Dutch Blitz Rules

What you need

• One 40-card Dutch Blitz deck for each player. Each deck has the numbers 1 to 10 in four colors, and every player's deck has its own back design, so the cards can be sorted at the end of a round.
• A flat table with room for the shared Dutch piles in the middle
• A scorekeeper to give the start signal and write down the scores, or the free score keeper

Players and time

2 to 4 players (5 to 8 with an expansion pack). About 10 minutes a round.

The goal

Get rid of the cards in your Blitz pile and build as many cards as you can onto the shared Dutch piles. Each card you add to a Dutch pile scores a point, and each card still in your Blitz pile at the end of the round costs you two points.

The first player to reach 75 points wins the game.

Setup

1. Each player shuffles their own 40-card deck and sits so they can reach the middle of the table.
2. Turn the top three cards of your deck face up in a row to your left. These are your Post piles. In a two-player game, use five Post piles instead of three.
3. Count the next ten cards and place them in a face-up pile to your right, lined up with the Post piles. This is your Blitz pile. Only the top card can be played, and you may never look through it or shuffle it.
4. Hold the rest of your deck face down in your hand. You build your Wood pile from it during play.
5. The shared Dutch piles are built in the middle of the table as the round goes on.

A turn

1. There are no turns. When the scorekeeper gives the start signal, everyone plays at the same time, as fast as they can.
2. Starting a Dutch pile. Any exposed 1, of any color, can be placed in the middle to start a new Dutch pile. Only a 1 can start a pile.
3. Building a Dutch pile. Add the next number of the same color: 2, then 3, up to 10. Any player may add to any Dutch pile. The cards you can play are your exposed cards: the top card of your Blitz pile, the top card of your Wood pile, and the top card of each Post pile.
4. Post piles. You may move a card from your Blitz pile, your Wood pile or another Post pile onto one of your Post piles if it follows the Post pile rules: build downward, for example a 7 on an 8, alternating between boy and girl cards. When a Post pile is emptied, refill the space with the top card of your Blitz pile. Cards are not added back to the Blitz pile.
5. Turning cards from your hand. When you cannot play any of your exposed cards, flip three cards from your hand onto your Wood pile, so the third card is on top and playable. Always turn three at a time. If you still cannot play, turn three more. When your hand is empty, pick up the Wood pile without shuffling it, turn it face down, and turn it over three at a time again.
6. Play one card at a time from any pile, use one hand, and place the cards instead of throwing them.
7. If every player is stuck, a player may take the top card of their Wood pile and put it at the bottom, which exposes a new card.
8. If a player breaks a rule, anyone who sees it calls "Dutch!". Play stops, the cards are put back where they were, and play restarts.

Special cards and combinations

Calling Blitz

The round ends as soon as a player plays the last card of their Blitz pile and calls "Blitz!". Everyone stops at once. The player who calls Blitz does not get a bonus, but they have no Blitz penalty.

Dutch piles

Each Dutch pile is one color, from 1 up to 10. A new pile can be started in the middle at any time by anyone who has an exposed 1.

Post piles and the Blitz pile

Emptying a Post pile lets you bring the next Blitz card into play. This is the main way to clear your Blitz pile, so playing from the Blitz pile is better than building from your Wood pile when you have the choice.

Scoring

When someone calls Blitz, everyone counts the cards left in their Blitz pile and tells the scorekeeper. Then the Dutch piles are gathered and sorted back to their owners by card back, and each player counts how many of their cards went onto the Dutch piles.

Each player's score for the round is the number of their cards in the Dutch piles, minus two for each card left in their Blitz pile. Add it to your running total. A round score can be negative.

Keep score with the Dutch Blitz score keeper

How to win

Check the totals at the end of every round. The first player to reach 75 points wins. If two or more players reach 75 in the same round, the player with the highest total wins.

Common house rules

These are house rules. They are not part of the official rules, so agree on them before you start.

A different target House rule

The standard game is played to 75 points. A group can agree on a shorter or longer target. This is a house rule, and the score keeper lets you set any target.

Different point values House rule

The standard values are +1 for each Dutch pile card and -2 for each card left in the Blitz pile. A group can agree to change them. This is a house rule, and the score keeper lets you edit both values.

More than four players House rule

The box game is for 2 to 4 players. Expansion packs add decks so that more players can join. Check the rules that come with the expansion. The free score keeper handles up to four players.

Frequently asked questions

Sources

• Dutch Blitz, official site FAQ (Post piles move one card at a time, always flip three cards from the Wood pile, and scores can go negative.)
• Dutch Blitz rulebook text (Rulespal) (A transcription of the Dutch Blitz rulebook: 40-card deck, 10-card Blitz pile, Post piles, scoring (+1, -2), and the 75-point target.)
• Board Game Capital, How to Play Dutch Blitz (Player count (2 to 4), the 75-point target, and the note that the rulebook can differ by version.)
• Wikipedia, Dutch Blitz (Deck makeup (four colors of 1 to 10) and the expansion packs for 5 to 8 players.)

Dutch Blitz is a registered trademark of its owner. Rules and Scores is not affiliated with or endorsed by the makers of Dutch Blitz.