Spite & Malice is a thrilling competitive patience game designed for two players, offering a strategic blend of luck and skill. Each player begins with a hand of 5 cards, a pay-off pile containing 20 cards, and 4 empty side stacks. Centrally, there are 3 empty center stacks and a stock pile with the remaining cards.
The ultimate goal? Be the first to empty your pay-off pile! The center stacks are built up sequentially from ace to king, regardless of suit. For example, you could follow an ace of diamonds with a two of spades, then a three of hearts, and so on. Kings are the wild cards here; when you play a king on a center stack, it transforms into the next required card. If you place a king of spades on a ten of clubs, it becomes a queen, seamlessly continuing the sequence.
Once a center stack reaches a queen or a king atop a jack, it's completed and shuffled back into the stock pile. Side stacks are more flexible; you can place any card there, but only the top card is playable. At the beginning of your turn, replenish your hand to 5 cards from the stock pile.
Your turn offers several move options:
- Play the top card from your pay-off pile onto a center stack.
- Play the top card from one of your side stacks onto a center stack.
- Play a card from your hand onto a center stack.
- Play a card from your hand onto one of your side stacks, which ends your turn.
The game concludes when a player successfully empties their pay-off pile onto the center stacks, winning the round and earning points equal to the number of cards left in their opponent's pay-off pile. If the stock pile runs out before this happens, the game ends in a tie with no points awarded.
The match is won by the first player to accumulate 50 points. Dive into Spite & Malice for a competitive challenge that tests your patience and strategic prowess!
Tags : Card
