When I talked to Shane Tyree BCA Ex Director he said this.
Over 90% of all players only know/understand 8 and 9 ball, period.
Over 90% of all players only know/understand 8 and 9 ball, period.
Elimin-8-ball
- Thread starter DaWizard
- Start date
I hope he's not thinking that that's a good thing.
No, he's just saying that this.................
(I know some of you don't like new pool games, but this one was well recieved in testing. Video and summary at the end of this post)
Elimin-8-ball is played as a set, not as a single rack. All regular 8-ball rules apply, except that both players start with 6 balls and a player is either solids or stripes for the entirety of the set. The first game is a regular game of 8-ball. After that, with each 8-ball that is potted, balls, pockets and rails are eliminated from the game. The goal is to eliminate all 6 pockets. Winner breaks.
Material needed
- a regular set of pool balls (English or American)
- 8 markers per player. The marker has to be clearly visible and each player has their
own color (e.g. red and blue poker chips)
Video: rules of Elimin-8-ball + a full match
The game is best explained in an example. Earl and Efren give it a shot.
Game 1: 8-ball with 6 stripes & 6 solids
Rack 13 balls: 6 solids, 6 stripes + the 8-ball. Lag for the break and break. The group (solids or stripes) you get in game 1 is the group you will be for all following games. When a player pots the 8-ball to win the first game, he marks the pocket where the 8 was potted with his color. For the next game, two things are different:
Game 2: Earl won the first game and breaks
In this rack the winning player (Earl) has 5 balls and his Efren has 6 balls. Earl can only call and shoot bank shots or kick shots into the marked pocket. Efren can use that pocket normally.
If Earl accidentally pots a ball into the marked pocket, it’s a foul. The ball is not respotted. From here on it’s a regular game of 8-ball again, until they get to the 8.
For the 8-ball there are three possible outcomes:
A pocket cannot be neutralized. Once it is marked, it will be so for the rest of the game.
If a player has two marked pockets next to each other
If a player has marked two pockets next to each other, he places a marker of his color on the rail in between. This means that the opponent is not allowed to touch the rail with his cue ball. If during the run his cue ball does touch the rail the run ends and the opponent gets to shoot (not a foul, just end of run).
- Object balls can touch the rail without any problems. Only the cue ball can't.
- Each player can eliminate a maximum of 2 rails.
- Both players can eliminate the same rail.
Game 2: Earl (red) pots the 8-ball in the corner pocket and places a red marker on the corner pocket and a red marker on the rail. Efren is not allowed to touch that rail with his cue ball, if he does, Earl gets to shoot (no BIH!).
Efren's object balls can touch the rails without issue.
Winning the game
Repeat the rules of game 2 until one of both players has eliminated all of the 6 pockets.
At the end the player with 5 pockets has just one object ball and black, and only one pocket available (others are available through kick shots and bank shots). The 8-ball has to be pocketed in the last unmarked pocket to eliminate that one as well. This is pretty difficult!
For a shorter game, decide to eliminate only 4 or 5 pockets.
Good to know
A full game of Elimin-8-ball can be at maximum 11 games if the players get to a score of 5-5.
The 11th game is the deciding game. After each game one of the players must eliminate one of the object balls from their group. This results in odd rack shapes. The following racking configurations are advised. Make sure the stripes and solids are mixed randomly and the wing balls differ.
Summary
Is a bit too much, and the demographic could care less about the wheel of invention.
(I know some of you don't like new pool games, but this one was well recieved in testing. Video and summary at the end of this post)
Elimin-8-ball is played as a set, not as a single rack. All regular 8-ball rules apply, except that both players start with 6 balls and a player is either solids or stripes for the entirety of the set. The first game is a regular game of 8-ball. After that, with each 8-ball that is potted, balls, pockets and rails are eliminated from the game. The goal is to eliminate all 6 pockets. Winner breaks.
Material needed
- a regular set of pool balls (English or American)
- 8 markers per player. The marker has to be clearly visible and each player has their
own color (e.g. red and blue poker chips)
Video: rules of Elimin-8-ball + a full match
The game is best explained in an example. Earl and Efren give it a shot.
Game 1: 8-ball with 6 stripes & 6 solids
Rack 13 balls: 6 solids, 6 stripes + the 8-ball. Lag for the break and break. The group (solids or stripes) you get in game 1 is the group you will be for all following games. When a player pots the 8-ball to win the first game, he marks the pocket where the 8 was potted with his color. For the next game, two things are different:
- The winning player eliminates a ball. He has 5 balls in the next rack.
- The winner is not allowed to pocket a ball in the pocket he just marked, unless he does so with a bank shot or kick shot.
Game 2: Earl won the first game and breaks
In this rack the winning player (Earl) has 5 balls and his Efren has 6 balls. Earl can only call and shoot bank shots or kick shots into the marked pocket. Efren can use that pocket normally.
If Earl accidentally pots a ball into the marked pocket, it’s a foul. The ball is not respotted. From here on it’s a regular game of 8-ball again, until they get to the 8.
For the 8-ball there are three possible outcomes:
- Earl pots the 8 in an unmarked pocket. He now marks his second pocket.
Earl starts with 4 balls in the next rack, Efren 6.
Two pockets are unavailable for Earl in the next rack.
- Efren pots the 8 in any unmarked pocket. He marks the pocket.
Both players have 5 balls in the next rack.
Both players cannot use one pocket (the one that they have marked).
- A player makes a foul on the 8.
E.g.: the 8 goes in the wrong pocket or Earl pots the ball in his marked pocket or the 8 goes off the table. The opponent may select a pocket of his choice to mark.
A pocket cannot be neutralized. Once it is marked, it will be so for the rest of the game.
If a player has two marked pockets next to each other
If a player has marked two pockets next to each other, he places a marker of his color on the rail in between. This means that the opponent is not allowed to touch the rail with his cue ball. If during the run his cue ball does touch the rail the run ends and the opponent gets to shoot (not a foul, just end of run).
- Object balls can touch the rail without any problems. Only the cue ball can't.
- Each player can eliminate a maximum of 2 rails.
- Both players can eliminate the same rail.
Game 2: Earl (red) pots the 8-ball in the corner pocket and places a red marker on the corner pocket and a red marker on the rail. Efren is not allowed to touch that rail with his cue ball, if he does, Earl gets to shoot (no BIH!).
Efren's object balls can touch the rails without issue.
Winning the game
Repeat the rules of game 2 until one of both players has eliminated all of the 6 pockets.
At the end the player with 5 pockets has just one object ball and black, and only one pocket available (others are available through kick shots and bank shots). The 8-ball has to be pocketed in the last unmarked pocket to eliminate that one as well. This is pretty difficult!
For a shorter game, decide to eliminate only 4 or 5 pockets.
Good to know
- When you first play Elimin-8-ball it’s easy to forget that you can’t use a pocket or a rail. Every now and then point out together which rails and pockets can’t be used before shooting.
- A player is either solids or stripes for the entire set. If the breaking player pots either a solid or stripe, he may continue shooting. However, the table is not ‘open’ as the player is either solids or stripes for the entire set.
- On the break you are allowed to pot balls in eliminated pockets. Any pocketed ball on the break allows you to continue shooting.
- If the cue ball hits a rail that is eliminated for the breaker, the opponent gets to shoot, regardless of any balls being pocketed on the break.
A full game of Elimin-8-ball can be at maximum 11 games if the players get to a score of 5-5.
The 11th game is the deciding game. After each game one of the players must eliminate one of the object balls from their group. This results in odd rack shapes. The following racking configurations are advised. Make sure the stripes and solids are mixed randomly and the wing balls differ.
Summary
- The first game is a regular 8-ball game. Rack 6 stripes and 6 solids + the 8-ball.
- Regular 8-ball rules apply in all games.
- After the first game you are either solids or stripes for the entire set.
- The player that pots the 8 marks the pocket his marker.
- If a player (accidentally) pots a ball in said pocket, it's a foul (ball in hand).
- Bank shots and kick shots are allowed in marked pockets.
- For each pocket marked, the player racks one less object ball in the rack.
- If the 8 is pocketed as a foul, the opponent gets to choose a pocket to mark.
- If a player has two marked pockets side by side, the rail is marked with his color. A maximum of two rails can be marked.
- The opponent can’t touch that rail with his cue ball. If so, the run ends. No foul.
- The first player to eliminate 6 pockets wins the game.
Is a bit too much, and the demographic could care less about the wheel of invention.
DaWizard
Well-known member
Haha thanks for the feedback, Garczar. Every opinion is welcome to me, even harsh critic. If you want to help, check back later when Ive playtested a couple more matches. I'm curious what aspects then do and do not appeal.
Ive checked Shoot-or-dare, but I need to see a couple matches to see how things work out, what choices come into play, etc.
Ive checked Shoot-or-dare, but I need to see a couple matches to see how things work out, what choices come into play, etc.
DaWizard
Well-known member
I'm going to record a video of the rules. It wont last longer than 3 minutes!
Written rules in text are just long, yet necessary.
How is the following handled? It came up in our first game.
I eliminated a corner pocket by potting the 8 ball to finish rack 3. In rack 4, I banked the 8 ball into that eliminated pocket to win rack 4. I can take one of my balls away for rack 5, but I can't eliminate that pocket again.
I eliminated a corner pocket by potting the 8 ball to finish rack 3. In rack 4, I banked the 8 ball into that eliminated pocket to win rack 4. I can take one of my balls away for rack 5, but I can't eliminate that pocket again.
DaWizard
Well-known member
You played a testgame, cool!
Any things you liked and disliked? Honest feedback is appreciated.
Unfortunately that's not allowed. Any object ball can be banked or kicked into eliminated pockets, but not the 8. The 8 has to be potted in one of the not-eliminated pockets.
Especially towards the end when only 1 or 2 pockets remains this is a challenging task.
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DaWizard
Well-known member
After testing myself this wednesday a couple new rules (in italic) will be updated into v2.2:
- object balls can be potted in eliminated pockets through bank shots, kick shots, combinations and caroms.
- if the 8 is potted on the break, in any pocket, the breaking player can choose a pocket to eliminate.
- if player A has eliminated a rail (by eliminating both the pockets that are adjacent to the rails) player B used to be able to eliminate the same rail by eliminating those two adjacent pockets as well. In v2.2 player B liberates the rail. In other words: player B can freely use the rail again if he eliminates both the adjacent pockets.
- object balls can be potted in eliminated pockets through bank shots, kick shots, combinations and caroms.
- if the 8 is potted on the break, in any pocket, the breaking player can choose a pocket to eliminate.
- if player A has eliminated a rail (by eliminating both the pockets that are adjacent to the rails) player B used to be able to eliminate the same rail by eliminating those two adjacent pockets as well. In v2.2 player B liberates the rail. In other words: player B can freely use the rail again if he eliminates both the adjacent pockets.
Any things you liked and disliked?
Had trouble remembering all the possible restrictions before each turn: eliminated pocket(s), restricted rails. Had to consciously go through the restrictions before taking the next shot in order to shoot a productive shot and play shape in a way that also made sense given the restrictions. It was too much for a pair of very experienced players. Now you're adding a further restriction for just the 8 ball.
Any object ball can be banked or kicked into eliminated pockets, but not the 8.
Better make that explicit in the rules.
There is nothing about this game that even remotely tempts me to try it. Too weird/convoluted.
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DaWizard
Well-known member
Well thanks for testing! It should get easier if you play it more often. Because if it doesnt the game is too mentally burdening and that doesnt work. In our last game I don't recall much forgetting which pockets are out and which are not. Maybe because we used red and blue leds. Next time I'm going to see how we do in this regard.
I have been thinking about dropping the elimination of rails. As it might be that extra layer of complexity that starts to hurt our brain. In theory it adds some interesting stuff, but it might be just too much.
The other thing that might help is the tokens that mark the pockets. If they're clearly visible (3D vs 2D) it helps visualizing more easily which pockets are out of the game.
As for the 8: ill clarify in the rules. As it is now: the 8 must be potted in the pocket you want to eliminate.
But perhaps it should be possible to bank/kick the 8. And the player can either choose any pocket or one of the adjacent pockets.
Thanks again for testing and food for thought.
I do a lot of motorcycle touring across the country. Stopping in local bars reveals some pretty imaginative 8 ball house rules. So stopping in some joint in East Cow Poop, Montana and playing Elimin-8-ball with the local bull riders... What could go wrong?
Only comment I have is, too many moving parts.