How to Play Guandan (掼蛋)

What is Guandan?

Guandan (掼蛋, often translated as "throwing eggs") is a climbing game for four players in two teams. It comes from Huai'an in Jiangsu and is now played all over China, from family tables to official tournaments.

Each play has to beat the one before, as in Big 2 or Dou Dizhu, but Guandan adds three twists: two decks and four jokers, so there are bombs of up to ten cards; a level card that changes every hand, whose two hearts are wild; and a match that climbs from 2 to Ace, with the losers of each hand paying tribute to the winners.

This page describes the rules the game at bs.fyi uses. Guandan has local variations; the choices we made are listed near the end.

Guandan at a glance

The whole game in a few lines:

Players

4, in two teams of two; partners sit opposite

Cards

Two decks plus four jokers (108 cards), 27 each

Goal

Get rid of your cards first; your team then goes up 1 to 3 levels

Level card

The rank your team is on (2 to A). It ranks just below the jokers

Wild cards

The two hearts of the level rank (逢人配) stand for any card but a joker

Bombs

4 to 10 of a kind, straight flushes, and four jokers on top

Match

Won on Ace: win a hand there with your partner not last (bs.fyi also has a short match to 6)

Card order and the level card

Lowest to highest, when the level is 5

Combinations

You can lead any of these. To beat a play you need the same type with a higher rank, or a bomb:

How to play Guandan, step by step

The level card and the wild hearts

Each team has a level, from 2 up to A. A hand is played at the level of the team that won the last hand (the first hand at 2), so if your team is on 8, 8s are the level cards: they rank above the A and below the jokers.

The two hearts of the level rank are wild (逢人配). A wild can stand for any card except a joker, in any combination or bomb except four jokers. On its own, or paired with the other wild, it is simply a level card.

At bs.fyi you just play the cards and the game reads the wilds the strongest way that's allowed (a bomb before anything else, a higher rank before a lower one), then shows what each wild stood for.

Bombs, from low to high

A bomb beats any ordinary combination, whatever its type. Among bombs, the order is: four of a kind, five of a kind, straight flush, six, seven, eight, nine and ten of a kind, and finally the four jokers.

Bombs of the same size go by rank (level cards highest); straight flushes go by their top card.

Tribute (进贡) and the card back (还贡)

From the second hand on, the losers pay tribute before play starts. If the winners finished 1st and 2nd, both losers each give their highest card (never a wild): the higher of the two goes to 1st place, the other to 2nd. Otherwise only the last player pays, to the first.

Each player who receives tribute gives one card back to the player who paid them, and it must be a 10 or lower. Then the player who paid the (higher) tribute leads.

Resisting tribute (抗贡): if the players who would pay hold both red jokers between them, nobody pays and the winner of the last hand leads.

Winning the match at Ace

A team that reaches Ace has to win a hand while playing on Ace, with the partner not finishing last (1st and 2nd, or 1st and 3rd). Win 1st and 4th and you stay on Ace and try again.

Each hand your team plays on Ace without winning the match is a failed attempt. After three, your team drops back to 2.

Going up levels

The winners of each hand choose the next level card: the next hand is played at their new level. Levels never go past A.

House rules at bs.fyi

We follow the Chinese competition rules where sources differ: a 1-2 finish is worth 3 levels (some tables give 4), and the card given back after tribute must be a 10 or lower. Equal tributes: 1st place takes the card of the player seated after them, who then leads.

Card counts are always shown, instead of being announced. Wilds are read for you, as described above. We don't use the rule that drops a team on Ace to 2 when the opponents' last play is all aces.

Besides the full match to Ace, you can play a short match to 6, won exactly as you would win on Ace. The Daily Challenge is a single hand: everyone gets the same deal, and you score 3 for 1st place, 2 for 2nd, 1 for 3rd.

Tips

• •Play for your partner. Don't beat your partner's play just because you can. If they're close to going out, lead small cards they can follow with.
• •Save your bombs. A bomb is your way back into the game. Use it to stop an opponent who is about to go out, or to take the lead when you can run out your hand.
• •Count the big cards. With two decks there are two of everything. Knowing which jokers and level cards have gone tells you when your single or pair can't be beaten.
• •Use the wilds well. A wild turns four of a kind into a bigger bomb, or fills the gap in a straight flush. Don't waste it as a plain single.
• •Go out in the right order. Getting 1st and 2nd is worth three levels. If you're nearly out, think about how your partner will get out too.

Frequently Asked Questions