Conquian, also known as Mexican Rummy, is a predecessor to many of the poker versions popularized in the West. The game’s Latin American origins are believed to date back to the 1880s, making it one of the oldest forms of rummy. Evidence which supports this is the fact that 40 cards are used. This is the exact number of cards included in a Spanish deck of cards. Today, it is possible to games of Conquian being played in Mexico and in limited portions of the United States. It is not one of the predominate versions in the U.S. but it does have an important place in rummy history.

Only two players can participate in a Mexican Rummy game at a time. The deck includes only 40 cards as mentioned above. All 8s, 9s and 10s are discarded. This leaves the following cards available for play, A, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, J Q, K. Each player is dealt 10 cards. The rest of the cards are placed in the middle of the table, face down and become the stock pile.

The goal of Conquian is to create a meld of 11 cards. Individuals must have at least two combinations in their winning meld. A person can create a meld made up of a group or sequence. A group includes cards of the same rank but different suits. An example of this would be 6 of hearts, 6 of diamonds and 6 of spades. There are between 3 and 4 cards in a group. 

A sequence includes cards of the same suit in chronological order, for example, 3 of hearts, 4 of hearts and 5 of hearts. Players should be aware that there is only one value for Ace and it is low. Also, because the 8s, 9s and 10s have been removed, 7 is ranked just below the Jack. Therefore, a sequence which includes a 7 might look like this, 7 of spades, J of spades and Q of spades. Each 11 card meld will have to include at least two combinations. This is partly because it is impossible for a sequence to include more then eight cards because a winning meld only contains 11 cards and a group will make up at least 3 of those cards.

When play begins, the person who does not deal makes the first move. They will pull the first card on top of the stock pile and turn it over so that everyone can see it. He or she will then have a couple of options. They can meld the card. If that is what they decide to do, they must then discard one of their own cards. The dealer has the option of picking it up. The first player’s alternate choice is to pass and do nothing. The dealer then makes his or her move. They can pick up the card the other player discarded and meld it and then discard one of their own cards.  They can also reject the card. If they choose to do so, they will take the card and move it to the waste pile. All cards in this pile are face down. The next card in the stack is turned over. The player can meld this card and then discard one of their own or pass.

There are certain rules unique to Conquian that isn’t used in many other forms of rummy, one of which is the forced meld rule. If a player already has melded a combination of cards that they have laid out on the table in front of them and the card turned over in the middle of the table (the face-up card) is one that would fit in their meld, their opponent can force them to use it. This can be quite detrimental to ones own strategy, many times effectively destroying it.

Other rules of note include the inability for players to lay off cards onto their competitor’s melds.   Also, the only time a player can meld from the cards they have been dealt is when they include the center (face up) card in their meld. Lastly, if the center card is taken, a player has to use it right away. They can not add it to their hand with the hopes of using it later.

A game of Mexican Rummy has concluded when a person has created a valid 11 card meld or when there are no longer any cards in the stock pile. The last card added to a winning meld is the face up card. The winner is awarded a fixed stake by their opponent. The game can also end in a draw. When this occurs, individuals can opt to play again, but this time for double the stake.

Mexican Rummy is one of the oldest versions of the game. Though it is not amongst the most popular versions in the United States, it is played in some regions of the country and quite a bit in Mexico.

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