Kopa - a game of 60 cards

Kopa is a courtless* card game of 60 cards, in 4 suits, numbered 1 to 15. The four suits are named for mediaeval heraldic tinctures: Gules (Red), Vert (Green), Sable (Black), and Or (Gold). They are undecorated apart from the number and the colour name.

The full set of Kopa cards

It is named for the Slavic family word for 60, but the number 60 itself has a special history going back to ancient Mesopotamia - it is the first number divisible by the first 5 numbers, and that is why it is the basis for the divisions of the hours and minutes.

The game is a recreation and modification of a rather mysterious, lost, nameless 1890s game made by the Fireside Game Company of Cincinatti. It was a supplementary game to be played with their Quartet style sets of cards such as Authors, Mayflower, White Squadron, and Birds, presumably when little people got tired of them. The cards were given letter suits, and numbered 1-13.

It's an intriguing game, made by building up from 1s and down from 13s, with a bridge at card 7. We have raised it to 15 per suit to enable 5 people to play. The colours were added to enable ease of differentiation in play.

You can buy a set of Kopa cards printed on demand at Make Playing Cards here.

*Courtless or faceless card packs are popular with people who have a cultural reason for eschewing picture cards.

We have also made a number of other games to be played with a Kopa deck, and, indeed have a series of Kopa decks following this that we will release over the coming months.

KOPA

A Card Game of Building and Strategy

COMPONENTS

• 60 cards divided into four suits (Sable, Vert, Gules, and Or)

• Each suit contains cards numbered 1 through 15

OVERVIEW

Kopa is a strategic card game where players build sequences in each of the four suits, aiming to be the first to play all cards from their hand. The game features bidirectional building from the extremes (1 and 15) toward the middle, with the goal of completing each suit by playing card 8 across the center.

SETUP

0. Select a scorekeeper who will track penalties and points.

1. Deal all cards evenly among players, clockwise.

2. If cards remain undealt, place them aside as they will not be used in this round.

3. The objective is to be the first player to get rid of all cards in hand.

GAMEPLAY

Starting Play

• The player to the dealer's left begins by placing either a 1 or a 15 of any suit on the table.

• If they cannot play a 1 or 15, they incur a one-point penalty.

Building Sequences

• Play proceeds clockwise. On your turn, you may:

  • Add to an existing sequence by playing the next card in order

  • Start a new sequence by playing a 1 or 15 of any suit

• For cards starting with 1: build up by playing 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, and 7 on top

• For cards starting with 15: build down by playing 14, 13, 12, 11, 10, and 9 on top

• Card 8 is played last, bridging across cards 7 and 9 of the same suit to complete that suit's sequence

Arrangement of Cards

When playing 1s and 15s, arrange them as follows:

• Sable at the top

• Vert below Sable

• Gules below Vert

• Or at the bottom

For each suit, the 1 and 15 should be placed side by side:

   [Sable 1] [Sable 15]   [Vert 1]  [Vert 15]   [Gules 1] [Gules 15]   [Or 1]    [Or 15]

Building Rules

• You may only build on cards of the same suit (e.g., Sable cards can only be built on Sable 1 or Sable 15)

• You cannot skip numbers in sequence

• You cannot play card 8 until both card 7 and card 9 of that suit have been played

• When card 8 is played, it is placed across cards 7 and 9, completing that suit

Failed Turns

• If you cannot play on your turn, you incur a one-point penalty

• If you claim you cannot play but it is later discovered that you could have, you are penalized four additional points

SCORING

• The first player to play all cards from their hand earns one point for each card still held by opponents

• Once a player has played their last card, the round ends immediately

• Any remaining cards in players' hands are counted and scored in favor of the winner

• The game continues until a player reaches 20 points (or 30 points for a longer game)

TWO-PLAYER VARIANT

When only two players are playing:

0. Deal cards as if three players were present

1. Place the third "hand" face-down on the table

2. When a player cannot play on their turn, they draw one card from this extra hand

3. If they can play the drawn card, they may do so immediately

4. If they cannot play the drawn card, they keep it and receive the one-point penalty

STRATEGY TIPS

• Pay attention to which suits are being built and which numbers remain unplayed

• Consider holding onto 8s until you can play them to complete a suit

• Try to play cards that will block your opponents' ability to play on their turn

• If possible, save low-numbered cards (2-3) and high-numbered cards (13-14) to play after opponents have used their 1s and 15s

You can get a printable of the rules for Kopa here

kopa-rules.pdf

Download PDF • 47KB

Kopa Game Simulation

Setup

• Players: 3 players (Alice, Bob, and Carlos)

• Deck: 60 cards (15 cards in each suit: Sable, Vert, Gules, and Or)

• Deal: Each player receives 20 cards

Initial Hands

Alice's Hand

• Sable: 1, 3, 6, 9, 12

• Vert: 2, 8, 10, 14

• Gules: 5, 7, 11, 15

• Or: 2, 4, 8, 11, 13, 15

Bob's Hand

• Sable: 2, 4, 7, 10, 13, 15

• Vert: 3, 6, 7, 11

• Gules: 1, 3, 9, 13

• Or: 3, 6, 10, 14

Carlos's Hand

• Sable: 5, 8, 11, 14

• Vert: 1, 4, 5, 9, 12, 15

• Gules: 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12, 14

• Or: 1, 5, 7, 9, 12

Game Play

Round 1

Alice (first player): Plays Sable 1, starting the Sable building-up sequence.

Bob: Plays Sable 2 on top of Sable 1.

Carlos: Plays Vert 1, starting the Vert building-up sequence.

The table now has:

[Sable 1→2] [empty][Vert 1]    [empty][empty]     [empty][empty]     [empty]

Round 2

Alice: Plays Sable 3 on top of Sable 2.

Bob: Plays Sable 4 on top of Sable 3.

Carlos: Plays Vert 4 on top of Vert 1 (skipping numbers is not allowed, but Carlos doesn't have Vert 2 or 3). Scorekeeper: Carlos is penalized 1 point for an invalid play. Correction: Carlos plays Gules 2 instead, starting the Gules building-up sequence.

The table now has:

[Sable 1→2→3→4] [empty][Vert 1]        [empty][Gules 2]       [empty][empty]         [empty]

Round 3

Alice: Plays Vert 2 on top of Vert 1.

Bob: Plays Vert 3 on top of Vert 2.

Carlos: Plays Gules 4 on top of Gules 2 (skipping 3). Scorekeeper: Carlos is penalized 1 point for an invalid play. Correction: Carlos plays Or 1, starting the Or building-up sequence.

The table now has:

[Sable 1→2→3→4] [empty][Vert 1→2→3]    [empty][Gules 2]       [empty][Or 1]          [empty]

Round 4

Alice: Plays Or 2 on top of Or 1.

Bob: Plays Gules 3 on top of Gules 2.

Carlos: Plays Vert 4 on top of Vert 3.

The table now has:

[Sable 1→2→3→4] [empty][Vert 1→2→3→4]  [empty][Gules 2→3]     [empty][Or 1→2]        [empty]

Round 5

Alice: Plays Gules 5 on top of Gules 3 (skipping 4). Scorekeeper: Alice is penalized 1 point for an invalid play. Correction: Alice plays Or 4 on top of Or 2 (skipping 3). Scorekeeper: Alice is penalized 1 point for an invalid play. Final Correction: Alice plays Sable 15, starting the Sable building-down sequence.

Bob: Plays Sable 13 on top of Sable 15 (skipping 14). Scorekeeper: Bob is penalized 1 point for an invalid play. Correction: Bob plays Or 3 on top of Or 2.

Carlos: Plays Vert 5 on top of Vert 4.

The table now has:

[Sable 1→2→3→4] [Sable 15][Vert 1→2→3→4→5] [empty][Gules 2→3]     [empty][Or 1→2→3]      [empty]

Round 6

Alice: Cannot play. She has no valid moves. Scorekeeper: Alice is penalized 1 point.

Bob: Plays Sable 7 on top of Sable 4 (skipping 5 and 6). Scorekeeper: Bob is penalized 1 point for an invalid play. Correction: Bob plays Gules 1, starting the Gules building-up sequence correctly.

Carlos: Plays Sable 5 on top of Sable 4.

The table now has:

[Sable 1→2→3→4→5] [Sable 15][Vert 1→2→3→4→5]  [empty][Gules 1]         [Gules 2→3][Or 1→2→3]        [empty]

Round 7

Alice: Plays Sable 6 on top of Sable 5.

Bob: Plays Or 6 on top of Or 3 (skipping 4 and 5). Scorekeeper: Bob is penalized 1 point for an invalid play. Correction: Bob plays Gules 15, starting the Gules building-down sequence.

Carlos: Plays Or 5 on top of Or 3 (skipping 4). Scorekeeper: Carlos is penalized 1 point for an invalid play. Correction: Carlos plays Gules 4 on top of Gules 3.

The table now has:

[Sable 1→2→3→4→5→6] [Sable 15][Vert 1→2→3→4→5]    [empty][Gules 1]           [Gules 2→3→4] [Gules 15][Or 1→2→3]          [empty]

Round 8

Alice: Plays Gules 7 on top of Gules 4 (skipping 5 and 6). Scorekeeper: Alice is penalized 1 point for an invalid play. Correction: Alice plays Or 4 on top of Or 3.

Bob: Plays Sable 10 on top of Sable 15 (skipping 14, 13, 12, 11). Scorekeeper: Bob is penalized 1 point for an invalid play. Correction: Bob plays Vert 6 on top of Vert 5.

Carlos: Plays Vert 9 on Vert 5 (skipping 6, 7, 8). Scorekeeper: Carlos is penalized 1 point for an invalid play. Correction: Carlos plays Gules 6 on top of Gules 4 (skipping 5). Scorekeeper: Carlos is penalized 1 point for an invalid play. Final Correction: Carlos plays Vert 15, starting the Vert building-down sequence.

The table now has:

[Sable 1→2→3→4→5→6] [Sable 15][Vert 1→2→3→4→5→6]  [Vert 15][Gules 1]           [Gules 2→3→4] [Gules 15][Or 1→2→3→4]        [empty]

Several rounds later...

After multiple rounds of strategic play, the table has developed considerably:

[Sable 1→2→3→4→5→6→7] [Sable 15→14→13→12→11→10→9][Vert 1→2→3→4→5→6→7]  [Vert 15→14→13→12][Gules 1→2→3→4→5→6→7] [Gules 15→14→13→12→11→10→9][Or 1→2→3→4→5→6→7]    [Or 15→14→13→12→11→10→9]

Critical Move

Alice (with only 3 cards left): Plays Sable 8, placing it across Sable 7 and Sable 9, completing the Sable suit.

Bob: Plays Or 8, placing it across Or 7 and Or 9, completing the Or suit.

Carlos: Plays Gules 8, placing it across Gules 7 and Gules 9, completing the Gules suit.

Final Moves

Alice (with only 2 cards left): Plays Vert 10 on top of Vert 12 (invalid move). Scorekeeper: Alice is penalized 1 point. Correction: Alice plays Vert 11 on top of Vert 12.

Bob: Plays Vert 10 on top of Vert 11.

Alice (with her last card): Plays Vert 9 on top of Vert 10.

Game End

Alice has played her last card, so she wins the round!

Scoring:

• Bob still has 4 cards in hand (4 points for Alice)

• Carlos still has 7 cards in hand (7 points for Alice)

• Total score for Alice: 11 points (minus any penalties incurred)

Score Summary

• Alice: 11 points - 3 penalties = 8 points

• Bob: -2 points (penalties)

• Carlos: -3 points (penalties)

The game would continue with new rounds until someone reaches 20 points.