Objective of the Game
The objective of Lügenmax (also known as "Cheat" or "Bluff") is to be the first player to get rid of all your cards. The last player holding cards loses the game.
Game Components
- A standard deck of 52 cards without jokers.
- At least 3 players are required.
Setup
- Shuffle the cards and deal them as evenly as possible among players. It's fine if some players have one more card than others.
- The player to the left of the dealer starts the game.
Gameplay
- Play a card: The starting player places one or more cards face down in the center and announces their rank, claiming all the cards are the same. For instance, "Two threes."
- Truth or Bluff: Players aren't bound to tell the truth and may bluff about what cards they are placing.
- Challenge the play:
- Any player can challenge the truthfulness of the current play by saying "Lüge!" or "Cheat!"
- If the play is challenged, the cards are revealed:
- If honest: The challenger must pick up all the cards from the stack.
- If bluffing: The active player (who placed the cards) must pick up all the cards from the stack.
- Continue the game: Regardless of the challenge result, the next player continues clockwise and places their cards face down, stating their rank. The ranks must proceed consecutively from Ace (A), through two, up to king (K), and then return to Ace.
Special Strategies and Nuances
- Spot gaps: It can be advantageous to watch carefully and deduce which cards possible previous players may have, allowing you to better judge when they might be bluffing.
- Bluff effectively: A good bluff is essential. If you find that another player hesitates to challenge your play, you might be able to bluff several turns to offload more cards unchallenged.
- Timing: Wait for the right moment to call bluff. Calling too early or too often might result in accumulating a large number of cards.
End of the Game
The game ends when one player succeeds in shedding all their cards. The game can be considered won by the player with the fewest cards or lost by the last player with cards remaining, depending on how you interpret the objective.
