Speed Card Game Rules: How To Play, Setup Spit

Play With Rules is back again with yet another card game that you are bound to go WILD over! We are talking about Spit, a fast-paced card game that will test your ‘card game’ prowess, and today, we will understand the Speed card game rules/ spit card game rules along with the different variations and some invaluable tips.

Like most other card games, luck does play a significant role in spit, but that’s not all. Spit will test your reflexes, ability to recognize and process numbers, how quickly you can play, etc. Are you ready to learn one of the most entertaining card games one can play? Let’s dive in!

How To Play Spit Card Game/ How To Set Up Speed Card Game?

The basics are pretty simple – lose all your cards before the other player does. Spit is a card game that belongs to the shedding family, so the quicker you play all your cards, the better your chances of winning. 

Once the appointed dealer hands out the cards (a regular deck of 52 cards is distributed), players must create 5 stacks from which they will play. The rest of the cards that are left make the ‘spit’ deck. The game begins with both players calling out ‘spit’ and turning cards over from the 5 different stacks (not the spit deck) in a particular numerical order. Keep reading to get a better understanding of the game.

Objective

The game’s objective is to shed all your cards before the other player does. According to the spit card game rules, cards that are one value higher or one value lower are placed on top of each other. This continues till one player is out of all their cards. Simple, right? 

Spit Card Game Rules/ Speed Card Game Rules

Once the game is set, you are ready to play Spit. But, in order to do that, you need to learn the spit card game rules. These rules are as follows:

• The play begins with both players simultaneously calling out ‘Spit’ and flipping one card from their spit pile onto the middle of the deck. This creates two discard piles at the center of the table. 
• Players can only use one hand to play the game.
• The color and suits of the cards don’t matter – just the face value/rank.
• The top cards of each of the 5 piles can be played on top of the cards in the discard pile. However, the cards can only be played if their face value is one value higher or one value lower than the top card of the discard piles.
• If all cards from one of the 5 piles are played and an empty space is created, a player can place any one of the top flipped cards from the remaining 4 piles in place of the 5th pile, starting a new one. A player cannot have more than 5 piles or stacks.
• Cards with matching ranks or values can be stacked on top of each other. For example, if Stack No. 2 has only one card, which is 3, and Stack No. 4 has a top card, which is also a 3, then you can shift the 3 from Stack No. 4 to Stack No. 2. This will allow you to the flip next card in Stack No. 4. A player can do this within the 5 piles, as per spit/speed card game rules.
• There are no turns in this game. Once the game begins with both players calling out ‘spit,’ both players are to try to play as fast as they can. 
• Once both players cannot play a card into the middle stacks or the discard piles, they both flip a card from their ‘spit’ deck and add it to the top of the discard pile.
• If a player is out of playing cards (all 5 piles), they must slap one of the discard piles. The objective of the game is to get rid of cards quickly, so every player must try to promptly slap the shorter discard pile (the one with the fewer cards). The other player has to take the other discard pile. This marks the end of one round.
• Then, players take it with their spit pile, shuffle it, and reset the game by creating 5 playing stacks and one discard pile each.
• The spit/speed card game rules state that players can play only one card into the middle pile/discard pile at a time.
• If both players are out of spit piles and possible moves, then both players must slap a pile. The other player has to pick up that pile. The player who has discarded all their cards wins.
• If both players slap the same middle pile/discard pile, the hand at the bottom takes the pile.
• You cannot undo that move once you play a card onto the middle pile, according to the rules of spit card game. 

Deal & Speed Card Game Setup

The dealing and the setup are the most crucial part of the game, so make sure you understand this step thoroughly. The speed card game rules of dealing and setting up are as follows:

• Two players can play this game.
• A dealer is selected upon mutual agreement or via a coin toss. The dealer then distributes a regular deck of 52 playing cards among the players (equally and alternately).
• The players can shuffle the decks or leave them as is. Then, without looking, they are to create five stacks using the cards from the top. The first stack will have 1 card, and the second, third, fourth, and fifth stacks will have 2, 3, 4, and 5 cards, respectively. These cards will all be face-down.
• The remaining cards (26-15=11 cards) will make up the spit pile. Players are not allowed to look at their spit piles. It will be kept aside separately, face-down. 
• Then, the top cards of each of the 5 piles are flipped up (face-up).

Card Ranking

To play Spit, you need to understand the ranking of the cards. As mentioned earlier, the suit or the color of the cards doesn’t matter. The cards’ face value or rank is the only thing that matters. Here are the rankings:

• A (high or low)
• K
• Q
• J
• 9
• 8
• 7
• 6
• 5
• 4
• 3
• 2

The A or Ace is higher than the King and can be lower than the 2.

Variations Of Spit

Once you get the hang of the original game, you can try out some exciting variations of Spit. Here are the spit card game rules of the most popular variations that people have loved across the world:

• Picking The Discard Pile – A player can ‘slap’ a discard pile in two ways. The original way is where both players race each other to slap either of the two discard piles once one of the players is out of cards. The other way is letting the player who shed all their cards pick their discard pile by slapping it first. 
• Both Hands and Multiple Cards—This is a unique addition to the game with its own pros and cons. According to this, players are allowed to use both hands for quicker play and to put down multiple cards into the discard pile as opposed to the usual one card per turn. This makes the game more fast-paced, competitive, and thrilling. However, it will be pretty chaotic and difficult to track if a player is cheating.
• Stuck & Slap—This is a modification in which if both players are stuck (out of possible playing moves), they can slap the discard piles instead of calling out ‘spit’ and flipping a card from their spit pile. 

Tips & Strategy

The only way to truly get better at this game is to play it often and practice it with different people. That being said, there are a few things that you can inculcate in yourself that will allow you to improve your game drastically. Here are some tips to get better at ‘spit’:

• Memory Training – When you flip the top cards over (the 5 piles), make sure you try to remember the cards and their positions. This will allow you to save precious time when playing your hand.
• Focusing on a single pile—If you know you are lagging behind, switch your focus to one pile instead of both. Direct your efforts and strategy toward gaining control over that one pile.
• Break the rhythm—Break the game’s rhythm to disrupt your opponent. This psychological trick can work wonders in disrupting your opponent’s flow, especially if they are taking the lead.
• Strategy – Your strategy should never be to defeat your opponent. Your strategy should always be winning the game. This will allow you to focus on your game instead of you trying to beat your opponent at every step. This dramatically affects your decision-making skills and reflexes.
• Hone your reflexes – Awareness is key in this game. Make sure you have a fair estimation of which of the two middle piles has fewer cards. Once either player runs out of playing cards, make sure you are fast enough to slap the shorter middle/discard pile.

Scoring & Winning

• A player with 15 cards or less cannot create a ‘spit’ pile. They can only create the 5 stacks with whatever cards they have remaining. 
• The official spit/speed card game rules govern that there is only one middle pile in such a case.
• Once a player is out of playing cards, the other player must collect the entire middle pile or discard it. This means that the player who is all out has won the game.

Did You Know?

• Spit is also commonly known as ‘Speed.’ The game is said to have originated during the mid-20th century. 
• While there is no official record of the fastest spit game ever played, sources suggest that, given the card distribution, some players can finish a game in under a minute.

FAQs

Conclusion

This marks the end of the lesson: “How To Play Spit With Rules”. Now, you need to start playing this game with friends so that you can get the hang of it. But don’t forget to follow spit card game rules/speed card game rules while trying to win in this card game. Once again, the game is about more than just flipping cards faster. To win, you need to focus on your own game and strategize every step of the way. Ready? Get. Set. Spit! That’s all for now. Stay with Play With Rules to learn more about this War Card Game.