Nigerian WHOT has many local variations. These are this table’s chosen house rules, not a claim that every Nigerian game uses the same rules.
Match the top card’s shape or number. A WHOT 20 can block a debt and request a shape. Finish with a non-action card to win: 1, 2, 5, 8, 14 and 20 cannot be your winning last card.
- 1 Hold on
- Your turn continues. Multiple 1s do not bank future turns.
- 2 Pick two
- A stack of n twos adds 2 × n to the debt, then advances one turn. Stack twos, block with a WHOT, or draw.
- 5 Pick three
- A stack of n fives adds 3 × n to the debt, then advances one turn. Stack fives, block with a WHOT, or draw.
- 8 Skip
- A stack of n eights skips the next n opponents, capped at all opponents. Never skip your own turn. Star 8 contributes just one skip, like any eight.
- 14 General market
- A stack of n fourteens makes every other seated player draw n available cards. You keep the turn: continue with the last fourteen's shape (or a WHOT). Drawing ends your turn.
- 20 WHOT
- Cancel the entire pending debt, if any, without drawing or transferring it. Choose one shape for the whole stack: circle, triangle, cross, square, or star. Then advance one turn. A WHOT cannot be your winning last card.
Draw, stack, or play
Play one card, or use each card’s Stack button to select a nonempty group of distinct cards you hold with the same number. There is no separate stack cap beyond your hand and deck inventory. The first submitted card must legally match the discard, required shape or debt; a WHOT can block a debt. The others follow by number, and the last becomes the top discard. The browser chooses a legal lead and previews the result. Ordinary stacks advance one turn and may empty your hand to win. An action-card stack must leave at least one card in your hand; select a smaller group or draw first. A normal card click still plays only one card.
Clicking a card always plays only that card. Drag a card with a mouse, or drag its Arrange handle on touch, onto the discard to play it; a selected card brings its group. A WHOT drop opens the shape chooser: Cancel plays nothing. Drop inside your hand to arrange only; outside both areas or Escape cancels. Keyboard users can activate cards or Stack and Play stack buttons, and arrange with the handle’s arrow keys. The ⓘ Guidance button hides optional explanations only; turn, debt, requests and selection previews stay visible. This full guide is always available.
You may draw instead of playing. A normal draw takes one card and ends your turn. A penalty draw takes the accumulated debt and ends your turn. Only the same numbered penalty adds to it: 2 on 2, or 5 on 5. A WHOT cancels the debt instead, then requests a shape. After a WHOT, match the requested shape or play another WHOT. If your only remaining card is an action card, draw first rather than checking up with it.
Finite-deck exception: an empty market recycles discards except the top card. If there still are not enough cards, draw only as many as are available — possibly zero if the remaining cards are all in players’ hands. The debt still clears and the turn ends. Cards are never manufactured; an empty market does not disable drawing.
Your place at the table
2–8 seated players; up to 24 total members. Everyone starts with five cards by default. The host starts each game. Join a game already in progress to watch and chat; waiting spectators take available seats in arrival order when the host starts the next game.
The host can choose End Game on any turn and confirm a finish by score. Add each seated player’s printed card numbers: WHOT is 20 and stars are not doubled. Lowest total wins; all tied lowest players share the win. Spectators are excluded, but disconnected players still seated are included. Play and timers continue until confirmation. The final totals, card counts and winner names stay saved until the next game; private card faces are never shared. Each winner receives their own bottle if a message was sealed for that game. The host can then choose Start next game.
The table directory and room heading show the room’s saved turn timer. New tables use the configured server default unless the creator chooses another pace (normally 60 seconds). The host can change it in the lobby or after a game: choose Off for Untimed, a preset, or a whole number from 1 to 3600 seconds. Changes require server confirmation and apply to this room, not just your browser. A turn timeout forfeits your seat — it does not play a card for you. Untimed rooms have no turn countdown or turn-timeout forfeit.
A disconnected seat still has a separate reconnect grace (normally 90 seconds), even in an untimed room. Untimed does not reserve disconnected seats forever. In timed rooms the turn deadline also still applies during a disconnect. Spectators have no turn timer. Reconnects restore your private hand and room conversation.
Leaving, disconnect grace expiry, or a turn timeout returns all of that player’s cards to the market and shuffles only the market. The remaining seating order is never shuffled and the top discard is preserved; the turn advances only if the departing player was current. Penalty debt follows the turn. One remaining seated player wins; zero ends the game without a winner.
Your table's deck
Circles and triangles: 1–14 except 6 and 9. Crosses and squares: 1, 2, 3, 5, 7, 10, 11, 13, 14. Stars: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8. Include WHOT cards at creation for a 54-card deck with five WHOT 20s, or turn it off for 49 cards and no WHOTs. The directory and room heading show this fixed choice. Create a new table to change it; rematches keep the same deck option.
The first face-up card is preferably a non-action card, and never a WHOT 20. If all non-action cards have been dealt, an initial non-wild action card is inert: its action does not fire. Only cards played during the game activate their actions. The server always decides legal moves and the result.
Our unranked house rules
Nigerian WHOT has many local variations; this table uses the rules above. Visible card counts automatically show who is close to winning: there is no manual “last card” button or missed-announcement penalty. Same-number multi-card plays are supported; cumulative match scores are not. Each rematch is an independent fresh deal.
Keep it friendly
Text chat is for room members; the last 100 messages are saved. Each message can contain up to 2,000 UTF-8 bytes. Voice chat is not enabled, and this app never requests microphone access.
Background and branding
For background on the deck and common variants, see Pagat’s WHOT overview (opens in a new tab). That reference is background reading, not the specification for this table’s chosen rules.
This independent client uses original, locally generated card visuals. No affiliation or endorsement is claimed. Before a commercial launch, review trademark and game-name/branding clearance.