Hana-awase: Rules and How to Play
Hana-awase is a three-player hanafuda game that takes about 20 minutes. Match cards by month to capture them, and score with card points and yaku combinations. Play free in your browser, no sign-up.
Setup
- Hana-awase uses the 48-card hanafuda deck and is classically played by three. Two or four players can also start.
- With three, deal seven cards to each hand and six face up to the table; the rest form the deck. Two players get ten each with eight on the table; four players get five each with eight on the table.
- If all four cards of one month land on the table, redeal.
- The site picks the first dealer at random (in place of each player flipping a card and the earliest month dealing). The player who moves after the dealer is the second, then the last; turns go dealer, second, last.
How to play
- Play one card from your hand. If one table card shares its month, capture both. If two do, choose which to take. If three do, take all four. With no match, your card stays on the table.
- Then flip the top card of the deck and match it the same way. That ends your turn.
- When every hand is empty the round is over — the deck runs out at the same moment.
Winning and scoring
- Add up your captured cards: Bright 20, Animal 10, Ribbon 5, Plain 1. The whole deck is worth 264.
- Count any yaku you completed. You collect your yaku points from each other player and pay theirs.
- Yaku add up, except that Five Brights cancels Four Brights and Sugawara, Four Brights cancels Sugawara, Seven Ribbons cancels Six Ribbons, and Drinking Party cancels Flower Viewing and Moon Viewing. Five Brights and the pine-paulownia-moon set both count.
- Round score = card points − 88 + your yaku × 2 − the other two players' yaku. The three scores always add up to zero (baseline 132 with two players, 66 with four).
- The top scorer of the round deals next (on a tie, whoever comes first in turn order from the current dealer). Seats never move, so the player after the new dealer becomes the second and the next one the last. After the set number of rounds (12 by default), the highest total wins.
Defaults on this site
| Item | Default on this site |
|---|---|
| Players | 2–4 players (set automatically by the party size) |
| Turn time limit | None by default (the host can set 30 or 60 seconds) |
| If someone drops mid-game | Reopening on the same device returns you to your seat. If you do not return, the CPU plays in your place. |
| Draws | In ranked play, a draw counts as halfway between a win and a loss for your rating. |
| Source of the rules | Based on the standard reference rules |
Rules supervised by Qdan, Inc. (based on the standard reference rules)
House rules
Defaults follow the standard reference rules. The party can change these.
| Name | Description | Default | Changeable |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rounds | How many rounds decide the winner. | 12 rounds | Yes |
| YakuYakuYaku are set combinations of captured cards that collect points from the other players. Every yaku means 16 of them and bigger swings. Fewer yaku keeps just five, so there is less to learn and the game centres on card points. Good when someone is new. | Play with every yaku, or only Five Brights, Four Brights, Red Poem Ribbons, Blue Ribbons and Boar, Deer, Butterfly. | Every yaku | Yes |
| Six / Seven PlainsSix / Seven PlainsThese are hand combinations decided by the dealt cards alone, and they only apply with three players (never with two or four). Plains are the low-value cards, so this helps a player dealt a weak hand. In exchange, the cards shown can be captured by the others. | With three players, a dealt hand with six Plains collects 20 from each other player, and seven Plains collects 30. Six Plains shows those six cards and Seven Plains shows the whole hand face up; the others may capture shown cards just like table cards. A player left with no cards only flips from the deck on their turn. | Off | Yes |
| FukeFukeCard points are 20 for a bright, 10 for an animal, 5 for a ribbon and 1 for a plain. When on, if anyone captured 20 card points or fewer, neither card points nor yaku are settled that round (hand combinations still count). A player who captured little avoids a big loss. | If anyone captured 20 card points or fewer, cards and yaku do not score that round. | Off | Yes |
| Rain washoutRain washoutAll four willow (rain) cards also form a yaku of their own, but when this is on, a player who captures all four willows scores 0 for every yaku that round and settles on card points only. Other players' yaku count as usual. It adds a choice about whether to collect the willows. | A player who captures all four willow cards scores card points only, with no yaku. | Off | Yes |
| Big / Grand tableBig / Grand tableThe opening table sets a multiplier for the round: a pine, cherry or pampas Bright doubles it (big table), a willow or paulownia Bright triples it (grand table). Card points, yaku and hand combinations are all multiplied, so scores swing more and comebacks are easier. | A pine, cherry or pampas Bright on the opening table doubles the round; a willow or paulownia Bright triples it. | Off | Yes |
Terms
- Yaku
- Scoring combinations of captured cards: Five Brights 200; Four Brights 60; Red Poem Ribbons, Blue Ribbons and Seven Ribbons 40; Six Ribbons, Sugawara and Drinking Party 30; and several 20-point sets such as Boar, Deer, Butterfly.
- Dealer, second, last
- The three seats in turn order, starting from the dealer.
- Card points
- Bright 20, Animal 10, Ribbon 5, Plain 1. The average for three players is exactly 88.
- Hand yaku
- A combination decided by the dealt hand. Six Plains and Seven Plains can be switched on for three players; the cards shown can be captured by the others like table cards.
- Big table / Grand table
- An optional rule that doubles or triples the round when a Bright is dealt to the table.
- Fuke
- An optional rule that cancels the round if anyone captured 20 card points or fewer.
FAQ
What is the 88?
The whole deck is worth 264 card points; split three ways that is 88. You subtract it from your card points, so above average gains and below average loses.
Does the round end when I complete a yaku?
No. Everyone plays until all hands are empty, and yaku are counted at the end of the round.
Do some yaku cancel others?
Yes. Five Brights cancels Four Brights and Sugawara; Four Brights cancels Sugawara; Seven Ribbons cancels Six Ribbons; Drinking Party cancels Flower Viewing and Moon Viewing. Five Brights and the pine-paulownia-moon set both count.
What if three cards of a month are on the table?
Whoever plays or flips the fourth takes all four.
Play now with these rules
Last updated 2026-09-25 · Run by Qdan, Inc.