Pyramid (also called Beeramid) is a bluffing and memory drinking card game for 3-6 players using a standard 52-card deck. Players memorize a hand of cards, then try to assign drinks to each other as a pyramid of cards is revealed row by row. The twist: you can lie about what you’re holding, and anyone can call your bluff. Games run 10-15 minutes.
The Pyramid is one of our 8 drinking card games worth playing with a standard deck.
What You Need
A standard 52-card deck (remove the jokers), drinks for everyone, and 3-6 players. The game works with more, but bluffing gets harder to track with larger groups.
Pyramid Setup
Choose a dealer. The dealer shuffles the deck, deals four cards face-down to each player, then builds the pyramid: lay five cards face-down in a row on the table, then four above them, then three, two, and one at the top. Fifteen cards total.
Players get one look at their four cards, then place them face-down in a line in front of them. You won’t be allowed to check them again. Remember what you have and where each card is in your row.
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How to Play Pyramid
The dealer starts flipping cards in the bottom row of the pyramid, one at a time, left to right. After each card is revealed, any player can claim they hold a matching card (same value, suits don’t matter) and assign drinks to another player.
The number of drinks depends on the row.
Bottom row (five cards): one drink per match.
Second row: two drinks.
Third row: three.
Fourth row: four.
Top card: five drinks.
If you claim to have a matching card, the person you’re targeting has two choices: accept the drinks, or call “bullshit.”
If they call bullshit and you actually have the card, you reveal it as proof. They drink double the row value. Your revealed card gets flipped back face-down and can be used again in later rows.
If they call bullshit and you were bluffing, you drink double the row value yourself.
If you have two cards that match the revealed pyramid card, you can assign drinks twice (to the same person or split between two). Each matching card counts separately.
The dealer works through the entire pyramid, bottom to top. After the final card is revealed and any challenges are resolved, the game is over.
Rules People Get Wrong
Memorizing your cards. You only get one look at the start. You can’t peek again during the game. If you flip a card to prove a bullshit call, look at it again while it’s face-up, but that’s the only refresh you get on that card’s identity and position.
Bluffing on the wrong card. If you claim to have a match and someone calls bullshit, you have to reveal the specific card you’re claiming is the match. If you flip the wrong card from your row (you thought your seven was on the left but it was on the right), that counts as a failed bluff. You drink double. Memory matters.
Stacking claims. Multiple players can claim to have a match on the same revealed card. Each claim is resolved separately. Player A says they have it and assigns drinks to Player B. Player C also says they have it and assigns drinks to Player D. Both claims can be called or accepted independently.
House Variants Worth Trying
Reverse Pyramid: Build the pyramid upside down (one card on the bottom, five on top). The stakes start high and decrease, which changes the bluffing psychology completely. Early bluffs are expensive if caught.
Face-Down Memory Test: After the pyramid is finished, each player must recite their four cards from memory, in order. Every card they get wrong costs them two drinks. Rewards the players who were actually paying attention to their own hand.
Extended Pyramid: Use a six-row pyramid (6-5-4-3-2-1, twenty-one cards total) for larger groups. Deal five or six cards per player. More cards means more potential matches, more bluffing opportunities, and significantly more drinking.
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