OBJECT OF THE GAME

Chimera is a 3-player card game of two against one. It is similar

to climbing and shedding based card games like Tichu, The Great
Dalmuti, Big Two and Beat the Landlord. Each hand one player
is designated Chimera and the other two players team up as the
Chimera Hunters to defeat the Chimera. Players compete for
points in several hands of play and the winner is the player who
scores the most points once the designated Score Limit is reached
by one or more players. Chimera is normally played to 400 points
although longer or shorter games may be played.

COMPONENTS
The game is played with a 54-card deck:
• 4 cards each of ranks 1 through 12 (although suits are included,
they have no effect on game play)
8 of these cards are Treasure cards and provide points 2 2
to the player who takes them in a trick.
11 11
• 4 Rank 2 “Fortune Toads” worth +10 points each.
• 4 Rank 11 “Prosperity Cats” worth +5 points each. 2 2

• 4 Heroes, which rank higher than the cards ranked 1 11

H 11
H
through 12, but have no numerical value and so cannot
be used in playing straigths, or ranked sequences
(except as added cards).
P
H
P
• 1 Pi Ya card (P), which outranks all other single cards H

except the Chimera and can optionally be used to

substitute for any ranked card 1-12 to assist in making a
straight. For example, 8-9-10-Pi Ya-12. P P
• 1 Chimera card, which outranks all
single cards.
 PREPARATION AND THE DEAL
Any player may deal each hand. The dealer shuffles the cards and
presents them to another player to cut near the middle of the deck.
After the cut, the dealer takes the top card from the bottom half of
the cut and places it face up on the top half of the cut. The dealer
then completes the cut by placing the bottom half of the deck on
top of face-up card and deals the hand.
Deal the first three cards face down in the middle of the table,
this is called the Chimera’s Den. Then, deal out the remaining
cards to the players (17 cards to each player).

THE BID
The player who receives the face-up card starts the Bid.
• In clockwise order, players may pass or bid.
• Legal Bids are: Pass, 20, 30 or 40.
2
The bidding can start at any of these bid options.
• For example, a player may want to preemptively bid 40, the
maximum, to shut other players out and automatically win the
2 Bid.
Each Bid must be higher than the last Bid.
Players may re-enter the bidding after passing.
• Bidding continues until a player bids 40; or, there are two
consecutive passes after a Bid.
If all players pass without any bid, then the hand is thrown
in: shuffle and deal again. On the re-deal, if all 3 players pass
again, the player with the the face-up card automatically bids
20. Other players are free to bid as in a normal bidding.
Legal Card Combinations
See the complete description of each combination at the end of
the rules.
11 11
Single Card
8 8 8 8

88
Pair 11 11

88 8 8 8 9
9 8 9 9
10 10 10 10
Sequence of at least three pairs
88 99 1010
8 8 8 8

2 2 22 2 2
1010 99 88
Triplet 8 8 8 9
9 8 10 9
9 10 10 10

1 1 1 1 21 21 22 2 2

111
Sequence of at least two sets of triplets
2 2 22 2 2

1 1 1 1 1 1 6
111 6
Triplet with an attached card
111 111
1 1
6
1 1
6
12 12 22 2 2

9 9 99 9 9 H H H H

999
Triplet with an attached pair 1 1 1 1 1 1 6 6
999 1 1 1 6
1 1 1 2 62 2 212 2 2 12

111 6
Sequence of triplets with attached card each
12
9 9 99 9 9 H H H H
61 1 1 12
10 610 6 710 7 107
6 6 6 6 7H 7H 7 H H

6661010 777
Sequence of triplets with attached pair each 1 1 1 1 61 2 26 2 1 2 2 122 12

1
777 1010666
2 3 14 25 3 4 5
Straight (Five or more cards in sequence)
1 345 6 6 6 6
7107 107 6 106 10
543 1 ... 7
7 H7 H H H

7 7 77 7 7 72 710 2 10

7 7 77 10
Quad with two single attached cards 1 5 4 3 52 41 3 2
10 77 7 7
7 7 77 7 7 7H 7H 9 H9 H 9 9

7 7 77 99
Quad with two attached pairs 7 7 7 7 77 7 27
10 10 2
77 7 7 99
9 9 99 9 9 9 9

9999
Trap (Four of a kind) 7 7 7 7 77 7
H 9 H 9H 9 H
7 9

P P
9999
Chimera Flight 9 9 9 9 99 9 9

P P
 PREPARATION OF THE HAND
The winner of the bid becomes Chimera. The Chimera picks
up the Chimera’s Den of 3 cards and adds them to his hand,
bringing his total card count to 20. The Chimera does not discard
or pass any cards!
The other two players will now play as a team, the Hunters,
against the Chimera.
Based on the winning bid, the Hunters secretly and
simultaneously exchange 0, 1 or 2 cards following this:
• If the Bid is 20, the Hunters do not exchange cards.
• If the Bid is 30, the Hunters must exchange 1 card.
• If the Bid is 40, the Hunters must exchange 2 cards.

PLAY OF THE HAND

Players are attempting to play out all of their cards in their hand
first.
The Chimera begins the round of play for the hand by playing
one or more cards to the table corresponding to one of the
H 14 possible card combinations described previously. This is
called leading the trick.
In clockwise order, players may either play to the trick or pass.
H
Subsequent plays to the trick must match the combination led
and must be higher in rank.
•For example if a 3 is led, the only legal play is a single card
higher than 3. If pairs are led, the only legal play is higher
ranked pairs, and so on.
Players may also choose to play a TRAP or a Chimera Flight
instead of the led combination.
•If a Trap is played, now only a Trap of a higher rank or a
Chimera Flight can be played.
•A Chimera Flight is the highest possible play in a trick.
Note: Traps and Chimera Flights cannot be played out of turn!
Players may pass even if they have a legal play and players who
pass may re-enter play unless the trick is won before their next
opportunity.
Play continues until two consecutive players pass.
The player who played the last cards to the trick wins all the
played cards and places them into a face-down pile in front
of him. This pile is called his Tricks. The player then leads the
next trick for the hand. Any Treasure cards (Fortune Toads &
Prosperity Cats) taken will be scored at the end of the hand.
The hand is over as soon as one player has played all his cards.
This player takes all the cards played to the last trick and the hand
is scored. Any cards remaining in other players’ hands are not
counted and placed aside.
SCORING THE HAND
The score is calculated based on the Bid and who played all of
their cards first, the Chimera or one of the Hunters.
Then all players score their Tricks. Each player has a separate score.
If the Chimera played out all his cards first:
The Chimera scores double the amount of the Bid (40, 60 or 80).
The Chimera scores an additional 25 points for each Bonus.
BONUSES:
Each of the following instances counts as a Bonus of 25 points:
•A Bonus is applied for each Trap played.
Note: Quad with attached single cards or pairs are NOT Traps!
•A Bonus is applied if a Chimera Flight is played.
•A Bonus is applied if either one or both of the Hunters did
not play any cards.
 If either of the Hunters played
all of their cards first:
•The Chimera loses points equal to the amount of his bid
(-20, -30 or -40). It is possible to get below 0.
•The Chimera does not score any Bonus.
•Each Hunter scores 20 points.
All Players Score:
Treasures:
All players score any Treasures they took in their Tricks.
•There are eight Treasure Cards. 2 2

4 Rank 2 Cards, Fortune Toads, are worth

10 points each (shown on the Toad’s belly).
11 11
4 Rank 11 Cards, Prosperity Cats, are worth 2 2
5 points each (shown on the Cat’s collar).
Note: Since the hand is over once one player has
played all his cards, any Treasure cards remaining 11 11

in other players’ hands will not count for this hand.

Examples of Scoring
Example 1:
•The Bid is 20, the Chimera goes out first,
•1 Trap was played,
•1 Hunter played no cards.
The Chimera scores 40 (for 2 x his bid of 20)
+ 25 (for 1 Trap Bonus)
+ 25 (for the no cards played Bonus)
For a total of 90 points.
•In addition, each player scores points for any Treasure Cards
they won in their Tricks.
Example 2:
The Bid is 40, one of the Hunters goes out first and the
Chimera Flight was played.
•The Chimera loses 40 points (for his missed Bid) and no Bonus
is scored for the Chimera Flight.
•The Hunters each score 20 points (for defeating the Chimera).
•In addition, each player scores points for any Treasure cards they
won in their Tricks.

WINNING THE GAME

Play continues until at least one player has scored 400 or more
points. The player with the highest score is the winner. If there is a
tie for highest score, play continues until there is a single highest
score. (This means the untied third player could still win!)
If desired, players may change the Score Limit for a longer or
shorter game. Recommended Score Limits are 300, 500 or 750
points.

LEGAL COMBINATIONS
General Notes
•Suits do not matter. They are included to provide variety and to
assist in remembering cards played.
•The Heroes (H) are regarded as higher than any of the ranked
cards 1 – 12. However, since they have no actual rank, they cannot
be used in any type of sequence or straight.
•The Pi Ya and Chimera together are the Chimera Flight that can
be played to win any trick. They can only be played together for
this purpose.
•Traps and the Chimera Flight cannot be played out of turn
(this note is here especially for those trained in the art of Tichu).
 11 11

SINGLE CARD – Cards ranked from low to high: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7,

8, 9, 10, 11, 12, Hero, Pi Ya, Chimera 11 11

8 8 8 8

88 88
PAIR – Two cards of the same rank from 1 (low) to 12 (high)
topped by Heroes. For example, 8-8 is higher than 4-4. H-H is the
8 8 8 8

highest pair.
8 8 8 9
9 8 9 9
10 10 10 10

88 99 1010
1010 99 88
SEQUENCE OF PAIRS – Three or more pairs of consecutive ranks
from 1 to 12. Heroes, Pi Ya and Chimera cannot be used.
8 8 8 9
9 8 10 9
9 10 10 10

2 2 22 2 2

TRIPLET – Three cards of the same rank from 1 (low) to 12 (high)

topped by Heroes. For example, 11-11-11 is higher than 2-2-2.
2 2 22 2 2

H-H-H is the highest Triplet.

1 1 1 1 21 21 22 2 2

111 111
SEQUENCE OF TRIPLETS – Two or more triplets of consecutive
ranks from 1 up to 12. Heroes, Pi Ya and Chimera cannot be used.
1 1 1 1 12 12 22 2 2

1 1 1 1 1 1 6 6

111 111 6 6
TRIPLET WITH AN ATTACHED CARD – A triplet with any single
1 1 1 1 1 1 6 6
card added, for example 1-1-1-6. The rank is determined by the
rank of the triplet. For example, 7-7-7-5 in higher than 5-5-5-12.
 8 8 88 8 8 H H H H

888 888
TRIPLET WITH AN ATTACHED PAIR – A triplet with a pair added,
for example 8-8-8-H-H. The rank is determined by the rank of the
8 8 88 8 8 H H H H

triplet. 9-9-9-11-11 beats 5-5-5-12-12. Pi Ya and Chimera cannot

be used as an attached pair.
1 1 1 1 1 1 6 6 2 2 22 2 2 12 12

111 111 6 6 12
12
Sequence of TripLETS with an attached card each –
An extra card is added to each triplet, for example 1-1-1-6
1 1 1 1 1 1 6 6 2 2 22 2 2 12 12

and 2-2-2-12. The attached cards must be different from the

triplets and from each other. Although trips of Heroes cannot be
included, a Hero, the Pi Ya or Chimera can be attached, but not
both the Pi Ya and Chimera together.
6 6 66 6 106 10 10 10 7 7 77 7 7H H H H

666 1010
1010 666 777 777
Sequence of TripLETs with an attached pair each –
An extra pair is attached to each triplet, for example, 6-6-6-10-10
6 6 66 10 610 6 10 10 7 7 77 7 7
H H H H

and 7-7-7-H-H. Only the triplets have to be in sequence. The pairs

must be different in rank from each other. Heroes can be attached
as a pair, but cannot be used as triplets. Pi Ya and Chimera may
not be used.
1 2 3 14 25 3 4 5

1 345 543 1 ...

STRAIGHT OF 5 OR MORE – At least five cards of consecutive rank
1 5 4 3 52 41 3 2
from 1 up to 12, for example 8-9-10-11-12. You may play straights
of 5 to 12 cards. Heroes and Chimera cannot be used in a sequence.
The Pi Ya can be used as a Wild card to fill in one rank P P

for a legal straight (1 through 12), for example,

8-9-10-Pi Ya-12.
P P
 7 7 77 7 7 72 710 2 10

7 7 77 10
10 77 7 7
QUAD WITH ATTACHED CARDS – Four of a kind with two single
7 7 7 7 77 7 27
10 10 2
cards of different ranks attached, for example 7-7-7-7-2-10. The
four of a kind determines the rank. Heroes may be used as the
four of a kind. A Hero, Pi Ya and Chimera can be attached, but
you cannot use both the Pi Ya and Chimera as attached cards with
the same Quad.
7 7 77 7 7 7H 7H 9 H9 H 9 9

7 7 77
77 7 7 99 99
QUAD WITH ATTACHED PAIRS – Four of a kind with two pairs of
7 7 7 7 77 7
H 9 H 9H 9 H
7 9
different ranks attached, for example 7-7-7-7-H-H-9-9. The four
of a kind determines the rank. Heroes can be used (all four as a
quad or two as one of the attached pairs).
NOTE: Quads with attached cards or pairs are not Traps and can be
beaten by a Trap or Chimera Flight.

9 9 99 9 9 9 9

99999999
TRAP – Four of a kind. Traps can be played on any combination
except the Chimera Flight and a higher ranked Trap bests a lower
9 9 9 9 99 9 9

ranked one. The four Heroes are the highest Trap.

P P

CHIMERA FLIGHT – The Chimera and the Pi Ya played together.

P P

A Chimera Flight can be played on any combination and beats

everything.
 Special thanks to my game group of over
15 years including Mark Delano, Steve Rugh, Mike
Fitzgerald, John Perkins, Alan Stern, Donna McFee,
and Andrew Emerick; my many friends at Alan
Moon’s The Gathering of Friends, and to
Zev Shlasinger and the great team at Z-Man Games.

Game Design: Ralph H. Anderson

Flightless Goat Workshop
Illustrations: Chris Quilliams & Philippe Guérin
Development: Team Z-Man Games
© 2014 Z-Man Games Inc.
31 rue de la Coopérative
Rigaud QC J0P 1P0
Canada
info@zmangames.com
www.zmangames.com