View source for Balmoral Rummy

Balmoral Rummy is a form of [[wikipedia:Contract_rummy|contract rummy]] played across multiple rounds, each with varying tricks that players must achieve.

== Setup ==
[[File:Balmoral helper.jpg|alt=A set of small cardboard cutouts held together with a paperclip. Each piece of cardboard has a rummy contract written on it, the visible one on top saying (1) 3 sets of 3.|thumb|A handmade guide for tracking a player's current goal.]]
For up to 4 players, 2 decks of cards (without jokers) are used. For more than 4 players, more decks may be necessary.

Each player may wish to use an aid to keep track of which level they are on, such as the one pictured.

At the start of each round, the cards are shuffled and each player is dealt 13 cards. The winner of the previous round may be selected as the dealer. The remaining cards are placed face down on the table as the "draw pile." Play then commences clockwise to the dealer's left.

== Play ==
As is typical in rummy, on a player's turn, one card will be drawn and another will be discarded face up onto the "discard pile." If there are cards on the discard pile, a player may draw from the top of it instead of from the draw pile if they deem that card desirable.

When constructing tricks, runs must match suit, not just colour. Aces may be either low or high, but not both i.e. QKA2 would not be a valid run.

== End of round ==
Once a player achieves their goal, they must arrange the cards involved on the table in front of them, keeping the remaining cards in their hand. Play then continues as normal.

Players that have reached their goal now have the task of emptying their hand. This is done by appending cards to tricks that are already on the table, for instance by adding to sets or by extending runs. Runs that are already on the table may be extended both directions from an ace e.g. a 2 may be appended to a JQKA run. Cards may be appended to any player's tricks, not just their own.

Once a player discards their last card and has an empty hand, the round is over. Any player that achieved their goal during the round advances to the next level. This means that, as the game progresses, players will each be trying to achieve increasingly varied goals simultaneously.

The game ends after the first round where a player achieved the final goal.

== Scoring ==
All cards remaining in a player's hand at the end of a round contribute to their score. Number cards a valued with their number, picture cards score 10, and aces score 15. At the end of the game, the player with the lowest score is deemed the winner.

== Rounds ==

# 3 sets of 3
# 1 set of 3 and 1 run of 4
# 2 sets of 4
# 2 runs of 4
# 1 set of 4 and 1 run of 4
# 4 sets of 3
# 1 set of 3 and 1 run of 7