Animated walkthrough
Learn to play Mau-Mau in 9 steps
An animated scene for each rule. It's the same walkthrough that opens from the “?” button in the game.
Frequently asked questions
Does Mau-Mau have official rules?
No. The game appeared in Germany after World War II, and its rules were first published in 1958; even so, every table plays with its own house rules. The core never changes: play a card that matches the suit or rank of the top card, and be the first to run out of cards.
What does calling “Mau” mean?
It's how you warn the table that you're down to one card, as you play your second-to-last card. If you forget, you draw penalty cards. At many tables, the player who plays their last card also calls “Mau-Mau.”
How is Mau-Mau different from Crazy Eights?
They're in the same family. Mau-Mau usually uses a 32-card deck, and the jack changes the suit; in Crazy Eights, with 52 cards, it's the 8. In Mau-Mau, the 7 and the 8 have effects too: the 7 makes the next player draw 2, and the 8 makes them miss a turn.
The goal
In each round, the goal is to be the first to run out of cards. At many tables, that player scores the cards left in everyone else's hands, and the first to reach the agreed score wins the game. At others, the cards count against the players left holding them, and the lowest score wins.
Players and deck
The game is for two or more players, every player for themselves. The most common deck has 32 cards: a standard deck without the 2s through 6s, so 7 through ace in each suit. With more than five players, two decks are shuffled together.
The deal
- Each player gets 5 or 6 cards, as agreed.
- The rest of the deck goes face down in the middle of the table: that's the draw pile.
- The dealer turns over the top card of the draw pile to start the discard pile.
- The player next to the dealer goes first, and play continues in that direction.
How to play
On your turn, play a card on the discard pile that matches the top card by suit or rank. On the 9 of hearts, for example, you can play any heart or any 9.
Drawing
- If you have no card you can play, draw one card from the draw pile.
- If the card you drew can be played, you may play it right away; if not, your turn ends.
- When the draw pile runs out, the discard pile, except the top card, is shuffled to make a new draw pile.
Action cards
Three cards change the course of a round, and almost every table plays with them:
- 7
- The next player draws 2 cards. At many tables, they can avoid drawing by playing another 7: the penalty then stacks and passes to the following player (4 cards, then 6, then 8).
- 8
- The next player misses a turn.
- Jack
- It can be played on any card, and the player who plays it names the suit the next player has to play. Some tables don't allow a jack on a jack; at others, the new jack changes the suit again.
Calling Mau
When you play your second-to-last card, you have to warn everyone by calling “Mau.” If you forget and get caught, you draw penalty cards, usually one or two.
At many tables, the player who plays their last card calls “Mau-Mau”; at some, only when that card is a jack. Forgetting it also means drawing penalty cards.
Scoring
When the table keeps score, the cards left in the hands of the players who didn't go out are worth:
- Jack
- 20 points
- Ace
- 11 points
- King, queen and 10
- 10 points each
- 9, 8 and 7
- Face value
Some tables give these points to the player who went out; others count them against the players left holding the cards, and at the end, the lowest score wins.
Variations
- No stacking: at some tables, a 7 can't be answered with another 7, and the player hit by it simply draws 2.
- Passing the skip: at some tables, a player hit by an 8 can play another 8 and pass the skip along.
- Other action cards: in Brazil, some tables make the 9 a draw-3 card; in some versions, an ace can only be played together with another card.
- Relatives: Mau-Mau is in the same family as Crazy Eights and several commercial games with their own decks.
Tips for beginners
- Save the jack for when nothing else works or for going out, but don't hold it too long: if someone else goes out first, it costs you 20 points.
- When you play a jack, name the suit you have the most cards in.
- Keep a 7 in reserve: it's the card that sends the penalty along when a 7 is played on you.
- With two cards in hand, call “Mau” before you play your second-to-last card. Forgetting it is the most common beginner mistake.
On Selminha.com
The rules in Mau-Mau on Selminha.com
Mau-Mau on the site is played by invitation: the host sends the link, and the first three people to open it can take a seat. Anyone who arrives once the seats are taken or the game has started can watch.
- Players and cards
- Two to four at the table, every player for themselves. A 32-card deck, 7 through ace, with no jokers: 5 cards each. The card that starts the discard pile never has an effect; if it's a jack, its own suit stands.
- Direction and deal
- The host deals the first round, and the next player goes first. Play goes to the right, and the deal passes to the next player each round.
- Your turn
- Play a card that matches the top card by suit or rank, or a jack. When you play a jack, the NAME A SUIT box asks for the suit, and the next player has to play that suit. A jack can't be played on a jack.
- Drawing and passing
- The DRAW button (or tapping the draw pile) draws one card only, and you can draw even when you have a card you could play. If the card you drew can be played, you may play it right away; if not, tap or click PASS. When the draw pile runs out, the discard pile, except the top card, is shuffled to make a new draw pile.
- The 7 and the 8
- When a 7 has been played on you, only another 7 can be played, and the penalty stacks; without one, the DRAW button shows how many cards you owe, draws them all and ends your turn. The 8 makes the next player miss a turn; with two players, whoever played the 8 plays again.
- Calling Mau
- With two cards in hand, tap or click SAY MAU before you play your second-to-last card. If you play it without calling, you draw 2 penalty cards right away. The bots always call it.
- Blocked game
- If everyone passes in a row, unable to play or draw, THE GAME IS BLOCKED: the player with the fewest points in hand wins the round and scores the difference between each other player's hand and their own. If there's a tie, the player with fewer cards wins; if it's still tied, the player who would play first wins.
- Scoring and target
- The player who goes out scores the cards left in the other hands, at the values described above. The last card has no effect: a 7 or an 8 played to go out doesn't make anyone draw or miss a turn. The target is 100 points per player: 200 with two players, 300 with three, 400 with four. The game ends when someone reaches it at the end of a round.
- End of the round
- A box shows who went out or whether the game was blocked, the score and the cards left in each hand with their points. The next round starts when any player taps NEXT ROUND.
- Bots and rematch
- Before the game starts, the host can fill empty seats with bots: Carmen, Tito and Luna. They only see their own hand and what's on the table. At the end, if everyone agrees, the rematch is played at the same table (not after a game that ended because a player left or was away, or because the table expired).
- Time, absence and resigning
- The table is saved on the site, and nobody has to be online at the same time. If the player whose turn it is goes more than 48 hours without playing, any other player in the game can tap END GAME: PLAYER AWAY, and the remaining player with the most points wins. If a player taps RESIGN or leaves through the pause menu (EXIT GAME) mid-game, they lose, and the remaining player with the most points wins. A table with no moves for 7 days expires with no winner.
- Chat
- Seated players can chat by text. Spectators can read the chat but can't post.
There's no leaderboard and no site points: the result only counts at that table. Each player picks the deck design they see, and that never changes the rules.