Skyjo Action
Skyjo Action Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Components
150 cards, comprising:
- 15 star cards
- 11 cards valued "0"
- 7 each of the cards valued 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6
- 7 each of the cards valued 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, and 12
- 3 cards valued "-2"
- 3 blank pink cards, for adding your own action card ideas
- 3 of each of the 9 action card types (illustrated and explained below)
Ages 8+. 2-8 players. About 30 minutes.
Goal of the Game
In Skyjo Action, the person who totals the fewest points wins! Play several rounds, until someone reaches 100 points. The person with the fewest points then wins the game.
Setup
Start by separating the cards into two decks:
- a deck containing the Number cards and the Star cards;
- a deck containing the action cards illustrated below: Swap with another player, Swap your own cards, Draw three, Look at a row or column, and Meteor shower.
So put away the following cards: Double move, Defense, Reactivation, and Thief.
For renewed enjoyment, once you are familiar enough with the game, feel free to progressively add the other action cards. You can indeed vary the actions available during your games as you see fit.
Shuffle each deck separately, then:
- The 4 top cards of the action deck are turned face up in a row next to the deck. Leave room at the end of this row to form the action discard pile.
- Every time an action card is taken from the action row, it is immediately replaced by the card from the top of the deck.
- Everyone receives 12 cards from the Number/Star deck, then arranges these 12 cards face down in front of them in a rectangle of 4 cards per row by 3 cards per column (see illustration). Two of these cards are turned face up at random. Add up the value of these 2 cards. The person whose sum of values is the highest will be the first to play in the first round (then play clockwise). If you turn over a star, take a card of your choice from the action row and place it next to your play area. Then restock the action row.
- The remaining Number/Star cards are then placed in a deck in the center of the table. We will call it the main deck. The top card is turned over next to the deck: this is the first card of the main discard pile.
Setup Example for 2 Players
The diagram shows, from left to right: the main deck (face down), the main discard pile (one face-up card), the action deck (face down), the action row (4 face-up action cards), and the action discard pile (empty). Below, each person's play area shows a 4×3 grid of cards, some face up and some face down, matching the setup described above.
How to Play
A game of Skyjo Action consists of a certain number of rounds. During each of these rounds, perform one of these three actions, of your choice:
- Take a Number/Star card
- Take an action card
- Activate an action card
1) Take a Number/Star Card
You can:
a) Take the face-down card at the top of the main deck, OR b) Take the face-up card at the top of the main discard pile.
a) If you choose to take the face-down card at the top of the main deck, look at it and choose to keep it or discard it. If you decide to keep it, place it face up in place of one of your 12 cards (it doesn't matter whether that card was face down or not). The card you remove from your play area goes to the top of the main discard pile, face up.
If this card does not interest you, you can decide to discard it. Place it, face up, on the main discard pile. Then, turn over one of your face-down cards so that it is face up.
b) If you choose to take the face-up card at the top of the main discard pile, exchange it, face up, with one of your 12 cards (it doesn't matter whether that card was face down or not). The card you remove from your play area goes to the top of the main discard pile, face up.
2) Take an Action Card
You can take the face-down card at the top of the action deck, OR take a face-up card from the action row (then restock the action row).
Place the action card you took next to your play area. You may activate it starting from the following turn.
3) Activate an Action Card
Discard, face up on top of the action discard pile, an action card in your possession in order to benefit from its effect (see "Action Card Effects" below). You can also choose to discard an action card without triggering its effect.
Action Cards
- An action card cannot be activated during the turn on which it was taken, but only starting from the following turn (unless stated otherwise).
- It is forbidden to play an action card once the end of the round has been triggered.
- You can hold as many action cards as you wish.
The effects of the action cards are detailed under "Action Card Effects" below.
Skyjo!
Do you have a column of 3 identical cards, or a row of 4 identical cards (after turning over or replacing one of your cards)? Wonderful — you can immediately get rid of that entire row/column by discarding the cards that make it up onto the main discard pile, in the order of your choice.
Careful! During any one round, you can only use the power of the Skyjo on rows, or on columns, of your play area. In other words, if you first clear a column using this effect, you will not be able to clear rows during the same round, and vice versa.
Action Card Effects
- Swap with another player: Exchange one of your cards with another person, or exchange — in the same way — a card between opponents. You can exchange face-up or face-down cards. Face-up cards stay face up, face-down cards stay face down.
- Swap your own cards: Swap the position of two of your own cards. They can be taken face down or not, and stay on the same face.
- Draw three: Draw 3 cards from the top of the main deck. Keep one of them if you wish. Place the remaining cards, face up and in the order of your choice, on the discard pile. If you keep no card, turn one of your play area's cards face up instead.
- Look at a row or column: Look at the face-down cards of an entire column or row in your play area or in an opponent's play area.
- Meteor shower: Remove one card in play from each opponent and place it under the main discard pile. It can be a Number, Star, or action card. Then replace each removed Number/Star card with the card from the top of the main deck. Removed action cards are not replaced.
- Double move: Immediately play two additional turns.
- Defense: This card protects you from the negative effect of an action card targeting you. If the negative effect of an action card targets you, you can discard this card instead of suffering that effect. You can also activate this card in order to discard it and play an additional turn.
- Reactivation: Immediately play a card of your choice from the action discard pile.
- Thief: Steal an action card from an opponent's play area; play it immediately.
End of the Game
Throughout the game, add up the score of each of your rounds with that of the previous rounds. As soon as someone reaches or exceeds 100 points at the end of a round, the game is over.
The person with the fewest points wins the game!
Variants
For renewed enjoyment, feel free to apply the following variants:
- A single deck: During setup, take out 5 to 10 action cards of your choice from the action deck, and shuffle them into the main deck. Store the remaining action cards in the box. During the game, if you draw or turn over an action card, choose to keep it near your play area or discard it. Either way, draw a new card as a replacement.
- Large group: You can play with up to two more people. To do so, deal only 9 cards per person, and arrange them in a 3×3 square. Reveal only one of your cards during setup.
- Simple: For easier games, play without the action cards. (Maximum 6 people.)
- Even simpler: For even easier games, play without the action cards and without the star cards. (Maximum 4 people.)