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SCHEISSEKOPF

SCHEISSEKOPF

THE OFFICIAL GAME OF BITENIGHT

THE OFFICIAL GAME OF BITENIGHT

OVERVIEW

GOAL

Get the most points by using doubles, triples, four-of-a-kind, and special cards to stay in the game as long as possible. Force other players out of their hands early and plan your exit for the right moment. The player with the most points at the end of all rounds is the winner.

 

SPECIAL CARDS

We’ll explain what they all do below, but the cards you really want to remember are Jokers, 2s, 3s, and 10s. They each can play on anything and are very helpful in a pinch.

SET UP

Each player is dealt 9 cards to start. 

3 face down —The Gamble

3 face up — The Bank

3 more face down —The Hand.

Put the rest of the deck face down in the middle, within reach of all players —The Draw Pile.

POINTS

Play one round per player. First out get’s 10 points, second get’s 20, third, 30 and so on, until one person is left with cards on the table, the Scheissekopf, 0 points. Sheissekopf can be played with any number of players and any number of decks. For 5 or more players, start adding decks.

GAMEPLAY

STOCKING THE BANK

To set themselves up for the end of the round, each player may swap cards in their hand with cards in their bank. (tip: a common strategy is to put your highest value cards in your bank, like face cards and special cards).

 

STARTING A ROUND

Low card starts the round, so the first player with a 4 in their hand plays it in the center of the table, starting the stack. It’s first come, first serve, so whoever’s got one or more 4’s in their hand, throw ‘em down. Play continues to the left. No 4s? Start with 5s. Still no? 6s, 7s, and so on.

 

TAKING YOUR TURN

On your turn, replace the top card of the stack with a matching or higher card. If you can’t, you take the stack and add it to your hand. Keep in mind the Special Cards that can play on anything. 

 

KNOW YOUR CACHE

Your cache of cards consists of three sections that must be played one at a time and in order— first your Hand, then your Bank, and, finally, your Gamble. Anytime you draw or take the stack, those cards go into your hand—even if it was empty—and you gotta get rid of them before digging back into your bank or gamble.

 

You must have at least 3 cards in your hand, so as long as the Draw Pile isn’t empty, replenish your Hand with it at the end of each turn. 

GAME COMPONENTS

THE STACK

This is the pile of cards that everybody’s playing on. You just have to beat what’s sitting on top, but keep an eye on what’s goin in there. You’ll wanna know what you or somebody else is getting when they pick it up. It’s not always a bad thing to take the stack.

 

THE GAMBLE

3 cards dealt face down at the top of each round. DO NOT LOOK at these cards. The gamble is played blind, one card at a time, once the player has no other cards in their hand or the bank.

 

THE BANK

3 cards dealt face up to each player. The Bank can only be played once the Draw and the player’s Hand are empty. The Bank remains face-up and viewable by all players.

 

THE HAND

Each player’s hand starts with 3 cards and, as long as the Draw has cards in it, the player’s hand must always have at least three cards in it. 

 

THE DRAW PILE

Whatever’s left over after the initial deal gets put facedown within reach of all players. This is the draw pile. Players pull from the draw pile after each turn, to get their hands back up to three cards. The game really starts once the drawpile is empty.

SPECIAL CARDS

JOKERS

Jokers play on anything and are one time use. On your turn, show it to whoever you want, forcing them to take the stack. The player to their left starts the next stack and the joker goes into the discard pile. (hint: you can show the joker to yourself if you’re looking to take that stack).

 

TENS

Tens play on anything and blow the stack. On your turn, play the ten and clear the whole pile, including your ten, to the discard pile. You start the next stack.

 

THREES

Threes play on anything and are invisible. The next player must play on whatever is underneath the three, not the three itself. Because threes are invisible they don’t break up a 4 of a kind. 

 

TWOS

Two’s play on anything and anything plays on a two. It’s a good way to restart the stack without clearing anything.

 

SEVENS

Sevens do not play on anything, you gotta play them in order, like on another seven or something lower. The next player must play the same card or lower, just for one turn and then it’s back to normal game play.

 

EIGHTS

Eights do not play on anything, play these in order on something lower, like a 2, 6, 5, or another 8. Eights skip the next player and stack. With only two players eights no longer stack. Any amount played at once just skip the other player’s turn.

SPECIAL RULES

TAKING THE STACK

You take the stack when you can’t play on it or when someone shows you a joker. Anytime you take the stack, it goes into your Hand, regardless of what section of cards you’re playing from. If you’re playing from your gamble, add whichever card you flipped to your hand with the rest of the stack. 

 

4-OF-A-KIND

Cards matching in face can be played at the same time and 4 of a kind blow the stack. If you can create the 4 of a kind from cards on top of the stack, you can jump in out of turn. 3’s are invisible, so they don’t break up 4 of a kind. 

EXAMPLE:

1. Jimmy plays a queen, timmy plays another queen, Sarah jumps in out of turn by throwing down the last two queens. 

 

2. Jimmy plays two jacks, timmy lays down an invisible 3, Billy plays another jack on top, Sarah jumps in out of turn with the last jack.

You still have to do things in order, so even if you’ve got those last three kings staring up at you from the Bank, you can’t throw touch them while there are still cards in your Hand.

LOW CARD LEAVE

If  you manage to successfully exit the game on a 4, you get a bonus 10 points. This very rarely happens so people should cheer… or at least gasp.

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