Skipbo
Skipbo
Skip-Bo is one of the great classic card games. As you draw different colored and numbered cards, you’ll have to figure out the best placement for each card in order to clear out your deck and not run yourself into a corner. Skip-Bo is a splendid mix of both strategy and fun, giving you just enough opportunity to interfere with the other players while focusing on your own agenda. Don’t miss out on the fast-paced fun of Skip-Bo!
Whittling Down Your Stock Pile
The goal of Skip-Bo is to get rid of all the cards in your stockpile. If you’re playing with 2-4 players, then each player will have 30 cards in their stockpile. With 5-6 players, the recommended stockpile is 20. Either way, players will have to put down their cards in the building piles and discard piles if they want to be the first to clear their hand and win the game.
Cards are numbered from 1 to 12, with a wild Skip-Bo card that can be used in place of any numbered card. At the beginning of each turn, players will draw cards so that they have a hand of 5. They will then play cards from either their hand, their stockpile, or the top of one of their discard piles. Players are allowed to continue their turn until they run out of cards to play, at which point they must discard onto one of their four discard piles.
Building vs. Discarding
The strategy of Skip-Bo comes from knowing where to build and how to discard. There are very specific rules as to what can be played into the building pile, as they can only be started with either a 1 or a wild Skip-Bo card. Building piles must then be played up to the number 12, at which point they can be discarded for a new pile to begin.
You want to play the cards from your stockpile as quickly as possible, but you don’t want to set the next player in the line up for success. You also want to discard in the best possible order so that you have access to your cards when you need them. The best strategy is to have a discard pile of the same cards so that you can access the card whenever you need it. You may not be able to keep this going as the game goes on, however.
The next best strategy is to create piles in descending order, putting the smallest number on top. This means that if you have a discard pile that goes from 2-6 and you need a 2, you can go ahead and play your way through the discard pile. Just make sure you don’t find yourself in dire need of one of the cards in the middle, otherwise, you’ll be out of luck!
Skip-Bo Alternate Versions
Skip-Bo is a classic card game that has been released in many different forms over the years. The Skip-Bo Dice Game turns the luck of the draw into the luck of the dice. This portable dice game sets players on a mission to collect the most stars by rolling dice to fill in their build piles. It comes with dry-erase boards that players can use to record their rolls and collect stars.
There’s also Skip-Bo Junior, which reduces the stockpile to only 10-15 cards and the draw pile to only 3 cards. This simplifies the game for younger players and reduces the playing time to only 10-15 minutes. Pocket Skip-Bo is a travel version of the card game that also reduces the number of overall cards to make the game more portable.
Skipping Along with Skip-Bo
Skip-Bo is playable by 2-6 players, which makes it best suited for smaller groups or one-on-one games. It’s suitable for ages 8 and up, so it’s a good game to play with younger players to introduce them to the mechanics of card games. Playing time lasts around 20 minutes, although you’ll definitely want to play several rounds once you get going.
Skip-Bo is a perfect card game to play on family vacations or lazy Saturday mornings. Buy Skip-Bo today and enjoy the fast-paced fun of this classic card game!