Trick-taking card game with bidding, bonuses, and round-based scoring.
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Turn timer
Keep turns moving with a per-player clock for Skull King.
The full 10-round Skull King experience. Each round, players are dealt an increasing number of cards, bid on how many tricks they will win, then play out the tricks. Nail your bid to score big; miss it and you lose points. The escalating hand sizes make each round more dramatic than the last.
Skull King is a trick-taking card game with a pirate theme and a bidding twist. Over 10 rounds, players are dealt an increasing number of cards (1 card in round 1, 2 in round 2, up to 10 in round 10). Before each round, everyone simultaneously bids on exactly how many tricks they will win. The catch: you score points only if you hit your bid exactly. Overbid or underbid and you lose points. Special cards like the Skull King, Pirates, Mermaids, and Escape cards add layers of strategy and chaos to every trick.
Skull King is a trick-taking card game for 2-6 players played over 10 rounds. Each round, hand sizes grow by one card, bids are placed simultaneously, and tricks are played. Hitting your bid exactly earns big points; missing it costs you. Special character cards create dramatic upsets and power plays.
Numbered Suit Cards — Cards in four suits (Parrots/Green, Treasure Chests/Yellow, Treasure Maps/Purple, Jolly Rogers/Black) numbered 1-14.
Jolly Roger (Black) Cards — The trump suit, always beats other colored suits.
Pirate Cards (5) — Beat all numbered cards, including black.
Skull King (1) — Beats everything except Mermaids.
Mermaid Cards (2) — Beat the Skull King; lose to Pirates and numbered cards.
Escape Cards (5) — Worth nothing; cannot win a trick (played to duck out).
Loot Cards (2, optional in some editions) — Bonus-point cards that attach to the trick winner.
Tigress (1, some editions) — Can be played as either a Pirate or an Escape.
Shuffle the entire deck.
Round 1: deal 1 card to each player. Round 2: deal 2 cards. Continue up to Round 10: deal 10 cards.
Place remaining cards aside (they are not used during that round).
After looking at their cards, all players simultaneously reveal their bid — the exact number of tricks they intend to win this round. Common methods:
Bids are public once revealed and cannot be changed.
The player to the left of the dealer leads the first trick. Play proceeds clockwise.
Leading a trick: The lead player plays any single card from their hand.
Following suit:
If a colored suit is led (Parrots, Treasure Chests, Maps), you must follow suit if you have a card of that suit.
If you cannot follow suit, you may play any card (including Black/trump, Pirates, Mermaids, Escapes, or the Skull King).
If a special card (Escape, Pirate, Mermaid, Skull King) is led, there is no suit to follow — you may play anything.
If a Black (Jolly Roger) card is led, you must follow with Black if you have one.
Winning a trick — the hierarchy:
Skull King beats everything, unless a Mermaid is also in the trick.
Mermaid beats the Skull King (and only the Skull King among special cards). Loses to Pirates and all numbered cards.
Pirates beat all numbered cards (including Black). Lose to the Skull King.
Black (Jolly Roger) suit is trump and beats all non-Black numbered cards.
Colored suits — highest card of the led suit wins if no Black or special cards are played.
Escape cards cannot win a trick.
If multiple special cards of the same type are played, the first one played takes priority.
The winner of each trick leads the next trick.
After all tricks in the round have been played, score each player:
If you hit your bid exactly:
Bid of 1+: Score 20 points per trick bid. (Bid 3 and win 3 = 60 points.)
Bid of 0: Score 10 points multiplied by the current round number. (Bid 0 in round 7 and win 0 tricks = 70 points.)
If you miss your bid (over or under):
Bid of 1+: Lose 10 points per trick you were off (in either direction). (Bid 3, won 1 = off by 2 = -20 points.)
Bid of 0 and won any tricks: Lose 10 points multiplied by the current round number. (Bid 0 in round 7 but won 2 tricks = -70 points.)
Bonus points (hit bid only):
If you captured the Skull King with a Mermaid in a trick: +50 bonus points per Skull King captured.
If you captured a Pirate with the Skull King: +30 bonus points per Pirate captured.
These bonuses are only awarded if you hit your bid exactly.
Collect all cards, reshuffle the entire deck, and deal one more card per player than the previous round.
The game ends after Round 10 (10 cards each). Add up all 10 rounds of scores for each player.
Winner: Highest cumulative score after 10 rounds.
Tiebreaker: If tied, the player who hit their bid in more rounds wins. If still tied, the player with the higher score in round 10 wins. If still tied, players share the victory.
All Escapes in a trick: If every card played is an Escape, the player who led the trick wins it (they "escape last").
Multiple Pirates: The first Pirate played wins the trick (unless the Skull King is also in the trick).
Mermaid vs. Pirate: The Pirate wins. Mermaids only beat the Skull King.
Tigress (if using): Must be declared as Pirate or Escape when played, not after.
Bidding 0 is high-risk, high-reward: The payoff scales with round number, but so does the penalty.
Loot cards (if using): Loot cards add bonus points to the trick winner but do not affect trick resolution. They are played alongside a regular card.
Skull King is a highest-cumulative-score-wins game. Points are earned (or lost) each round based on bidding accuracy.
| Situation | Points |
|---|---|
| Hit bid of 1+ | +20 per trick bid |
| Hit bid of 0 | +10 x round number |
| Missed bid of 1+ | -10 per trick off |
| Missed bid of 0 | -10 x round number |
| Bonus: Mermaid captures Skull King (bid hit) | +50 per capture |
| Bonus: Skull King captures Pirate (bid hit) | +30 per Pirate captured |
Scores can swing wildly. A player might be at -40 after round 5 and win with +180 by round 10. The escalating hand sizes and bid-of-zero stakes create dramatic comebacks.
Result type: Cumulative score (sum across all 10 rounds).
Score direction: Higher is better.
Game ending: Fixed rounds (exactly 10 rounds).
Recommended ranking methods: Win percentage, average score, podium rate, average placement.
Number of rounds where the player hit their bid exactly.
Score in round 10 alone.
Shared victory if still tied.
Select the Standard Bidding Rounds variant (full 10-round game).
Add all players (2-6).
Enter each player's final cumulative score — the sum of points earned and lost across all 10 rounds.
The system ranks players from highest to lowest cumulative score.
Final scores typically range from -50 to 250+ depending on bidding accuracy and bonus captures.
Negative scores are valid and common — enter them as-is.
If you track per-round data, note each player's bid and tricks won per round for richer analysis.