What I want new players to know
Posted: 07 September 2026, 23:17
I love The Gang! It has become my favorite BGA game. My best The Gang experiences are with familiar screen names where we all know we all know what we're doing, and we quickly crack Master Thief. (Or not; stuff happens.) But I also love what new players represent: sustainability. Without new players getting into it and getting better, the pool of existing players shrinks and the game eventually dies.
This weekend I had two games in a row with first-time players. They were painful, but not because of the outcomes (we won a match, lost a match) and not entirely because of the new players either. It was Professional, probably too hard for first-timers, but that didn't have to be a problem. So here's what I want new players to understand about the game, and not-so-new players to help them figure out. This assumes someone has learned the rules of this whole "cooperative hold em where we try to rank our hands correctly communicating only with chips" operation, and in some places it assumes a 6-player game (adjust as needed).
1. White chips (or, "king-high is 5, queen-high is 4").
The first step to people telling each other the strength of our hands is literally that, telling each other the strength of our hands. In my perfect world, everyone starts by taking (even if from someone else) the chip that best reflects what range their hand is in.
Different people have different conventions, and maybe even different philosophies about how detailed the convention should be (take it too far & the game becomes both boring and a chore) but my preferred ranges for 6 players:
* 6 (the best chip) (I'm surprised how often people get it backwards even with user interface fix) = pocket pairs or ace-high
* 5 = king
* 4 = queen
* 3 = jack or 10
* 2 = 9 or 8
* 1 = 7-high or worse
That's almost but not quite the percentile ranges in a popular article here. The changes are just because simpler cutoffs are easier to remember. If you have the Security Cameras challenge, go down a chip for anything other than pocket pairs. If you have fewer (or more) than 6 players, make reasonable assumptions. For example, in a 5-player game jack high is the middle of the white 3 range.
I mentioned the percentile ranges. They differ from the above when it comes to bad aces, good jacks, or good 7-high. Be careful (observe other chips) with those. Otherwise I like to take my white chip immediately because I happen to be able to pattern-spot quickly, and because then if there's a collision (indicated by someone taking "my" chip), the follow-up action is right back on me. But not right away. Best to see everyone's first chip first.
A subtle but important concept: The first white chip you take is almost the only time you're saying something ABSOLUTE (rather than RELATIVE) about your hand. That makes sense for a game that is entirely about how your hand compares to everyone else's. Once initial ranges are clear, if one player is definitely better than you while four are definitely worse, that makes you the 5 even if it's something like 86. Or if four players are definitely better than you while one is definitely worse, that makes you the 2 even if it's something like K4.
Okay so two (or more) of us are in the same range. How do we figure it out? One step at a time. A clean example: Two of us think we're both natively white 3. Two others are 5/6, two others are 1/2, so we're "fighting" (I hate that word in this context but it's common usage) for 3/4. Say I have J2. That's on the upper half of a "jacks or tens" range, so my next step is to want the 4. If they're next step is to want the 3, that's great! (And it probably means they have ten-something.) If we both wanted the 4, well, how good are our non-jack cards? Cut the range in half again, and so on.
A common mistake of inexperience is to get anchored to our initial range, and think we have to be at our near our white chip. In extreme "everyone's hand is good" or "everyone's hand is bad" cases, sometimes if I've been pushed up/down I grab-and-release my original chip to remind people. Yes, you don't want your queen-high to be the 2, but if my king-high is meant to be the 3 then you still need to be below me.
This maybe goes without saying but at this point drawing likelihood doesn't matter. Suits don't matter, connectivity doesn't. Weeks ago I had 32 and had a very long white chip back-and-forth with someone who, it turns out, thought 72 was the worst possible hand. (In real poker, yes; in The Gang, no.)
Last thing to mention here, what about Noise Sensors (1-chips are "sticky") or Ventilation Shaft (top chips are "sticky")? Be careful. Some people say start with the 2 or 5 instead. It makes sense but potentially introduces confusion. I'm a fan of flashing (take-and-immediately-give-back) the 2 or 5 instead of holding onto it. And then the less extreme your hand is the longer you wait before you actually take the sticky chip.
(Open question which hands are good enough to take the Ventilation Shaft white 6 immediately or bad enough to take the Noise Sensors white 1 immediately.)
2. Yellow chips (or, "reminder as always that pairs beat x-high").
In my perfect world, after the flop, whoever had the white 1 acts immediately, staying at 1 if they didn't improve or going up if they did. Then whoever had the white 2 takes the worst remaining chip or goes up to show improvement. And so on. Sometimes people are antsy to show that they did not improve, and it's not the end of the world but does make the game slightly harder to think about if they have to go back and adjust. (And sometimes sleepwalkers stay put instead of going down one. They figure it out after a few seconds or after someone takes-and-releases the chip they took.)
Some people, including me - not everyone, but some - like the convention, specific to yellow chips, that your improvement is by 1 if you have bottom pair, by 2 if you have middle pair, etc. That generally helps with the second of two things the yellow chips need to accomplish. First, sort out who has improved (or started with a pocket pair) and who has not; second, get the those hands into the correct order. (Unimproved hands should stay in white chip order.)
In some specific occasions it is helpful to show your improvement immediately ("insta-6," taking the best chip) rather than waiting. These are cases where the shape of the board makes clear what a monster hand might be. For example, if there's a pair on the board, someone who insta-6's is showing they have three of a kind; someone who has three of a kind should insta-6. Similarly if the flop is 3 of the same suit or 3 of a possible straight, insta-6 that flush/straight.
Two of this game's most frequent mistakes happen with the yellow chips: new players with a weak pair reluctant to go up as high as the other chips imply they should, or new players who went up despite not improving (because they mistakenly believe that a powerful draw matters in The Gang - it doesn't, unless/until it hits). If you've played much 5-card stud you know that most 5-card hands are unpaired (ace-high or worse). Likewise, most people playing The Gang are, as of the flop, beaten by any pair. Trust your accomplices!
What happens if two players don't seem to agree on which improvement is best (or just need more information about which flop pair is which)? That's where it's important to understand what a reasonable person might think your chips mean, and what other people's chips might mean. My two least favorite chat phrases in The Gang apply here: Some people write, "are you sure?" That's not a question to ask with words, it's a question to ask with chips! Other people write, after a red light, "you should have fought harder." The concept of fighting misses the point that, in a perfect world, every time someone (re)takes a chip they are adding information and not merely showing how confident they are.
3. Orange and red chips (or, "save the negotiating until the end")
Orange and red mechanics are similar to yellow, but if anything easier. If your "hit" is just a turn or river card pairing one of your cards, go up one. Trust others to let you know how much further to go. (Or, if they seem passive, "ask" one chip at a time by taking their chip and giving it back. See how they "answer.")
There are some "insta-6" circumstances here but the board should make it clear(er) what they are.
* Pair(s) on the board: full house is "insta-6" (and "fight" as needed) but in my opinion, three of a kind is not. Note in particular if the board has two pairs, "bottom" full house isn't a 6 unless/until nobody is claiming to have top full house.
* Four of a suit on the board: the single most important thing is to be crystal clear on who has the flush and who does not. Then rank the flushes.
* Three of a suit on the board: flush is an insta-6
* Possible straight (without three of a suit): the best possible straight is obviously an insta-6. When it's four cards with a "hole," my opinion is that any one who has that rank is an insta-6, with possible followup communication to show the better straight. When it's four cards in a row (for example 7654) my opinion is that only the top straight is insta-6. So insta-6 with an 8 there (even though you don't have 98) but not a 4.
A lot of the Challenges introduce complications beyond the scope of this write-up. Examples: everyone will complain about Blackout. That's fair. But it's life. Security Cameras mean that literally every 5-card board is a possible flush (there must be two face up of some suit). But a flush that requires all 3 hole cards is so rare that you can reasonably expect someone who has it to do the chip equivalent of shouting from the rooftops. Hasty Giveaway means the red chips are 2/3 as complicated as the yellow chips instead of 1/3. If it's Fingerprint Scan or Retina Scan, whoever has the best hand has an additional task of making their hand more guessable without ruining the spirit of the game. Different people have different opinions on what chip plays are acceptable there.
Use the Specialists if you can. A lot of very experienced players don't like them but they're part of the game. Ignoring Investor or Math Whiz would just be a waste. Be sure you know how they actually work (read what is on the card). For example, Muscle gives someone by definition the best hand of a given rank. It does not make one pair better than two pair, two pair better than three of a kind, and so on. Of the Specialists that require voting, most are best voted on at the end. Even Jack (I think it's fair game for someone holding a jack to vote for themselves for Jack preflop; I can't promise everyone agrees). The notable exception is Hacker, since replacing one of your cards is especially useful to people with a high and a low. It's best for them to be able to communicate their new hand in the white chip stage.
One last (as late as possible) thing: If you sincerely believe the white chips were a mistake, especially if new information makes this more likely (extreme example, you've been the 2 all this time but you realize you have the nut low), you can go up one or down one. Be courteous about how they respond. The correct level of stubborness here is hard to pin down with a simple rule. When in doubt, though, trust that you had it right to begin with.
4. The big reveal! (or, "mb" ("my bad"))
If you won that round, congratulations! If you lost that round, focus on the next one. I think it's generally fine to give specific constructive advice. I think it's generally not fine to express anger or try to lay blame, and especially not fine if you're putting the blame in the wrong place. My absolute worst chat moments on BGA have all been within The Gang, and almost all cases where (in my perception) someone had the double-whammy of trying to place blame but making incorrect statements. (Or falling back on "you should have fought more" as a crutch, oblivious to what their own chips clearly but misleadingly indicated.)
Will people remember your screen name? Maybe! There's a bad reason, a neutral reason, or a good reason for it. The bad reason is if you were a pompous jerk, or (to a lesser extent) made clear mistakes with no signs of being willing to improve. I trust mistaken-prone players to improve; I do not trust rude people to become nice. But, as the saying goes, "This is my personal opinion." The neutral reason would be that you're at the same tables again & again and their names just become familiar to you. That is closely related to the good reason, which is that people actively enjoy playing with you. That doesn't mean you have to be the life of the party, just that you play reasonably quickly & reasonably well, and they start to notice that they understand your decisions unusually well.
Succeeding at The Gang requires clear communication, which is greatly improved by trust (and the other way around!). Like many of board gamers, I miss a whole lot of nonverbal social cues in real life. The chips in The Gang are technically non-verbal, and technically lack precise meaning, but they carry enough well-understood (if imprecise) meaning to be a great learning experience for those of us constantly working on both our communication skills and our trust.
This weekend I had two games in a row with first-time players. They were painful, but not because of the outcomes (we won a match, lost a match) and not entirely because of the new players either. It was Professional, probably too hard for first-timers, but that didn't have to be a problem. So here's what I want new players to understand about the game, and not-so-new players to help them figure out. This assumes someone has learned the rules of this whole "cooperative hold em where we try to rank our hands correctly communicating only with chips" operation, and in some places it assumes a 6-player game (adjust as needed).
1. White chips (or, "king-high is 5, queen-high is 4").
The first step to people telling each other the strength of our hands is literally that, telling each other the strength of our hands. In my perfect world, everyone starts by taking (even if from someone else) the chip that best reflects what range their hand is in.
Different people have different conventions, and maybe even different philosophies about how detailed the convention should be (take it too far & the game becomes both boring and a chore) but my preferred ranges for 6 players:
* 6 (the best chip) (I'm surprised how often people get it backwards even with user interface fix) = pocket pairs or ace-high
* 5 = king
* 4 = queen
* 3 = jack or 10
* 2 = 9 or 8
* 1 = 7-high or worse
That's almost but not quite the percentile ranges in a popular article here. The changes are just because simpler cutoffs are easier to remember. If you have the Security Cameras challenge, go down a chip for anything other than pocket pairs. If you have fewer (or more) than 6 players, make reasonable assumptions. For example, in a 5-player game jack high is the middle of the white 3 range.
I mentioned the percentile ranges. They differ from the above when it comes to bad aces, good jacks, or good 7-high. Be careful (observe other chips) with those. Otherwise I like to take my white chip immediately because I happen to be able to pattern-spot quickly, and because then if there's a collision (indicated by someone taking "my" chip), the follow-up action is right back on me. But not right away. Best to see everyone's first chip first.
A subtle but important concept: The first white chip you take is almost the only time you're saying something ABSOLUTE (rather than RELATIVE) about your hand. That makes sense for a game that is entirely about how your hand compares to everyone else's. Once initial ranges are clear, if one player is definitely better than you while four are definitely worse, that makes you the 5 even if it's something like 86. Or if four players are definitely better than you while one is definitely worse, that makes you the 2 even if it's something like K4.
Okay so two (or more) of us are in the same range. How do we figure it out? One step at a time. A clean example: Two of us think we're both natively white 3. Two others are 5/6, two others are 1/2, so we're "fighting" (I hate that word in this context but it's common usage) for 3/4. Say I have J2. That's on the upper half of a "jacks or tens" range, so my next step is to want the 4. If they're next step is to want the 3, that's great! (And it probably means they have ten-something.) If we both wanted the 4, well, how good are our non-jack cards? Cut the range in half again, and so on.
A common mistake of inexperience is to get anchored to our initial range, and think we have to be at our near our white chip. In extreme "everyone's hand is good" or "everyone's hand is bad" cases, sometimes if I've been pushed up/down I grab-and-release my original chip to remind people. Yes, you don't want your queen-high to be the 2, but if my king-high is meant to be the 3 then you still need to be below me.
This maybe goes without saying but at this point drawing likelihood doesn't matter. Suits don't matter, connectivity doesn't. Weeks ago I had 32 and had a very long white chip back-and-forth with someone who, it turns out, thought 72 was the worst possible hand. (In real poker, yes; in The Gang, no.)
Last thing to mention here, what about Noise Sensors (1-chips are "sticky") or Ventilation Shaft (top chips are "sticky")? Be careful. Some people say start with the 2 or 5 instead. It makes sense but potentially introduces confusion. I'm a fan of flashing (take-and-immediately-give-back) the 2 or 5 instead of holding onto it. And then the less extreme your hand is the longer you wait before you actually take the sticky chip.
(Open question which hands are good enough to take the Ventilation Shaft white 6 immediately or bad enough to take the Noise Sensors white 1 immediately.)
2. Yellow chips (or, "reminder as always that pairs beat x-high").
In my perfect world, after the flop, whoever had the white 1 acts immediately, staying at 1 if they didn't improve or going up if they did. Then whoever had the white 2 takes the worst remaining chip or goes up to show improvement. And so on. Sometimes people are antsy to show that they did not improve, and it's not the end of the world but does make the game slightly harder to think about if they have to go back and adjust. (And sometimes sleepwalkers stay put instead of going down one. They figure it out after a few seconds or after someone takes-and-releases the chip they took.)
Some people, including me - not everyone, but some - like the convention, specific to yellow chips, that your improvement is by 1 if you have bottom pair, by 2 if you have middle pair, etc. That generally helps with the second of two things the yellow chips need to accomplish. First, sort out who has improved (or started with a pocket pair) and who has not; second, get the those hands into the correct order. (Unimproved hands should stay in white chip order.)
In some specific occasions it is helpful to show your improvement immediately ("insta-6," taking the best chip) rather than waiting. These are cases where the shape of the board makes clear what a monster hand might be. For example, if there's a pair on the board, someone who insta-6's is showing they have three of a kind; someone who has three of a kind should insta-6. Similarly if the flop is 3 of the same suit or 3 of a possible straight, insta-6 that flush/straight.
Two of this game's most frequent mistakes happen with the yellow chips: new players with a weak pair reluctant to go up as high as the other chips imply they should, or new players who went up despite not improving (because they mistakenly believe that a powerful draw matters in The Gang - it doesn't, unless/until it hits). If you've played much 5-card stud you know that most 5-card hands are unpaired (ace-high or worse). Likewise, most people playing The Gang are, as of the flop, beaten by any pair. Trust your accomplices!
What happens if two players don't seem to agree on which improvement is best (or just need more information about which flop pair is which)? That's where it's important to understand what a reasonable person might think your chips mean, and what other people's chips might mean. My two least favorite chat phrases in The Gang apply here: Some people write, "are you sure?" That's not a question to ask with words, it's a question to ask with chips! Other people write, after a red light, "you should have fought harder." The concept of fighting misses the point that, in a perfect world, every time someone (re)takes a chip they are adding information and not merely showing how confident they are.
3. Orange and red chips (or, "save the negotiating until the end")
Orange and red mechanics are similar to yellow, but if anything easier. If your "hit" is just a turn or river card pairing one of your cards, go up one. Trust others to let you know how much further to go. (Or, if they seem passive, "ask" one chip at a time by taking their chip and giving it back. See how they "answer.")
There are some "insta-6" circumstances here but the board should make it clear(er) what they are.
* Pair(s) on the board: full house is "insta-6" (and "fight" as needed) but in my opinion, three of a kind is not. Note in particular if the board has two pairs, "bottom" full house isn't a 6 unless/until nobody is claiming to have top full house.
* Four of a suit on the board: the single most important thing is to be crystal clear on who has the flush and who does not. Then rank the flushes.
* Three of a suit on the board: flush is an insta-6
* Possible straight (without three of a suit): the best possible straight is obviously an insta-6. When it's four cards with a "hole," my opinion is that any one who has that rank is an insta-6, with possible followup communication to show the better straight. When it's four cards in a row (for example 7654) my opinion is that only the top straight is insta-6. So insta-6 with an 8 there (even though you don't have 98) but not a 4.
A lot of the Challenges introduce complications beyond the scope of this write-up. Examples: everyone will complain about Blackout. That's fair. But it's life. Security Cameras mean that literally every 5-card board is a possible flush (there must be two face up of some suit). But a flush that requires all 3 hole cards is so rare that you can reasonably expect someone who has it to do the chip equivalent of shouting from the rooftops. Hasty Giveaway means the red chips are 2/3 as complicated as the yellow chips instead of 1/3. If it's Fingerprint Scan or Retina Scan, whoever has the best hand has an additional task of making their hand more guessable without ruining the spirit of the game. Different people have different opinions on what chip plays are acceptable there.
Use the Specialists if you can. A lot of very experienced players don't like them but they're part of the game. Ignoring Investor or Math Whiz would just be a waste. Be sure you know how they actually work (read what is on the card). For example, Muscle gives someone by definition the best hand of a given rank. It does not make one pair better than two pair, two pair better than three of a kind, and so on. Of the Specialists that require voting, most are best voted on at the end. Even Jack (I think it's fair game for someone holding a jack to vote for themselves for Jack preflop; I can't promise everyone agrees). The notable exception is Hacker, since replacing one of your cards is especially useful to people with a high and a low. It's best for them to be able to communicate their new hand in the white chip stage.
One last (as late as possible) thing: If you sincerely believe the white chips were a mistake, especially if new information makes this more likely (extreme example, you've been the 2 all this time but you realize you have the nut low), you can go up one or down one. Be courteous about how they respond. The correct level of stubborness here is hard to pin down with a simple rule. When in doubt, though, trust that you had it right to begin with.
4. The big reveal! (or, "mb" ("my bad"))
If you won that round, congratulations! If you lost that round, focus on the next one. I think it's generally fine to give specific constructive advice. I think it's generally not fine to express anger or try to lay blame, and especially not fine if you're putting the blame in the wrong place. My absolute worst chat moments on BGA have all been within The Gang, and almost all cases where (in my perception) someone had the double-whammy of trying to place blame but making incorrect statements. (Or falling back on "you should have fought more" as a crutch, oblivious to what their own chips clearly but misleadingly indicated.)
Will people remember your screen name? Maybe! There's a bad reason, a neutral reason, or a good reason for it. The bad reason is if you were a pompous jerk, or (to a lesser extent) made clear mistakes with no signs of being willing to improve. I trust mistaken-prone players to improve; I do not trust rude people to become nice. But, as the saying goes, "This is my personal opinion." The neutral reason would be that you're at the same tables again & again and their names just become familiar to you. That is closely related to the good reason, which is that people actively enjoy playing with you. That doesn't mean you have to be the life of the party, just that you play reasonably quickly & reasonably well, and they start to notice that they understand your decisions unusually well.
Succeeding at The Gang requires clear communication, which is greatly improved by trust (and the other way around!). Like many of board gamers, I miss a whole lot of nonverbal social cues in real life. The chips in The Gang are technically non-verbal, and technically lack precise meaning, but they carry enough well-understood (if imprecise) meaning to be a great learning experience for those of us constantly working on both our communication skills and our trust.