As previously mentioned, there are no official rules for Hand & Foot. Below are some of the more popular house rules that Hand & Foot Remastered players have reported to us as well as the rule changes for a version of the game commonly referred to as Triple Play or Hand, Knee & Foot.

Instead of Four Rounds

• Add a fifth round requiring players to meld with a Clean book.
• Play first to 10,000 points wins.
• Play first to 20,000 points wins. This requires alternate minimum meld requirements.

Dealing 

• Rather than having everyone pick their own cards, each player gets a turn to deal a round.
• If they pick up and deal the exact number of cards required for each player’s Hand and Foot, they receive 1000 bonus points.
• If they are one card over/under, they receive 500 points.
• If they are three over/under, they receive 300 points.

Ending the Round – “Going out” (For singles games only)

• Players must always have at least one card in their Hand and they must play out. Players may not discard their final card. This is standard in team play.
  
  

Melds/Books

• Books cannot contain more than 7 cards. Additional melds of a complete book can be created with at least 3 natural cards.
• Books can contain more than 7 cards, but players have the option of creating a second book.
  
  • Optional: If the player fails to complete the additional book, those cards become negative points.
• In singles games, Wild books made of seven Wild cards can be created and are worth 1,000 or 1,500 points. This is standard in team play.
• No 7s can be discarded until at least one player has completed a Clean book of 7s.
  
  • This is the primary rule change for the game known as Sevens From Hell.

Examples of Alternative Scoring

• Red 3s are -500 points when caught in a player’s hand.
• Black 3s are -300 points when caught in a player’s hand.
• Red 3s are -300 points and black 3s are +5 points.
• Clean books are worth 500 points and Dirty books are 300 points.

Alternate Discard Pile Rules

• If you pick from the discard pile, you must pick up the entire pile.
• If picking from the discard pile, you must pick the top 5 cards. If the top card is a black 3, the pile is frozen and cannot be picked from.
• Once a player has played all cards in their Hand, they must wait for their next turn to pick up their Foot. While waiting, the player must decide if they want the top discard or draw two cards before seeing their Foot.
• The discard pile must have 8 cards before anyone can pick from it and players can only take the top 8 cards.
• For singles games, players can only pick up from the discard pile if they have a natural pair of the card in their hand. They then take the top seven cards from the discard pile and must play the first card. If it is their initial meld only the top card counts toward the meld requirements.

To Speed up the Game

• To make it possible to meld faster, add additional cards to the Hand on each round.

• Players are not allowed to pick from the discard pile. This makes it possible for the next player to pick their two cards before the current player has completed their turn.

Optional Team Play Penalties

• Attempting to go out without receiving permission or when a partner says no: –100 points.
• Being unable to go out after having asked for, and receiving, permission: –100 points.
• Drawing from the discard pile without being able to meld the top card: –50 points.

Hand, Knee & Foot

This game is essentially the same as team play Hand & Foot. It can be played with three players individually, four players in teams of two, or six players with two teams of three. We suggest using two more decks of cards than players in the game. Other differences are below.

• In addition to the standard Hand & Foot, each player will also receive a stack of cards called a Knee.
  
  • Card counts for each are:

Drawing

• On each turn, the player either draws two cards or picks up the entire discard pile, as long as they can immediately meld the top card with two cards from their hand.
• If this is the team’s opening meld, the additional cards from the discard pile can be used toward the initial meld requirements.
• Black 3s block the discard pile from being picked-up.
• If a Wild card is the top card, the discard pile can only be picked-up if the player has two like Wild cards to play.
• If a player starts their turn by picking up the discard pile, they do not discard to end that turn. They must knock on the table to indicate their turn is over and the next player must pick from the draw pile.
• Melds of 5s or 7s cannot contain Wild cards.
• Picking up the Knee and Foot
  
  • When a player completes their team’s first book, they will pick-up their Knee and continue their turn.
  • Their partner will pick-up their knee on their next turn. They must remember to do so on their own. Anyone who reminds them will receive a 1,000 point penalty.
    
  • Player’s can go into their Foot as usual by playing/discarding all cards in their hand.

Going out

• At least one teammate must play all their cards and the team must complete at least the following books:
  
  • One Clean book of 5s
  • One Clean book of 7s
  • One book of Wilds
  • One additional Clean book
  • One Dirty book