Cribbage is a challenging game played with a deck of playing cards and a cribbage board. It is basically a hybrid -- a cross between a board game and a card game. There are several different playing styles, but this page will show you how to play cribbage the traditional way.

Cribbage has a reputation for being difficult, but it is actually fairly simple to learn. The rules are straightforward, and once you get the hang of the game playing will come easily. The strategy, however, can become quite complex

You may play with up to three players at a time. Players should sit across from each other, so nobody can see anyone else's cards. Set the cribbage board in the center, and set two pegs of the same color into the board for each player. Designate one player per game as the dealer.

1. The dealer should deal six cards to each player
2. Each player discards two cards to form the crib
3. The player to the dealer's left cuts the remaining deck in half
4. If a Jack comes up, the dealer earns 2 points
5. Earning a point means moving the peg forward a space (so the dealer would move 2 spaces if a Jack came up)
6. One peg is meant to be a place holder, while one peg actually makes the move when points are earned
7. Players lay down cards in turn, calling out the numerical value of the total (faces are 10, aces are 1, number cards retain their value)
8. If a player lays down a card that makes the total exactly 15, they get a point
9. A player who matches the last card laid down (to make a pair) earns 2 points-- the third card of a kind earns 6 points, the fourth earns 12
10. If a player cannot lay down a card without making the count exceed 31, she or he says "go"
11. If the other player(s) can go, they continue to lay down cards until they can no longer do so without exceeding a count of 31
12. The last person who is able to lay down a card gets 1 point, and if their last card made the total count exactly 31, they earn 2 points

When the hand has been played, it is time to count up the 4 cards each player was originally dealt. Pairs equal 2 points, 3 of a kind equal 6 points, 4 of a kind equal 12 points. Straights of 3 or more equal one point per card. The dealer scores for both her or his hand, as well as the crib. A new player deals each game, and the winner is the first player to reach 121 points.