You know the odds, all the rest is in the cards. And now, a game of skill, fate and fortune!
GAMEPLAY
Two teams of two compete against each other answering questions and trying to make the best hand without going bust!
The game is played with a standard 52-card deck which the teams will share.
Teams earn control of the cards by answering a toss-up trivia question correctly. Questions are typically in true/false form or multiple choice.
The first card in the deck is revealed to the teams.
After the first question is read, whichever team buzzes in first can answer.
The BLUE TEAM buzzes in first. If they answer the question correctly, they have the option of adding the top card (JACK) to their hand or passing it to their opponents. If they are incorrect, the RED TEAM has the option.
The idea is to try to make a hand as close to 21 as possible. Face cards count as 10, number cards count as the number on them, and aces count as either 1 or 11.
The next question is read, however no more cards are revealed beforehand.
In this case, the RED TEAM buzzes in and answers the question correctly. The RED TEAM now decides if they want to take the next card off the deck and add it to their hand or give it to their opponents. They choose to take the card, which ends up being a 2.
When a team fears they may make a hand that is higher than 21 (a bust), they can choose to FREEZE their hand. A team may only freeze if they are the team that receives the latest card.
The RED TEAM has frozen their hand at 12. The BLUE TEAM now plays alone to try to make a better hand than the RED TEAM.
The BLUE TEAM is asked a question. If they answer correctly, they will receive the next card in the deck.
In this case, the next card is a Queen and the BLUE TEAM wins the round with a better hand.
If the BLUE TEAM answers the question incorrectly, the RED TEAM wins the round automatically.
Altogether, a round can end in one of four ways:
- A team exceeds their frozen opponent’s hand without busting (as explained above).
- A team freezes their hand and their opponent misses a subsequent question (as explained above).
- If their opponent busts at any time during gameplay.
4. If a team achieves a 21. Reaching 21 also wins the teams the Gambit Jackpot (see SUGGESTIONS).
The first team to win 2 rounds (or games) wins the match and goes to the Gambit Board Bonus Round!
THINGS TO KEEP IN MIND…
- Since the teams are using the same 52-card deck, the cards are not reshuffled unless all 52 cards are used up (which is highly unlikely), so it may be advantageous to remember which cards have already been played.
- If a team freezes, the other team must keep answering questions until they have exceeded their opponents or they bust. If they miss a question at any time, the frozen team automatically wins.
- There are no pushes (ties). If a team freezes, the other team must EXCEED the score. If they match their opponents score, they must answer another question correctly and take the next card.
BONUS ROUND – GAMBIT BOARD
On the Gambit Board, the winning team will select a number 1-18. Behind each number will be a dollar amount $1-$10. These dollar amounts will be converted into hundreds of dollars (see SUGGESTIONS).
After each number is chosen, a card will be revealed from another 52-card deck. This card will be added to their hand.
Another number is chosen and another card is revealed and added to their hand. The team wants to stay under 21 for as long as they can in order to choose more numbers off the board.
If they wish, they can stop the Bonus Round here and take their winnings (in this case, it would be $1,200). If they wish to continue, they can choose another number and another card is added to their hand.
If their hand exceeds 21, they have bust and will lose any winnings in the Bonus Round.
If the team can make a hand of exactly 21, they win all the winnings earned on the Gambit Board plus a bonus of $5,000!
SUGGESTIONS
*FOR ALL SHOWS: The main purpose for these shows is entertainment and fun, first and foremost. While many of these games display large amounts of money and/or lavish prizes, we do NOT provide any such prizes for the games. All parties are welcome to provide their own prizes/gifts that may be implemented in gameplay. Below are simply some suggestions we have come up with in order to make the gameplay more interesting and/or competitive.
*ADD A SWAG BAG!: Want to play for real prizes? Add a swag bag of awesome Eek! products to any gameshow package and award gifts as individual prizes or play for an ultimate prize package!
Depending on the size of your party, you may play as individuals or larger teams.
If you would like to provide your own prizes, you can include them as part of winning the main game or the bonus round, or you could use the “money” won as a currency to buy prizes. For example, if a team wins a total of $1,500, they could trade that money in for a prize (say a $5 Starbucks gift card is worth $1,000, a $10 Amazon card is worth $1,500, a paid day off work is worth $2,500, etc.). Again, you would need to provide these prizes, but we are happy to keep score for you and even provide money chips to help keep track.
Since “Blackjack Gambit” uses an accumulated cash system, it may be fun to keep score to see how much each team wins altogether, and the team that wins the most is the big winner!
Since a “Blackjack Gambit” package comes with three full matches and bonus rounds, you may have the winners of the first two matches compete in the final match, or use a “returning champion” feature, where whichever teams wins each match continues to the next.
For any other additional questions or suggestions, visit the FAQ page, or email us at eekgameshows@yahoo.com
BLACKJACK GAMBIT PACKAGE: Includes three full matches with Bonus Rounds