Be the first player to complete visible stacks of pairs and runs to end the round with the most points. Steal stacks from other players for big point shifts. And unlike other card games, discards are randomly placed back into the draw pile to Stack The 

Deck ™.  This play mechanic completely randomizes the draw pile after each turn. You’ve never played anything like it.

Number of Players:
2-4, Ages 8 and up

Approximate Length of Game:
45 Mins

What’s Included:
One 57-card deck consisting of five colors x 10 cards each + 7 WILD cards.
One instruction card

The Goal To Winning:

The goal is to be the first player to complete and turn over all their stacks which ends a round and points are tallied. A game consists of 10-rounds. Highest point total at the conclusion of 10-rounds WINS THE GAME.

The Setup:
Start a round by shuffling the deck and dealing five cards to each player face up, one at a time. Players immediately take their dealt cards and line them up in a row in front of them for everyone to see. The remaining cards are placed in a middle draw pile.

The Play:
Players draw two cards to create stacks of either pairs OR 3-card runs onto their dealt stacks. 3-Card runs can go low-to-high or high-to-low and must be built in order. Players cannot rearrange cards to complete their runs or to make pairs. Once a pair or 3-card run is completed that stack is immediately turned over, remaining in front of the player to score up at the end of the round.

Taking Your Turn:
The person to the left of the dealer starts the game. Players draw two cards from top of the deck. You must play one of the two cards on your stacks, in order to play the second card. If you are unable to play either card on your stacks, both cards are inserted randomly together OR seperately into the deck to Stack The Deck™ and the turn ends. ** SEE STACK THE DECK

If you are able to play one of the cards on your stacks, you have an option to play the second card on either your stacks OR on an opponents to STEAL their stack. 

** SEE STEALING

If you are lucky enough to draw two of the same card (a pair) you can add those as an additional stacked pair to your side for points at the end of the round. Or use them on your other stacks, whichever is more beneficial at the time. ** SEE SCORING

Stealing:
A steal must complete an opponent’s stack to make it your own. To steal, place your second card on any of your opponents stacks to make a pair or complete their 3-card run. Once stolen the stack is turned over and moved in front of the player who did the stealing.

Stack The Deck™:
Stack The Deck™ to your advantage by inserting cards you want back soon, closer to the top of the deck. Keeping in mind how many players are between you and your next draw.

Stack The Deck™ to your opponents disadvantage by inserting any left over card(s) they need towards the back of the deck.

Remember to always look at all the other players cards to best determine how to stack the cards against them.

You cannot stack cards within the top two cards of the deck.

Wild Cards:
Seven wild cards are hidden inside the deck and can be used as a substitute for any card number OR color in a pair or 3-card straight.

When a wild card is drawn with another number card, they can be used as an additional stack scoring pair or split up and used separately. Choose wisely.

If two wild cards are drawn consecutively they can be turned over together as a scoring pair or combined with a single card and used for a 3-card run. Be smart!

Wild Cards drawn cannot be used to steal another player’s stack. They can only be used in your hand.

You cannot steal another player’s wild card by playing a card on it.

When a wild card is dealt, players can add a card for a scored pair OR they can use the wild card to build a run. It is up to the player to decide when to take this chance.

Another player cannot steal a run started with a wild card.

Scoring:

A round ends for all players when one player completes all their stacks. The first player to go out begins the scoring.  Player points are tallied for the round:

Pairs=5 Points

3-Card Runs=10 Points

Same Color 3-Card Runs=20 Points

Incomplete Stack(s) deduct 5 Points

Deduct 20 Points for any unused wild cards.*

*If a player ends a round and strands another player with an incomplete straight involving a wild card, that player subtracts 20 points for an unused wild card AND 5 points for an incomplete straight stack. A 25 point deduction. Ouch!

Points are recorded for each of the TEN rounds.   The player with the highest score after ten rounds WINS THE GAME.

Round Stalemate:
In the very unlikely event a round ends in a stalemate, meaning all remaining cards in the draw deck cannot complete anyones’ stacks, end the round by tallying up completed stacks. Incomplete stacks are not subtracted from end of round scores for any player.

Remember, due to the random placement of cards being stacked back into the deck, it may take just the right combination of remaining cards for a needed card to be drawn. Go around a few times before making the call to Stalemate. Stalemate is a VERY RARE OCCURRENCE.

Upon agreeing to a Stalemate, shuffle all cards and continue onto the next round.

You may think a game as simple as stacking pairs and runs is void of any strategy.  Here are some tips to get your started.  What other strategies will you discover?

You score more points for a 3-card run than a pair. Choose your stacks wisely while keeping track of your round scores throughout the game. If you are falling behind it might make sense to stack more runs than pairs. Or go for same color runs for maximum points. Wild cards come in very handy for completing runs and especially same color runs. Wink Wink!

If you draw two of the same card, a pair, those can be turned over immediately as an additional pair stack or used separately in other stacks. The choice is yours depending on the situation.

Remember WILD cards can be used to complete runs OR pairs so use them to your best point advantage.

Be careful NOT to start a run with Two-Ace or Nine-Ten. Those are non-playable (in that direction) in a run and will result in subtracting 5 points from your round score. 

Good Luck & Stack The Deck ™ to VICTORY!