Episode 83: "31" - the ultimate rigged card game [Discussion]

[travislopes]

Use this rigged game to cheat your friends twice in a row!

Watch and download here. (http://revision3.com/scamschool/thirtyone)

[jzion27]

The ending was great... "thats what she said"... but the trick was a good one too... a new weapon in my arsenal of nim. I wonder where Brian got that song choice idea from haha.

[shwooddotcom]

oh, my:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x06WTh8qWa4

[minif]

Silly Brian dance? Lets see some ANGER!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DSBfsuE747Y

[klyamaninc]

So great!!! Advamced Nim worked for me many times! This version is very cool, too! Cheers and thanks for teaching us Brian! :)

[murphy1d]

LOL... "Eileen. Look around you. Don't you see?"

I believe I'm buying Brian acting classes for his B-day. And an auto-tune. LOL:p

[igotoxtremes]

Brian, do the cards have to be set up a certain way? Did I miss something? I can tell that there are no face cards, but how do you know when to spring the trap after you've told them what the trick is?

[mrpopular]

Brian, do the cards have to be set up a certain way? Did I miss something? I can tell that there are no face cards, but how do you know when to spring the trap after you've told them what the trick is?

ACE 2 3 4 5 6 are the only cards all 4 Ace's in a pile, all the 2's in a pile etc.

[rabidbadger]

Funniest ep in a long time. And it was nice to see someone older than 30 on a rev3 show. (er, other than Pat Norton.)

[rabidbadger]

Best Worst Karaoke on the Internet. *crying from laughing*

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3298/3232365082_726ba71e16.jpg

[bigboss97]

This reminds me to one effect which I wanted to suggest to Brain sometime ago. But I've never got the time to describe that. it works with similar rules, but with a dice.
Instead of "nim" from a card you turn the dice to a neighbour face. You have only four choices each time.
Brain, have you got that in your repository already? :-)

[hayz]

I have seen this game and its counterpart, 31 with a die, in the book "How to Cheat at Everything." by Simon Lovell. It is a great read chock full of wonderful games an cons and NAP games (Not a prayer)
In terms of the episode. Very well done, and the ending? beyond belief. I have taught a few people this game, the key numbers, and the strategy after the key numbers, and once you both have that knowledge, it turns back into a very fun and even game of skill. If anyone would like to know more information about the die version of 31, feel free to pm and ill try to give a decent explanation.

[ryudo]

Dude I have a Blue Sun Shirt also.
Firefly rocks.

[ownerm]

My girlfriend and I are in a long distance relationship. She lives in Germany, I'm here in Connecticut. So I went to Germany to see her after not seeing each other for a year.

The first night there, we played strip drinking 31.

...Guess who won. :-)

[gadgetfl]

So the 2nd half of this trick, is simply burn out any 4 cards? Seems like they have to start with a 3 or 4 or it won't work. For example:
Theirs Mine
5 -
- 4 = 9
1 - = 10 *
- 4 = 14
3 - = 17 *
- 4 = 21
3 - = 24 *
- 4 = 28
3 - = 31
they won and I burned out the 4s

[llama_bill]

Just play a 5 and you'll reach the 10 point milestone. You only have to burn the set if you can't reach one of the milestones.

[turtleboii_012]

freaking awesome, although i'm not heavy into drinking i did use this game to scam my math teacher into giving me a kitkat chunky the next day. scam school is awesome. ttyl

[greymatters]

So the 2nd half of this trick, is simply burn out any 4 cards? Seems like they have to start with a 3 or 4 or it won't work. For example:
Theirs Mine
5 -
- 4 = 9
1 - = 10 *
- 4 = 14
3 - = 17 *
- 4 = 21
3 - = 24 *
- 4 = 28
3 - = 31
they won and I burned out the 4s

Remember, in the 2nd half, you're teaching them the game, and about how important it is to reach milestones.

The first milestone is 3, and you're having them go first anyway, so they'll naturally choose 3. You then choose 4, and then they have to choose 3 to get to the next milestone, 10. They're just learning, and trying to do it right.

The important thing for the second half is the psychology. You attitude is that you're now teaching the game, and you're not really playing the game. You're not even betting on the 2nd half. The fact that you can run out of needed cards is sort of a bonus lesson for them.

[captmidnight]

I've been running through the second portion of this, trying to burn out one stack of cards, and consistently lose.

It seems only the 4 has any chance of winning, even if my opponent goes for the pole positions.

What is the remaining secret? Merely 'burning through one stack' isn't enough to guarantee a win.

Any help in the criteria for making phase 2 always work for you?

Thanks!

[martinmeyer]

Well over a year later with this response, yet it may not be a complete response at all, but like in all "scam games" there is an outside chance that you lose, and the risk is in this game as well, as far as I can figure out.

The key is though to remember that the real key is to avoid the 3. The 3 is the cheater when you teach someone the game, as Brian showed so well in the show. The real milestone sequence is 2-10-17-24-31. And if they choose 2 and know the rythm with burning the 4, then you become the scamee :) But that is always the risk with these games.

But then again I might be miscalculating, but that is how I get it.