This lively, fast-paced game is perfect for families or card parties with friends. My custom pyramid deck structure is a unique break from the 500-year old, 52-card deck paradigm; it makes for exciting and challenging game-play for ages 12 and up.
Origin
Did you know that in Minnesota “Duck, Duck, Goose” is called “Duck, Duck, Grey Duck”? My wife was born and raised in Minnesota. I was not. Off and on for years we have been debating the game’s proper name. (By the way, it’s “Duck, Duck, Goose.”) During one of these debates it dawned on me that Grey Duck would be a great theme for this game.
Grey Duck evolved from a game my sister-in-law played in college, taught by classmates from China. She taught the game to her mother as a fun thing to play while enjoying a conversation. Like in the kids game Telephone, however, when my mother-in-law taught it to my wife and me, the rules changed in the reteaching… instead of a leisurely game, it was a fast-paced and intense game of skill. Our family has been playing this version of that card game for over 20 years.
While I really like the high energy game we have been playing for decades, I wanted to develop something that kept the same excitement but was new and different.
Deck Structure
According to Wikipedia, the card deck structure of 52 cards has been standard for over 500 years. Every deck has 52 cards. Every deck has four suits. Every suit has three face cards. Every suit has ten pip (non-face) cards. Popular games like Uno may change the look but are still based on this structure. I have long wanted to break this paradigm to see what happens. For Grey Duck, I developed a new pyramid deck structure which allows both high and low ranking cards to be powerful in different ways.
- Higher ranking cards, as usual, individually overpower lower ranking cards.
- Lower ranking cards are more numerous, allowing for flights and flocks of them to be unbeatable by high ranking cards.
- Grey cards can be played out of turn, keeping players on their toes.
Rules
Read the complete rules.