How to Play Phase 10 (Classic)
Overview
Phase 10 is a rummy-style 'contract' card game: each hand you're trying to complete a specific meld (a 'Phase'), lay it down, and then get rid of the rest of your cards by hitting on any laid-down phases and by discarding. The catch: you must complete Phases in order, and if you don't finish your Phase before someone goes out, you're stuck repeating that Phase next hand.
Components (what comes in the box)
- 110 total cards:
- 96 numbered cards: two of each number 1-12 in each of four colors
- 8 Wild cards
- 4 Skip cards
- 2 Phase Reference cards (list the 10 phases)
Note: Only the playable deck is 108 cards; the 2 Phase Reference cards are just reminders.
Setup
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Choose a dealer.
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Place the two Phase Reference cards where everyone can see them.
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Shuffle the deck and deal 10 cards face down to each player.
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Put the remaining deck face down as the draw pile.
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Flip the top card of the draw pile face up to start the discard pile.
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The player to the dealer's left goes first; play proceeds clockwise.
Key definitions (the building blocks of Phases)
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Set: two or more cards with the same number (colors don't matter).
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Run: four or more cards in consecutive numerical order (colors don't matter).
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All one color: cards all the same color (numbers don't need to be consecutive).
The 10 Phases (in order)
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2 sets of 3
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1 set of 3 + 1 run of 4
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1 set of 4 + 1 run of 4
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1 run of 7
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1 run of 8
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1 run of 9
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2 sets of 4
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7 cards of 1 color
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1 set of 5 + 1 set of 2
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1 set of 5 + 1 set of 3
Turn structure (every turn is the same 4-step loop)
On your turn you do these steps, in order:
Step 1: Draw a card
Draw one card from either:
Step 2: Lay down your Phase (if you can)
If you can make your current required Phase using the cards in your hand, lay it down face up on the table.
Important constraints:
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You can lay down only one Phase per hand.
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You must have the entire Phase in hand before you lay it down.
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Phases must be completed in order (1 -> 10).
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You get credit immediately when you lay down the Phase; you do not need to 'go out' (win the hand) to advance.
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If you don't complete your Phase before someone goes out, you must attempt the same Phase again next hand.
Step 3: Hit (optional, but how you actually 'escape' your hand)
After you have laid down your Phase, you may 'hit' by adding cards from your hand onto any matching Phase already on the table (yours or someone else's), as long as the added cards properly fit.
Rules that trip people up:
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You can't hit until your own Phase is already down.
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You may hit only during your turn.
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You can make as many hits as possible (across multiple phases).
Step 4: Discard one card to end your turn
End your turn by discarding one card face up on the discard pile.
Going out (ending the hand)
Once your Phase is down, your mission becomes: get rid of every card left in your hand. You can do that by:
To 'go out,' you must end up with zero cards in hand-either by discarding your last card or by playing your last card as a legal hit (so you have nothing left). When a player goes out, the hand ends immediately for everyone.
What advances your Phase (and what doesn't)
At the end of a hand:
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The player who went out wins the hand (and scores 0 points).
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Any player who completed their Phase during that hand advances to the next Phase next hand.
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Anyone who did not complete their Phase stays on the same Phase next hand.
Special cards (Wild and Skip)
Wild cards
Wild cards are 'whatever you need' cards:
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A Wild may stand in for a number card or count as any color to help complete a Phase.
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You can use multiple Wilds, but your Phase must include at least one numbered card (no 'all-wild' Phases).
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Once a Wild is played into a Phase, it cannot be removed for the rest of the hand.
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If the dealer starts the discard pile with a Wild, the first player may pick it up.
Skip cards
Skip cards are pure disruption:
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To play a Skip, you discard it on your turn and choose a player who will lose their next turn.
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Playing a Skip counts as your discard and ends your turn immediately.
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A Skip card may never be used in making a Phase.
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A Skip card may never be picked up from the discard pile.
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If the dealer starts the discard pile with a Skip, the first player's first turn is automatically skipped.
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You may not Skip the same player two turns in a row (they must get a normal turn before being Skipped again).
End of game and winning
The game is usually multiple hands long. It ends when:
- A player completes Phase 10, and the hand ends.
Winner determination:
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The first player to complete Phase 10 at the end of a hand wins.
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If two or more players complete Phase 10 in the same hand, the player with the fewest total points wins.
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If there is still a tie, the tied players replay Phase 10, and the first to go out wins.
A quick 'feel' example (one hand)
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You are on Phase 2 (1 set of 3 + 1 run of 4).
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You draw and now have: three 9s (a set), plus 3-4-5-6 (a run). Great - you lay down Phase 2.
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On later turns, you 'hit' by adding extra cards to other players' runs/sets (because now your Phase is down).
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You discard your last card and go out. The hand ends; you score 0, and everyone else scores the value of the cards left in their hands.
Common edge cases (worth agreeing on before someone flips the table)
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You can't advance just because you almost finished: no Phase laid down = you repeat it next hand.
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Only cards in hand score: don't score melded cards already on the table.
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Skipping is a discard: you don't get to Skip and then discard another card.
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Skip cards are 'dead' in the discard pile: no one can ever pick them up, even if they're on top.
