How to Play Skull

Introduction

Skull is a bluffing game in which players try to guess which cards their opponents are holding. The game is played with a deck of 54 cards, including 4 Skull cards and 50 Rose cards. The goal of the game is to be the first player to collect 10 Rose cards.

How to Play Skull Step by Step

1. Setup:

• Each player gets a Skull meeple and keeps it face down.
• Shuffle the Bid cards and place them face down in the center of the table.
• Shuffle the Rose cards and place them face down beside the Bid cards.
• Each player draws four Rose cards and keeps them secret.

2. Bidding:

• Starting with the player to the left of the dealer, each player takes turns bidding on how many Rose cards they will win in that round.
• Players can bid 0 to 4.
• Once all players have bid, reveal the Bid cards from the top of the deck equal to the number of players plus one.
• Players then take their hands of four Rose cards and, one by one, place a card face-down under each of the Bid cards. They are allowed to lie about which card they place under each Bid card.

3. Resolving the Bids:

• Starting with the highest Bid card, reveal the Rose cards underneath it.
• If the number of Rose cards matches the bid, the player who made the bid keeps the Rose cards and places them face up in front of them.
• If the number of Rose cards is lower than the bid, the player who made the bid loses all of their Rose cards and must place their Skull meeple face up on the table.
• If the number of Rose cards is higher than the bid, the player who made the bid wins all the Rose cards and places them face up in front of them.

4. Skull Meeple Placement:

• When a player reveals a Skull meeple, they place it in front of them, face up.
• If a player has bid 0 and later reveals a Skull meeple, they must place it face up in front of them and all the Rose cards they won that round are returned to the deck.

5. End of the Round:

• The round ends when all the Bid cards have been revealed and resolved.
• Players score points for each Rose card they win.

6. End of the Game:

• The game ends when one player reaches the predetermined score goal, usually 10 points.
• The player with the highest score wins the game.

How to Play Skull for Kids

• Simplify the Bidding:

  • Instead of bidding on a specific number of Rose cards, players can simply bid “high” or “low.”

• Use Fewer Cards:

  • To make the game shorter, use fewer Rose and Bid cards.

• Play with Teams:

  • For younger players, you can play the game in teams of two. This can make the game more cooperative and less competitive.