How to Play Noddy
Description
The direct predecessor to Cribbage — a two-player counting game of combinations, pegs, and the same quiet satisfaction of finding points in your hand you hadn't planned for.
Objective
Be first to reach 31 points, scored through card combinations both in hand and during play.
Setup
Two players, using a standard deck. Aces always count as 1, never 11.
Deal three cards to each player, then turn up the next card — both players can use it when forming combinations. If it's a Jack, the non-dealer scores 2 points immediately for "Knave Noddy."
Rules
Players play cards alternately, announcing a running total as they go — the total can't exceed 31 for that stretch of play.
Making the total exactly 15, playing a pair, or completing a run of three or more scores points immediately.
Once both hands are played out, each player counts their hand — including the turned-up card — for combinations: pairs, runs, and fifteens.
Winning
Points accumulate across both the play and the hand-counting.
First player to 31 wins the game.