Home game · Stud
Follow the Queen is seven-card stud with a moving wild card. Whenever a queen is dealt face up, the next face-up card and every other card of that rank become wild; a later face-up queen replaces the wild rank with the card that follows it. The best high hand wins the pot.
The game is played with a standard 52-card deck without jokers. The deal and betting follow seven-card stud: two cards down and one up, three more up, and a final card down, with a betting round after each.
The best five-card high hand at the showdown wins the whole pot.
Wild cards may stand for any card. Because wild cards are used, five of a kind is possible and, under the usual convention, ranks above a straight flush. See hand rankings.
When a queen is dealt face up, the next card dealt face up (to whichever player receives it) becomes wild, together with the other three cards of the same rank. The wild rank applies to every player's hand, face up or face down.
If another queen is dealt face up later, the previous wild rank stops being wild, and the rank of the face-up card that follows the new queen becomes wild instead.
If the last card dealt face up in the hand is a queen, there are no wild cards.
Only face-up cards set the wild rank. The seventh card, dealt face down, never changes it.
In the basic game, queens themselves are not wild. Many groups play that queens are also wild (see 4.1 and 4.2); the dealer shall announce this before the deal.
The wild card moves
On fourth street, Player 1 is dealt Q♦ face up, and the next player is dealt 7♣ face up. All sevens are now wild.
On fifth street, Player 3 is dealt Q♥ face up, and Player 4 is dealt 4♠ face up. Sevens are no longer wild; all fours are wild instead. No further queens appear face up.
Player 2 finishes with A♠A♣ and 4♥ face down, and 5♠7♣9♦J♥ face up. With fours wild, the 4♥ makes three aces. The 7♣ that was once wild is now just a seven.
| Street | Cards | Can change the wild rank? |
|---|---|---|
| Third | 2 down, 1 up | Yes |
| Fourth | 1 up | Yes |
| Fifth | 1 up | Yes |
| Sixth | 1 up | Yes |
| Seventh | 1 down | No |
Betting follows seven-card stud, with five betting rounds. Because the wild rank can change on every up street, the value of a hand may rise or fall between rounds.
At the showdown, hands are valued using the wild rank in force after the last face-up card, and the best high hand wins the pot.
Hidden queens wild. Queens held face down are wild. Up to seven wild cards can then be in play: three concealed queens and the four cards of the wild rank.
All queens wild. Every queen is wild, as well as the rank following the last face-up queen. One version played this way, credited to Arthur Buderick on pagat.com, also charges an extra ante to a player dealt a wild card face up, or whose face-up card becomes wild, and two extra antes for a face-up queen.
Face-down queens wild only after a face-up queen. Some play that queens dealt face up are wild, and queens in the hole become wild only once a queen has appeared face up.
No queen, no game. If no queen is dealt face up, no one wins and the pot carries over to a new deal. Pagat describes the new deal as open only to players who had not folded; other groups have every player ante again.
Extra card after a final queen. If the last face-up card dealt is a queen, the dealer deals one more card face up to the centre. It belongs to no one, but its rank becomes wild.
Pay for wild cards. A player dealt a wild card face up pays an ante into the pot.
Related games with changing wild cards include Dirty Schultz, where a face-up pair sets the next wild card, and Black Mariah, one version of which ends the hand when the queen of spades is dealt face up. See also Baseball and seven-card stud with wild cards.
In the basic game, no: only the rank that follows the last face-up queen is wild. Many home games also make queens wild, either all queens or only those in the hole. Agree which before the deal.
In the basic game there are no wild cards for that hand. Some groups instead deal one extra card face up to the centre and make its rank wild.
The seventh card is dealt face down, so it cannot set or change the wild rank. It still counts as part of your hand and can be a wild card itself.
Five of a kind, which is only possible with wild cards. It usually ranks above a straight flush.
Where any doubt remains in the application of this document, Rob is right.
Hand rankings, high to low: royal flush · straight flush · four of a kind · full house · flush · straight · three of a kind · two pair · one pair · high card. Suits never break ties.
Follow the Queen Rules · OPR-674 · officialpokerrules.com/follow-the-queen/