Kalooki Jokers
There is no question that the entire game is based on melding. However, melding and the use of the jokers within the melds make Kalooki the game that it is. The melding is basic. You have either a set made up of three or four cards of different suits. A run are consecutive cards of the same suit.
Depending on the version of the game you are playing, some people allow you to make a set of cards of the same number or face card, with the same suits. For example, if you have four 7’s, two of which are spades, and two are hearts, then you could still put that set down as a meld. However, if it contains a joker then that automatically means that no repeated suits are allowed and you must use only one of each suit. However, for the most part, you must only have a set made of different suits. This is just in case you find yourself in a game where they do allow multiple suits in one set.
As you know, a joker can be used to substitute for any card and will automatically acquire the value of the card that it is used in place of. The interesting twist to Kalooki is that players can “reuse” jokers as long as it is done in a certain way. The first way you can reuse a joker is to take a joker that has already been used in a run and replace it with the actual card that is represented. For example, if you use it in a run such as 2, 3, 4 of hearts, and the joker is used to represent a 5 hearts, you can take the 5 of hearts in your hand and replace the joker in your meld. That joker can then be taken as your own, whether or not it was in your meld to begin with. However, you must reuse the joker in another meld in the same turn. You may not take it back into your hand to use at another time.
The other way to reuse a joker is when it is used as part of a set. The stipulation in using a joker as part of a set is that you must complete the set in order to reuse the joker. That means that if you have two 9’s, and a joker in a set, you must not only replace the joker with the separate suited 9, you must also put down the fourth 9 of the set. If you do not do that, then that set will be closed and you may not replace the joker at any time. If the set already has three 9’s and a joker, then you can simply replace the joker with the 9 of the correct suit.
Jokers are really what makes this game so exciting, because once you think you have a meld made with a joker you can quickly find that it can be taken away and used somewhere else. It is the reuse of jokers that makes the game of Kalooki more exciting.