Racing Demon♠

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Context and layout

Racing Demon is a name for the competitive patience game also called Nerts or Pounce; the sources document this family without establishing an inventor. Each player needs a 52-card pack with a recognisably different back. No jokers. Aces are low, then 2 through K. Shuffle each pack separately. Deal a demon pile of 13, twelve down and top up; beside it start four work columns with one face-up card each. The remaining 35 form your face-down stock; your waste starts empty. Leave a shared foundation area accessible to everyone.

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Simultaneous work

Agree a start signal; there are no turns. Use one hand to move cards while the other may hold stock. Move one card at a time, except a legal column sequence. Touch only your own layout or shared foundations. Build work columns downward in alternating colours. A correctly ordered tail may move together onto another column. Any available demon top, waste top or work sequence may fill an empty column. After moving demon top, turn its next card up. Only exposed column ends are available singly.

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Shared foundations

Any available ace starts a new shared foundation. Build upward in the same suit to king using demon top, waste top or exposed work-column card. Anyone may use any foundation, but never remove a card from it. Multiple foundations of the same suit are allowed; turn completed king piles aside without losing them for scoring.

If two compete for the same position, the first card placed stays; the other returns to its exact old place. If order truly cannot be resolved, both stay as one foundation level. A following card advances from that shared rank normally.

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Stock, waste and deadlock

Turn stock cards three at a time onto waste, keeping their packet order; only waste top is available. Finish a last packet of one or two as it stands. When stock empties, turn the entire waste over without shuffling and cycle again; do not attach leftovers under a fresh packet.

If everyone is stuck or agrees to stop moving, reform each stock from its waste and move its top card to the bottom. You may not do this alone while others can play. Resume. If a complete cycle of these agreed shifts offers no playable card, end the hand as blocked: all remaining demon penalties apply. This finite deadlock test is our table clarification.

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Calling, score and match

Only someone with an empty demon pile may call “Demon!”; calling is optional. The call ends play immediately; cards already in motion may complete their move, but no new move starts. Sort all shared foundation cards by back design. Each scores+1 for its owner; each card remaining in that owner’s demon pile scores−2. Stock, waste and work columns score nothing. The caller’s empty pile has no penalty and gets no extra bonus.

Play fresh shuffled hands until someone reaches at least 100 after scoring. Highest cumulative total wins. Our tie agreement shares the victory if highest totals are equal. A blocked hand scores normally and may end the match.

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Worked score

You placed 24 cards on common foundations and still have three demon cards:24−2×3=18. Another player calls after placing 20 with no demon cards:20−0=20. They score more this hand, but the call alone is not a guaranteed match victory. Cards in their private work columns add nothing.

← On a small screen, scroll the diagram horizontally. →

Common questions