1,000 Games/Disc2.iso/CARD/PROG57/PITCH.DOC

Text File | 1994-04-18 | 11KB | 232 lines

TOMMY'S PITCH (C) COPYRIGHT 1993 BY TOMMY'S TOYS
P. O. BOX 11261, DENVER, CO 80211 USA.  ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
CATALOG #TM-142-1A

INSTRUCTIONS:

PITCH, SETBACK, SMUDGE, BUNCH, PEDRO, SANCHO.... SOUND FUN?

THIS TOY PLAYS AUCTION PITCH, A CARD GAME THAT GOES BACK TO THE 19TH CENTURY,
AND IS MOST POPULAR IN NEW ENGLAND, BUT PLAYED EVERYWHERE BECAUSE IT'S FUN!

THE IDEA IS THAT AFTER THE DEAL THERE IS AN *AUCTION* WHERE PLAYERS BID ON WHO
CAN WIN THE MOST POINTS DURING THE TRICK PLAYING, AND THE HIGHEST BIDDER GETS
TO *PITCH* THE FIRST CARD ON THE TABLE THEREBY NAMING THE TRUMP SUIT.  THE FUN
PART IS THAT IF PITCHER CAN'T LIVE UP TO HIS CONTRACT, HE IS SET-BACK BY HIS
BID, THEREFORE DURING PLAY THE OTHER PLAYERS COMBINE AGAINST HIM AND TRY TO
KEEP HIM FROM IT BY PITCHING CARDS HE NEEDS AT OTHER PLAYERS!

THIS GAME IS POPULAR WITH TRAVELING SALESMEN BECAUSE IT RESEMBLES ONE OF THEM
TRYING TO TAKE OVER A TERRITORY WITH A NEW PRODUCT WHILE THE COMPETITION HOLDS
HIM BACK (HA HA).  RECOMMEND THIS TOY TO YOUR BUSINESS SCHOOL DEAN AS A
QUALIFYING TEST FOR NEW FACULTY (:]).

THIS GAME DERIVES FROM THE GAME OF ALL FOURS, POPULAR IN ENGLAND BEFORE AMERICA
WAS COLONIZED AND POPULAR IN AMERICA TOO UNTIL DISPLACED BY POKER ESPECIALLY
OUT IN THE WILD WEST.  ALL FOURS IS ALSO CALLED SEVEN-UP SINCE IT TAKES SEVEN
POINTS TO WIN A GAME, AND THAT IS TRUE IN AUCTION PITCH TOO.

PLAYERS:
2-7 MAY PLAY.  THE COMPUTER PLAYS ALL HANDS BUT YOURS, AND IN DEMO MODE PLAYS
YOURS TOO.  YOUR HAND IS SHOWN FACE-UP ON THE SCREEN, ALL OTHERS FACE-DOWN.

THE DECK:
THE STANDARD 52-CARD DECK IS USED.  ACE IS HIGH, DEUCE LOW: AKQJT98765432.

THE DEAL:
THE FIRST DEALER IS CHOSEN RANDOMLY BY THE COMPUTER.  AFTER THAT, DEAL ALWAYS
PASSES TO THE RIGHT.

STARTING AT DEALER'S LEFT (ELDEST), CARDS ARE DEALT CLOCKWISE.
THE DEAL IS 2 ROUNDS OF 3 CARDS TO EACH PLAYER, FOR A TOTAL OF 6.  HENCE
FROM 12-42 CARDS ARE DEALT IN ANY DEAL DEPENDING ON THE NUMBER OF PLAYERS,
AND THE REST OF THE CARDS REMAIN OUT OF PLAY FOR THE DURATION OF THE DEAL.

SCORING:
IN EACH DEAL THERE ARE ONLY 4 POINTS THAT CAN BE WON.  IT'S NOT THE NUMBER OF
TRICKS BUT WHAT CARDS ARE WON IN THE TRICKS THAT ARE SCORED.   A GAME IS
TRADITIONALLY 7 POINTS SO EACH POINT IS IMPORTANT AND WORTH FIGHTING OVER.

THE 'BIG FOUR' POINTS ARE AWARDED FOR WINNING:

   HIGH     HIGHEST TRUMP CARD IN PLAY (AKQJT98765432)
   LOW      LOWEST TRUMP CARD IN PLAY (23456789TJQKA)
   JACK     JACK OF TRUMPS (IT IF WAS IN IN PLAY)
   GAME     HIGHEST TOTAL OF CARDS COUNTING ACE=4, K=3, Q=2, J=1, BUT T=10.
            THIS MAKES TENS THE KEY CARD FOR THIS POINT.
            IF THERE IS A TIE FOR HIGHEST TOTAL, NOBODY GETS THE GAME POINT.

DOES THE BIG SALESMAN CONVENTION SONG "HI-LO, MR. JACK GAME!" GIVE YOU MISTY
EYES YET? (HA HA)

BIDDING:
BEGINNING WITH ELDEST HAND, EACH PLAYER GETS ONE TURN TO BID.  THE LOWEST
BID IS 1, THE HIGHEST 4.  EACH PLAYER MUST EITHER PASS OR RAISE THE BID (TO
PASS, HIT THE <ENTER> KEY).

IF ANY PLAYER BIDS 4 THE BIDDING ROUND IS OVER IMMEDIATELY.  HIGH BIDDER
LEADS THE FIRST TRICK, AND NAMES THE TRUMP BY VIRTUE OF 'PITCHING' HIS FIRST
CARD INTO PLAY.  IF EVERYBODY PASSES, BIDDING CONTINUES UNTIL SOMEBODY BIDS.

PLAY:
IF ABLE TO FOLLOW SUIT, EACH PLAYER IN TURN MUST EITHER FOLLOW SUIT OR TRUMP.
BUT IF UNABLE TO FOLLOW SUIT, ANY CARD MAY BE DISCARDED.  EACH TRICK IS WON BY
THE HIGHEST TRUMP, OR BY THE HIGHEST CARD OF THE SUIT LED IF NO TRUMPS ARE
PLAYED.  THE WINNER OF EACH TRICK LEADS TO THE NEXT.

SETBACK:
AFTER ALL CARDS ARE PLAYED, THE PITCHER MUST SCORE AT LEAST AS MANY POINTS AS
HE BID, ELSE HE IS 'SET BACK', THAT IS, HIS BID IS SUBTRACTED FROM HIS PREVIOUS
GAME SCORE, WHICH MAY MAKE IT GO NEGATIVE, OR IN THE HOLE.  THE OTHER PLAYERS
ALWAYS GET TO KEEP THEIR GAME SCORES AS MADE.

GAME:
THE FIRST PLAYER TO REACH GAME POINT (USUALLY 7) WINS THE GAME.  IN CASE OF 2
OR MORE PLAYERS REACHING GAME POINT ON THE SAME DEAL, PITCHER'S POINTS ARE
COUNTED FIRST, AND THEN THE TIEBREAKERS IN ORDER ARE: HIGH, LOW, JACK, GAME.

SMUDGE:
IF PITCHER BIDS 4 AND MAKES IT, HE WINS THE GAME IMMEDIATELY, UNLESS HE WAS
IN THE HOLE AT THE TIME OF BID, IN WHICH CASE HE SCORES 4 [OR 1/2 OF
(MAX PTS PER DEAL + 1)].

MATCH SCORE:
A MATCH MAY GO SEVERAL GAMES.  AT THE START OF THE MATCH EACH PLAYER IS GIVEN
N CHIPS BY THE BANK.  N IS SELECTED AT MATCH START BY YOU AS ANYTHING FROM 10
TO 1000 (DEFAULT 20).

AT THE END OF EACH GAME, WINNER COLLECTS FROM EACH LOSER 1 CHIP, PLUS 1 CHIP
FOR EACH TIME LOSER WAS SET BACK, AND 1 CHIP FOR BEING IN THE HOLE WHEN THE
GAME ENDED.  ANY PLAYER WHO LOSES ALL HIS CHIPS MUST DROP OUT OF THE MATCH.

THE COMPUTER SAVES ALL POTS ON DISK AT THE END OF EACH GAME SO IF YOU QUIT THE
TOY AND THEN RUN IT AGAIN, IT WILL ASK YOU IF YOU WANT TO RESUME A MATCH OR
START A NEW ONE WITH NEW POTS AND POSSIBLY A DIFFERENT NUMBER OF PLAYERS.

GAME OPTIONS:
THE FOLLOWING OPTIONS CAN ONLY BE CHANGED AT THE BEGINNING OF A GAME.

NO AUCTION: YOU CAN PLAY WITHOUT ANY AUCTION, ELDER ALWAYS PITCHES AND
  EVERYBODY SCORES POINTS AS MADE.

GAME POINT: MAY BE SET AT ANYTHING FROM MAXIMUM PER DEAL TO 10 TIMES THAT
 (USUALLY IT SHOULD BE SET TO 2 TIMES OR 2 TIMES MINUS 1).

SMUDGE WIN: SMUDGE WINS THE GAME FOR PITCHER EVEN IF HE WAS IN THE HOLE.
 IF SMUDGE WIN IS OFF, YOU CAN OPTIONALLY SET THE SMUDGE POINT AT ANYTHING
 FROM 0 (NONE) TO GAME POINT.  USUALLY IT SHOULD BE SET AT 1/2 OF
 (MAX PTS PER DEAL + 1).

DEALER RIGHT: WHEN THE DEALER'S BIDDING TURN COMES UP, HE HAS THE RIGHT TO
 ASSUME THE CURRENT BID (THAT IS, "BID OVER") AND PITCH.
ELDER RIGHT: THE SAME AS DEALER RIGHT, BUT FOR ELDER.  IN THIS CASE BIDDING
 BEGINS WITH PLAYER ON ELDER'S LEFT.
BUNCH: IN A 2-PLAYER GAME WITH DEALER RIGHT THE DEALER CALLS "BUNCH" TO MAKE
 THE OPPONENT CHOOSE WHETHER DEALER CAN PITCH AT A BID OF 2, OR REDEAL.

SELL OUT: A.K.A. COMMERCIAL PITCH, THIS IS ELDER RIGHT WITH A TWIST.  BIDDING
 STARTS AT ELDER'S LEFT.  ON ELDER'S TURN HE MAY BID OVER AND PITCH, WHEREUPON
 THE HIGH BIDDER SCORES THE AMOUNT OF THE BID AS COMPENSATION; OR LET THE
 HIGHEST BIDDER PITCH, "SELLING" THE CONTRACT TO HIM, ELDER SCORING THE AMOUNT
 OF THE BID AS COMPENSATION HIMSELF.  ELDER IS PROHIBITED FROM PITCHING IF THIS
 CAUSES HIGH BIDDER TO WIN THE GAME AUTOMATICALLY.  ALSO, IF THE CONTRACT WOULD
 GIVE ELDER THE GAME, THE CONTRACT IS REDUCED TO ONE BELOW WHAT WOULD GIVE HIM
 GAME.

JOKER: THE JOKER IS ADDED TO THE DECK.  IT COUNTS AS A TRUMP RANKING BELOW
 THE DEUCE, BUT ISN'T USED FOR LOW TRUMP POINT; INSTEAD, PLAYER WINNING THE
 JOKER SCORES 1 POINT, MAKING MAX POINTS PER DEAL 5 INSTEAD OF 4.  JOKER POINT
 COUNTS BETWEEN LOW AND JACK IN THE TIEBREAKER.  IF THE JOKER IS PITCHED, THE
 TRUMP SUIT BECOMES SPADES.

PEDRO SANCHO (4 PLAYERS MINIMUM):
 THIS CHANGES THE MAXIMUM POINTS PER DEAL FROM 4 TO 18:
    HIGH SCORES 1 POINT
    LOW SCORES 1 POINT
    JACK SCORES 1 POINT
    GAME POINT IS FOR WINNING THE TEN OF TRUMPS ALONE AND SCORES 1 POINT
    FIVE OF TRUMPS (CALLED PEDRO) SCORES 5 POINTS
    NINE OF TRUMPS (SANCHO) SCORES 9 POINTS.
 DEALER RIGHT IS MANDATORY.  JOKER MAY NOT BE USED.

DOM SANCHO (4 PLAYERS MINIMUM):
 PEDRO SANCHO PLAYED WITH A JOKER (NOW CALLED THE SNOOZER), MAKING THE MAX
 POINTS PER DEAL 36:
   HIGH SCORES 1
   LOW SCORES 1
   JACK SCORES 1
   GAME (TEN OF TRUMPS) SCORES 1
   THREE OF TRUMPS SCORES 3
   FIVE OF TRUMPS (PEDRO) SCORES 5
   NINE OF TRUMPS (SANCHO) SCORES 9
   JOKER (SNOOZER) SCORES 15.
 DEALER RIGHT IS MANDATORY.

OPEN HANDS OPTION:
FOR DEMONSTRATION AND LEARNING PURPOSES, ALL HANDS CAN BE PLAYED FACE UP.

REPLAY HAND OPTION:
AT THE BEGINNING OF EACH HAND, YOU HAVE THE OPTION OF REPLAYING THE LAST HAND;
THE DECK IS RESTORED TO WHAT IT WAS AFTER THE SHUFFLE & CUT DURING THE LAST
HAND.  OF COURSE YOU CAN USE THIS TO GAIN AN UNFAIR ADVANTAGE ON THE COMPUTER,
BUT THIS IS A TOY AFTER ALL, AND YOU ARE BOSS.

FUNCTION KEYS: THESE ARE HOT KEYS, MEANING THEY CAN BE PRESSED AT ANY TIME.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    F1   *   SOUND EFFECTS TOGGLE
    F2   *   DEMO MODE TOGGLE.  IN DEMO MODE THE COMPUTER PLAYS BOTH HANDS
             WHILE YOU WATCH.
    F3       POP-UP DISPLAY OF CURRENT GAME PARAMETERS
    F4       TOGGLE REPLAY HAND OPTION
    F5       DISPLAY THESE INSTRUCTIONS
    F6       REPLAY DEAL OPTION: LETS YOU REPLAY EACH DEAL IF YOU WANT.
    F7       QUIT THE PROGRAM
    F10      (COLOR MONITORS ONLY) CHANGE THE SCREEN BORDER COLOR

*NOTE: THE LEGEND FOR A TOGGLE SWITCH INDICATES THE MODE THAT WILL BE ENTERED
BY PRESSING THE KEY, WHICH IS THE OPPOSITE OF THE MODE IN EFFECT AT THE TIME.

COMMAND LINE PARAMETERS:
   S    START UP WITH SOUND OFF
   M    FORCE MONO DISPLAY MODE
   C    FORCE COLOR DISPLAY MODE
   *    SKIP STARTUP SHOW

EXAMPLE: >PITCH MS

NOTES ON STRATEGY:
ON THE SURFACE EVERYBODY TRIES TO WIN THE HIGHEST TRUMP, THE LOWEST TRUMP,
THE JACK OF TRUMPS, AND AS MANY HIGH CARDS AS POSSIBLE, XAKQJ BEING THE
HIGH CARDS IN THAT ORDER.  ALL THE OTHER CARDS IN THE DECK ARE NON-SCORING.

OBVIOUSLY THE HOLDER OF THE HIGHEST TRUMP CAN'T LOSE IT NO MATTER WHAT HE
DOES.  IT'S JUST THAT NOT ALL THE CARDS ARE DEALT IN A GIVEN DEAL, SO THE
HIGHEST TRUMP MIGHT BE A K OR Q OR EVEN A J INSTEAD OF AN ACE.  MOREOVER,
A PLAYER NEED NOT FOLLOW SUIT IF HE CAN TRUMP AND TAKE DESIRED CARDS IN
TRICKS, SO THE TRUMP SUIT LENGTH IS THE BASIS OF ALL BIDDING.

WHEN BIDDING YOU MUST CONSIDER HOW MANY CARDS ARE IN PLAY AND HOW MANY UNDEALT
TO COMPUTE THE PROBABILITY THAT YOU CAN'T FORCE YOUR BID ON ALL THE OTHERS.
FOR EXAMPLE, IF YOU HAVE THE K-Q-J OF TRUMPS, BUT NOT THE ACE, YOU COULD BID 3
IF YOU KNEW THE ACE WAS NOT IN PLAY, BUT OTHERWISE ONLY 2.  WITH 4 PLAYERS IN
THE GAME, THE ODDS ARE ABOUT EVEN (28 TO 24) THAT THE ACE IS UNDEALT, BUT
THOSE ODDS DECLINE WITH MORE THAN 4 PLAYERS.

SINCE ALMOST ALL THE TRUMPS WILL BE PLAYED IN THE FIRST FEW TRICKS, THE HOLDER
OF LOW CAN ALMOST COUNT ON WINNING IT, OR FORCING PITCHER TO NOT WIN IT.  IN
PRACTICE, THOUGH, GAME SCORE ALSO IS A CONSIDERATION, AND PLAYERS TRY TO KEEP
ANOTHER PLAYER FROM WINNING FIRST, THEN THEY THINK ABOUT DEFEATING THE PITCHER.
HENCE PLAYERS TRY TO THROW THEIR TENS AND LOWS TO WHATEVER PLAYER SEEMS TO HAVE
THE BEST CHANCE TO DEFEAT THE CURRENT BIGGEST 'THREAT'.

----------------------
DID YOU LIKE THIS TOY?
DON'T FORGET TO TRY OUR GOBS OF OTHER NEAT LOW-PRICED GAMES AND TOYS FOR THE
IBM PC AND COMPATIBLES.  WE ARE WAITING TO SEND YOU OUR 5.25 INCH (360KB) OR
3.5 INCH (720KB) DEMO DISK, CONTAINING AN ELECTRONIC CATALOG PLUS OTHER
GOODIES, FOR ONLY $2 SHIPPING/HANDLING TO ANY U.S. ADDRESS, $3 OUTSIDE U.S.
(U.S. DOLLARS ONLY).

HAVE FUN!
TOMMY'S TOYS, P.O. BOX 11261, DENVER, CO 80211 USA.