SPLIT

OBJECT OF SPLIT: The objective of Split is to be the player who has the most points after three rounds of gameplay.

NUMBER OF PLAYERS: 2 to 6 Players

MATERIALS: 104 Split Cards and 1 Split Score Pad

TYPE OF GAME: Strategic Card Game

AUDIENCE: 18+

OVERVIEW OF SPLIT

Split is a strategic card came where the goal is to get all of your cards out of your hand while also making matches and scoring points. The more cards you have in your hand at the end of a round, the more negative boxes you must fill in on the score sheet, and the less points you receive throughout the game.

Match the cards by number, or number and color, or number and color and suit to make varying levels of matches throughout the game. If you create the perfect match, you may force another player to mark a negative box, putting them that much closer to being a loser! Upgrade your matches, pay attention, and win the game!

SETUP

To begin setup, ensure that all players have a sheet from the score pad and a pencil. This is how they will keep up with their scores as the game progresses through three rounds. Shuffle through the deck and locate the four reference cards. Place them on the table so that all players can reach them if they need to.

The player who is the oldest will shuffle the cards and deal out nine cards to each of the players. The rest of the cards may be placed face down in the middle of the group, creating the draw pile. The dealer will then place the top card faceup beside the draw pile, creating the discard row.

All players will take a moment to look over their cards. The player on the dealer’s left will take the first turn, and gameplay will continue to the left.

GAMEPLAY

During your turn you may make three moves. First, you must either draw a card from the draw pile or select one from the discard row. Next, you may play or upgrade matches. Finally, you must discard one card from your hand.

When drawing a card from the draw pile, you may only take the top card and place it in your hand. If you draw the last card, the round comes to an end and you do not get a turn. Everyone will then mark one negative box for each card that remains in their hand. Cards in the discard pile are arranged in a way that you can see all the cards; each card is placed on top of the other with the other being revealed. To draw from the discard pile, you must be able to play the card and you must take all the cards on top of the playable card.

To play a match, remove two cards from your hand and play them in front of you. They must be the two matching halves of the card. You may play as many matches as you wish, and when one is created, complete the bonus actions that are found on the back of the match. Upgrading matches can be done by playing a card from your hand to a card that is already on the table. You may only make upgrades that make the match stronger, weaker upgrades are not allowed.

Finally, when you have made all the moves you wish during your turn, you must discard a card in your hand to the top of the discard row. You must discard a card every turn.

When a player discards the last card in their hand, the round comes to an end. All other players must fill in a negative box for every card that remains in their hand. If a player goes out on their first turn, all players who have not had a turn may play the matches in their hand before scoring. No bonus actions are completed.

Matches

Matches are the most important part to the game. These are what will earn players points. A perfect match may be created when two identical halves are matched. A strong match is made when the two halves have the same matching number and color, but not the same suit. A weak match is made when the cards have the same number, but not the same suit or color.

Matches must always be the same number, if not, then they cannot be matched.

Bonus Actions

As soon as you make a match, you must complete the bonus action before you can even create your next match. If you create a perfect match, you get to select a player to mark a negative box on their scoresheet. When a strong match is made, you may draw a card from the draw pile, but you do not have to. If you make a weak match, you may trade one of your played matches for that of another player, but you must trade for a match of the same type, not one stronger or weaker.

END OF GAME

The round comes to an end when a player has discarded all of the cards in their hand or there are no more cards available in the draw pile. When this happens, players will mark their scorepads. For each match, players fill in a box, and for each card remaining in their hand, they fill in a negative box. To begin a new round, players simply shuffle all of the cards and deal nine cards again. The player who went out becomes the dealer.

After three rounds of play, the game comes to an end. To add up all their points, players add up the values in the first open boxes of each row found in the top half and subtract the first open boxes from the bottom half. The player with the highest score wins!

Nakoa Davis
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