h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

If you like Mornington Crescent, you'll love Double Fanucci, the card game with infinite rules and variations. Just like making up a number guarantees that it appears in the digits of pi, making up a rule of Double Fanucci virtually guarantees that it appears in the rule-book. The game was created in the Zork interactive fiction series. Here's how to play:

There are 174 cards in the deck, which is divided into face cards and suits.

The 15 suits: Mazes, Books, Rain, Bugs, Fromps, Inkblots, Scythes, Plungers, Faces, Time, Lamps, Hives, Ears, Zurfs, and Tops.

Cards: valued at 0-9 and Infinity.

Face cards: Granola, Death, Light, Snail, Beauty, Time, Grue, Lobster, and Jester.

You start with 4 cards; if you have less at any point, take another from the discard pile. In each turn, you can execute a 'play', out of the following: Combine, One-Play, Two-Play, Pass, Overpass, Trump, Undertrump, Reverse, Muttonate, Divide, and Ionize (as well as Draw and Discard, of course).

Executing different plays earns you or your opponents a certain amount of points. Some special plays have special names, but you'll realise these things as you go along.

The winner is the person with the most points at the end of the game, but an easier way to win is to undertrump 3 cards after an opponent discards Trebled Fromps. This is called an indefensible gambit.

We'll start with Miznian Rules.
So to begin, I'll deal the cards, and start off by Combining the Eight of Time.

But what are you combining the eight of time with?

Combine in the Fanucci sense is intransitive. It has thus been combined. And that's it.

In which case I'll one-play the six of fromp

Are you a regular Fanuccimeister? You've gained 60 points!

Excellant , your move, I think

I'm going to Divide Trebled Bugs, which narrowly avoids the Golden Bug Rule #12, and means I'll get away with at least 14 points.

Hmm, I think you get 26 points, due to invoking the Greater Eastern law

I'll overpass the 4 of Scythes

Quite right. 26 points to me.

And 18 to you for your excellently executed Obliz Deluxe move. I am going to Draw another card.

I was quite proud of that move.

the tension is mounting

Your move.

Oh yes, I'll pass the four of Death, but I'm not quite sure why, but it seems a comfortable move to make just after dinner