Spit (card game) facts for kids

Spit, also known as Slam or Speed, is a fast-paced card game for two players. It's a 'shedding' game, meaning your main goal is to get rid of all your cards before your opponent does! This game is all about speed and quick thinking.

How to Win

The main goal in Spit is to be the first player to get rid of all your cards. This game is super fast! There are no turns, so you need to be quick and pay close attention. If you play all your cards first in a round, you'll have fewer cards to start with in the next round. Keep winning rounds, and you'll eventually get rid of all your cards and win the whole game!

Setting Up the Game

Spit is played with two players and a standard deck of 52 cards. First, you'll split the entire deck evenly between both players. Each player then sets up five piles of cards in front of them. This setup is a bit like the game Klondike.

Here's how to make your five piles:

• Pile 1: 1 card face up (no face-down cards under it)
• Pile 2: 1 card face down, then 1 card face up on top
• Pile 3: 2 cards face down, then 1 card face up on top
• Pile 4: 3 cards face down, then 1 card face up on top
• Pile 5: 4 cards face down, then 1 card face up on top

These five piles are called your "tableau." Your main goal is to move all these cards into two "spit piles" that will be in the middle of the table. Any cards you have left over (there should be eleven) go face down in a separate pile. This is your "spit pile" for the game.

Getting Ready to Play

After setting up your piles, look at your tableau. If you have any face-up cards of the same number (like two 7s), you can place one on top of the other. When you do this, turn over any face-down card that gets uncovered. Keep doing this until all the face-up cards in your tableau are different numbers.

You must leave your card piles on the table. You can only pick up a card when you are playing it. Players should agree if they will use one hand or both hands during the game.

How to Play

To start the game, both players say "spit" at the same time. As you say it, each player flips the top card from their own small "spit pile" into the center of the table. These two cards start the two "spit piles" in the middle.

Now, the game begins! Both players try to play cards from their tableau onto the center spit piles at the same time. There are no turns, so be quick!

Playing Cards

You can play a face-up card from your tableau onto either of the center spit piles. The card you play must be one number higher or one number lower than the card already on the spit pile. For example, if a spit pile has a 5, you can play a 4 or a 6 on it. An Ace can go on a King or a 2.

When you play a face-up card from one of your tableau piles, turn over the next face-down card in that pile. This new card can then be played. If one of your tableau piles becomes empty, you can move any other face-up card from your tableau into that empty spot. Then, turn over the card that was under it. Remember, you can also stack cards of the same number on top of each other within your own tableau piles, just like in the setup.

When You Get Stuck

Sometimes, both players might get stuck. This means no one can play any more cards. If this happens, both players say "spit" again at the same time. Then, each player flips the top card from their small "spit pile" onto one of the center spit piles. After that, you can start playing cards again!

Ending a Round

A round ends when one player has played all the cards from their tableau. As soon as this happens, both players try to slap one of the center spit piles. The player who slaps first gets the pile they slapped. The other player takes the other spit pile.

These cards are then added to the rest of the cards in your small "spit pile." You shuffle all these cards together and deal them out again to make your five tableau piles, just like you did at the start of the game. The game continues with new rounds until a winner is decided.

Winning the Game

The game changes a little when one player starts a round with 15 cards or fewer. At this point, there will only be one spit pile in the center. The first player to get rid of all the cards from their tableau does not take any cards from the center pile. Their opponent takes the single spit pile and all the cards from their own tableau.

If the player who has no cards left in their small "spit pile" is also the first to clear their tableau, they win the entire game! If their opponent clears their tableau first, the game keeps going.

Spit vs. Speed

Spit is very similar to another card game called Speed. In both games, players try to get rid of all their cards first. However, there are some key differences:

• Card Setup: In Spit, each player has a row of five piles with the top card face up. In Speed, each player has one face-down pile and a hand of five cards.
• Jokers: Speed often lets you use Jokers as wild cards, but in Spit, Jokers are usually removed from the deck. This is why you can sometimes buy decks specifically for Spit that don't have Jokers.
• Saying "Speed": In Speed, players can shout "Speed!" when they slap the final pile. You can do this in Spit too, but it's not a rule.