Gamehelpkoikoi

Game play

Everyone starts with 50 points. Each player has a hand of 8 cards, and 8 cards are dealt face-up to the table.

~ Check for instant win conditions: A set of 4 cards from the same month -OR- 4 pairs of matching cards. If so dealt, the instant winner gains 6 points, the opponent loses 6 points, and a new round is started.

~ If the game starts with either condition on the table, the round is redealt.

On your turn, choose 1 card from your hand to play to the table. You are trying to capture cards on the table with a card from your hand to complete card combos (YAKU) that are worth points. You capture a card on the table when it's the same month as the one you play.

~ If it matches, place the card from your hand AND the captured card into your winning zone.

~ If it doesn't match, it's simply added face-up to the table.

Next, draw a card from the deck. If it matches a card on the table, add the both cards to your winning zone. Otherwise, add the card from the deck face-up to the table.

~ You must always capture if possible.

~ If there are 3 cards from the same month on the table, the matching card takes the entire set of cards. 

KOI KOI

After playing 1 card from your hand and 1 from the deck, check to see if you formed a yaku (card combo). If so, you must either score it and end the round, or choose koi-koi to continue playing.

SCORE ~ Gain points equal to the value of the yake, plus any multipliers. Your opponent loses the points you gained, and the round ends.

KOI KOI ~ The round continues and you cannot score that yaku until you have formed another yaku.

~ However, if an opponent scores a yaku after you koi koi, you lose your points and they ga8n them.

GAME END

By default, the game ends after 6 rounds (half a year), but other game length options are available when you create a table.

At the end of the game, the player with the most points (or kobans) wins!

If at any point a player's points are reduced to zero, they immediately lose the game.

About YAKU (card combinations)

You can use the in game help icon to display a popup listing all the possible yaku and how many points they are worth.

All the yaku are combinative, except the "Bright" cards yaku, which are exclusive (you will always score the biggest available).

About MULTIPLIERS

If you score 7 or more points during a round, you gain a x2 multiplier....IF you win the round.

For Board Game Arena, two additional variants are provided through the options when creating the game:

Soft Koi

Adapted from the Sloperama site rules which is all about saying "Koi!". Of course you run the risk of your opponent making a yaku and scoring for the month (round) before you can score yourself, but in exchange for that risk, each time you will get a multiplier so that if you manage to increase your score with another yaku, you will score a lot more. This is an aggressive variant with a lot of points available if you push your luck.

Hard "Koi!"

Adapted from the Hanafubuki site rules which is less incentive to call "Koi!" since you won't get a multiplier just for saying "Koi!". Instead, your opponent will! If you say "Koi!" at least once, then if your opponent manages to score their score will be doubled. Still, at some point you'll risk it, because if you manage to improve your yaku to score 7 points or more, then your score will be doubled.

DRAW ROUNDS

If players empty their hands and no one has completed a yaku by the end of the round, the hand ends without scoring.

~ This can be changed in the game options so either dealer or non-dealer scores 6 points instead.

VIEWING YAKU

A few variants have been implementend for the "Viewing the Moon" and "Viewing the Cherry Blossoms" yaku:

Viewing yaku enabled

Both yaku are available by default.

Rain ruins the party

If a player captures at least one November (rain) card, the party is ruined. Viewing yaku are unavailable for this player.

Viewing yaku disabled

Both yaku are unavailable.

START PLAYER

Several options can be selected:

Winner starts the next month

The winner of the current month is start player for the next month (this is the default).

Loser starts the next month

The player who lost this month gets to play first next month.

Alternate starting player

The player who didn't get to play first this month will play first the following month.