SCOOP
A Game by Matthew Dwight Moore (2010)
Note: This whole page contains directions to the same game.
START:
The entire game is played with 1 deck of playing cards. To start, shuffle and place the deck face down. Each player must take exactly one card from the top of the deck each turn. There are two piles in front of each player. The GO PILE is played on the left and the GAME PILE is played on the right. The player who accrues the most points in the Go Pile at the very end of the game is the only one who scores the points in the Game Pile.
MOVES:
All number cards count for 1 point each, but only in the Go Pile.
SPECIAL MOVES:
Cards marked with the number 10 = 2 points each (only when in the Go Pile).
Cards marked with the number 2 = -1 point each (in either Go Pile or Game Pile).
Aces = 1 point each (in either Go Pile or Game Pile).
Kings, Queens, and Jacks (i.e., face cards) = 1 point each (only in Game Pile).
SCOOP:
A player can scoop on their turn when they pick up their card from the deck. They use the recently picked card to pick up the top card of the same suit from any pile (including their own). For example, a 3 of diamonds is picked from the deck and a Queen of diamonds is the top card of another player’s Go Pile; The scooping player places the 3 of diamonds on top of any pile and places the Queen of diamonds on top of it.
A player may scoop more than one card at a time, but only if:
- the same conditions are met as above
- all cards are together one atop the other
- all cards are of the same suit
- the pile scooping to has more face cards than the one scooping from
- if the face card differential is 1 a player can scoop 1 (+1) = 2 (if the face card differential is 2 a player can scoop 1 (+2) = 3, and so on).
SWITCH:
If a card taken from the deck is of the same value (not necessarily the same suit) as the top card of another pile (including their own) a player may place it on top of one of their own piles and switch both entire piles with each other.
END:
The game is finished when all the cards have been taken from the deck. The winner is the player with the greatest number of total points in their Go Pile. In the case of a tie, the player with the greatest total number of face cards in both piles wins. If there is still a tie, both players score their Game Pile points.
In the likely case that there is only a single winner, that player scores all the points in their Game Pile and no one else scores their Game Pile points. The “winner” could have a score as low as -4 (no face cards and all four 2s, which are worth – 1 each), but could have a score as high as 16 (all 12 face cards and all four aces).
REPEAT IF DESIRED.
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