The goal
The goal is to score points by capturing cards from the table. Each time you capture every card on the table at once, you make an escoba, or sweep. At the end of each round, points also go to whoever captured the most cards, the most diamonds and the most sevens, and to whoever captured the 7 of diamonds. The first to reach the agreed score, usually 21 or 31, wins.
Players and deck
Two, three or four people can play. With two or three, it's every player for themselves; with four, it's usually two teams of two, with partners sitting across from each other. The game uses 40 cards: in Brazil, a standard deck without the 8s, 9s, 10s and jokers.
Card values
When adding to 15, cards count as follows:
- Ace
- 1
- 2 through 7
- Face value
- Queen
- 8
- Jack
- 9
- King
- 10
These are the values in the Brazilian card maker's rules. Many tables swap the queen and the jack (jack 8, queen 9). With the Spanish deck, the sota is 8, the caballo 9 and the king 10.
The deal
- The dealer gives each player 3 cards face down and places 4 cards face up in the middle of the table. The rest of the deck is set aside face down as the draw pile.
- The player to the dealer's right goes first, and play moves to the right (counterclockwise).
- When everyone has played their 3 cards, the same dealer gives each player 3 more, with none to the table, until the draw pile runs out. The dealer announces the last deal.
- Each new round, the deal passes to the player on the right.
When the table already adds up to 15
If the 4 face-up cards at the start of a round add up to 15, the dealer takes all four and scores an escoba. If they add up to 30, the dealer takes all four and scores two. Either way, the first player starts with an empty table. Some tournament rulebooks don't count a starting table of 30 as a double escoba.
Your turn
- On your turn, play one card from your hand face up.
- If it adds up to 15 with one or more table cards, you can capture those cards along with yours. For example, a 7 captures a 5 and a 3 (7 + 5 + 3 = 15), and a 6 captures a jack (6 + 9 = 15).
- Each play captures just one set of cards. If there's more than one way to make 15, you choose which set to take.
- If your card doesn't make 15 with anything, it stays face up on the table.
- The cards you capture go face down in a pile in front of you. Partners share one pile.
Under the most common rules, capturing is optional. But if you play a card that could have made 15 and leave it on the table, the next player can take that 15 before playing their own card.
The escoba
An escoba, or sweep, means capturing every card on the table in one play. Each escoba is worth 1 point. To keep track for scoring, the player who makes it leaves one of the captured cards face up in their pile.
End of the round
The round ends when the draw pile and every hand are empty. Any cards still on the table go to the player who captured last, but that doesn't count as an escoba. Then each side counts its cards.
Scoring each round
Each player, or each team, scores:
- Each escoba
- 1 point
- Most cards
- 1 point, or 2 if every other side captured fewer than 10 cards
- Most diamonds
- 1 point, or 2 for capturing all 10 diamonds
- The 7 of diamonds
- 1 point
- Most sevens
- 1 point; all four sevens score 3 points in all, which already includes the point for the 7 of diamonds
If two sides tie for most cards, diamonds or sevens, nobody scores that point. The 7 of diamonds and escobas don't depend on a majority: they always count for whoever has them.
Winning the game
Before the game starts, players agree on the target score, usually 21 or 31. Points are counted at the end of each round. The first to reach the target wins; if more than one side gets there in the same round, the higher score wins. If they're still tied, keep playing rounds until one side pulls ahead.
Variations
- Setenta: in Spain and Argentina, many tables replace the sevens point with the setenta, which adds up each side's best card in each suit on a special scale (sevens count the most, then sixes and aces).
- Checking the leftovers: the 40 cards add up to 220, and every capture adds up to a multiple of 15. So the cards left on the table at the end of a round always add up to 10 more than a multiple of 15: usually 10, 25 or 40. Many tables use this to catch adding mistakes.
- Mandatory capture: at some tables and tournaments, if you can make 15, you have to capture.
- Other targets: some tables play a quicker game to 15, and tournaments in Argentina play to 30.
- Relatives: Italian Scopa belongs to the same family, but there a card captures another card of the same value, or cards that add up to its value.
Tips for beginners
- Before you leave a card on the table, add up what the table will total: if it's 5 to 14, the next player can sweep it with a single card.
- Go after sevens and diamonds when you can: they score at the end of the round, and the 7 of diamonds is worth a point by itself.
- When you can't capture, play the card that leaves the table hardest to sweep.
- Watch the last deal: whatever is left on the table goes to the player who captured last.
On Selminha.com
The rules in Escoba on Selminha.com
Escoba on the site is played by invitation: the host sends the link, and the first three people to open it can take a seat. Anyone who arrives once the seats are taken or the game has started can watch.
- Target score
- The host chooses 21 or 31 points.
- Players and cards
- Two to four at the table. With two or three, it's every player for themselves; with four, it's two teams, and the host can pick a partner under TEAMS. The game uses 40 cards, without the 8s, 9s and 10s. Queens are 8, jacks 9 and kings 10; a small badge on each face card shows its value.
- The deal
- The host deals the first round, and the player to the host's right goes first. Play moves to the right (counterclockwise), and the deal passes to the right each new round. Each player gets 3 cards and 4 go face up on the table; when the hands run out, everyone gets 3 more until the draw pile is gone, and the LAST DEAL badge marks the final deal. If the 4 table cards add up to 15 (or 30), the dealer takes all four and scores 1 escoba (or 2, with DOUBLE ESCOBA!).
- Your turn
- Tap a card in your hand: it pops up, and the table lights up the cards that make 15 with it. Tap the table cards you want, then tap your card again or tap CAPTURE. Dragging the card to the table also plays it. To play without capturing, tap LEAVE ON TABLE; capturing is never required, but a 15 you leave can be taken by the next player. If the cards you pick don't add up to 15, you just get a message and nothing is played.
- A 15 left behind
- If the previous player left a card on the table that could have made 15, TAKE THE 15 appears: you can take that 15 before playing your own card. If that clears the table, the escoba is yours. If you play without taking it, the chance is gone.
- Escoba
- Sweeping the table shows ESCOBA! next to the player who did it, and it's worth 1 point. Each player's captured cards and escobas for the round are shown with their name.
- End of the round
- Cards left on the table go to the player who captured last, and that doesn't count as an escoba. A box shows each side's escobas, cards, diamonds, sevens and 7 of diamonds, plus the points. Any player at the table can tap NEXT ROUND to go on; the next round never starts by itself.
- Scoring
- As in the card maker's rules described above: 1 per escoba; 1 for most cards (2 if every other side captured fewer than 10); 1 for most diamonds (2 for all 10); 1 for the 7 of diamonds; 1 for most sevens (all four sevens score 3 in all, already counting the 7 of diamonds point). A tie for most cards, diamonds or sevens scores nothing.
- Winning
- The first to reach the target at the end of a round wins. If more than one side gets there, the higher score wins; if they're tied, rounds continue until one side pulls ahead.
- Bots and rematch
- Before the game starts, the host can fill empty seats with bots: Carmen, Tito and Luna. They only see their own hand and what's on the table. At the end, if everyone agrees, the rematch is played at the same table; with four, the host chooses to KEEP or SWAP the teams. There's no rematch after a game that ended because someone left the game, a player was away or the table expired.
- Time, absence and resigning
- The table is saved on the site, and nobody has to be online at the same time. If the player whose turn it is goes more than 48 hours without playing, any other player in the game can tap END GAME: PLAYER AWAY. If a player taps RESIGN or leaves through the pause menu (EXIT GAME) mid-game, the game ends and they lose; if the game is ended for absence, the absent player loses. With teams, the whole team loses and the other team wins; without teams, the player with the most points among the others wins. A table with no moves for 7 days expires with no winner.
- Chat
- Seated players can chat in writing. Spectators can read the chat but can't post.
There's no leaderboard and no site points: the result only counts at that table. Each player picks the deck design they see, and that never changes the rules.