Kings Cup Rules: How to Play King’s Cup (Every Card Explained)

Kings Cup (also called King’s Cup, Kings or Ring of Fire) is the party card game almost everyone has played and almost nobody remembers the rules for. Here is a simple version you can use tonight, with what every card means.

What you need

• A standard deck of 52 cards
• One large cup in the middle of the table
• A drink for every player (any drink works, including water)
• 3 or more players

How to play Kings Cup

1. Put the empty cup in the middle and spread the cards face down in a circle around it.
2. Players take turns drawing one card.
3. Each card has a rule. Do what the card says.
4. When a King is drawn, that player pours a little of their drink into the middle cup.
5. The player who draws the fourth King drinks the cup, and the game ends.

Kings Cup card meanings

Card rules change from group to group. This is the most common set:

• Ace: Waterfall. Everyone starts drinking. You can only stop when the person before you stops.
• 2: You. Pick someone to take a sip.
• 3: Me. You take a sip.
• 4: Floor. Last person to touch the floor sips.
• 5: Guys. All the guys sip.
• 6: Chicks. All the girls sip.
• 7: Heaven. Last person to point up sips.
• 8: Mate. Pick a drinking buddy. They sip whenever you do.
• 9: Rhyme. Say a word. Go around the circle rhyming until someone fails.
• 10: Categories. Pick a category. Go around naming things in it until someone fails.
• Jack: Never Have I Ever. Three fingers up, play until someone is out.
• Queen: Questions. Ask someone a question. They must answer with another question. First to hesitate sips.
• King: Make a rule and pour into the cup. Fourth King drinks it.

House rules worth adding

• Thumb master: whoever draws a chosen card can put their thumb on the table at any time. Last to copy sips.
• No first names: say someone’s first name and you sip.
• Little green man: pretend to remove a tiny man from your cup before every sip.
• Break the circle: if you break the ring of cards while drawing, you sip.
• Rule limit: cap it at three active rules so the game stays playable.

How to play Kings Cup with two people

Kings works with two, but swap the group cards. Turn 5 and 6 into “you sip” and “I sip”, and make Jack a round of truth or drink. If it is just you and your partner, a couples deck usually works better than a group game.

Playing without cards

No deck in the house? You have two options. Write the 13 rules on paper and draw from a bowl, or use an app. In Not Another Drinking Game, Kings Circle runs the whole game on one phone, and the other modes are there when the group wants something new.