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: play another 14 of any shape, match the last fourteen's shape, or play a WHOT. A non-14 applies its normal effect; drawing ends your turn.
- 20 WHOT
- Cancel the entire pending debt, if any, without drawing or transferring that debt. Choose one shape for the whole stack: circle, triangle, cross, square, or star. Then advance one turn. A last WHOT still draws one mandatory replacement, not the canceled debt.
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. A legal last action card or all-hand action stack is playable: on commitment, place the cards and immediately draw one replacement before applying the normal action, including other players' draws. It does not win. 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. Both views use icon controls with tooltips and accessible names. Expert view reduces guidance; turn, debt, requests, selection counts and Undo/Knock stay explicit. Turn Expert view off for more guidance. 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. A mandatory last-action replacement is separate from a normal draw and does not override the action's turn effect.
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.
Stars score twice their rank; center values are scores and corner numbers remain matching ranks. WHOT is 20. Restored legacy rounds keep undoubled stars until the next deal. Lowest hand total wins and all ties share the win.
The host can choose End Game on any turn and confirm a finish by score, unless a provisional play is pending. 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.
Optional Undo and Knock
Undo is off by default. Hosts can enable a 1-10 second window at creation or between games; five seconds is initially offered. A proposed card or stack is visible, but stays in hand with no effects until committed. Only its actor may Undo; any other connected seated player may Knock to commit immediately. Spectators cannot Knock. Expiry commits too. No undo after commitment, and draws/leave are never undoable.
The window ends no later than the original turn deadline. Undo never resets that clock. Another play, draw or End Game waits for resolution. A seated departure cancels the proposal; disconnect alone does not, and restart/reconnect does not extend its deadline. Undo cannot hide cards already exposed to the table.
You can arrange your confirmed cards and prepare or clear a stack off-turn, even during a provisional play. Your selection never changes an already submitted proposal. Incoming cards become available on landing; leaving the table clears your private hand. A last-action proposal draws no replacement until Knock or expiry commits it.
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.
By default a disconnected seat has a separate reconnect grace (normally 90 seconds), even in an untimed room. The host can disable disconnect forfeiture in Room settings, including during a game. Offline seats then remain reserved while their guest sessions are valid; an offline player's turn waits and receives a fresh turn allowance when they reconnect. Connected players still have the normal turn timer. Explicitly leaving or signing out still forfeits a seat. Re-enabling forfeiture gives disconnected members a fresh reconnect grace.
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
Use the minus button in Table talk to minimize chat. The floating Chat button keeps its unread count and reopens the panel. New messages do not force it open or count as read while minimized. Your current draft and reading position stay in the page. Chat visibility and Beginner/Expert view are independent preferences saved in this browser.
Text chat is for room members; the last 100 messages are saved. Each message can contain up to 2,000 UTF-8 bytes. The current host can choose Off or Chat for highlight commentary in Room settings, including during a game. It starts Off and uses distinctly labelled bot messages for occasional committed highlights—not routine draws or plays. Provisional and undone plays stay quiet. Commentary has no speech, TTS or audio-service dependency.
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.
Off by default. The current host can opt this room into occasional bot highlights in Table talk, or turn them off at any time—even during a game. Text only; no speech or audio service needed.