There's no limit on how simple or extreme a friendly card game at home can go

The card sharks are circling. Poker has become the game to play, and people are bluffing their way to victory from senior centers to country clubs. You've seen it on TV and heard about those charity tournaments. How about hosting a poker night in your home? It can be simple or elaborate.

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There are a few basic elements. You'll need at least two decks of cards for a six-person game. Ron Pfeiffer is an experienced poker player who is coordinating a Texas Hold 'em charity tournament for the Crohn's and Colitis Foundation of America in February. He explains that having a second deck of cards is important for players with superstitions who think that changing decks may change their luck. "I've seen people walk around their chair to change their luck ... or sometimes a person will want to sit in the same seat all the time." He adds that his weekly poker game adheres to a three-hour time limit, regardless of who's won or lost up to that point.

While poker is usually played on a kitchen or dining room table, some people choose to outfit their homes with elaborate card rooms. Dale Rockwell, professional poker player and manager of Reece's Las Vegas Supplies in Dayton, explains, "Everybody's turning their rec rooms into Las Vegas rooms." The collapsible card tables of yesterday are quickly being replaced by specially designed "Texas Hold 'em tables." These tables, named for one type of poker, can be used for any card game and are priced $400-$1,200.

Chips are another stapleof poker, although plenty of people just use pocket change. According to Rockwell, you need "a minimum of 500 chips for 10 players." Reece's sells 100 chips for anywhere from $5-$105.

Big-time poker players like Rockwell swear by cards made by Kem. "Kem cards are all plastic, won't bend or tear, and can even be washed." These cards don't come cheap though, he says, at $23 for two decks.

Small-time poker players swear by free airline cards and matchsticks, and buy their chips in a bag to munch on throughout the evening. No matter how fancy or expensive your surroundings, like the song says, "You've got to know when to hold 'em, know when to fold 'em... ." Happy bluffing.

Types of poker

There are countless different card games in the broader category of poker. Here are the basic types of games from which dozens of variations stem.

Community games: Some cards are dealt face down to each player and some are laid out in the center. The cards in the center are flipped over as the game progresses, with betting occurring between rounds. Each player "shares" the center cards and can combine them with those in their own hand to form, it's hoped, a winning hand.

Texas Hold 'em is a community game.

Draw games: After a regular deal, players can discard a number of cards for new cards from the deck in the hopes of improving their hand.

Stud games: Each player gets a number of cards face up and a number face down (called "in the hole").

Cincinnati: Yes, we have our own poker game, and it is one of the original community games. Each player is dealt 5 cards, and 4-5 cards are laid out in the center to be flipped over one at a time with betting in between. Players make the best 5-card hand out of all 9 or 10 cards.

Source: Cincinnati Post