Setup: the three layers
Each player is dealt three face-down cards in a row, three face-up cards on top of them, and a three-card hand. The remaining 34 cards form the face-down deck (stock). Cards must be played from the layers in strict order: hand first, then the face-up row, then the face-down cards — blind.
The swap phase. Before the first card is played, you may exchange any cards between your hand and your face-up row — as many swaps as you like. Your face-up cards will be played late, when the pile is at its nastiest, so strong cards (2s, 10s, aces) belong up there. Once both players confirm, the swaps are locked for the whole game and you lead the first turn.
The turn: equal or higher
On your turn, play one card — or several cards of the same rank — onto the pile. The play must be equal to or higher than the pile's top card. Aces are high (above kings); an empty pile accepts anything. After playing, draw back up to three hand cards while the deck lasts. Then it is your opponent's turn — unless you burned the pile (below), in which case you go again.
Can't play? Take the pile. If nothing you hold is legal, you pick up the entire pile into your hand and your turn ends. You may also take the pile voluntarily at any time on your turn — occasionally the right move when it is stuffed with 2s, 5s and 10s.
The blind deck gamble. While the deck lasts, you may always flip its top card straight onto the pile without looking. If it is legal, it counts as your play (burns and go-agains included). If not, you take the whole pile — including the flipped card.
The magic cards: 2, 5 and 10
| Card | Effect |
|---|---|
| 2 | Resets the pile: the next play may be anything at all |
| 5 | Reverses gravity for one play: the next card must be five or lower (or a magic card) |
| 10 | Burns the whole pile out of the game — and you play again immediately |
Four of a kind burns too. Whenever the top four cards of the pile share a rank, the pile burns exactly like a 10 and the player who completed the set goes again. The four cards do not have to come from one player or one turn — completing an opponent's three 7s with your fourth 7 steals the burn.
Burned cards go out of the game permanently — they are not a discard pile and can never be picked up.
Example: a mid-game exchange
The pile shows a queen. Your hand holds 4, 7, 7, J — nothing equal or higher, no magic cards. Your options: take the pile (adding a queen-topped mess to your hand), or gamble the top deck card blind. You gamble — it flips a king. Legal! It plays, you draw back toward three, and the problem is now Emma's.
Emma answers with a 2, resetting the pile, then next turn opens cheap with a 3. You gladly play both 7s on it — equal-rank cards go together — and the pile reads 3, 7, 7. If either of you can land the remaining two 7s on top, the pile burns as four of a kind and the burner keeps the turn. This is why matching an opponent's rank is never neutral in Idiot: every equal play arms a potential burn for whoever completes it.
Had the blind gamble flipped a 4 instead of a king, you would have taken the queen, the 4 and everything beneath them — a reminder that the gamble is priced exactly at the size of the pile you are trying to dodge.
The endgame: face-up, then blind
- Face-up row. Once your hand and the deck are both empty, you play from your three face-up cards — same rules, and same-rank face-up cards may go down together.
- Face-down cards. With the face-up row gone, you flip one face-down card per turn, blind. If it is legal it plays (with full effects — a blind 10 still burns). If not, you take the pile plus the flipped card into your hand, and must empty that hand again before returning to the blind cards.
- Winning. The moment your last card leaves — hand, face-up and face-down all empty — you win. Your opponent is the idiot.
Edge cases and fine print
- The 5's restriction lasts exactly one play. Once anything legally lands on it (or someone takes the pile), normal equal-or-higher resumes from the new top card.
- A 2, 5 or 10 is playable even under a 5. The "five or lower" test only ever blocks plain ranks 6 and up (and aces, which count as 14 here).
- Equal is enough. A 9 on a 9 is legal — and it inches the pile toward a four-of-a-kind burn.
- Taking the pile clears the 5. Whatever forced the pickup, the low-card restriction is wiped along with the pile.
- You refill only while the deck lasts. Once it is empty, hands shrink permanently — that is when the game turns from stocking up to racing down.
- Winning is checked after refilling. You cannot get stuck at zero cards with a deck remaining: play your last card while the deck lives and you simply draw back up.
- The blind gamble is always available on your turn while the deck has cards — even when your hand holds legal plays. It is a real gamble: an illegal flip hands you the entire pile.
- A blind flip that burns keeps your turn. Flip a 10 (or complete four of a kind) from your face-down row and you go again, straight onto your next blind card if nothing else remains.
Variants and house rules
Shithead may have more house variants than any other card game. This version plays the common online rules; the ones we deliberately do not use:
- No 7-plays-invisible or 8-skips rules. Some tables make 7 "transparent" or 8 a skip; here the magic ranks are exactly 2, 5 and 10. (Our Switch has the skip-and-punish cards, if that is your taste.)
- No 3-way or 4-way seats. This is the two-player duel; multiplayer Shithead adds turn-order politics that do not exist here.
- 5 rather than 7 as the low-card curse. Houses split between "next play under 7" and "five or lower" — we play the 5 version.
- The loser is just the idiot. No forfeit rituals, no dealing duties — the next game starts fresh with a new deal and a new swap phase.
Frequently asked questions
Who goes first in Idiot?
You do. Once both players have confirmed their swaps, the human player leads the first play of the game onto the empty pile.
Can you play multiple cards at once in Idiot?
Yes — any number of cards of the same rank go down together, from your hand or from your face-up row. Playing four of a rank at once burns the pile immediately and you go again.
Does four of a kind have to come from one player to burn the pile?
No. The burn triggers whenever the top four cards of the pile share a rank, however they got there. Completing an opponent's three 6s with your fourth 6 burns the pile and gives YOU the extra turn.
Can you play a 10 on a 5 in Idiot?
Yes. The magic cards — 2, 5 and 10 — are always legal, even while a 5's five-or-lower restriction is active. A 10 is in fact the cleanest escape: it burns the 5 away entirely.
Do burned cards ever come back in Idiot?
No. Cards burned by a 10 or a four-of-a-kind leave the game for good. They are not a discard pile and no pickup can ever retrieve them — which is why burning a pile full of low junk is so valuable.
What happens if your face-down card cannot be played?
You take the whole pile plus the flipped card into your hand. You must then shed that hand back down (with no deck left to refill anyone) before you may touch your remaining face-down cards.
Is taking the pile ever a good move in Idiot?
Sometimes — and it is allowed voluntarily on your turn, not just when stuck. A pile rich in 2s, 5s and 10s is ammunition. A pile of random middle cards is a sentence: only take that one when forced.
Are the swap decisions permanent?
Yes. The swap phase happens once, before the first play, and both players' face-up rows are then locked for the entire game. Choose the endgame cards, not the cards you want now.
Related rulebooks
- Switch rules — draw twos, black jacks and wild aces
- President rules — climb from scum to president
- Durak rules — attack, defend — don't be the fool
- Crazy Eights rules — match suit or rank — 8s are wild
Last reviewed 2026-08-05 · play Idiot online free