Poker

RULES AND TECH NOTES

Starting a Game

To start a game, simply select 'Play Now' inside a Game Room so the moderator can launch the game, and voila! Poker! You might notice a slight delay once in the Room due to the game synchronizing players before the game starts. Once everyone's synchronized, the game will play normally.

Betting:

There comes a time in poker when you must bet. You have three options: you can open, check, or fold. Click the appropriate button when the 'Select the Amount to Bet' screen pops up. There is also a slider bar in which you can pick how much you wish to bet. Move the slider to the right to increase the amount of your bet. You can adjust the slider button by using the mouse, or by using the keyboard left and right arrows.

Note: Left and right arrows are much more accurate when betting (i.e. you can bet 361 instead of 360 if you had used the mouse)

Setting the Max Open / Max Raise:

Maximum betting amounts are set by the moderator before the game launches with the 'Max Open' and 'Max Raise' settings. The minimum open/raise is five dollars. That means that the most anyone can bet is five dollars per betting duration or opening session. Accordingly, if the maximum open/raise is set to 1,000 dollars, 1,000 is the maximum anyone can bet/open during the game.

Time Settings:

A timer appears next to the chat window to indicate how many seconds you have left to bet or pick new cards. There are two timers that can be set by the moderator: the 'Bet Timer' and the 'Draw Timer.' The 'Bet Timer' controls how long players have to bet. The draw timer controls how long players have to draw new cards. For example, the moderator has set the 'Draw Timer' to one minute. Each player has 60 seconds to decide what he/she wants to discard and what to keep.

Once the timer runs out, the player has involuntarily passed his turn. If this happens when the 'Bet Timer' runs out, the player automatically bets the minimum amount. If this happens when the draw timer runs out the player's turn is skipped and that player is not allowed to draw new cards. So pay attention!

For clarification let's take BillyBoBob. It is BillyBoBob's turn to bet. He has 30 seconds to bet (set by the moderator) and stares blankly at his screen, nervously trying to figure out how much money he must bet, what cards his opponents have, and how much money he is willing to loose. Billy isn't the smartest egg in the carton, and before he knows it, the bet timer has run out! The check pot is 25 dollars, and because of that, he has to slap down 25 buckaroo's no matter if he wants to or not. Now it is Billy's turn to discard and draw new cards and the moderator has seet the draw timer to 45 seconds. Once again, he stares blankly at his screen, running through the mouse maze that is his mind, and before he knows it the 45 seconds are up and he's outta luck! He is NOT able to draw cards because his turn has been 'skipped.'

Running Out of Money:

The mplayer.com Casino kicks you out of the game if you run out of money! Don't worry--you can get back into the game but you'll only start out with a thousand smackers. Be more careful next time!

Discarding/Drawing Cards:

Simply click on the cards (maximum of 3, or 4 if you have an ace) you want to discard and the game will draw you the amount you discarded from the deck! Like Magic!

Joining a Game in Progress:

To join a game in progress, select 'Ready to Play' in that Game Room and you'll launch into that game. Once inside, select 'Push to join next hand' and you'll be all set. Of course, you'll have to wait for the other players round to end, it would be impolite simply to pop in there unannouced!

Winning:

Winning might be easy for an experienced poker veteran, but for newer players it may be a challenge. A common practice in poker is to play it safe. Don't take needless risks such as calling bluffs or betting large amounts trying to win big pots. Slowly gaining a little money each game can amount to a lot in the future.

Losing:

Being a good sportsman in the face of defeat leaves a good impression with people that you're playing with. Exiting a game or ending a hand gracefully should be expected in all games you play. Common ways of congratulating a winner is to type "gh" for good hand or "ty" for thank you. Other common acronyms for congratulations is "vgh" for very good hand or "gg" for good game.

Some questions from players:

Q: Can I organize my cards by suit or number?
A: This feature has not yet been added.

Q: When I take out a loan how do I pay it back?
A: You can't! It's mplayer.com's free gift to you for playing!

Q: When I exit to the Lobby sometimes the settings have changed and/or I can enter a game that is too high stakes for me (i.e. I have 100 dollars and the game is a 1,000 dollar raise game).
A: This is currently a bug we are researching, it will be fixed very soon. It has more to do with the mplayer client than the game itself so gameplay should be unaffected.

Q: Can I kick someone out of my poker game after the game has started?
A: Not at this time, only BEFORE you launch the game do you have this option (while your in the game room)

Q: How do I get a million dollars?
A: You must play a lot in order to achieve such a huge bank account.

Q: How do I win?
A: Take a look at the above paragraph entitled "Winning".

Poker Variations

Texas Hold'Em

Texas Hold 'Em is a poker game in which each player is dealt 2 cards face down then are dealt 5 cards face up. Players play with any combination of their 2 and 5 cards. The best 5 card hand wins.

Five Card Draw

In Five card draw each player is dealt five cards, face down. There is a betting interval then each active player in turn may discard one or more cards recieving replacement cards from the top of the pack. There is another betting interval, followed by a showdown in which the highest hand among the active players wins the pot.

Shotgun

Playing Shotgun is a slight variation of 5 Card Draw. After each player is dealt 3 cards, the players must bet. Another card is dealt to each player, followed by a second round of betting. After the final card is dealt the last betting session takes place. Players then reveal their cards and winning hand collects the pot.

Seven Card Stud

In Seven Card Stud, each player recieves two cards face down and one card face up. There is a betting interval. On each subsequent round of dealing, each active player receives another face-up card until each has four face-up cards. Betting intervals follow each round of dealing. Finally a third face-down card is dealt to each player, there is a final betting interval, and each player who has at least called the final bet turns his three hole cards face up, selects any five of his cards to be a poker hand, and there is a showdown.

5 Card Double Draw

Sequence of Play
a) Each player dealt 5 cards face down
b) Betting round
c) Each player can draw up to 3 new cards (4 with an ace), discarding the old ones
d) Betting round
e) Each player can draw up to 3 new cards (4 with an ace), discarding the old ones
f) Betting round
g) Show 'em, best hand takes pot

Indian no-peek

Sequence of Play
a) Each player gets one card, all the other players can see the card face, except the owner
b) Betting round
c) Show 'em, highest card takes the pot

6 Card Stud

Sequence of Play
a) Deal 1 card up, and 1 card down to all players
b) Betting Round (Highest Hand starts bet)
c) Deal 1 card up to all players
d) Betting Round (Highest Hand starts bet)
e) Deal 1 card up to all players
f) Betting Round (Highest Hand starts bet)
g) Deal 1 card up to all players
h) Betting Round (Highest Hand starts bet)
i) Deal 1 card down to all players
j) Betting Round (Highest Hand starts bet)
k) Show 'em highest 5 card hand takes the pot

Myopic Monkey

Sequence of Play
a) Each player gets one card, all the other players can see the card face, except the owner
b) Deal out 4 more cards, face up
c) Betting round
d) Deal 1 more card face down to all players
e) Betting round
f) Show 'em, best hand takes pot

5 Card Show 'em

Sequence of Play
a) Each player dealt 5 cards face down
b) Betting round
c) Each player turns over two cards of their choice (in the same order as betting)
d) Betting round
e) Each player turns over two more cards of their choice (in the same order as betting)
f) Betting round
g) Show 'em, best hand takes pot