Games

Poker

• 8 players in one hand (rather than just 7)
• Deal longer without shuffling
• Better hands - Rainbow Hands, 5 of a Kind

See the Poker page for more details.

Red Dog (poker variant)

• High red hand wins half
• Low black hand wins other half
• Go both ways with the star suit (either red or black)

Spades

• Rules for SPADES Using Stardeck (Opens in new window)
• "Stardeck is a good alternative when people start to get bored with the regular rules for a game -- we try some new variation of spades about once a month. With Stardeck, as with any set of alternative rules, it takes a while before to adjust the rules to restore game balance."
  -- B.J. Herbison

Solitaire

• "If anybody's interested in playing a game of solitaire with a Stardeck, I suggest this one simple change. Since stars are both red and black, they can be played on any of the other four suits, but not on another star. This actually adds a little bit of strategy to the game and there's almost always a way to get out of a hopeless looking situation if you rearrange the cards enough."
  -- Jeff Kiska

Rummy

• "Stardeck makes a fun alternative to a regular deck, especially in games like rummy. Using Stardeck allows for a greater number of players. Thanks for a great product!"
  -- Terry Romance

Oh Hell/The Bidding Game

• "I have looked everywhere for a deck of cards with five suites. The deck I have is worn out. I'm a teacher, and I play cards with my students at lunch. When there are too many of us for a regular deck, we use the one with five suites. Our favorite game is Oh Hell, which we call the Bidding Game, in our attempt to promote appropriate language for school. That's the game (when we use the extra cards) that allows us to include the most people in one game. Anyway, I'll be ordering more decks, thanks to your web site. THANK YOU!"

Feedback

Below is feedback we received from players regarding Stardeck:

"I have been looking for a 5 suited deck since 1992, when I played poker with a group of friends, one of which had such a deck. I am overjoyed to find one at last. My order is in the mail."
-- Dorn Egley

"When the deck is presented some people refuse to play and others demand to start playing immediately. The best responses can be acheived by giving the deck to the dealer without telling anyone about the fifth suit."

"People are either shocked or in awe of this deck when they are first introduced to it."

The Pocketbook of Games

Albert H. Morehead

February 1945

In 1938 there appeared a five-suit deck, having the usual 52 cards of the standard deck plus a complete fifth suit. In the United States this fifth suit was green, called EAGLES, and marked by an appropriate symbol; in England it was blue, called ROYALS, and marked by a crown. A five suit Bridge game was widely played for some months, but was soon forgotten. Five-suit poker made a better game, but can seldom be played today because the cards are no longer generally on sale.