QuickGamesArena Board games and battle games. A game portal to play, learn, and connect.
QuickGamesArena
Back to top Reference

Capturing cards and Koi-Koi rules

Review matching months, yaku, Koi-Koi, stopping, and scoring at any time.

Hanafuda reference

Matching months and making yaku

Open it only when you need to check something.

Move record and board coordinates

Standard human-readable notation

Move record and coordinates Card names and phased actions Play the Peony ribbon
Code for storage and integration QGA Koi-Koi v1 play_card:06-peony-ribbon

Record the 48 cards with stable IDs, and card play, table-card selection, koi-koi, and ending the round as separate actions.

Visual reference

48-card Hanafuda catalog

Lists all 48 cards used in standard Koi-Koi by point category. Yaku values may vary with the adopted rules.

All 48 cards

Bright

20-point cards · 5 cards
Crane with Pine January · Pine
Curtain with Cherry Blossom March · Cherry Blossom
Moon with Pampas Grass August · Pampas Grass
Ono no Michikaze with Willow November · Willow
Phoenix with Paulownia December · Paulownia

Animal cards

10-point cards · 9 cards
Warbler with Plum February · Plum
Cuckoo with Wisteria April · Wisteria
Eight-plank Bridge with Iris May · Iris
Butterfly with Peony June · Peony
Boar with Bush Clover July · Bush Clover
Geese with Pampas Grass August · Pampas Grass
Sake Cup with Chrysanthemum September · Chrysanthemum
Deer with Maple October · Maple
Swallow with Willow November · Willow

Ribbon cards

5-point cards · 10 cards
Red Poetry Ribbon with Pine January · Red Poetry Ribbon
Red Poetry Ribbon with Plum February · Red Poetry Ribbon
Red Poetry Ribbon with Cherry Blossom March · Red Poetry Ribbon
Ribbon with Wisteria April · Ribbon
Ribbon with Iris May · Ribbon
Blue Ribbon with Peony June · Blue Ribbon
Ribbon with Bush Clover July · Ribbon
Blue Ribbon with Chrysanthemum September · Blue Ribbon
Blue ribbon with maple October · Blue Ribbon
Ribbon with willow November · Ribbon

Chaff cards

1-point cards · 24 cards
Pine Chaff 1 Month 1 · Pine
Pine Chaff 2 Month 1 · Pine
Plum Chaff 1 Month 2 · Plum
Plum Chaff 2 Month 2 · Plum
Cherry Blossom Chaff 1 Month 3 · Cherry Blossom
Cherry Blossom Chaff 2 Month 3 · Cherry Blossom
Wisteria Chaff 1 Month 4 · Wisteria
Wisteria Chaff 2 Month 4 · Wisteria
Iris Chaff 1 Month 5 · Iris
Iris Chaff 2 Month 5 · Iris
Peony Chaff 1 Month 6 · Peony
Peony Chaff 2 Month 6 · Peony
Bush Clover Chaff 1 Month 7 · Bush Clover
Bush Clover Chaff 2 Month 7 · Bush Clover
Pampas Grass Chaff 1 Month 8 · Pampas Grass
Pampas Grass Chaff 2 Month 8 · Pampas Grass
Chrysanthemum Chaff 1 Month 9 · Chrysanthemum
Chrysanthemum Chaff 2 Month 9 · Chrysanthemum
Maple Chaff 1 Month 10 · Maple
Maple Chaff 2 Month 10 · Maple
Lightning with Willow November · Willow
Paulownia Chaff 1 Month 12 · Paulownia
Paulownia Chaff 2 Month 12 · Paulownia
Paulownia Chaff 3 Month 12 · Paulownia

Month

Match cards from the same month When a card in your hand has the same month as a card on the table, you can capture that card.

Draw

Turn over one card from the deck After playing a card from your hand, you can also use the card drawn from the deck to capture a table card.

Hand

Card combinations Collect brights, ribbons, animals, chaff, and other groups to make yaku.

Koi-Koi

Continue or score After making a yaku, choose whether to continue for a higher score or end the round and score it.
Capture cards from the same month Draw from the deck after playing from your hand Score when you make a yaku Koi-Koi is a risk decision Watch your opponent's yaku too

Capture cards

  • If a card of the same month is on the table, play a card from your hand and capture it.
  • If no card of the same month is on the table, place the card from your hand on the table.
  • A card drawn from the deck can also capture a table card of the same month.

Yaku and Koi-Koi

  • You can score after making a yaku. Declare “Koi-Koi” if you choose to continue.
  • If your opponent makes a yaku first after you call Koi-Koi, their score may be increased.
Hanafuda

Learning

CMS managed tracks
Learning Rules

Introduction to Monthly Cards, Yaku, and Koi-Koi

Learn the 48-card, 12-month deck, month matching, and yaku such as Goko, Inoshikacho, and the cup-based combinations

2Modules 10Items
Koi-Koi Basics Beginner / 4min

Match cards in your hand with table cards from the same month, capture them, and compete for points by making yaku from the cards you collect.

  • Article Build Yaku and Outscore the Opponent
  • Move sequence Match and Capture Cards from the Same Month
  • Move sequence Build Yaku with Captured Cards
  • Multiple choice Choose Whether to Stop or Call Koi-Koi
  • Multiple choice The Player with the Most Points Wins
Practical tutorial Beginner / 7min

Combine yaku values, local rules, and remaining-card reads to learn when to continue with Koi-Koi.

  • Article Decide on Koi-Koi by Weighing Scoring Potential Against Risk
  • Article Understand Yaku and How They Combine
  • Article Fix the local rules before the match starts
  • Article Fast Completion, Blocking Yaku, and Key-Card Priorities
  • Article Read the Remaining Cards to Decide on Koi-Koi
Open Basics
Hanafuda

Koi-Koi Basics

Beginner
Practice the basic controls right here

Choose a step in the inline tutorial below to review the flow.

Capturing cards and Koi-Koi decisions

Open it only when you need to check something.

Next step

Choose after the tutorial

Once you are comfortable moving pieces, review anything that was unclear or practice your decisions with a short problem.