Dutch Blitz Card Game
| Players | 2-4 or 8 with an expansion pack |
|---|---|
| Setup time | < 1 minute |
| Playing time | Approximately 5-10 minutes per round |
| Random chance | Medium |
| Age range | 8 and up |
| Skill(s) required | Hand-eye coordination, speed, counting |
Dutch Blitz is a fast-paced, family oriented, action card game played with a specially printed deck. The game was created by Werner Ernst George Muller, a German immigrant from Bucks County, Pennsylvania. The game is very popular among the Pennsylvania Amish and Dutch community, and among Christian groups in the United States and Canada (primarily in Mennonite communities). The game is similar to Nerts, which is played with standard playing cards and is in turn based on Canfield, a variant of the classic Klondike Solitaire. Unlike Nerts, Dutch Blitz is played with commercially produced cards.
It is an alternate version of the game Ligretto, manufactured in Germany.[1][2]
If you like double solitaire, you'll love Dutch Blitz! Each player has a set of 40 cards, numbered 1-10 and in four colors. Players lay out 3 base piles, and stack 10 cards in their 'wood' pile. Everyone plays at once in this fast-paced card game, moving cards to the communal colored piles in the center, as they compete to be the first to use. Developed in Pennsylvania Dutch country, Dutch Blitz is a card game that's exciting to play and easy to learn! Perfect for family game nights, or to play with a group of good friends, you'll.
Contents[edit]
- This card game is easy to learn (instructions included) and fast paced fun for everyone! A Vonderful Goot Game! Dutch Blitz is such vonderful goot fun For young folks – and old vones too. Vhy you should see the vones who plays They get in such a stew. Easy to learn – exciting to play, For two or three or four. And this for sure is vone such.
- Dutch Blitz has four decks of cards with 40 cards in each deck. The game can be played with two, three or four players. Each deck of cards has a different picture/design on it: plow, pail, carriage and pump. Each player chooses a deck with their preferred design and keeps it throughout the game.
The game is played with 160 cards, in four decks; Pump, Carriage, Plow, and Pail. Each deck includes 10 Red, 10 blue, 10 green, and 10 yellow cards.
Terminology[edit]
- Blitz Pile
- This pile of 10 cards is the most important pile of cards to each player since it is the key towards 'Blitzing' the other players when all cards from this pile have been cleared.
- Dutch Piles
- Stacks of cards in each of the four colors - 1 through 10 an ascending sequence - placed in the center of the table and played upon by all players. Each player accumulates scoring points here.
- Post Piles
- Groups of cards placed to the left of both the Blitz and Wood piles in descending sequence For each player, the Post Piles serve as a 'trading' or replacement area during the game. There are generally three post piles but in a two person game four or five post piles are often used to prevent the game from stalling.
- Wood Pile
- Stack of cards built to the right of a player, from cards held in that player's hand.
Objective[edit]
The objective of Dutch Blitz is to score points by playing as many cards as possible on Dutch Piles, and by emptying the Blitz Pile as quickly as possible. This is done by playing cards from the Blitz Pile, Post Piles, and Wood Pile on the Dutch piles.
Point scoring[edit]
Dutch Blitz Card Game How To Play
The game ends when a player plays all 10 of the cards out of his/her Blitz Pile and yells 'BLITZ!' Each player scores points at the end of each hand as follows:
- Add one point for each card that had been thrown out in the Dutch Piles.
- Subtract two points for each card the player has left in his/her Blitz Pile.
Usually more rounds are played until one player reaches 100 cumulative points, yet some games have gone on for days at a time.
Variations[edit]
A variation of the game relies on larger sized cards and can be called 'Full Contact Dutch Blitz', 'Running Dutch Blitz' or 'Life Size Dutch Blitz'. The larger cards must be physically run to their respective piles. This can also be a team game and is a popular activity at church retreats.
References[edit]
External links[edit]
Dutch Blitz Card Game Instructions
A few things to note here. First, it is technically not legal to play with both hands. Many people pick up one card with one hand, play it, and have another one in their other hand to play as soon as the first hand comes back.
Second, do not underestimate the power of stacking. It is incredibly useful for moving high numbers off of your Blitz pile. It is almost more useful when playing two-person teams. When playing your deck by yourself, it's hard to get the time to evaluate whether stacking is an option. I would not recommend stacking numbers lower than a 5 or 6 unless the next card in the Blitz pile is one you have a spot for.
Dutch Blitz Card Game Amazon
Finally, I wrote a free web app that makes keeping track of the score easier. Please use it and let me know what you think. It's available here: https://bassplayer7.github.io/blitz/