A Poker game where you work with your partner to try and win.
Partner Poker – or “Team Poker” as it was originally called – is born out of the idea of trying to apply the sort of partnership you find in trick taking games to a game outside of its original domain.
In Partner Poker, each player only receives half a hand of cards. Then, through a series of secret messages, they have to try to communicate with their partner and suss out what their chances of winning are.
Mus, a Basque card game, served as the primary inspiration for the secret messages. Mus has a series of standardised allowed messages which players can use to communicate their hand to their partner.
I decided to forego this restriction entirely by only requiring that the messages occur in plain view.
It’s fun (I think) to try and guess what the other team is saying.
The game plays almost like a standard game of Texas Hold’em Poker.
Small and big blinds are paid. Each player receives two cards, and a “pre-flop” round of bidding ensues.
Then, in the flop a single card is revealed. This is the Piggy.
Your two cards, combined with your partner’s two cards and the Piggy make up a full 5 card hand.
Another round of betting takes place.
Then comes the Gift, everyone is dealt a third card.
Your Poker hand can only use two of the three cards, but options are nice, right?
Another round of betting.
Then the Volley. Send one of your own cards over to your partner.
Remember: you can only use two cards to make the hand, so maybe you or your partner hold what you need.
Final round of betting.
Then showdown.
A big part of the strategy here comes from coordinating and bluffing with your partner. Can you do it?
What You Need to Play This
- Poker Chips
- A standard 52 card Poker deck sans Jokers
Links
Rulebook on Overleaf: https://www.overleaf.com/read/yyqwmrdhdxqg#9867aa
BoardGameGeek Page: https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/417891/partner-poker