Snaggletooth is a card game created mid-session for Akellon, during some time spent at the Bronze Boot in Castleton. It was first documented being played by Trofim Kabakian, Terri, and Papa, and has since been played by others. In Draconic, the game is called Othnurh (Ugly Tooth), and it is sometimes called Odd Man Out.
Materials
To play Snaggletooth, you need (ideally) three to six players, a deck of cards, and perhaps a coin for determining who gets to pick Snaggletooth when two players have the same number of pairs at the beginning of the game. Snaggletooth may be played with two players, though see the Alternate Rules section in this case.
Rules
Snaggletooth is easiest to play around a small table, where everyone is within arm's reach of everyone else. Each player is dealt seven cards, and the rest of the cards go into a pile at the center of the table. Each player then examines his/her hand and lays down any pairs he or she has, drawing as many cards as it takes to bring their hand back up to seven cards. (If you happen to draw a pair, lay it down and draw two more cards; repeat until you have no more pairs in your hand.)
When all of the initial pairs have been laid down, the person with the most pairs picks a value of card that has not been laid down to be the Snaggletooth. If all players have the same amount of pairs (or no pairs), the person to the right of the dealer picks Snaggletooth. If all values of cards have been laid down in pairs, reshuffle the deck and draw new hands. If two players have the same number of pairs, the standard method is to flip a coin to determine who chooses Snaggletooth. (Other methods exist, such as playing Ro-Sham-Bo/Rock-Paper-Scissors, or taking an example from the card game War and having each person flip over one card from the deck (highest value chooses Snaggletooth).)
The person to the dealer's right then picks a card from another player's hand, putting it into theirs. If the chosen card creates a pair with a card already in the player's hand, he/she lays down the pair and draws two cards from the deck. (If these cards also create a pair, then repeat laying down pairs and drawing two cards until there are either no more pairs in your hand or no cards left in the deck.) The next person around the table then picks a card from another player's hand, continuing the cycle until a player gets a pair of Snaggletooths.
The goal of Snaggletooth is to get the most pairs of cards, WITHOUT getting a pair of Snaggletooths. If you get a pair of Snaggletooths, you are out of the game. Lay down your pair of Snaggletooths, then take the cards in your hand and shuffle them into the deck. The game continues until both pairs of Snaggletooths are found. Then, the players who did not get pairs of Snaggletooths count the number of pairs they have laid down. The one who has the most pairs of cards is the winner!
Alternate Rules
- Playing with two players can be a little tricky, since the person who gets Snaggletooth loses. When playing with two players, the game is usually played so that when someone gets a pair of Snaggletooths, the game is over, and both players count their pairs. Whoever got the most pairs, regardless of who got Snaggletooth, is the winner.
- Given that Snaggletooth is played by both children and adults, bets can be made on the game. Bets are placed before Snaggletooth is called, but after the initial pairs have been laid down. The most common bet is on who is going to win, but other kinds of bets have been made; who will get Snaggletooth first, who will get two pairs with the same value first…
Cheating
Since this is a game created for a Dungeons and Dragons setting, especially one where rogues and card sharps are plentiful, there are ways to cheat at the game. The easiest way to cheat is to simply not lay down a pair you have in your hand, especially if it's a pair of Snaggletooths. Others who are crafty with their sleight of hand (DC 15) can shift the cards in their hand around to make someone draw a Snaggletooth from their hand. Of course, there are myriad other ways to cheat, too, but your card sharp will have to concoct those on his/her own.
Happy playing!