Need help with Sabacc rules

Hey everybody, as you can see I'm new to these forums and wasn't sure if this was the proper place to ask something like this (Perhaps this should have gone in Saga?). Anyway, I'm working on a project which requires me to understand the exact rulings of Sabacc (or at least utilize as much as is known). I have scoured the Internet for resources and have found a lot, but I have a few questions that I hope someone here might be knowledgeable enough to know (this being the top SW fansite and all).

First, during the drawing phase, is a player only allowed to discard a card if he or she also drew a card that turn?

Second, is there a limit to the number of cards a player can place in the interference field in a round? If so, it is probably one. Also, this must be done in the drawing phase after drawing and discarding, correct?

Third, what happens to discarded cards? Are they returned to the deck (shuffled or placed on the bottom?), where they can be drawn again if needed, or placed in a discard pile? If the latter, would cards in a discard pile be subject to change from shifting between rounds, or are these cards lost from play for the game?

Just trying to understand the rules as accurately as Star Wars references allow. Thanks.

 

I have played Sabacc with friends using regular playing cards, however it IS possible to get an actual deck. It came with a WEG source book, you'd have to trawl ebay to get it.

Firstly

Sabacc is a sort of cross between poker and blackjack. The poker element is that you have a few cards dealt to you and there are arrays (like the Idiot's Array). The blackjack element is that you aim to get 23, either negative or positive 23 (The wook explains it better).

I usually play it like poker as there isn't a SW equivalent of Hoyle's, you buy in and put the money in the hand pot and the cards are dealt (I think it's four) and then decide which cards you want to hold on to and put those in the interfereance field so they wouldn't change. The amount of cards you put in there can change depending what rules you play. New cards are brought in and then the betting starts, similar to poker.

To win you need to get 23 (Pure Sabacc) or 46 (Sabacc) which is negative 23 as once you get to 23 you start counting DOWN. If you get over 23 (but don't get to negative 23), you bust. Pure Sabacc beats a sabacc and an Idiot's Array which is a two, a three and the idiot, beats a Pure Sabacc.

If both players bust, the money goes from the handpot to the sabacc pot. If both players get under 23, the player closest to 23 gets the money in the handpot. Only if you get a sabacc, pure sabacc or idiot's array do you get the sabacc pot.

There are two sabacc games that I've read about in the EU that would give you some tips, one is in Darth Bane Path of destruction the other is in Rebel Dawn where Han win's the Falcon from Lando.