Q&A for How to Play the Palace Card Game

The burn pile is the pile of cards that are removed from the game once a clear card (10) is played. That entire pile is taken out of the game.

The order does not matter. As long as the card you're playing is higher then the one you're playing it on, it is a legal play.

An ace to match it; a 2 to reset; a 10 to clear the pile; or three more aces to clear the pile.

You cannot use your flipped up cards until the entire pile is depleted. You play your 2, then draw a card.

Yes, as long as you play a card on your turn or pick up the discard. You can't skip your turn.

An ace would not be on top of the burn pile unless 4 of them are played at one time. If this happens, you still remove the pile and continue play, but now without any aces.

You win! If playing a with more than two people, the next person in line inherits your clear or reset.

One if you are a beginner. When you feel more comfortable after a few games, use more.

Palace is usually played with 3-4 people, but you could play with more.

Some people count 7 as a wild card, so it can be used in every way a 2 can.

Yes, any wild card will reset your turn, so you can play the two, then play the next two, and then the next, but you still will have to pick up three cards afterwards.

With one deck of cards, you can play a game with 4 people max. If you're playing with more than 4 people, have another deck so that there are plenty of cards to go around.

Yes, since both reset your turn, you can play any card after one of them is played.

Yes. A 7 is a special card that can be played on any card, and the next player must play a card lower than 7 (or they could play a special card such as 2,3,7,or 10).

Yes. The card is wild, and if you have held the card until the end, then you can play it.

You can play multiples of the same card from your hand. So you can place all four 3s or 5s if you want to, which if quite useful to do later on.

This can depend on how you prefer to play your game. Usually the person that burns the pile is the same one to play the next card. This can depend on house rules though.

Yes. As long as your card beats the previous card, you can place one, two, three, or four of them down at once.

If somebody else plays a 2, you're free to play it. (That’s the only time you can really play it though.)

No, it does not, because once you finish the three flipped up cards on the face-down cards, you can start flipping the face-downs to add to the game pile (not the discard pile). If the one card face-down that you flipped up beats the card in the game pile, good job, move to the next flipped-down card! If not, take the whole game pile.

There are many alternate rules but two favorites are: One: 3s are a copy card which count as whatever is beneath them and can be played as if they are another card. For instance if you have a Jack and a 3 in your hand you could play them together as 2 Jacks (as long as the 3 were on top). You can use 3s to make a total of 4 of a kind and burn a pile with them. When a 3 is played on an empty discard pile it counts simply as a 3. Or: 7s make the next card go down instead of up in rank. So after a seven is played you can only play 7 (perhaps as a 3 if you are using the above rule), 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, or 10.

Yes, but it's kind of a waste of that card. You should save 2s if you can to play when you really need them.

Yes, it does, unless you're playing with more than one deck of cards. Then, it can be equal.

You always have to play a card if you have one in your hand that's playable.

You only have to match it. In fact, if you play 4-of-a-kind, you take the discard pile out of the game.

Yes, it goes into your hand along with the discard pile, and then you play it along with those cards.

Yes, it goes into your hand along with the discard pile, and you play it along with those cards.

No, you must get rid of the cards in your hand first. If you can't play, then you have to pick up the discard pile.

You can play all 3 2s at once. In that instance, you could play two 2s, then the 10 on the next round.

The next person has to play an ace, 10, or 2. Otherwise, they have to pick up the whole pile.