to prevent her from discarding it. Nice one, Cathy.}}
 
{|class="wikitable" style="width:auto;text-align:left;" border="2"
|+Intermediate
|-style="background:#ccd4;font-weight:600;"
!
!Definition
!Examples
|-
!style="background:#ccd4;text-align:center;font-weight:600;"|Good Touch Principle
|style="text-align:left;"|All marked cards will eventually be played.
|style="text-align:left;"|Alice to Bob: "This card is a 1."
 
{{cardholder|{{hg|1|n=}}{{hw|4}}{{hg|4}}{{hg|4}} |Bob 🡲}}
 
number is better than color to avoid duplicate {{hg|4}}.
 
----
 
{{hTable|2||1}}
 
Alice to Bob: "These 2 cards are green."
 
{{cardholder|{{hg|2|c=}}{{hr|2}}{{hw|4}}{{hg|4|c=}} |Bob 🡲}}
 
color is better than number to avoid trash {{hr|2}}.
|-
!style="background:#ccd4;text-align:center;font-weight:600;"|Locked
|style="text-align:left;"|A hand with all cards marked without any plays.
|style="text-align:left;"|{{hTable|3|2|3|5|5}}
 
{{cardholder|{{hr|5|n=}}{{hy|4|n=}}{{hy|5|n=}}{{hg|5|n=}} |Bob 🡲}}
|-
!style="background:#ccd4;text-align:center;font-weight:600;"|Early save
|style="text-align:left;"|An attempt to save a card when there is already a known playable card in the same hand.
 
{{warn|'''''This clue should be read as a play clue.'''''<br>
This clue is a mistake, since save clues should only be given after all playable cards are played when the chop card is in danger of discard.}}
|style="text-align:left;"|{{hDiscard|r=2}}
 
Alice to Cathy: "This card is blue."
 
{{cardholder|{{hr|4}}{{hb|1|c=}}{{hw|3}}{{hr|2}} |Cathy 🡲}}
 
Bob to Cathy: "This card is a 2."
 
{{cardholder|{{hr|4}}{{hb|1|c=}}{{hw|5}}{{hr|2|n=}} |Cathy 🡲}}
|-
!style="background:#ccd4;text-align:center;font-weight:600;"|Double save
|style="text-align:left;"|Two consecutive saves in the same hand.
|style="text-align:left;"|{{hDiscard|r=2}}
 
Alice to Cathy: "This card is a 2."
 
{{cardholder|{{hb|3}}{{hr|4}}{{hw|5}}{{hr|2|n=}} |Cathy 🡲}}
 
Bob to Cathy: "This card is a 5."
 
{{cardholder|{{hb|3}}{{hr|4}}{{hw|5|n=}}{{hr|2|n=}} |Cathy 🡲}}
|-
!style="background:#ccd4;text-align:center;font-weight:600;"|Double discard
|style="text-align:left;"|Two consecutive players discard copies of the same chop card, resulting in a critical discard.
 
{{reminder|A special problem, since, to each of the consecutive players, a number clue that marks their chop card does not look like a save clue (and therefore looks like a play clue).}}
|style="text-align:left;"|
{{cardholder|{{hw|4}}{{hg|2}}{{hy|4}}{{hr|2}} |Bob 🡲}}
{{cardholder|{{hb|3}}{{hr|4}}{{hw|5}}{{hr|2}} |Cathy 🡲}}
 
Bob discards {{hr|2}}. Cathy discards {{hr|2}}.
|-
!style="background:#ccd4;text-align:center;font-weight:600;"|Blind play
|style="text-align:left;"|An unmarked card play.
|style="text-align:left;"|{{cardholder|{{hBack}}{{hBack}}{{hBack}}{{hBack}} |Alice 🡲}}
 
Alice plays slot 1.
|-
!style="background:#ccd4;text-align:center;font-weight:600;"|Finesse Position
|style="text-align:left;"|The newest (leftmost), unmarked card in a hand.
|style="text-align:left;"|{{cardholder|{{hw|3|p=🡅}}{{hw|4}}{{hw|4}}{{hr|5}} }}
{{cardholder|{{hg|1|c=}}{{hw|3|p=🡅}}{{hw|4}}{{hr|5}} }}
|-
!style="background:#ccd4;text-align:center;font-weight:600;"|Finesse
|style="text-align:left;"|A play clue that causes connecting unmarked card(s) to play.
|style="text-align:left;"|{{hTable}}
 
Alice to Cathy: "This card is blue."
 
{{cardholder|{{hb|1}}{{hb|5}}{{hg|3}}{{hw|1}} |Bob 🡲}}
{{cardholder|{{hr|5}}{{hr|2}}{{hb|2|c=}}{{hg|2}} |Cathy 🡲}}
 
Bob plays {{hb|1}}.
Cathy plays {{hb|2|c=}}.
|-
!style="background:#ccd4;text-align:center;font-weight:600;"|Reverse(d finesse)
|style="text-align:left;"|A finesse in reverse order.
|style="text-align:left;"|{{hTable}}
 
Alice to Bob: "This card is blue."
 
{{cardholder|{{hr|5}}{{hr|2}}{{hb|2|c=}}{{hg|2}} |Bob 🡲}}
{{cardholder|{{hb|1}}{{hb|5}}{{hg|3}}{{hw|1}} |Cathy 🡲}}
 
Bob discards.<br>
Cathy plays {{hb|1}}.
Bob plays {{hb|2|c=}}.
|-
!style="background:#ccd4;text-align:center;font-weight:600;"|Bluff
|style="text-align:left;"|A play clue that causes a non-connecting unmarked card to play.
|style="text-align:left;"|{{hTable||||2}}
 
Alice to Cathy: "This card is green."
 
{{cardholder|{{hy|1}}{{hb|5}}{{hg|3}}{{hw|1}} |Bob 🡲}}
{{cardholder|{{hb|4}}{{hr|5}}{{hr|2}}{{hg|2|c=}} |Cathy 🡲}}
 
Bob plays {{hy|1}}.
 
Cathy knows her {{hg|2|c=}} cannot be {{hg|1}}
 
(and keeps it for later).
|-
!style="background:#ccd4;text-align:center;font-weight:600;"|Bluff seat
|style="text-align:left;"|The player directly before the player who is bluffed.
{{warn|[https://hanabi.github.io/level-11/#the-bluff-seat The bluff seat] is an H-Group convention which restricts which players are allowed to perform a bluff. Outside of H-Group, it is possible to bluff any player when the players before were unable to blind play (to reveal the bluff).}}
|style="text-align:left;"|Order is Alice 🡆 Bob 🡆 Cathy:<br>
Alice is in the 'bluff seat' of Bob.<br>
Bob is in the 'bluff seat' of Cathy.<br>
Cathy is in the 'bluff seat' of Alice.
|-
!style="background:#ccd4;text-align:center;font-weight:600;"|Discard clue
|style="text-align:left;"|Clue that marks trash card(s) to be discarded (to prevent a misfire or unwanted discard).
{{reminder|The receiver must know that all cards marked by this clue are trash.}}
|style="text-align:left;"|{{hTable|1|1|1|1|1}}
 
Alice to Bob: "These 3 cards are 1."
 
{{cardholder|{{hr|1|n=}}{{hr|1|n=}}{{hy|1|n=}}{{hb|3}} |Bob 🡲}}
|-
!style="background:#ccd4;text-align:center;font-weight:600;"|Stall clue
|style="text-align:left;"|A clue given to avoid discarding.
{{warn|Avoid a finesse misinterpretation by giving a negative clue e.g. 'You have no 2'.}}
|style="text-align:left;"|{{hTable|5|5|5|5|3|d=1}}
 
{{cardholder|{{hy|1}}{{hb|4}}{{hw|4|c=|n=}}{{hw|5|c=|n=}} |Bob 🡲}}
 
Alice to Bob: "You have no 2."
|-
!style="background:#ccd4;text-align:center;font-weight:600;"|Skip/Steal
|style="text-align:left;"|A player gives a clue that could have been given by one of the skipped players.
{{reminder|The players who were skipped have a better move than to give the clue that skipped them.
Good reasons for skipping players:
<ul>
  <li>Clue-giver is locked, i.e., cannot play or discard.</li>
  <li>Gain tempo to '''play''', e.g., skipped player(s) all have playable cards.</li>
  <li>Gain tempo to '''clue''', e.g., skipped player(s) must give a fix clue.</li>
  <li>Avoid a bad/ensure a good '''clue''', e.g., mark cards with good touch.</li>
  <li>Cause a '''discard''', e.g., duplicate or trash card.</li>
  <li>Avoid a '''discard''', e.g., double discard or nice-to-have card that cannot be saved.</li>
</ul>}}
More examples below.
|style="text-align:left;"|{{hTable}}
 
Alice to Cathy: "This card is blue."
 
{{cardholder|{{hb|3}}{{hr|4}}{{hw|1}}{{hw|1}} |Bob 🡲}}
{{cardholder|{{hy|4}}{{hb|1|c=}}{{hr|4}}{{hw|2}} |Cathy 🡲}}
 
Bob discards {{hw|1}} (because he has nothing to clue or play).
|-
!style="background:#ccd4;text-align:center;font-weight:600;"|Generation discard
|style="text-align:left;"|An unexpected discard to gain {{Hclue|s=1.2|1}} intended to be used immediately by next player as they need to urgently clue or save another player card.
|style="text-align:left;"|{{hTable|2|2|2|2|2}} {{hclue|0}}
 
{{cardholder|{{hBack|3|n=}}{{hBack}}{{hBack}}{{hBack}} |Alice 🡲}}
{{cardholder|{{hy|3}}{{hw|2}}{{hg|4}}{{hb|5}} |Cathy 🡲}}
 
Alice discards her chop instead of playing {{hBack|3|n=}}.
 
Bob to Cathy: "This card is a 5."
|-
!style="background:#ccd4;text-align:center;font-weight:600;"|Scream discard
|style="text-align:left;"|An unexpected discard to save a critical card in another hand.
|style="text-align:left;"|{{Hclue|0}}
 
{{cardholder|{{hBack}}{{hBack}}{{hBack}}{{hBack}} |Alice 🡲}}
{{cardholder|{{hy|4}}{{hb|3}}{{hr|4}}{{hw|5}} |Bob 🡲}}
 
Alice discards slot '''3'''.
 
Bob expected Alice to discard her chop.


Every card that is marked, is either
Bob's chop must be critical.
    a) (a) useful card(s) to be saved (interpret it as PLAY LATER), or
|-
    b) a useful card to be played (interpret it as PLAY NOW).
!style="background:#ccd4;text-align:center;font-weight:600;"|Scream play
|style="text-align:left;"|An unexpected chop play to save a critical card in another hand.
|style="text-align:left;"|{{hclue|0}}


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.
{{cardholder|{{hBack}}{{hBack|5|n=}}{{hBack|5|n=}}{{hBack|5|n=}} |Alice 🡲}}
Saving cards is important because there are only 2 cards of value 2, 3, and 4 in each suit, and only 1 card of value 5. To not get stuck on that colour it is urgent to keep the last copy of a card safe (prevent from discarding it).
{{cardholder|{{hr|1}}{{hb|2}}{{hr|4}}{{hr|5}} |Bob 🡲}}


Alice plays her chop card.


The game interface puts every new card you draw, on the left-hand side of your hand. This means, the left-most card is the newest card, which makes your right-most card automatically the oldest. If a card has been in your hand for a long time, and you have not been given a clue that marks it, it is logical that it is a useless card and safe to discard.
Bob expected Alice to discard her chop.


Alice is unable to perform a scream discard.


Hence, '''Basic Rule #2''' (discarding).
Bob's chop must be critical.
    '''Discard first what you know is useless (like a clued 1 when all 1s are already played). After that: discard your oldest (right-most) unclued card.'''
|-
!style="background:#ccd4;text-align:center;font-weight:600;"|Duplicate discard
|style="text-align:left;"|Discard of a duplicate marked copy of a card in another hand.
|style="text-align:left;"|{{hTable||1}}


Note, that this rule is already a bit tricky. At the start of the game, every card can be considered equally old. This is where personal preference of players starts to matter.
Alice to Bob: "This card is green."


Another result from the newest --> oldest order, is the interpretation of multiple marked cards. When you get a clue that marks multiple cards, and you can identify it is in fact a clue for play (see Basic Rule 1), you should play the newest (left-most) card. If an older card was "the playable card", it would probably be clued earlier. The logical conclusion must be, that the newest card, was the card you all have been waiting for, and you happened to draw it.
{{cardholder|{{hw|4}}{{hg|2|c=}}{{hy|4}}{{hr|3}} |Alice 🡲}}
{{cardholder|{{hy|3}}{{hr|4}}{{hg|5}}{{hg|2|n=|c=}} |Bob 🡲}}


Cathy discards {{hg|2|n=|c=}} and Bob plays his marked copy.
|-
!style="background:#ccd4;text-align:center;font-weight:600;"|Bottom-decked
|style="text-align:left;"|When all copies of a card are too near the bottom of the deck to achieve a perfect score.
|style="text-align:left;"|Both {{hr|2}} are in the last {{hDeck|2}} cards of the deck.
|}


'''Basic Rule #3'''  (playing).
{{infoBoxes |state=collapsed
    '''Play the newer (left-most) clued card'''
|title1=Bad Skip (prevents bluff or finesse)
|body1={{hTable||3|3|3|3}}


So most people on BGA expect you to ONLY 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.
Alice to Cathy: "This card is red."


{{cardholder|{{hr|2}}{{hy|1}}{{hw|1}}{{hb|3}} |Alice 🡲}}
{{cardholder|{{hb|1}}{{hy|5}}{{hw|5}}{{hb|4}} |Bob 🡲}}
{{cardholder|{{hr|1|c=}}{{hw|4}}{{hw|4}}{{hw|3}} |Cathy 🡲}}


== Basic Example ==
If Alice discarded instead, Bob would have clued Alice red to finesse {{hr|1}} and {{hr|2}}.


Imagine the following starting situation:
|title2=Good Skip (ensures good touch)
            (oldest ... newest)
|body2={{hTable|1|1|1|1|1}}
  Player 1:  W1, Y1, B2, Y2, B2
  Player 2:  G1, G1, W3, Y2, B1
  Player 3:  B1, R4, W4, R3, G3


P1 can clue 1s to P2. But that will mark both G1's, so it's not the best option. Better is for P1 to clue P3 1s, or blue. (If BLUE-clue is given, then P3 will not worry about the B1 in P2's hand that is about to be discarded. Both 1-clue or BLUE-clue only mark 1 card, so give equal information about the other cards in P3's hand.)
{{cardholder|{{hw|1}}{{hy|2|n=}}{{hw|2|n=}}{{hr|2|n=}} |Bob 🡲}}
{{cardholder|{{hw|2}}{{hr|1}}{{hb|2}}{{hg|1}} |Cathy 🡲}}


P2 will clue 1s to P1. He knows that P3 prefers to play his 1. And P2 is the only person who can see that the 1s in both P1's hand, and P3's hand are different.
Alice skips Bob to give Cathy a blue clue so that a duplicate {{hw|2}} is not marked.
}}


Everyone will have to wait for B2 to be discarded, before the second B2 can be clued. Everyone will also have to wait for G1 to be discarded, before the second G1 can be clued. Alternatively, when R1 is drawn and clued, then both G1's may be clued, since all 1's will be played and all cards marked 1 can be safely discarded.
{|class="wikitable" style="width:auto;text-align:left;" border="2"
|+Advanced
|-style="background:#ccd4;font-weight:600;"
!
!Definition
!Examples
|-
!style="background:#ccd4;text-align:center;font-weight:600;"|Long finesse
|style="text-align:left;"|A finesse of three or more cards lasting more than one complete round.
|style="text-align:left;"|{{hTable|3|3|3|3|}}


So, the first four moves are:
Alice to Cathy: "This card is white."


1. P1 clues BLUE to P3 (7 clues).
{{cardholder|{{hw|1}}{{hw|2}}{{hy|4}}{{hg|1}} |Bob 🡲}}
{{cardholder|{{hw|3|c=}}{{hb|3}}{{hg|3}}{{hy|3}} |Cathy 🡲}}


2. P2 clues 1 to P1 (6 clues).
Bob plays {{hw|1}}.<br>
Cathy also sees {{hw|2}} and could hold {{hw|3|c=}}.<br>
Cathy discards.


3. P3 plays B1 and draws R1.
{{cardholder|{{hr|5}}{{hw|2}}{{hy|4}}{{hg|1}} |Bob 🡲}}
{{cardholder|{{hy|5}}{{hw|3|c=}}{{hb|3}}{{hg|3}} |Cathy 🡲}}


4. P1 plays W1 and draws G4.
Bob plays {{hw|2}}.
Cathy plays {{hw|3|c=}}
|-
!style="background:#ccd4;text-align:center;font-weight:600;"|Finesse Bluff
|style="text-align:left;"|A finesse followed by a bluff.
|style="text-align:left;"|{{hTable|3|3|3|3|}}


The game now looks like this, with P2 to move:
Alice to Bob: "This card is a 3."
            (newest ... oldest)
  Player 1:  G4, Y(1), B2, Y2, B2                  Played: R0, Y0, G0, B1, W1
  Player 2:  G1, G1, W3, Y2, B1
  Player 3:  R1, R4, W4, R3, G3                    Discarded: -


5. P2 clues RED to P3.
{{cardholder|{{hw|1}}{{hw|3|n=}}{{hy|4}}{{hg|1}} |Bob 🡲}}
{{cardholder|{{hb|4}}{{hb|3}}{{hg|3}}{{hy|3}} |Cathy 🡲}}


There are two possible continuations from here.
Bob plays {{hw|1}} (finesse).<br>
'''Option 1'''
Cathy plays {{hb|4}} as {{hw|2}} (bluff).
|-
!style="background:#ccd4;text-align:center;font-weight:600;"|Layered finesse
|style="text-align:left;"|A finesse with unrelated playable card(s) in front of the target card(s).
|style="text-align:left;"|{{hTable|1|1|1||4}}


6. P3 plays R1 and draws Y5.
Alice to Bob: "These 2 cards are blue."


7. P1 plays Y1 and draws Y3.
{{cardholder|{{hb|2|c=}}{{hb|5|c=}}{{hy|1}}{{hg|1}} |Bob 🡲}}
{{cardholder|{{hr|2}}{{hy|2}}{{hb|1}}{{hg|1}} |Cathy 🡲}}


8. P2 discards B1 and draws G2 (7 clues).
Bob sees {{hb|1}} in Cathy's hand, but layered<br> behind other playable cards {{hr|2}} and {{hy|2}}.<br>
Bob discards. Cathy plays {{hr|2}}.


9. P3 clues 1 to P2 (6 clues).
{{cardholder|{{hg|3}}{{hb|2|c=}}{{hb|5|c=}}{{hy|1}} |Bob 🡲}}
{{cardholder|{{hw|5}}{{hy|2}}{{hb|1}}{{hg|1}} |Cathy 🡲}}


10. P1 discards B2 and draws R4 (7 clues).
Cathy knows this cannot be a bluff because<br> Bob would not discard unless he sees a playable {{hb|1}} in Cathy's hand.<br>
So Cathy is promised {{hb|1}} and keeps playing<br> each slot from left to right until a {{hb|1}} is played.
|-
!style="background:#ccd4;text-align:center;font-weight:600;"|Clued misplay
|style="text-align:left;"|A play clue that causes a misfire to prevent a critical discard in the same hand.
|style="text-align:left;"|{{hTable|1|3|3|3|3}}{{hDiscard|r=4}}


11. P2 plays G1 and draws B5.
{{cardholder|{{hr|1}}{{hb|2}}{{hr|4}}{{hr|5}} |Bob 🡲}}


12. P3 clues 2 to P2 (6 clues).
Alice to Bob: "These 3 cards are red."


And the game will look like this, with P1 to move:
{{cardholder|{{hr|1|c=}}{{hb|2}}{{hr|4|c=}}{{hr|5|c=}} |Bob 🡲}} Bob misfires {{hr|1|c=}}
            (newest ... oldest)
  Player 1:  R4, Y3, G4, B(2), Y(2)                Played: R1, Y1, G1, B1, W1
  Player 2:  G2, G(1), G(1), W3, Y2
  Player 3:  Y5, (R)4, W4, (R)3, G3                Discarded: B1, B2


'''Option 2'''
(and keeps the remaining red cards).
|-
!style="background:#ccd4;text-align:center;font-weight:600;"|Positional misplay
|style="text-align:left;"|An unexpected play that marks the same slot position in another hand to play immediately. A risky move if the misplayed card is unknown.
|style="text-align:left;"|{{hTable|2|4|4|4|4}} {{Hclue|0}}


6. P3 clues 1 to P2 (5 clues). This move delays him playing the R1, but will make P2 more confident in discarding since he knows all the useless 1s.
{{cardholder|{{hBack}}{{hBack}}{{hBack}}{{hBack}} |Alice 🡲}}
{{cardholder|{{hb|2}}{{hr|3}}{{hr|4|n=|c=}}{{hr|5|n=|c=}} |Bob 🡲}}


7. P1 plays Y1 and draws Y5.
Alice blind plays '''slot 2''' and causes a misfire.


8. P2 plays G1 and draws Y3.
Bob expected Alice to discard her chop.


9. P3 plays R1 and draws G2.
Bob plays {{hr|3}} in '''slot 2'''.
|-
!style="background:#ccd4;text-align:center;font-weight:600;"|Positional discard
|style="text-align:left;"|An unexpected discard that marks the same slot position in another hand to play immediately. When all remaining playable cards are visible.
|style="text-align:left;"|{{hTable|5|5|4|5|5}} {{hclue|0}}


10. P1 discards B2 and draws R4 (6 clues).
{{cardholder|{{hb|2}}{{hr|4}}{{hg|5}}{{hb|3}} |Bob 🡲}}


11. P2 discards B1 and draws B5 (7 clues).
Alice discards '''slot 3'''.


12. P3 clues 2 to P2 (6 clues).
Bob expected Alice to discard her chop.


And the game will look like this, with P1 to move:
Bob plays {{hg|5}} in '''slot 3'''.
            (newest ... oldest)
|-
  Player 1: R4, Y5, G4, B(2), Y(2)                Played: R1, Y1, G1, B1, W1
!style="background:#ccd4;text-align:center;font-weight:600;"|Gentleman's discard
  Player 2: Y3, G(1), W3, Y2, B(1)
|style="text-align:left;"|Discard of a known card to play an unmarked copy in another hand.
  Player 3: G2, (R)4, W4, (R)3, G3                Discarded: B2, B1


Both options are equally valid. They end up in the same situation, with only the cards in hands being in a different order. Since the cards are picked at random, there is no valid reason to say one option is better than the other.
{{reminder|The value in this move can be:
<ul>
  <li>delay the discard of non-trash cards to the right of the unmarked copy</li>
  <li>play multiple cards</li>
  <li>generate a token (see ''Generation discard'')</li>
</ul>}}
|style="text-align:left;"|{{hTable|||||1}}


In both options, the 2-clue is given to P1, to mark both 2s as playable. Since all 1s are played, all 2s will be playable.
{{cardholder|{{hBack}}{{hBack|2|{{w}}|c=|n=}}{{hBack}}{{hBack}} |Alice 🡲}}
Note that, in this game, two 1s where marked with one clue (and played); and two 2s were marked with one clue (and will be played). As stated in the beginning, there are a total of 21 clues (in this variant) to mark 25 cards. At this point in the game, there are 16 clues left to mark 18 cards. With only two more "efficient" clues, the game can end with a perfect score.
{{cardholder|{{hw|2}}{{hr|2}}{{hy|3}}{{hg|4}} |Bob 🡲}}


== Advanced ==
Alice discards {{hBack|2|{{w}}|c=|n=}}.
''Intentional Discard''


Sometimes players can have hands where all cards are important and unplayable. To tell a player that his hand blocked, discard your '''CHOP''' card, even when you know you have a playable card. This is often done when you are low on (or out of) clue-tokens. This is a risky move, since your team mate(s) might expect you to play, instead of discard. ('''always try to give him clue to give and play his hand as fast as it possible''')
Bob plays his finesse position (and each slot left to right)
<br>
until an unmarked copy of {{hw|2}} is played.
|-
!style="background:#ccd4;text-align:center;font-weight:600;"|Play refusal
|style="text-align:left;"|Instead of playing, a player clues or discards their chop.
{{reminder|The next player must consider if the play refusal is:
<ul>
  <li>waiting for a potential reverse, or</li>
  <li>there are critical card(s) to save (see ''Scream discard'', ''Generation discard'').</li>
</ul>}}
|style="text-align:left;"|{{hTable}}


'''2P GAMES'''
Alice to Bob: "This card is a 2."
With 2 players, you are limited in your options. Therefore the gameplay is different from 3+P games.


----
{{cardholder|{{hb|1}}{{hb|2|n=}}{{hb|4}}{{hw|1}} |Bob 🡲}}
{{cardholder|{{hb|1}}{{hw|4}}{{hy|1}}{{hr|4}} |Cathy 🡲}}
 
Bob discards waiting for Cathy's {{hb|1}}.
 
Cathy discards.
 
Bob plays {{hb|1}} and {{hb|2|n=}}.
|-
!style="background:#ccd4;text-align:center;font-weight:600;"|Hesitation play
|style="text-align:left;"|After a play refusal of a playable card, another player may be able to blind play an unmarked card.
{{warn|A hesitation play must not interfere with any future response(s).<br>
See ''Play refusal example.''}}
|style="text-align:left;"|{{hTable|1}}
 
{{cardholder|{{hr|4}}{{hr|2|n=}}{{hy|4}}{{hb|4}} |Bob 🡲}}
{{cardholder|{{hw|1}}{{hb|3}}{{hb|4}}{{hw|1}} |Donald 🡲}}
 
Alice to Bob: "This card is a 2."
 
Bob discards waiting for a {{hw|1}} reverse.<br>
Cathy discards.
 
Donald knows from the context that Bob's<br>
discard can only be waiting for a playable 1 in their hand.<br>
Donald plays {{hw|1}}.
|}
 
== Gameplay Using Finesse Conventions ==
 
==== Receiving Clues ====
 
Check visible cards, including played and discarded, to determine the focus and the meaning of a clue.
<ul class="bulletlist" style="margin:1em 0;padding-inline-start:40px;">
  <li>Example A: you are given a '''2''' clue. You see {{hr|2}} was played and the second {{hr|2}} is in another hand. Therefore the clue means "2s which are not red".</li>
  <li>Example B: you are given a 4 clue that marks only your chop. You see no 4s have been discarded and no 4s on the chop of the players next to you. Therefore the clue means "this 4 is playable".</li>
</ul>
 
==== Giving Clues ====
 
<ul class="bulletlist" style="margin:1em 0;padding-inline-start:40px;">
  <li>'''Don't mark trash cards''' (see Good Touch Principle).</li>
  <li>Save critical cards as priority.</li>
    <ul>
      <li>Look ahead for critical cards on chop. ''Sometimes more than one player must help to save consecutive critical cards.''</li>
    </ul>
  </li>
  <li>With few {{Hclue|s=1}}, work out which players need them.</li>
  <li>Consider how the receiver can interpret your clue.</li>
</ul>
 
==== Discarding ====
 
<ul class="bulletlist" style="margin:1em 0;padding-inline-start:40px;">
  <li>Trust your teammates to manage your cards.
  <li>When there is nothing urgent to clue, don't be afraid to discard! Discarding is often the best move for the team.
</ul>
 
==== Playing ====
 
<ul class="bulletlist" style="margin:1em 0;padding-inline-start:40px;">
  <li>When multiple cards are marked, determine the focused card. ''Each clue only has one focused card.''
  <li>Logically playable cards are marked at the earliest opportunity, so the leftmost card is assumed to be the focus of play clues ''(where no other cards are known to be playable)''.
</ul>
 
==== Triggering the final round ====
 
<ul class="bulletlist" style="margin:1em 0;padding-inline-start:40px;">
  <li>Sometimes a specific player should draw the last card to maximize the score.
  <li>Giving empty clues (e.g., "You have no red card") can help to manage which player draws the last card.
</ul>
 
{{infoBox |maxWidth=650 |state=collapsed
|title=Last Card Example
|body={{hTable|5|5|3|4|5|d=1}} {{hclue|4}}
 
{{cardholder|{{hr|3}}{{hy|1}}{{hg|1}}{{hb|5|n=|c=}} |Bob 🡲}}
{{cardholder|{{hg|2}}{{hr|1}}{{hg|4|n=|c=}}{{hg|5|n=|c=}} |Cathy 🡲}}
 
<ul class="bulletlist" style="margin:1em 0;padding-inline-start:40px;">
  <li>Alice and Bob both give empty clues. e.g., Alice to Cathy: "You have no white card."
  <li>Cathy plays {{hg|4}} and draws the last card.
  <li>Alice discards, Bob plays {{hb|5}} and Cathy plays {{hg|5}}.
</ul>
}}
 
==== More ====
 
For more moves and strategies, check out:
<ul class="bulletlist" style="margin:1em 0;padding-inline-start:40px;">
  <li>[https://en.doc.boardgamearena.com/User:Sammy_McSam/Hanabi Sammy's BGA wiki]
  <li>[https://docs.google.com/document/d/1VzgN6WoeYwh5NYtHECzUNZqFvpVcg-EdObU-YNMlyhc Romain's Google doc].
</ul>
 
== 2 Player Strategy ==
 
<ul class="bulletlist" style="margin:1em 0;padding-inline-start:40px;">
  <li>Saves are given as late as possible.
  <li>Off-chop saves for consecutive critical cards.
  <li>Double discards can be avoided with a stall clue.
  <li>Last {{Hclue|s=1}} is reserved to mark a critical or playable chop.
  <li>Playable first copies are clued.
  <li>Splash critical and already-marked trash cards.
  <li>Play in clued order.
  <li>Before playing, consider marking a connecting chop card.
  <li>Scream discard = save the chop card (and move chop one slot to the left).
  <li>Flamboyants: Consider not locking a hand with a 5 save.
  <li>Avalanche: Any card can be multicolor. e.g. wait for negative multicolor on a {{hr|5|c=|n=}} before playing as {{hr|5|c=|n=}}.
  <li>Avalanche: Playable cards marked with both color and number play first.
  <li>Black Powder: {{hk|1}} is only marked on chop unless all other 1s (or {{hk|2}}) are already clued/played.
</ul>
 
==== Early game ====
 
<ul class="bulletlist" style="margin:1em 0;padding-inline-start:40px;">
  <li>Avoid discarding until at least {{Hclue|s=1.2|3}} are used.
  <li>With multiple marked unknown 1s in your hand, consider first playing your 1s or marking 1s individually with color.
  <li>Non-critical 2s / {{hk|4}} can be marked with number.
</ul>
 
==== Alternative Strategy ====
 
<ul class="bulletlist" style="margin:1em 0;padding-inline-start:40px;">
  <li>'''Any card may be saved''', including non-critical cards.
  <li>Cards marked with a number are only splashed with color:
    <ul>
      <li>If a previously unmarked card is playable.
      <li>As a stall clue.
    </ul>
  </li>
</ul>
 
== Other Convention Sets ==


'''3+P GAMES'''
==== Finesse Additional Skip Interpretation ====
''Finesse''
This advanced move, can get you 2 cards into play, with only 1 clue-token. You do this, by marking an ALMOST playable card as playable. Someone else will have to play the LOGICAL inbetween step, to make the card genuinely playable.


<code>
{{warn|This convention prevents discard management, finesse with number, layered finesse}}
Example 1
An additional convention is that skipped player(s) cannot discard. i.e., Alice can clue Cathy only if Bob has a play or can give another useful clue. If a skipped player has no marked playable cards and no good clue to give, they must blind play their newest, unmarked card. A clue-giver who causes unmarked play(s) purely from a skip is responsible for any misinterpretation.


All players have agreed on the convention that a colour-clue means PLAY the left-most marked card.
{{infoBoxes
            (oldest ... newest)
|maxWidth=650
  Player 1:  XX, XX, XX, XX, XX                  Played: R0, Y0, G0, B0, W0
|state=collapsed
  Player 2:  ??, ??, ??, ??, ??
|title1=Skipped Players Cannot Discard Example
  Player 3:  R1, R4, W4, R3, G3                    Discarded: -
|body1=Alice skips Bob to give Cathy a '''1''' clue.


{{hTable}}


newest ... oldest
{{cardholder|{{hy|1}}{{hy|2}}{{hw|2}}{{hr|2}} |Bob 🡲}}
XX XX XX XX XX - Player 1
{{cardholder|{{hw|2}}{{hr|1|n=}}{{hb|2}}{{hg|4}} |Cathy 🡲}}


?? ?? ?? ?? ?5 - Player 2
Bob has no clue to give and no known play, so he blind plays his newest unmarked card. {{hy|1}} does not connect to {{hBack|1|n=}}, so Cathy interprets Bob's move as a skip play and plays {{hr|1|n=}}.


G5 B2 R4 B3 W1 - Player 3
|title2=Forbidden Skip Example
</code>
|body2=Alice skips Bob to give Cathy a '''3''' clue.


Player 1 gives a blue-clue to Player 3, marking B2 as PLAY, and B3 as SAVE. Player 2 sees that the B2 is ALMOST playable. This means that Player 2 has the LOGICAL inbetween step: Player 2 has to play B1. The only logical place for that card is at the '''LEFT-MOST POSITION''' so Player 2 can assume that the '''DRAW''' card is the playable B1. If it was somewhere else in your hand, the card would have been clued earlier.
{{hTable|2}}


{{cardholder|{{hy|1}}{{hy|2}}{{hw|2}}{{hr|2}} |Bob 🡲}}
{{cardholder|{{hw|2}}{{hr|3|n=}}{{hb|2}}{{hr|1}} |Cathy 🡲}}


<code>
Bob has no clue to give and no known play, so he blind plays his newest unmarked card. In this convention, {{hy|1}} does not connect to {{hBack|3|n=}}, so Cathy interprets as a bluff and her {{hBack|3|n=}} is not playable.
All players have agreed on the convention that a colour-clue means PLAY the left-most marked card.
This is a lie because {{hr|3|n=}} is playable. So Alice is forbidden from giving this clue. Instead, Alice should have discarded and allowed Bob to clue Cathy so that she knows her {{hr|3|n=}} is playable.
<br />Example 2
}}
<br />Table:
<br />R Y G B W M
<br />0 1 0 2 0 0


newest ... oldest
==== H-Group ====
XX XX XX XX XX - Player 1


?? ?? ?? ?2 ?5 - Player 2
Some key differences include:
<ul class="bulletlist" style="margin:1em 0;padding-inline-start:40px;">
  <li>non-critical saves
  <li>chop-focused play clues
  <li>context-dependent chop moves
  <li>number play clues are assumed to be a lie (bluff) over truth (finesse).
</ul>
[https://hanabi.github.io H-Group]


Y3 G5 R4 B3 W1 - Player 3
{|class="wikitable" style="width:auto;text-align:left;" border="2"
</code>
|-style="background:#ccd4;font-weight:600;"
!Convention&nbsp;set
!Definition
!Examples
|-
!style="background:#ccd4;text-align:center;font-weight:600;"|Logical Leftism
|No convention, just logic || [http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/basics-level-1-a117610126 hanabi logic]
|-
!style="background:#ccd4;text-align:center;font-weight:600;"|Conventional Leftism
|Another name for Finesse || [http://hanabilogic.eklablog.com/no-conventional-leftism-a117757604 hanabi logic] [https://docs.google.com/document/d/1sz3if8-9JJDAcbvdi3MHEAv9L5ljyHHnTSEACKk5RUY/edit#heading=h.q88fl7o62h8c Postmans]
|-
!style="background:#ccd4;text-align:center;font-weight:600;"|Hat-guessing
|Clues relate to slot position, not the cards marked || [https://github.com/hanabi/hanabi.github.io/blob/main/misc/hat-guessing.md H-Group] [https://github.com/fpvandoorn/hanabi/blob/master/doc_hat_player.md Robert Kaspar] [https://github.com/hanabi/hanabi.github.io/blob/main/misc/empty-clues.md H-Group empty clues]
|-
!style="background:#ccd4;text-align:center;font-weight:600;"|Closest Friend
|Clue interpretation depends on which player gave the clue || [https://github.com/hanabi/hanabi.github.io/blob/main/pdf/newest-friend.pdf H-Group]
|-
!style="background:#ccd4;text-align:center;font-weight:600;"|Secret convention
|Each player randomly selects a secret '''[https://perchance.org/e6dtm5lj3r restriction]''' ||[https://boardgamearena.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=26863 Secret variant] [https://boardgamearena.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=71264#p71264 Secret hanabi restriction]
|}


Player 1 give a yellow-clue to Player 3, marking Y3 as PLAY. Player 2 sees that the Y3 is ALMOST playable. This means that Player 2 has the LOGICAL inbetween step: Player 2 has to play Y2. In this case, the Y2 is not on the DRAW card. The logical place for that card is the already marked 2. So Player 2 can assume that his card between the CHOP and the 5 is the Y2. '''Note: A MARKED card ALWAYS has priority over the DRAW card in case of finesse.'''
For more convention sets check out '''[https://boardgamearena.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=26863 this forum post]''' by [https://boardgamearena.com/player?id=84207926 Romain672]

Latest revision as of 11:41, 28 September 2026

Definitions and Terminology

Basic
Definition Examples
Convention Agreed set of clue, play, and discard interpretations.
  • Discard the rightmost unmarked card in your hand.
  • Color clues mean 'play this card'.
  • Number clues that mark a chop card mean
    'save this card for later, don't discard it'
Strategy Plan to achieve the highest score. Mark first copies of cards.
Chop The oldest (rightmost), unmarked card in a hand. white3,with a white 3clue,white4,with a white 4clue,white4,with a white 4clue,red5,with a red 5clue, Bob 🡲 green1,with a green 1clue,white3,with a white 3clue,white4,with a white 4clue,red5,with a red 5clue, Bob 🡲
Draw The newest (leftmost) card in a hand. white3,with a white 3clue,white4,with a white 4clue,white4,with a white 4clue,red5,with a red 5clue, ​ green1,with a green 1clue,white3,with a white 3clue,white4,with a white 4clue,red5,with a red 5clue, ​
Trash A card that can never be played successfully. cards in the deckred3yellow3green3blue3white3multicolorblack powder red1,with a red 1clue,yellow2,with a yellow 2clue,green2,with a green 2clue,blue4,with a blue 4clue, ​
Playable A card that can be marked by a play clue. cards in the deckred1yellow1green1blue1white1multicolorblack powder red1,with a red 1clue,yellow2,with a yellow 2clue,green2,with a green 2clue,blue4,with a blue 4clue, ​
Critical

/ Unique

The last remaining card of its rank and color (that can be played successfully at some point). white4,with a white 4clue, when the other white4,with a white 4clue, was discarded.
Marked A card touched by a clue. red1,with a red 1clue,red2,with a red 2clue,yellow2,with a yellow 2clue,white5,with a white 5clue, ​
Save A number¹ clue that marks a chop card to prevent discard.
​In 2-player games where one player must perform more than one consecutive save, a save may occur before it reaches the chop position.
white3,with a white 3clue,white4,with a white 4clue,white4,with a white 4clue,red5,with a red 5clue, Bob 🡲

Alice to Bob: "This card is a 5."

white3,with a white 3clue,white4,with a white 4clue,white4,with a white 4clue,red5,with a red 5clue, Bob 🡲

Play clue Clue that marks a card to play i.e. cannot be a save clue. Alice to Bob: "This card is green."

red1,with a red 1clue,yellow2,with a yellow 2clue,green2,with a green 2clue,blue4,with a blue 4clue, Bob 🡲

Focus The target card of a clue. Alice to Bob: "These 2 cards are 5."

red5,with a red 5clue,blue4,with a blue 4clue,white4,with a white 4clue,yellow5,with a yellow 5clue, ​

This clue can be a save so the focus is the chop card.


Alice to Bob: "These 2 cards are 2."

yellow2,with a yellow 2clue,green2,with a green 2clue,blue4,with a blue 4clue,white4,with a white 4clue, ​

This clue cannot be a save so the focus is the newer (leftmost) card.

Bomb A play that causes a misfire. cards in the deckred1yellow1green1blue1white1multicolorblack powder Alice plays blue3,with a blue 3clue,
Splash Additional new color or rank information of cards that are not the focus. cards in the deckred1yellow1green1blue1white1multicolorblack powder

green2,with a green 2clue,blue3,with a blue 3clue,white4,with a white 4clue,green4,with a green 4clue, Bob 🡲

Alice to Bob: "These 2 cards are green."

green2,with a green 2clue,blue3,with a blue 3clue,white4,with a white 4clue,green4,with a green 4clue, Bob 🡲


cards in the deckred3yellow2green2blue2white2multicolorblack powder

red4,with a red 4clue,red3,with a red 3clue,white3,with a white 3clue,blue3,with a blue 3clue, Bob 🡲

Alice to Bob: "These 2 cards are red."

red4,with a red 4clue,red3,with a red 3clue,white3,with a white 3clue,blue3,with a blue 3clue, Bob 🡲

Play clue for red4,with a red 4clue, which splashes red3,with a red 3clue,.

Reclue A repeated clue that causes marked card(s) to play. cards in the deckred2yellow1greenbluewhitemulticolorblack powder red2,with a red 2clue,green4,with a green 4clue,white4,with a white 4clue,yellow2,with a yellow 2clue, Bob 🡲

Bob does not yet know his marked yellow is playable.

Alice to Bob: "This card is yellow."

Fix clue Follow-up clue required to change the focus of a play clue (and prevent a misfire). cards in the deckred1yellowgreenbluewhitemulticolorblack powder

Alice to Cathy: "These 2 cards are white."

white2,with a white 2clue,white1,with a white 1clue,red1,with a red 1clue,blue3,with a blue 3clue, Cathy 🡲

Bob to Cathy: "This card is a 2."

white2,with a white 2clue,white1,with a white 1clue,red1,with a red 1clue,blue3,with a blue 3clue, Cathy 🡲

Prompt A play clue that causes connecting marked card(s) to play. cards in the deckred2yellow5green1blue3white4multicolorblack powder

blue5,with a blue 5clue,yellow4,with a yellow 4clue,red3,with a red 3clue,white5,with a white 5clue, Bob 🡲 white2,with a white 2clue,white4,with a white 4clue,yellow1,with a yellow 1clue,red4,with a red 4clue, Cathy 🡲

Alice to Cathy: "This card is red."

blue5,with a blue 5clue,yellow4,with a yellow 4clue,red3,with a red 3clue,white5,with a white 5clue, Bob 🡲 white2,with a white 2clue,white4,with a white 4clue,yellow1,with a yellow 1clue,red4,with a red 4clue, Cathy 🡲

Bob plays red3,with a red 3clue,. Cathy plays red4,with a red 4clue,.

¹Some uncommon convention sets allow color saves.

Save clue thought process
cards in the deckred1yellow1green1blue1whitemulticolorblack powder Discardedrygbw2m

red2,with a red 2clue,yellow4,with a yellow 4clue,red3,with a red 3clue,white5,with a white 5clue, Bob 🡲 red4,with a red 4clue,yellow3,with a yellow 3clue,red4,with a red 4clue,white2,with a white 2clue, Cathy 🡲

Alice to Bob: "This card is a 5."

red2,with a red 2clue,yellow4,with a yellow 4clue,red3,with a red 3clue,white5,with a white 5clue, Bob 🡲 red4,with a red 4clue,yellow3,with a yellow 3clue,red4,with a red 4clue,white2,with a white 2clue, Cathy 🡲

Bob knows that there is only one 5 of each color in the deck, so all 5s need to be marked to keep them from being discarded. Bob sees Cathy's oldest card is white2,with a white 2clue, and checks the discard pile to see if he needs to save it from being discarded. There is already a white2,with a white 2clue, in the discard pile and Bob knows there are only two 2s of each color, so Cathy has the last remaining white2,with a white 2clue, and Bob must save it.

Bob to Cathy: "This card is a 2."

Good job, Bob.

red2,with a red 2clue,yellow4,with a yellow 4clue,red3,with a red 3clue,white5,with a white 5clue, Bob 🡲 red4,with a red 4clue,yellow3,with a yellow 3clue,red4,with a red 4clue,white2,with a white 2clue, Cathy 🡲

Cathy looks at the played cards to see if 2s are all playable. The white1,with a white 1clue, has not been played yet, so she cannot be sure it is playable yet. Next, Cathy looks at the discard pile to see if there is a 2 in the discard pile. There is a white2,with a white 2clue, discarded, so she interprets this number clue marking her oldest card as a save clue to prevent her from discarding it. Nice one, Cathy.
Intermediate
Definition Examples
Good Touch Principle All marked cards will eventually be played. Alice to Bob: "This card is a 1."

green1,with a green 1clue,white4,with a white 4clue,green4,with a green 4clue,green4,with a green 4clue, Bob 🡲

number is better than color to avoid duplicate green4,with a green 4clue,.


cards in the deckred2yellowgreen1bluewhitemulticolorblack powder

Alice to Bob: "These 2 cards are green."

green2,with a green 2clue,red2,with a red 2clue,white4,with a white 4clue,green4,with a green 4clue, Bob 🡲

color is better than number to avoid trash red2,with a red 2clue,.

Locked A hand with all cards marked without any plays. cards in the deckred3yellow2green3blue5white5multicolorblack powder

red5,with a red 5clue,yellow4,with a yellow 4clue,yellow5,with a yellow 5clue,green5,with a green 5clue, Bob 🡲

Early save An attempt to save a card when there is already a known playable card in the same hand.
​This clue should be read as a play clue.
This clue is a mistake, since save clues should only be given after all playable cards are played when the chop card is in danger of discard.
Discardedr2ygbwm

Alice to Cathy: "This card is blue."

red4,with a red 4clue,blue1,with a blue 1clue,white3,with a white 3clue,red2,with a red 2clue, Cathy 🡲

Bob to Cathy: "This card is a 2."

red4,with a red 4clue,blue1,with a blue 1clue,white5,with a white 5clue,red2,with a red 2clue, Cathy 🡲

Double save Two consecutive saves in the same hand. Discardedr2ygbwm

Alice to Cathy: "This card is a 2."

blue3,with a blue 3clue,red4,with a red 4clue,white5,with a white 5clue,red2,with a red 2clue, Cathy 🡲

Bob to Cathy: "This card is a 5."

blue3,with a blue 3clue,red4,with a red 4clue,white5,with a white 5clue,red2,with a red 2clue, Cathy 🡲

Double discard Two consecutive players discard copies of the same chop card, resulting in a critical discard.
​A special problem, since, to each of the consecutive players, a number clue that marks their chop card does not look like a save clue (and therefore looks like a play clue).

white4,with a white 4clue,green2,with a green 2clue,yellow4,with a yellow 4clue,red2,with a red 2clue, Bob 🡲 blue3,with a blue 3clue,red4,with a red 4clue,white5,with a white 5clue,red2,with a red 2clue, Cathy 🡲

Bob discards red2,with a red 2clue,. Cathy discards red2,with a red 2clue,.

Blind play An unmarked card play. card back,with a clue,card back,with a clue,card back,with a clue,card back,with a clue, Alice 🡲

Alice plays slot 1.

Finesse Position The newest (leftmost), unmarked card in a hand. white3,with a white 3clue,white4,with a white 4clue,white4,with a white 4clue,red5,with a red 5clue, ​

green1,with a green 1clue,white3,with a white 3clue,white4,with a white 4clue,red5,with a red 5clue, ​

Finesse A play clue that causes connecting unmarked card(s) to play. cards in the deckredyellowgreenbluewhitemulticolorblack powder

Alice to Cathy: "This card is blue."

blue1,with a blue 1clue,blue5,with a blue 5clue,green3,with a green 3clue,white1,with a white 1clue, Bob 🡲 red5,with a red 5clue,red2,with a red 2clue,blue2,with a blue 2clue,green2,with a green 2clue, Cathy 🡲

Bob plays blue1,with a blue 1clue,. Cathy plays blue2,with a blue 2clue,.

Reverse(d finesse) A finesse in reverse order. cards in the deckredyellowgreenbluewhitemulticolorblack powder

Alice to Bob: "This card is blue."

red5,with a red 5clue,red2,with a red 2clue,blue2,with a blue 2clue,green2,with a green 2clue, Bob 🡲 blue1,with a blue 1clue,blue5,with a blue 5clue,green3,with a green 3clue,white1,with a white 1clue, Cathy 🡲

Bob discards.
Cathy plays blue1,with a blue 1clue,. Bob plays blue2,with a blue 2clue,.

Bluff A play clue that causes a non-connecting unmarked card to play. cards in the deckredyellowgreenblue2whitemulticolorblack powder

Alice to Cathy: "This card is green."

yellow1,with a yellow 1clue,blue5,with a blue 5clue,green3,with a green 3clue,white1,with a white 1clue, Bob 🡲 blue4,with a blue 4clue,red5,with a red 5clue,red2,with a red 2clue,green2,with a green 2clue, Cathy 🡲

Bob plays yellow1,with a yellow 1clue,.

Cathy knows her green2,with a green 2clue, cannot be green1,with a green 1clue,

(and keeps it for later).

Bluff seat The player directly before the player who is bluffed.
​The bluff seat is an H-Group convention which restricts which players are allowed to perform a bluff. Outside of H-Group, it is possible to bluff any player when the players before were unable to blind play (to reveal the bluff).
Order is Alice 🡆 Bob 🡆 Cathy:

Alice is in the 'bluff seat' of Bob.
Bob is in the 'bluff seat' of Cathy.
Cathy is in the 'bluff seat' of Alice.

Discard clue Clue that marks trash card(s) to be discarded (to prevent a misfire or unwanted discard).
​The receiver must know that all cards marked by this clue are trash.
cards in the deckred1yellow1green1blue1white1multicolorblack powder

Alice to Bob: "These 3 cards are 1."

red1,with a red 1clue,red1,with a red 1clue,yellow1,with a yellow 1clue,blue3,with a blue 3clue, Bob 🡲

Stall clue A clue given to avoid discarding.
​Avoid a finesse misinterpretation by giving a negative clue e.g. 'You have no 2'.
1cards in the deckred5yellow5green5blue5white3multicolorblack powder

yellow1,with a yellow 1clue,blue4,with a blue 4clue,white4,with a white 4clue,white5,with a white 5clue, Bob 🡲

Alice to Bob: "You have no 2."

Skip/Steal A player gives a clue that could have been given by one of the skipped players.
​The players who were skipped have a better move than to give the clue that skipped them.

Good reasons for skipping players:

  • Clue-giver is locked, i.e., cannot play or discard.
  • Gain tempo to play, e.g., skipped player(s) all have playable cards.
  • Gain tempo to clue, e.g., skipped player(s) must give a fix clue.
  • Avoid a bad/ensure a good clue, e.g., mark cards with good touch.
  • Cause a discard, e.g., duplicate or trash card.
  • Avoid a discard, e.g., double discard or nice-to-have card that cannot be saved.

More examples below.

cards in the deckredyellowgreenbluewhitemulticolorblack powder

Alice to Cathy: "This card is blue."

blue3,with a blue 3clue,red4,with a red 4clue,white1,with a white 1clue,white1,with a white 1clue, Bob 🡲 yellow4,with a yellow 4clue,blue1,with a blue 1clue,red4,with a red 4clue,white2,with a white 2clue, Cathy 🡲

Bob discards white1,with a white 1clue, (because he has nothing to clue or play).

Generation discard An unexpected discard to gain 1 clue tokens intended to be used immediately by next player as they need to urgently clue or save another player card. cards in the deckred2yellow2green2blue2white2multicolorblack powder 0 clue tokens

card back3,with a 3clue,card back,with a clue,card back,with a clue,card back,with a clue, Alice 🡲 yellow3,with a yellow 3clue,white2,with a white 2clue,green4,with a green 4clue,blue5,with a blue 5clue, Cathy 🡲

Alice discards her chop instead of playing card back3,with a 3clue,.

Bob to Cathy: "This card is a 5."

Scream discard An unexpected discard to save a critical card in another hand. 0 clue tokens

card back,with a clue,card back,with a clue,card back,with a clue,card back,with a clue, Alice 🡲 yellow4,with a yellow 4clue,blue3,with a blue 3clue,red4,with a red 4clue,white5,with a white 5clue, Bob 🡲

Alice discards slot 3.

Bob expected Alice to discard her chop.

Bob's chop must be critical.

Scream play An unexpected chop play to save a critical card in another hand. 0 clue tokens

card back,with a clue,card back5,with a 5clue,card back5,with a 5clue,card back5,with a 5clue, Alice 🡲 red1,with a red 1clue,blue2,with a blue 2clue,red4,with a red 4clue,red5,with a red 5clue, Bob 🡲

Alice plays her chop card.

Bob expected Alice to discard her chop.

Alice is unable to perform a scream discard.

Bob's chop must be critical.

Duplicate discard Discard of a duplicate marked copy of a card in another hand. cards in the deckredyellow1greenbluewhitemulticolorblack powder

Alice to Bob: "This card is green."

white4,with a white 4clue,green2,with a green 2clue,yellow4,with a yellow 4clue,red3,with a red 3clue, Alice 🡲 yellow3,with a yellow 3clue,red4,with a red 4clue,green5,with a green 5clue,green2,with a green 2clue, Bob 🡲

Cathy discards green2,with a green 2clue, and Bob plays his marked copy.

Bottom-decked When all copies of a card are too near the bottom of the deck to achieve a perfect score. Both red2,with a red 2clue, are in the last 2cards in the deck cards of the deck.
Bad Skip (prevents bluff or finesse)
cards in the deckredyellow3green3blue3white3multicolorblack powder

Alice to Cathy: "This card is red."

red2,with a red 2clue,yellow1,with a yellow 1clue,white1,with a white 1clue,blue3,with a blue 3clue, Alice 🡲 blue1,with a blue 1clue,yellow5,with a yellow 5clue,white5,with a white 5clue,blue4,with a blue 4clue, Bob 🡲 red1,with a red 1clue,white4,with a white 4clue,white4,with a white 4clue,white3,with a white 3clue, Cathy 🡲

If Alice discarded instead, Bob would have clued Alice red to finesse red1,with a red 1clue, and red2,with a red 2clue,.
Good Skip (ensures good touch)
cards in the deckred1yellow1green1blue1white1multicolorblack powder

white1,with a white 1clue,yellow2,with a yellow 2clue,white2,with a white 2clue,red2,with a red 2clue, Bob 🡲 white2,with a white 2clue,red1,with a red 1clue,blue2,with a blue 2clue,green1,with a green 1clue, Cathy 🡲

Alice skips Bob to give Cathy a blue clue so that a duplicate white2,with a white 2clue, is not marked.
Advanced
Definition Examples
Long finesse A finesse of three or more cards lasting more than one complete round. cards in the deckred3yellow3green3blue3whitemulticolorblack powder

Alice to Cathy: "This card is white."

white1,with a white 1clue,white2,with a white 2clue,yellow4,with a yellow 4clue,green1,with a green 1clue, Bob 🡲 white3,with a white 3clue,blue3,with a blue 3clue,green3,with a green 3clue,yellow3,with a yellow 3clue, Cathy 🡲

Bob plays white1,with a white 1clue,.
Cathy also sees white2,with a white 2clue, and could hold white3,with a white 3clue,.
Cathy discards.

red5,with a red 5clue,white2,with a white 2clue,yellow4,with a yellow 4clue,green1,with a green 1clue, Bob 🡲 yellow5,with a yellow 5clue,white3,with a white 3clue,blue3,with a blue 3clue,green3,with a green 3clue, Cathy 🡲

Bob plays white2,with a white 2clue,. Cathy plays white3,with a white 3clue,

Finesse Bluff A finesse followed by a bluff. cards in the deckred3yellow3green3blue3whitemulticolorblack powder

Alice to Bob: "This card is a 3."

white1,with a white 1clue,white3,with a white 3clue,yellow4,with a yellow 4clue,green1,with a green 1clue, Bob 🡲 blue4,with a blue 4clue,blue3,with a blue 3clue,green3,with a green 3clue,yellow3,with a yellow 3clue, Cathy 🡲

Bob plays white1,with a white 1clue, (finesse).
Cathy plays blue4,with a blue 4clue, as white2,with a white 2clue, (bluff).

Layered finesse A finesse with unrelated playable card(s) in front of the target card(s). cards in the deckred1yellow1green1bluewhite4multicolorblack powder

Alice to Bob: "These 2 cards are blue."

blue2,with a blue 2clue,blue5,with a blue 5clue,yellow1,with a yellow 1clue,green1,with a green 1clue, Bob 🡲 red2,with a red 2clue,yellow2,with a yellow 2clue,blue1,with a blue 1clue,green1,with a green 1clue, Cathy 🡲

Bob sees blue1,with a blue 1clue, in Cathy's hand, but layered
behind other playable cards red2,with a red 2clue, and yellow2,with a yellow 2clue,.
Bob discards. Cathy plays red2,with a red 2clue,.

green3,with a green 3clue,blue2,with a blue 2clue,blue5,with a blue 5clue,yellow1,with a yellow 1clue, Bob 🡲 white5,with a white 5clue,yellow2,with a yellow 2clue,blue1,with a blue 1clue,green1,with a green 1clue, Cathy 🡲

Cathy knows this cannot be a bluff because
Bob would not discard unless he sees a playable blue1,with a blue 1clue, in Cathy's hand.
So Cathy is promised blue1,with a blue 1clue, and keeps playing
each slot from left to right until a blue1,with a blue 1clue, is played.

Clued misplay A play clue that causes a misfire to prevent a critical discard in the same hand. cards in the deckred1yellow3green3blue3white3multicolorblack powderDiscardedr4ygbwm

red1,with a red 1clue,blue2,with a blue 2clue,red4,with a red 4clue,red5,with a red 5clue, Bob 🡲

Alice to Bob: "These 3 cards are red."

red1,with a red 1clue,blue2,with a blue 2clue,red4,with a red 4clue,red5,with a red 5clue, Bob 🡲 Bob misfires red1,with a red 1clue,

(and keeps the remaining red cards).

Positional misplay An unexpected play that marks the same slot position in another hand to play immediately. A risky move if the misplayed card is unknown. cards in the deckred2yellow4green4blue4white4multicolorblack powder 0 clue tokens

card back,with a clue,card back,with a clue,card back,with a clue,card back,with a clue, Alice 🡲 blue2,with a blue 2clue,red3,with a red 3clue,red4,with a red 4clue,red5,with a red 5clue, Bob 🡲

Alice blind plays slot 2 and causes a misfire.

Bob expected Alice to discard her chop.

Bob plays red3,with a red 3clue, in slot 2.

Positional discard An unexpected discard that marks the same slot position in another hand to play immediately. When all remaining playable cards are visible. cards in the deckred5yellow5green4blue5white5multicolorblack powder 0 clue tokens

blue2,with a blue 2clue,red4,with a red 4clue,green5,with a green 5clue,blue3,with a blue 3clue, Bob 🡲

Alice discards slot 3.

Bob expected Alice to discard her chop.

Bob plays green5,with a green 5clue, in slot 3.

Gentleman's discard Discard of a known card to play an unmarked copy in another hand.
​The value in this move can be:
  • delay the discard of non-trash cards to the right of the unmarked copy
  • play multiple cards
  • generate a token (see Generation discard)
cards in the deckredyellowgreenbluewhite1multicolorblack powder

card back,with a clue,card back2,with a 2clue,card back,with a clue,card back,with a clue, Alice 🡲 white2,with a white 2clue,red2,with a red 2clue,yellow3,with a yellow 3clue,green4,with a green 4clue, Bob 🡲

Alice discards card back2,with a 2clue,.

Bob plays his finesse position (and each slot left to right)
until an unmarked copy of white2,with a white 2clue, is played.

Play refusal Instead of playing, a player clues or discards their chop.
​The next player must consider if the play refusal is:
  • waiting for a potential reverse, or
  • there are critical card(s) to save (see Scream discard, Generation discard).
cards in the deckredyellowgreenbluewhitemulticolorblack powder

Alice to Bob: "This card is a 2."

blue1,with a blue 1clue,blue2,with a blue 2clue,blue4,with a blue 4clue,white1,with a white 1clue, Bob 🡲 blue1,with a blue 1clue,white4,with a white 4clue,yellow1,with a yellow 1clue,red4,with a red 4clue, Cathy 🡲

Bob discards waiting for Cathy's blue1,with a blue 1clue,.

Cathy discards.

Bob plays blue1,with a blue 1clue, and blue2,with a blue 2clue,.

Hesitation play After a play refusal of a playable card, another player may be able to blind play an unmarked card.
​A hesitation play must not interfere with any future response(s).
See Play refusal example.
cards in the deckred1yellowgreenbluewhitemulticolorblack powder

red4,with a red 4clue,red2,with a red 2clue,yellow4,with a yellow 4clue,blue4,with a blue 4clue, Bob 🡲 white1,with a white 1clue,blue3,with a blue 3clue,blue4,with a blue 4clue,white1,with a white 1clue, Donald 🡲

Alice to Bob: "This card is a 2."

Bob discards waiting for a white1,with a white 1clue, reverse.
Cathy discards.

Donald knows from the context that Bob's
discard can only be waiting for a playable 1 in their hand.
Donald plays white1,with a white 1clue,.

Gameplay Using Finesse Conventions

Receiving Clues

Check visible cards, including played and discarded, to determine the focus and the meaning of a clue.

  • Example A: you are given a 2 clue. You see red2,with a red 2clue, was played and the second red2,with a red 2clue, is in another hand. Therefore the clue means "2s which are not red".
  • Example B: you are given a 4 clue that marks only your chop. You see no 4s have been discarded and no 4s on the chop of the players next to you. Therefore the clue means "this 4 is playable".

Giving Clues

  • Don't mark trash cards (see Good Touch Principle).
  • Save critical cards as priority.
    • Look ahead for critical cards on chop. Sometimes more than one player must help to save consecutive critical cards.
  • With few ​ clue tokens, work out which players need them.
  • Consider how the receiver can interpret your clue.

Discarding

  • Trust your teammates to manage your cards.
  • When there is nothing urgent to clue, don't be afraid to discard! Discarding is often the best move for the team.

Playing

  • When multiple cards are marked, determine the focused card. Each clue only has one focused card.
  • Logically playable cards are marked at the earliest opportunity, so the leftmost card is assumed to be the focus of play clues (where no other cards are known to be playable).

Triggering the final round

  • Sometimes a specific player should draw the last card to maximize the score.
  • Giving empty clues (e.g., "You have no red card") can help to manage which player draws the last card.
Last Card Example
1cards in the deckred5yellow5green3blue4white5multicolorblack powder 4 clue tokens

red3,with a red 3clue,yellow1,with a yellow 1clue,green1,with a green 1clue,blue5,with a blue 5clue, Bob 🡲 green2,with a green 2clue,red1,with a red 1clue,green4,with a green 4clue,green5,with a green 5clue, Cathy 🡲

  • Alice and Bob both give empty clues. e.g., Alice to Cathy: "You have no white card."
  • Cathy plays green4,with a green 4clue, and draws the last card.
  • Alice discards, Bob plays blue5,with a blue 5clue, and Cathy plays green5,with a green 5clue,.

More

For more moves and strategies, check out:

2 Player Strategy

  • Saves are given as late as possible.
  • Off-chop saves for consecutive critical cards.
  • Double discards can be avoided with a stall clue.
  • Last ​ clue tokens is reserved to mark a critical or playable chop.
  • Playable first copies are clued.
  • Splash critical and already-marked trash cards.
  • Play in clued order.
  • Before playing, consider marking a connecting chop card.
  • Scream discard = save the chop card (and move chop one slot to the left).
  • Flamboyants: Consider not locking a hand with a 5 save.
  • Avalanche: Any card can be multicolor. e.g. wait for negative multicolor on a red5,with a red 5clue, before playing as red5,with a red 5clue,.
  • Avalanche: Playable cards marked with both color and number play first.
  • Black Powder: black powder1,with a black powder 1clue, is only marked on chop unless all other 1s (or black powder2,with a black powder 2clue,) are already clued/played.

Early game

  • Avoid discarding until at least 3 clue tokens are used.
  • With multiple marked unknown 1s in your hand, consider first playing your 1s or marking 1s individually with color.
  • Non-critical 2s / black powder4,with a black powder 4clue, can be marked with number.

Alternative Strategy

  • Any card may be saved, including non-critical cards.
  • Cards marked with a number are only splashed with color:
    • If a previously unmarked card is playable.
    • As a stall clue.

Other Convention Sets

Finesse Additional Skip Interpretation

​This convention prevents discard management, finesse with number, layered finesse

An additional convention is that skipped player(s) cannot discard. i.e., Alice can clue Cathy only if Bob has a play or can give another useful clue. If a skipped player has no marked playable cards and no good clue to give, they must blind play their newest, unmarked card. A clue-giver who causes unmarked play(s) purely from a skip is responsible for any misinterpretation.

Skipped Players Cannot Discard Example
Alice skips Bob to give Cathy a 1 clue.

cards in the deckredyellowgreenbluewhitemulticolorblack powder

yellow1,with a yellow 1clue,yellow2,with a yellow 2clue,white2,with a white 2clue,red2,with a red 2clue, Bob 🡲 white2,with a white 2clue,red1,with a red 1clue,blue2,with a blue 2clue,green4,with a green 4clue, Cathy 🡲

Bob has no clue to give and no known play, so he blind plays his newest unmarked card. yellow1,with a yellow 1clue, does not connect to card back1,with a 1clue,, so Cathy interprets Bob's move as a skip play and plays red1,with a red 1clue,.
Forbidden Skip Example
Alice skips Bob to give Cathy a 3 clue.

cards in the deckred2yellowgreenbluewhitemulticolorblack powder

yellow1,with a yellow 1clue,yellow2,with a yellow 2clue,white2,with a white 2clue,red2,with a red 2clue, Bob 🡲 white2,with a white 2clue,red3,with a red 3clue,blue2,with a blue 2clue,red1,with a red 1clue, Cathy 🡲

Bob has no clue to give and no known play, so he blind plays his newest unmarked card. In this convention, yellow1,with a yellow 1clue, does not connect to card back3,with a 3clue,, so Cathy interprets as a bluff and her card back3,with a 3clue, is not playable.

This is a lie because red3,with a red 3clue, is playable. So Alice is forbidden from giving this clue. Instead, Alice should have discarded and allowed Bob to clue Cathy so that she knows her red3,with a red 3clue, is playable.

H-Group

Some key differences include:

  • non-critical saves
  • chop-focused play clues
  • context-dependent chop moves
  • number play clues are assumed to be a lie (bluff) over truth (finesse).

H-Group

Convention set Definition Examples
Logical Leftism No convention, just logic hanabi logic
Conventional Leftism Another name for Finesse hanabi logic Postmans
Hat-guessing Clues relate to slot position, not the cards marked H-Group Robert Kaspar H-Group empty clues
Closest Friend Clue interpretation depends on which player gave the clue H-Group
Secret convention Each player randomly selects a secret restriction Secret variant Secret hanabi restriction

For more convention sets check out this forum post by Romain672