Ring of Fire is one of the most popular drinking games for groups because it combines a variety of fun small games / tasks in one. How to play Ring of Fire. The Ring of Fire Rules are simple, grab a pint glass and place it in the middle of the table. Spread a pack of cards in a ring around the glass, and make sure there are no gaps (i.e. The circle is not broken).
- Nov 16, 2016 Ring of fire, also known as “Kings” and “Circle of Death,” is one of those rite of passage drinking games. It requires very little setup, is extremely inclusive and acts as a boozy ice breaker. If you’re new to the classic card game, get to know the rules and get the party started with the official Supercall rules to Ring of Fire.
- Ring of Fire is one of the most popular drinking games for groups because it combines a variety of fun small games / tasks in one. How to play Ring of Fire. The Ring of Fire Rules are simple, grab a pint glass and place it in the middle of the table. Spread a pack of cards in a ring around the glass, and make sure there are no gaps (i.e. The circle is not broken).
| Alternative names | King's Cup Heroes Ring of Fire Kings |
|---|---|
| Type | Drinking |
| Players | 2+ |
| Age range | Varies by legal jurisdiction |
| Cards | 52 |
| Deck | 1 deck of standard playing cards |
| Play | Clockwise or counterclockwise |
| Card rank (highest first) | Ace (A) – two (2) |
| Playing time | 20 to 40 minutes |
Kings (king's cup, donut, jug oval, circle of death, or ring of fire) is a drinking game that uses playing cards. The player must drink ( one sip has to be more than 1cl) and dispense drinks based on cards drawn. Each card has a rule that is predetermined before the game starts. Often groups establish house rules with their own variation of rules.
Equipment[edit]
- 1 Deck of Cards
- 2 or more players
- Alcoholic beverages – typically wine, beer, or mixed drinks - or non alcoholic beverages
- A large cup which will be used as the King's Cup
Setup and common rules[edit]
In this game, players perform actions associated with each card. Sometimes, rules on the cards 'reveal interesting things about the participants'.
Usually, cards are shuffled and dealt into a circle around either an empty cup or a full can of beer (or a shot/cup of spirits or wine). Each player takes a turn drawing cards, and the players must participate in the instructions corresponding to the drawn card.
This game is highly open ended and all of the cards can signify any mini-game, the rules and the card assignments are normally confirmed at the start of the game. Depending on house rules, the game either ends when the last rule card has been pulled, or when the king's cup has been consumed; or when the cards are placed on top of the king's cup the game is over when the cards fall off, the one that knocked them off must consume the king's cup.
It is also common for the players to make up and agree on a set of rules every time the game is played.
Common Kings Card Assignments[edit]
| Card drawn | Title | Instruction |
|---|---|---|
| Ace | Waterfall | To perform a waterfall, each player starts drinking their beverage at the same time as the person to their left. No player can stop drinking until the player before them stops. |
| 2 | 2 for you | You point at two persons and tell them to drink. You can also tell one person to take two drinks. |
| 3 | 3 for me | 'Three for me.' You take a drink.[1] |
| 4 | Hit the floor | Last person to touch the floor with their hands must take a drink. |
| 5 | Fives Guys | All guys drink |
| 6 | Six's chicks | All girls drink |
| 7 | '7th heaven | Last person to raise their hand will drink. |
| 8 | Mate | Choose a person to be your mate and they drink when you drink for the rest of the game. |
| 9 | Rhyme Time | 'Nine is Rhyme'. You say a word, and the person to your right has to say a word that rhymes. This continues around the table until someone cannot think of a word. This person must drink. The same word may not be used twice. |
| 10 | Categories | You come up with a category of things, and the person to your right must come up with something that falls within that category. This goes on around the table until someone can't come up with anything. This person must drink. |
| Jack | Social | Everyone must take a drink. |
| Queen | Questions | The player who picks the card starts by asking anyone a question. This player then asks anyone else a question. This process continues until someone fails to ask a question. |
| King | King's Cup + Rules | When each of the first 3 Kings are drawn, the person who drew the card puts some of their drink into the King's Cup at the center of the table. When the 4th King is drawn, the person who drew the 4th King must drink the contents of the King's Cup. The first three people to pick a King card can also make a rule, that must be followed until the next King is picked. Some common rules are Buffalo, (must always use left hand) Thumbs, (player puts their thumb on the table silently, last person to do so drinks), In bed, (everyone has to say 'in bed' after every sentence) and Teeth (players can't show their teeth when they laugh). |
Common Circle of Death Card Assignments[edit]
| Card drawn | Title | Instruction |
|---|---|---|
| Ace | Waterfall | To perform a waterfall, each player starts drinking their beverage at the same time as the person to their left. No player can stop drinking until the player before them stops. |
| 2 | You | 'Two is you' Player points at a person and tell them to drink |
| 3 | Me | 'Three is me.' Player who draws card drinks. |
| 4 | Whores | 'Four is whores' Women drink |
| 5 | Drive | 'Five is drive' Everyone puts up their hands as if driving a car. The player who drew the card begins. They say 'vroom' while tilting their hands to the right or left. The 'driver' is passed to the player next to them in that direction. Players now have three options as the 'driver' position is passed to them. They can choose to turn to same direction as the person before them and say 'vroom', passing it one more person. They can turn their hands in the opposite direction and say 'skert' (as in the screeching of car wheels) and pass the 'driver' position back to the person who just sent it to them. Now that is the new direction and all 'drivers' who turn that way must say 'Vroom' until a 'driver' decides to 'skert' it back again. The last option is to say 'beep' while mimicking hitting the car horn. This passes the game's position to the player opposite the current driver. The first 'driver' who speaks or turns the wrong way has to drink. e.g. Person A: *turns to left 'Vroom'Person B: *turns to left 'Vroom'Person C: *turns to right 'Skert'Person B: *turns to right 'Vroom'Person A: *hits horn 'Beep!'Person D: *turns to right 'Vroom' |
| 6 | Dicks | 'Six is dicks' Men drink |
| 7 | Heaven | 'Seven is heaven.' Last person to get both hands in the air has to drink. |
| 8 | Mate | 'Eight is mate' Choose a person to be your mate and they drink when you drink, and vice versa, for the rest of the game. If one of the mates draws another 8 card they chose another player and now all three have to drink. You can also merge two mated pairs this way. If all players of the game become mated, then all ties are cancelled. |
| 9 | Rhyme | 'Nine is Rhyme'. You say a word, and the person to your right has to say a word that rhymes. This continues around the table until someone cannot think of a word. This person must drink. The same word may not be used twice. |
| 10 | Categories | You come up with a category of things, and the person to your right must come up with something that falls within that category. This goes on around the table until someone can't come up with anything. This person must drink. |
| Jack | Social | Everybody drinks. |
| Queen | Question Master | The player who drew the card becomes question master. Whenever this player asks a question other players must answer with another question until the next queen card is drawn and a new question master is selected. Players who answer a question from the question master without a question must drink. Simply making the ending intonation of your sentence in a questioning manner does not count and you must drink. Ex. Questionmaster: 'What time is it?' Player: 'Is it around midnight?' |
| King | King's Cup | When each of the first 3 Kings are drawn, the person who drew the card pours some of their drink into the King's Cup at the center of the table. When the 4th King is drawn, the person who drew the 4th King must drink the contents of the King's Cup. |
Variations and other rules[edit]
Like almost all other drinking games, Kings has endless variations of rules, and individual drinking groups usually have their own set of card effects. There will be similar rules, but there will most likely always be some that some players have never encountered before. Some games specify that playing a certain card allows that player to make up a new rule which lasts for the remainder of the game.
A major variation in the US, UK, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa or Canada is that the contents of the King's Cup are drunk by the player who breaks the circle of cards (known as the Ring of Fire in the UK).
A popular variation in Australia is the Smoko or Toilet Card replacing Give Two Take Two. In this version, a player needs to possess a Smoko Card to leave the table to smoke or use the toilet. A player can have multiple copies of the card and they can be traded, typically under conditions such as; the recipient must refill drinks on demand, crawl for the rest of the game, talk in a funny voice, etc.
Another popular variation in Australia is where the game is played with the addition of the Joker card. Upon drawing a Joker, the player must take a bong hit of pure good Cush.
In Belgium recently a new variation has come to the surface known as 'Circle of Destruction' or 'Hardcore Kings'. In the beginning a pint is placed in the middle of the circle and everyone has to pour some of their drink in it, from now on this drink is referred to as 'Witch's Brew'.
| Card drawn | Title | Instruction |
|---|---|---|
| Ace | Safe | Everyone drinks but you. |
| 2 | Who | A round of spin the bottle is played. |
| 3 | Wanna fight me? | A match of arm wrestling is played with the player sitting on the opposite side of the circle, the loser drinks. A slap contest can also be played. |
| 4 | We're whores | Everyone has to take off one piece of clothing as fast as they can, last on to do so has to drink. |
| 5 | My life | You have to take a sip from every player's drink. |
| 6 | ...tynine | The player who had sex the most recently drinks, the second time this card is drawn the player who had sex the second most recently drinks and so on... |
| 7 | Close to heaven | Do a body shot out of the belly button of your left-hand neighbour. |
| 8 | Mate | Choose a person to be your mate and they drink when you drink, and vice versa, for the rest of the game. If one of the mates draws another 8 card they chose another player and now all three have to drink. You can also merge two mated pairs this way. If all players of the game become mated, then all ties are cancelled. |
| 9 | Time to shine | You have to do 20 push ups, if you can't do it you have to drink the amount of sips you were short of 20. |
| 10 | Witch | You have to down the witch's brew. Afterwards the pint is refilled. |
| Jack | The Jack entertains | You have to do a credible and serious belly dance, for every minute you can pull this off you may choose another player who had to down their drink. |
| Queen | Mixer | Every player has to hand in his drink and you may reassign them to different players. |
| King | Rewind Time | You can use your rewind power one time to let someone do their assignment again. |
See also[edit]
References[edit]
- ^LaBrie, JW; Ehret, PJ; Hummer, JF (2013). 'Are they all the same? An exploratory, categorical analysis of drinking game types'. Addict Behav. 38: 2133–9. doi:10.1016/j.addbeh.2012.12.002. PMC3654653. PMID23435275.