The whole deck dealt out, and the three of diamonds leads.
The climbing game of Hong Kong, Taiwan and southern China, and a fixture of student houses everywhere. Four players, the whole deck dealt out, thirteen cards each.
Two is the highest card, then ace, king, queen, jack, ten, down to three.
Suits also rank, and they matter: spades, hearts, clubs, diamonds. So the two of spades is the single best card in the deck.
Whoever holds the three of diamonds leads it, either alone or as part of a combination containing it.
Single card. Pair — two of the same rank. Five-card hands, ranked as in poker: straight, flush, full house, four of a kind plus any card, straight flush.
You must play the same type as the leader, and higher. A pair can only be beaten by a higher pair, a five-card hand only by a higher five-card hand of at least equal type — a flush beats any straight, a full house beats any flush, and so on.
When everyone passes, the last player to play leads a fresh combination of any type.
First player to empty their hand wins. The others score penalty points for the cards left in hand — one per card normally, doubled if they still hold ten or more, and quadrupled if they never played at all.
The trap in this game is holding a two too long. It beats anything but it wins nothing on its own, and it is the card most often left stranded.