The card game Palace, sometimes known as Shed or Castle, is a popular shedding-type game played with a standard 52-card deck. The primary goal is to be the first player to successfully discard every card in their possession, including those held in hand and those arranged on the table. The game combines elements of luck with strategic decision-making, requiring careful management of the hand and the cards reserved on the playing surface.
Setting Up the Game
The initial setup requires each player to receive a total of nine cards, arranged into three distinct groups. The dealer first distributes three cards face-down in a row in front of each person; these are the player’s final three cards, which remain unseen until the endgame. Three additional cards are then dealt face-up and placed directly on top of the initial face-down cards, forming the visible part of the Palace. Finally, each player receives a three-card hand to begin the game.
Before the first turn, players have an opportunity to strategically swap cards between their three-card hand and the three face-up cards on the table. Players often aim to place higher-ranking cards from their hand onto the face-up spots, reserving lower-ranking cards for their starting hand. Once all swaps are complete, the remaining deck is placed face-down in the center of the table to form the stock pile. The player who holds the lowest card, often the 3 of any suit, begins the game by placing that card onto the table to start the discard pile.
The Core Rules of Play
The fundamental mechanic involves players discarding cards from their hand onto the central discard pile in a continuous ascending sequence. A card played must always be equal to or higher in rank than the card currently exposed on the top of the pile, with Aces ranking highest in the standard hierarchy. Players are permitted to play multiple cards in a single turn, provided all cards played are of the exact same rank and meet the minimum rank requirement. For example, a player could play two Sevens on top of a Six, or a single Jack on a Ten.
Maintaining a full hand is a consistent requirement throughout the early and middle stages of the game. After a player completes their turn by playing cards, they must immediately draw enough cards from the stock pile to ensure they possess a minimum of three cards in their hand. This drawing requirement ceases once the stock pile is exhausted. If a player is unable to match or exceed the rank of the top discard card, they are forced to pick up the entire discard pile and add it to their hand, ending their turn immediately.
Understanding Special Cards
Certain card ranks possess unique functions that override the standard rule of ascending rank. The rank of 2 serves as a universal wild card that can be played on top of any card at any time, regardless of the current rank on the discard pile. When a 2 is played, it effectively resets the sequence, allowing the next player to play any card of their choice to continue the game.
The rank of 10 operates as a clear card that can also be played at any time on any other card. Playing a 10 immediately removes the entire discard pile from play, permanently setting the accumulated cards aside. The player who utilized the 10 then receives an immediate extra turn and starts a new discard pile with any card from their hand. Another clear condition occurs when four cards of the same rank are played consecutively, which also removes the entire discard pile from play, granting the player who completed the set an extra turn.
Some variations of Palace assign a special function to the rank of 7, which alters the direction of the ascending rank requirement. When a 7 is played, it may mandate that the next player must play a card that is lower in rank than 7, or another special card. This rule variation temporarily reverses the standard flow, requiring players to discard descending ranks until another 7 is played to restore the normal ascending order.
Playing Out the Palace
The final phase of the game begins once the stock pile is depleted and a player has successfully emptied their hand of all cards. The player then transitions to playing the three face-up cards that are located on the table in front of them. These face-up cards must be played one at a time, adhering to all the standard rules of rank matching and special card effects. Once all three face-up cards have been legally played, the player moves on to the final three face-down cards.
The face-down cards must be played completely blind, meaning the player selects one without looking at its rank. The selected face-down card is then revealed and placed onto the discard pile. If the rank of the blind card is equal to or higher than the top card, the card is successfully played, and the player continues to their next turn. Conversely, if the blindly chosen card is unplayable because its rank is too low, the player must pick up the entire discard pile, including the unplayable face-down card, and add the new stack to their hand. The player must then clear this newly acquired hand before attempting to play any remaining face-down Palace cards. The first player to successfully play their final face-down card is declared the winner.