Designed by: Alex Randolph
Raj is a wonderfully simple bidding game that can be grasped by very young children and enjoyed by all ages.
Each player is given a set of bidding cards numbered from 1 to 15. In the centre of the table 15 tiles are placed faced down – there values are 1 to 10 and -1 to -5. In each round a tile is turned face-up at random, and all players choose a bidding card and place it face down on the table. Cards are then revealed simultaneously: the highest bid wins the tile (or if the tile is one of the negatives, the lowest bidder is forced to pick it up, so players are effectively bidding not to have it).
The key thing in Raj though is that any tied bids cancel each other out. That means that if two players bid the same highest card, the next highest bidder collects the tile. And equally if two players bid the lowest for a negative card, the next (higher) bidder is forced to pick it up. It’s this rule about ties that make Raj a lot of fun – a single game only takes a few minutes, but there is also a ‘tournament’ version with multiple rounds where a round winner gets a bonus.
At the end of the game each players tiles are added up (negative tiles are subtracted) and the highest scoring player is the winner.
There is no possibility of spiteful or combative play – everyone is trying to do the same thing and maximize their return on the tiles.
There is no down-time at all.
Played at it's simplest Raj is pure luck, and the youngest player can easily win. But those with good memories who can recall who has which card left in their hand will be able to make more calculated risks about which bid to make.
Raj has no variation beyond what order the tiles are flipped, but it's very easy to pick up and learn and fun to play again.
2-5
Players
6+
Years
5-15
Mins
Sam says
As a single game played over one round Raj is rather drab. But as a Tournament game (with subsequent rounds rewarding the winner exponentially greater points) Raj is great - the leader can swing wildly between rounds and there's something inherently funny about players tying on high cards and therefore finding themselves out of the auction. A great filler game for an absorbing and potentially hilarious 20 minutes.