Introduction
UNO Show ‘Em No Mercy is a more intense and ruthless version of the classic UNO card game. With additional cards and harsher penalties, this UNO edition adds new challenges and tactics to outplay your opponents.
Brush up on these new rules and be prepared to show no mercy!
What is Needed
To play the UNO Show ‘Em No Mercy card game you’ll need:
- The special deck of playing cards, containing 164 cards (compared to just 108 in a standard deck).
- The number of players can range from 2 to 10.
- A flat surface to play on.
Goal
The goal remains to get rid of all your cards, but there are more ways to force opponents to draw extra cards in hopes of mercy kicking them out.
Deal and Setting Up
- First, shuffle the deck and deal 7 cards to each player.
- Place the remaining cards facedown in a draw pile.
- Flip the top card from the draw pile and place it next to the pile to begin a discard pile.
Gameplay
The first player begins by matching the color or number on the top discard card. If unable to match, they must draw cards from the draw pile until they can play. The play continues clockwise.
There are two ways to win a game of UNO Show ‘Em No Mercy:
- Be the first player to empty your hand by playing all your cards or
- Be the last player remaining after all other players have been knocked out from the ‘Mercy Rule‘.
Special UNO Show ‘Em No Mercy Rules
The game introduces four new rules on top of the traditional gameplay. Let’s have a look at them below!
Stacking Rule
The stacking rule allows players to combine and stack draw penalties of the same type. Color doesn’t matter here.
For example, if a Draw 2 card is played, the next player can play their own Draw 2 card, passing the penalty to the third player who must now draw 4.
This can continue with additional Draw 2s, Draw 4s, Draw 6s, and Draw 10s being stacked until a player cannot stack and must take the accumulated penalty.
Strategic use of stacking can force opponents to draw large numbers of cards!
7’s Swap
When a player puts down any 7 card, whether a numbered 7 or a Wild Draw 7, they immediately swap their entire hand of cards with another player.
Both players take their new hand and gameplay continues as normal.
Savvy players will use this to try and ditch high card hands while saddling an opponent with extra cards.
0’s Pass
When a 0 card is played, all players must pass their current hand of cards to the left, with the player on their left now taking their cards.
This mass hand swap can radically change the game as players are forced to play with an entirely new set of cards.
Mercy Rule
If any player ends up with 25 or more cards in their hand at the end of a turn, they are immediately knocked out of the game.
Since the goal is to force opponents to pick up cards through actions like stacking and wild draw cards, eliminating players once they hit 25+ cards is considered the “mercy” rule to end prolonged suffering.
Card Meanings
Below you can find an explanation of the different card meanings for UNO Show ‘Em No Mercy.
Wild Reverse Draw 4
This acts as a wild card, allowing you to change the color and reverse the turn order. Plus, the next player has to draw 4 cards from the draw pile and lose their turn.
Wild Draw 10
This wild card forces the next player to draw 10 cards!
Skip Everyone
Probably the most powerful card, this allows you to immediately take another turn, skipping over all other players.
Discard All
When you play this card, all players must look in their hand and discard all cards that match the color of the Discard All card.
Wild Color Roulette
The next player chooses a color, and then draws cards from the deck until they get a card of that color. All drawn cards are added to their hand and they lose their turn.
Skip
When played, this card skips the next player’s turn.
Reverse
When a reverse card is played, it reverses the direction of play. For example, if the play is currently clockwise, a reverse card changes it to counter-clockwise.
Draw 2
When this card is played, the next player in sequence must draw 2 cards from the draw pile and lose their turn.
Wild
A wild card allows you to change the color of play to any color of your choosing.
Numbered Cards
These are the basic cards, numbered 1-9 in each of the 4 colors (red, blue, green, yellow).
Card List
| Card | How Many |
|---|---|
| Numbers (0-9) | 80 |
| Discard All | 12 |
| Skip | 12 |
| Reverse | 12 |
| Draw 2 | 8 |
| Draw 4 | 8 |
| Skip Everyone | 8 |
| Wild Color Roulette | 8 |
| Wild Reverse Draw 4 | 8 |
| Wild Draw 6 | 4 |
| Wild Draw 10 | 4 |
Rules Summary
A summary of the essential UNO Show ‘Em No Mercy rules can be found below:
- Match cards by number or color
- Use traditional action cards to skip, reverse, and draw
- Use new special cards like Wild Draw 10 and Discard All
- Use new rules like Stacking, Swapping 7’s, and Passing 0’s
- Mercy Rule: 25+ cards in your hand knocks you out of the game
- Get down to 1 card and say “UNO”
- Win by emptying your hand or being the last player standing
All in all, with more ways to force opponents to draw cards, the UNO Show ‘Em No Mercy edition requires skill and strategy to outlast and outplay the competition.
T.Hubz
Can you stack a Wild Reverse Draw 4 on top of a normal draw card?
Paul Dunlop
In the rules it mentions you are able to stack Draw 2, 4, 6, and 10s. However, no specific mention of the Reverse Draw 4, so I’m not sure..
However, it would be a fun way to play as you could pass on the penalty to another player!
Stasia
You can use stacking rule to send the penalty back to the other player with wild reverse draw 4 card.
Benny
In 2-player game, I play my last card Wild Reverse Draw 4 using the stack rule.
(In the 2-player game, Wild Reverse Draw 4 makes the player who plays the card draw.)
Do I win the game immediately? Or do I still need to draw the card due to the stack rule?
Paul Dunlop
Interesting question! What I know is that according to the regular UNO instructions, if you end the game with a draw card, your opponent still needs to draw.
So it would make most that you actually have to draw, and that the game is not over yet.
Monet
If someone drops a “discard all” card, picks a color, and it turns out that’s the only color I have left. Do win if I say Uno out?
Paul Dunlop
The effect applies to the player who played it, not to the next player. Also, they can not pick a color. The play continues as normal with the color of the “Discard All” card.
Thomas J Roberts
If you don’t have one of the colored cards but you have wild cards, do you have to play the wild cards or can you draw and try to get the colored card instead?
Paul Dunlop
You can indeed choose to draw and save your wild card for later. This is called “reneging” and is allowed.
Marcy
Can the reverse four be stacked when you are playing with more then one player?
For example: I played the card and it goes to the last player before me can they send it back to me?
Paul Dunlop
Yes, this is possible 🙂
Gerald
If you have called Uno and your last card is a draw 2 or other draw card, even if you are out, could the next player/s stack draw cards to make you draw again? We had 4 players. One went out with a draw 4. Another played a draw 6, another played draw 6 and I played a draw 10. So would the person who thought they just won have to draw 26 and thus lose?
Paul Dunlop
As far as I know, if the last card is special, the effect will only apply to the players who still have cards remaining. Meaning, whenever you play your last card, you are out.
Phil
Stacking needs to be sequencial or can I stack a +10 over a +2?
Chris
In a 2 player game the Wild Color Roulette Card came up as the first card in the discard pile. It states in the rules ignore an action card but nothing about a wild card. So does it go to the dealer or the other person in a 2 player game? Or is it ignored also?
Paul Dunlop
Normally, if the first card is wild, it goes to the player sitting left of the dealer. In this case, that can only be the other player.
Chris
On the very first time we played Show Em No Mercy Uno my father-in-law had a red Discard All Card and 3 red cards left in his hand. He never called “UNO!” since he had 4 cards left. Is there a specific rule for this situation and does that officially end that hand/round since uno could not be called and he could go out?
Paul Dunlop
I think he can safely go out without calling. The other players have no way of knowing he can go out. Only if they know he is on his last card, and manage to call it before him, he has to draw 2 cards as a penalty.
Andrew
When a 7 is played, a player must switch with another player. What happens if a player’s last card in their hand is a 7 and it’s played? Do they win or do they gotta switch their empty hand with another player?
Paul Dunlop
They are out and win the game I would assume. I’d say a hand without cards is not actually a hand, so nothing to swap.
Robin
It was red and he played a draw 10 but I challenged him having a red and since he did does he have to draw the 10 plus 4 for being busted?
Paul Dunlop
There is no mention of challenging in the official rules. Safe to assume it is not a thing in this game.
Greg
When there are only two players left in a four-player game, if someone plays a wild reverse draw 4 which makes that player draw 4 cards, if that player goes over 25 cards do they knock themselves out and get the 250 point bonus?
Paul Dunlop
They knock themselves out indeed, but I don’t think they will get the bonus. The official Mattel rules are not very clear on this unfortunately. From my understanding only players that weren’t knocked out themselves receive the bonus.
Lottie
If I played a yellow +2, can the next player put a red +4 on top to stack as per the new stacking rule? It’s unclear as the rule does not mention about colour? Thank you
Paul Dunlop
The color is irrelevant in this case.