The game is similar to Dutch Blitz, which is based upon the original 1960s Ligretto. Both Ligretto and Dutch Blitz use specially printed cards but feature game play almost identical to Nerts, which is played with standard playing cards and is in turn based on Canfield, a variant of the classic Klondike Solitaire.
Dutch Blitz: If any player is at the impasse described he or she can take the top card from the Wood Pile deck and place it on the bottom thereby resetting the Wood Pile. This is to be done before the re-deal, not in the midst of a Wood Pile re-deal.
Players may not use both hands to play their cards. Throwing cards onto the Dutch Piles instead of placing them is forbidden. Blitz Pile: A player cannot play any card except from the top.
Two to four players can play this fast moving game. Recommended for ages 8 and up. Dutch Blitz is a friendly family game where players try to compose sets of cards out of the deck in such a way as to get rid of their Blitz pile as soon as possible.
Introduction: How to Play: Dutch Blitz (aka "Nerts")This game can also be played with regular decks of cards, which I'll explain simultaneously (I believe the regular playing card version is called "Nerts").
Cards for placement in the Dutch Piles can also be drawn from a player's Post and Wood Piles. Several hands, or rounds, must be played until a total of 75 points is accumulated by any one player who then wins the game (See scoring Section).
Move any Number 1 cards to the center of the table to start a Dutch Pile. If any of the exposed cards in the Post Piles or the Blitz Pile are a Number 1 card, move them to the center. Keep the card face up. The Dutch Piles can be added to by any player that has the next higher number for the same color.
Play continues clockwise. Winning the Game: Choose a point total to play to (500 is recommended to start). The winner of each round scores 25 points for winning the round and five additional points per card remaining in each other player Stock pile. Team Skip-Bo: You can play with partners.
Gameplay
- Swap the drawn card with one of your own cards.
- Match the drawn card with any other cards you know with the same face.
- Discard the drawn card (just put it on top of the discard pile)
- Use the card you drew as a power card (for 7, 8, 9, 10, Jack, Queen)
COMBINE THE CARDS AND GET BLACK JACK!
- Get black jack. Combine the cards in each slot to 21. Get more points by making 21 with just 2 cards (Black Jack) or get 21 Blitz by combining 5 cards to 21!
- Discard cards. The sum of each slot is not allowed to exceed 21.
- Joker. You get one Joker per deck to play.
Players may look at their hands. A player's turn consists of discarding one or more cards face down, and calling out their rank - which may be a lie. The player who sits to the left of the dealer (clockwise) takes the first turn, and must call aces. The second player does the same, and must call twos.
Unlike in solitaire, in pounce players count off their stock in threes by palming the first card (face down), then the second card, then the third card, then laying them face up with the first card on top You can tell that you're doing it right by the sound: "flip-flip-flip-thump", etc.
There are some similarities to Dutch Blitz, too, in that players are building up stacks of cards in sequence. But everyone has to take turns with Skip-Bo so it's not as crazy as Dutch Blitz (and that could be good or bad depending on your gaming mood). The basic point is to get rid of the cards in your own stock pile.
3 Card Blitz is a game where the player competes against the dealer for the highest point total using up to 3 suited cards out of 7 cards dealt. The highest point total a hand can receive is 31, which consists of an Ace and two ten-value cards in the same suit.
