Objective

During each round, you will bid how many tricks you will take. If you are correct, you earn the number of tricks won times 20. If you guess incorrectly, you lose ten points for each trick off the mark you were.

Deck Contents

Suit Cards

• 14 Parrot (green) cards
• 14 Treasure Chest (yellow) cards
• 14 Pirate Map (purple) cards
• 14 Jolly Roger (black) trump cards

Special Cards

• 5 Pirate cards
• 1 Tigress card
• 1 Skull King card
• 2 Mermaid cards
• 5 Escape cards
• 2 Loot cards (expansion only)
• 1 Kraken card (expansion only)
• 1 White Whale card (expansion only)

Total: 70 cards (74 with expansions)

How to Play

Skull King is a trick-taking game played over 10 rounds.

In each round, players are dealt a number of cards equal to the round (e.g., 1 card in Round 1, 2 cards in Round 2, etc.)

Each player bids how many tricks they expect to take that round. Points are awarded for each trick taken that matches a player's bid, plus bonus points.

Incorrectly matching a bid will cause a loss of points. The player with the most points at the end of the game wins. Tie games are a shared victory.

Suit Cards

In the deck are 4 suits of numbered cards. Each card in each suit is numbered from 1 to 14. Parrots (green), Treasure Chests (yellow), and Treasure Maps (purple) are standard suits. Jolly Roger (black) is the trump (or superior) suit. This suit outranks all other suits.

If any numbered suit card is played first in a trick (even a black card), all other players must "follow suit" and play a card from their hand of that same suit. If you have a card of the suit that was led, you cannot play a black Jolly Roger card. But if you do not have a card in the suit that was led, you may play any other suit card (including a black Jolly Roger card).

Cards without numbers (mermaids, pirates, etc.) are NOT suit cards and may be played regardless of what was led.

Special Cards

A special card can be played in any trick, even if you would normally be required to follow suit.

Escape (blue): An Escape card loses to all other cards.

Pirate (red): Beats all numbered cards (including black Jolly Roger). Pirate cards have no rank among each other. If multiple are played, the player who played the first Pirate card wins the trick.

Tigress: The Tigress can be played as either a Pirate card or an Escape card. You must choose when the card is played.

Skull King: Beats Pirates and the Tigress, but loses to a Mermaid.

Mermaid: Beats all numbered cards but loses to all Pirate cards except the Skull King. If multiple are played, the player who played the first Mermaid card wins the trick.

When an Escape or Loot card is led, the next card sets the lead suit to be followed. If no player plays a Suit or other Special card, the player who played first wins the trick.

The Mermaid, Pirate, Skull King, Kraken, and White Whale have no suit. When these are led, each player may play any card they choose.

How to Win a Trick

If all cards played are the same suit, the player who played the highest numbered card in that suit wins the trick.

If a black card was played, the player who played it wins the trick, since it beats any standard suit card. If more than one black card was played, the player who played the highest numbered black card wins the trick.

If any special card was played, the player who played it wins the trick (see rules on Special cards to see what beats what). If two of the same special card (ex. two mermaids) are played, the player who played the first of those cards wins the trick.

If a Pirate, the Skull King, and a Mermaid are played in the same trick, the Mermaid wins. Only the Mermaid's "capturing the Skull King" bonus is earned.

Scoring

Bid of 1+

If you win the exact number of tricks bid, you are awarded 20 points for each trick taken. Example: Calvin bids 3 and then takes 3 tricks. This earns him 60 points (20 × 3).

If you win more or fewer tricks than bid, you lose 10 points for every trick you were off. No points are earned for won tricks. Example: Angela bids 2 but takes 4 tricks. She's off by 2 so she loses 20 points (-10 × 2).

Bid of 0

If you win 0 tricks after bidding 0, you are awarded 10 times the round number. Example: Kate bids zero on round 7 and takes 0 tricks. She scores 70 points (10 x 7).

If you win 1 or more tricks after bidding 0, you lose 10 points times the round number. No points are earned for won tricks. Example: Johnny bids 0 in the 9th round but captures 2 tricks. He scores -90 points for the round.

Bonus Points

Some cards give you bonus points, but only if you win them in the trick and make your bid. If you bid incorrectly, all bonuses are forfeited.

Suit Cards of the Highest Rank (14)

Every 14 collected in a trick (whether played by you or an opponent) earns 10 points for each standard suit (yellow, purple, or green) and 20 points for the black Jolly Roger.

Character Cards

20 points for each Mermaid taken by a Pirate.

30 points for each Pirate taken by the Skull King.

40 points for taking the Skull King with a Mermaid.

Loot Card Bonus

20 points for each player entered into a Loot alliance. (See Expansion cards)

Expansion Cards

These expansion cards count as Special cards and can be added during game creation.

Loot: The player who takes a Loot card in a trick earns 20 points if both he and the player who played it both make their bids.

Kraken: When the Kraken is played, the trick is discarded and no one wins it. The next trick is led by the player who would have won the trick.

White Whale: When a White Whale is played, Special cards cannot win the trick. The highest numbered Suit card wins the trick, regardless of suit. If 2 of the same rank are played, the player who played the first one wins the trick. If only Special cards were played, then the trick is discarded and the person who played the White Whale is the next to lead.

If a Kraken and White Whale are played in the same trick, the second one played wins. That determines the effect applied.

Pirate Powers

Pirate Powers can be enabled during game creation. Each of the five Pirate cards has a unique skill. To use the skill, you must win a trick with that pirate. Capturing one played by another player does not invoke the skill. The skill must be used immediately and does not carry over to the next round.

Rosie D'Laney: Choose any player, including yourself, to lead the next trick. Cannot be used in the final trick of the round.

Bendt the Bandit: Add 2 cards to your hand from the deck, then discard 2 cards. Cannot be used in the final trick of the round.

Rascal of Roatan: Make a side bet of 0, 10, or 20 points. If you make your bid, you win these points. If you fail to make your bid, you lose these points. Cannot be used in the final trick of the round.

Juanita Jade: You may look through the deck (i.e., cards not dealt that round) to see those not in play. Cannot be used in the final trick of the round.

Harry the Giant: You may increase or decrease your bid by 1.