BACKGROUND

King’s Dynasty (“KD”) continues the lineage of the popular King’s Court (“KC”) card game created in 1978 and published in 1983 by John Johnson (d. 2010) of Janjohn Games, Inc. (JGI) in Louisville, Ky., who intended to bring “many hours of enjoyment” through his challenging and fast-paced “family card game with a ROYAL TWIST”—Thank you, John, for your contribution!

With KC long out of print and hard to find, KD is a succession and expansion of the original with the addition of purple and silver suits, along with new Scroll Cards. Always remember the favorite by playing the classic KC card game without the expansion cards or choosing which expansion cards to add to each game.

OBJECTIVE

Be the player with the lowest score when another player scores over 500 points, where the goal of each hand is to be the first player to play all of their cards (“go out”). KD: You set the limit—over 750 points, 1000 points, or more!

SETUP

Shuffle all cards for the game together (KC or KC+KD) and deal seven cards to each player as their starting hand. Place the remaining cards face down in the middle of the table or floor as the draw pile. Turn over the top card and place it beside the draw pile to become the first card in the discard pile. If the deck runs out of cards in the middle of the game, shuffle the discard pile (except for the top card) and place it face down as the new deck.

KC: If a Scroll Card is the first card turned over, it is treated as though the dealer has played it from their hand on a regular turn. A Fair Maiden Card as the first card requires the dealer to play an extra card or the dealer must draw a card to try for one that is playable. The dealer always names the suit when a Kingdom Card is the first card in the discard pile.

KD: If a Shield Card is the first card turned over, shuffle it back into the deck and redraw until another card is drawn. If at any point a player receives one of the four Risk Cards (Dark Knight, Poison Garden, Castle Fire, or King’s Goblet), after the initial deal or when a card is drawn from the draw pile, that player is to place the card face up in front of them and draw a replacement card.

LET’S PLAY!

The player to the left of the dealer goes first, who attempts to play a card from their hand by placing it on top of the discard pile in one of three ways:

1. Playing a card that is the same suit as the top card on the discard pile.

2. Playing any Suit Card that is the same kind as the top card on the discard pile.

3. Playing a Kingdom Card.

If a player cannot (or chooses not to) play a card from their hand, they must draw one card from the draw pile. If the card drawn is playable, it may be played immediately. If the player cannot (or chooses not to) play the drawn card, any other appropriate card in their hand may be played or the player must say “Pass.” Once the player has played a card or passed, it becomes the next player’s turn.

Play continues around the table with each player attempting to play a card from their hand. The first person to go out (play all of their cards) is the winner and earns a perfect score of zero for that hand. The remaining hands of other players are scored and recorded, all cards are reshuffled, and the dealer rotates to the left and a new hand is dealt.

KD: Risk Cards (Dark Knight, Poison Garden, Castle Fire, or King’s Goblet) can be played at any point during the game by the player who has these cards.

SCORING

After any player plays their last card, the hand is immediately over. The other players count then count the points of the cards remaining in their hands and record them on a score sheet. Each Number Card is counted at face value, where Scroll Cards and Shield Cards show their point value.

When a player goes out by playing a “draw card” (a card that requires additional cards to be drawn for it) as their last card, the next player must immediately draw the required cards and count them towards their score.

KD: If the last card played before a player goes out is a Shield Card, the card is played with its full action, even if the player ends up not going out. So, that player may decide to keep the card and play continue. Risk Cards only count towards a player's score if the card is played, otherwise, it is not counted when a hand ends.

SAYING “ON GUARD”

Each time a player reduces their hand to only one card (as soon as they play their next-to-last card), the player is required to say “On Guard” to alert the other players that they might go out on their next turn. If another player says “On Guard” before they do or at the end of their turn, the player must draw two penalty cards on their next turn and automatically lose that turn.

Note: Should a player go out by playing more than one card, that player is not required to say “On Guard” during a single turn.

CONTENTS AND POINT VALUES

108 Cards (KC) + 55 Cards (KD) = 163 Cards (KC+KD)

NUMBER CARDS

KC (62) KD (31)

Suit Cards

1, 2 and 3 8 each 4 each

4 thru 8 6 each 3 each

9 and 10 4 each 2 each

SCROLL CARDS

KC (26) KD (9) PT. VALUE

Suit Cards

Fair Maiden (2 of each Suit) 8 2 20

Drawbridge (2 of each Suit) 8 2 20

Queen’s Option (2 Suits per card) 2 1 30

Knight (1 of each Suit) 4 2 20

Court Jester (1 of each Suit) 4 2 20

Kingdom Cards KC (20) KD (4) PT. VALUE

Wild Cards

Wizard (Burgundy) 1 - 50

Dragon (Burgundy) 4 - 35

King/Queen (Gold/Purple) 4 2 25

Duke/Duchess (Gold/Purple) 4 2 20

Defensive Cards

Royal Decree (Blue) 1 - 50

Magician (Blue) 1 - 50

Magic Potion (Green) 1 - 0

Protector (Blue) 2 - 35

Dungeon (Burgundy) 2 - 35

SHIELD CARDS

Kingdom Cards KC (0) KD (11) PT. VALUE

Risk Cards

Dark Knight (Black) - 1 ±100

Poison Garden (Green) - 1 -75

Castle Fire (Orange) - 1 -75

King’s Goblet (Purple) - 1 -50

Battle Cards

Cannonball (Silver) - 1 35

Catapult (Silver) - 1 35

Flaming Arrow (Silver) - 1 35

Siege Tower (Silver) - 1 35

Imperial Tax (Silver) - 1 35

Defender (Silver) - 2 -35

CARD TYPES

Scroll Cards: All cards except Number Cards (1-10) and Shield Cards.

Suite Cards: White background cards with one of multiple suite colors: gold, green, blue, burgundy, purple (KD), or silver (KD), and appear as Number Cards and Scroll Cards. Includes all number cards (1-10) and five Scroll Cards (Fair Maiden, Drawbridge, Queen’s Option, Knight, and Court Jester).

Kingdom Cards: Color background cards with no suit affiliation, may be played on any suit, and appear as Scroll Cards and Shield Cards. Includes Wild Cards, Draw Cards, Defensive (or Counter) Cards, “Magic” Cards, Battle Cards (KD), and Risk Cards (KD).

Wild Cards: Wizard, Dragon, King, Queen (KD), Duke, or Duchess (KD). Played on any suit, where the player names the new suit. (Gold and Purple)

Draw Cards: Wizard, Dragon, Dungeon, and Drawbridge. Each card instructs the next player to draw extra cards and lose their turn. (Burgundy)

Defensive (or Counter) Cards: Royal Decree, Protector, or Magician (played as a Royal Decree or Protector), or Defender (KD). (Blue)

“Magic” Cards: Magician and Magic Potion. (Green)

Battle Cards (KD): Cannonball, Catapult, Flaming Arrow, Siege Tower, and Imperial Tax. (Silver)

Risk Cards (KD): Dark Knight (Black), Poison Garden (Green), Castle Fire (Orange), and King’s Goblet (Purple).

CARD ACTIONS

Suit Scroll Cards

Fair Maiden Played with a “proper escort” (playable card of same suit or kind, another Fair Maiden or Kingdom Card).

Drawbridge Next player draws two cards and loses their turn—or, next player can play another Drawbridge, where draws “stack” for the remaining player.

Queen’s Option Played on a suit matching either of the two suits shown on the card, player chooses to keep play in the same direction, skip the next player, or reverse the direction of play, and choses either of the two suits

Knight Reverses the direction of play.

Court Jester Skips the next player.

Kingdom Scroll Cards

Wizard Wild. The player of this card chooses its suit and may play an extra playable card (not required). The player may choose to keep play in the same direction, reverse the direction of play, or skip the next player. The next player must then draw five cards and lose their turn. If a draw card is played as the extra card, the next player must draw the additional number of cards.

Royal Decree Played only in response to a draw card, which reverses (or reflects) the requirement to draw cards and the direction of play, where any draw requirement is placed on the player of the previous card. If a player goes out by placing a draw card as their last card, the next player may not play a defensive card because the hand is immediately over.

Magician Transformed into any named and playable Scroll Card that the player chooses.

Magic Potion Played on any suit on a normal turn, however, may only be played only when going out (as the last card). When another player goes out, the player with this card in their hand only counts their Number Cards toward their score.

Protector Played only in response to a draw card, which voids (or cancels) the requirement to draw hands. The player of the draw card no longer names the suit, the previous suit remains active, and the current direction of play continues. If a player goes out by placing a draw card as their last card, the next player may not play a defensive card because the hand is over.

Dragon Wild. The player of this card chooses its suit. The next player must draw three cards and lose their turn.

King/Queen Wild. The player of this card chooses its suit and may play an extra playable card (not required).

Duke/Duchess Wild. The player of this card chooses its suit.

Dungeon First played by placing the card face up in front of the next player, who loses two turns and draws one card on each lost turn. The player can “get out of the dungeon” after the second card is drawn by placing the Dungeon Card on the discard pile before the next player either plays a card or draws. If this opportunity is missed, the player loses an additional turn and draws one card. The “playable” card remains the card under the Dungeon Card for the next player. If a draw card is played against a player in the dungeon, that player must immediately draw the extra cards in addition to the card for being in the dungeon. If the player is in the dungeon while another player goes out, the Dungeon Card is scored as if it were in their hand, and any Dungeon Card be played as a last card while the next player is in the dungeon, the player is only required to draw one card, but both Dungeon Cards count towards their score.

Kingdom Shield Cards

Dark Knight Placed face up in front of the player who is dealt or draws this card, it can be played once a player says “On Guard” and before the next player starts their turn. This card places a point risk on whether the “On Guard” player will end the hand successfully or not. If the “On Guard" player goes out, the winning player deducts this card value from their score. Else, if the “On Guard" does not go out, the value of this card is added to the score of the player who played this card when the hand ends. It is possible for players to have a negative score.

Poison Garden Placed in face up front of the player who is dealt or draws this card, it can be played at any point during an active hand. Once played, the current hand (or round) immediately ends. All hands are scored as if a player had played their last card. The “cost” for the player who plays this card is that all other players deduct the point value from their current score.

Castle Fire Placed face up in front of the player who is dealt or draws this card, it can be played at any point during an active hand. Once played, all hands are discarded and the dealer redeals. The “cost” for the player who plays this card is that all other players deduct the point value from their current score.

King’s Goblet Placed face up in front of the player who is dealt or draws this card, it can be played at any point during an active hand. Once played, all players draw five cards and play continues. The “cost” for the player who plays this card is that all other players deduct the point value from their current score.

Cannonball Played on any suit on a normal turn, the current dealer collects all hands, shuffles the cards, and redeals. Note, based on the number of collected cards, not all players may end up with the same number of cards.

Catapult Played on any suit on a normal turn, the player of this card chooses another player and swaps hands. The swap can happen at any point during the hand, even when the other player has only one card in their hand.

Flaming Arrow Played on any suit on a normal turn, the player of this card can “burn” any one card in their hand by giving it to another player or placing it in the discard pile.

Siege Tower Played on any suit on a normal turn, the player of this card can privately inspect the hand of another player for a reasonable amount of time and return their hand to continue game play.

Imperial Tax Played on any suit on a normal turn, the player of this card randomly draws one card from each player’s hand, places this card in the discard pile. Each player then draws one card to replace their “taxed” card.

Defender Played in response to a battle card, which deflects (or cancels) any requirement or action for the individual player. If this card is in a player’s hand after another player goes out, the point value is deducted from their score.

BONUSES AND ALTERNATIVE PLAYS

Dealing Bonus: The dealer may attempt to cut the deck before dealing to risk the “exact number” of cards used. If successful, for four or more players, each player adds 50 points to their score, and if unsuccessful, the dealer deducts 50 points from their score. For two or three players, the bonus is 25 points.

Scoring Bonus: Score exactly the number of points set at the start of the game and reduce your score by half. If the new score is the single low score, that player automatically wins the game, otherwise, the game continues.

Two Players: The Knight (reverse) is played as a card that skips the next player.

Partners: With an even number of players, partners are seated with at least one opposing player between them, and partners score combined points. When a team member can go out, that player may ask another team member with only a “Yes” or “No” response. The team member is not bound by a “No” response, however, if the response is “Yes,” the player must either go out or immediately draw two cards and lose their turn.

Parties: Host a party and invite your friends, play as individuals or choose partners. Like a "bridge party," the winner of each game may play with different partners or move between two tables (two games played at the same time). The player (or partnership) with the lowest total score wins.

20250407_v1.7a

BONUS CARDS

The bonus deck includes "unofficial" KD cards to the classic KC and expansion KD card games, with the addition of an orange suit and zero number cards.

108 Cards (KC) + 55 Cards (KD) + 36 Cards (BONUS) = 199 Cards (KC+KD+BONUS)

NUMBER CARDS

BONUS (30)

Suit Cards

0, 1, 2 and 3 2 each

4, 6 and 8 2 each

5, 7, 9 and 10 1 each

SCROLL CARDS

BONUS (4) PT. VALUE

Suit Cards

Fair Maiden (1 of each Suit) 1 20

Drawbridge (1 of each Suit) 1 20

Knight (1 of each Suit) 1 20

Court Jester (1 of each Suit) 1 20

SHIELD CARDS

Kingdom Cards BONUS (2) PT. VALUE

Bonus Cards

Hidden Treasure (Gold) 1 -100

Warlord (Burgundy) 1 +50

Kingdom Shield Cards

Hidden Treasure Played on any suit on a normal turn, however, may only be played only when going out (as the last card). When another player goes out, the player with this card in their hand reduces their card points by the value when scoring. It is possible for players to have a negative score.

Warlord Placed in face up front of the player  who is dealt or draws this card or held in the player's hand, it can be played at any point during an active hand. Once played at the beginning of the target player's turn, the player who plays this card may play that player's turn for them. Game play then continues with the next player. The “cost” for the player who plays this card is that the card value is added to the player's round score, even if the player who had this card goes out.