Rubamazzo

The rules, in full

Rubamazzo, which many Italian families call rubamazzetto, is played with the 40-card Italian pack. The name means "steal the pile". Here it is played by two, you against the computer, and a game is one deal.

Each player gets three cards and four go face up on the table. When the hands are empty, three more are dealt to each player until the deck runs out.

Players take turns playing one card:

• If it matches a table card, it takes it. Only the rank matters: a 5 takes a 5, of any suit. There are no captures by sum as in Scopa, and a card takes one card only.
• If it matches the card on top of your opponent's pile, it steals the whole pile. That is the move the game is named after.
• A card that can take must take. Only a card that takes nothing is left on the table.
• When a card could both steal the pile and take from the table, you choose.

Captured cards go on your own pile, face up, with the card you played on top. So the top of your pile is always the last card you played, and your opponent can see it.

When the deck and the hands are finished, the player with more cards in their pile wins. Cards left on the table belong to nobody.

Against the computer: three levels

• Easy takes what it sees and often plays at random.
• Normal weighs every move: how much it takes now, and how much it could lose if you hold a card matching the one left on top of its pile. It does not remember cards that have been covered.
• Hard remembers every card that went on either pile, imagines where the others could be and picks the best move. Once the deck is empty, it plays the last cards without a mistake.

The computer never sees your cards or the deck.

Strategy that actually helps

Watch the top of your pile. It is the card your opponent needs to steal it. A big pile topped by a rank that has barely been seen is a pile in danger.

Count the ranks. There are four cards of each rank. If three have already gone, the one on top of your pile is nearly safe. If none have, your opponent may hold one.

Sometimes it pays to change the top. A small capture from the table puts a new card on top of your pile, and can take a risky top out of your opponent's reach.

Mind what you leave on the table. A card that takes nothing stays there for your opponent. Better to leave a rank whose other cards you have seen go.

The biggest pile is not safe until the end. A whole pile goes in one move, even in the last hand: the game is not over until it is over.

Controls

• Touch or mouse: tap a card in your hand to play it; if it can take, it takes by itself. If it could both steal the pile and take from the table, both choices light up: tap the one you want.
• Keyboard: 1 to 3 play a card; when there is a choice, the arrows change it and Enter confirms. N starts a new game, L changes the level, D switches the cards between Neapolitan and Piacentine.

A little history

Rubamazzo is the game a great many Italians learned cards with: rules that take a minute to explain, and one move, stealing the pile, that turns a game around in an instant. It has as many names as there are regions (rubamazzo, rubamazzetto, rubamonte), and the rules change little from one family to the next. When you want something harder with the same cards, try Scopa, where a card also takes by sum.

Common questions

Is it free? Yes. It runs in your browser, with no signup and nothing to download.

Are Rubamazzo and Rubamazzetto the same game? Yes, they are two names for the same game, used in different regions.

Can I play Rubamazzo against the computer? Yes: you against the computer, at three levels, with Neapolitan or Piacentine cards.

Can you capture by sum? No. In Rubamazzo a card only takes a card of the same rank; capturing by sum is a Scopa rule.

Can you steal just the top card? You steal the whole pile, but only if your card matches the one on top. The cards underneath do not count.

Who wins? Whoever has more cards in their pile at the end. The same number of cards is a draw.

Is it suitable for children? Yes. It is one of the first card games children are taught, and the Easy level is meant for beginners.

Does it work on a phone? Yes. You play by tapping the cards, with the phone upright too.