CrossCribb, sometimes called Criss Cross Cribbage, is a game of strategy based on the original game of cribbage. Scoring is the same as regular cribbage, but there are no pegs and no wooden board for game play and up to six players can join in. Instead, a grid is used and players try to make as many hands as they can and be the first player to reach 31 points. Although CrossCribb is quickly learned, the strategy involved takes some time to master.
Game Play
Deal each player 14 cards. Do not look at your cards. Leave them laying face-down in a stack in front of you.
Lay out your board (five-card by five-card gridded mat) on a flat surface.
Cut the deck—the dealer should lift a random amount of cards and select the one on the bottom of the cards selected.
Place the cut card in the center of the grid.
Begin play by flipping the top card in each player’s pile over on their turn. The player who has not dealt (in a two player game) or the player to the dealer's left goes first.
Play the flipped card on a vacant space on the grid or toss it into the crib pile. You can only toss cards in the crib two times per hand.
Place your cards on the grid so that you build the best possible hands. In a two-player game, one player will be playing columns (up and down) and the other will play rows (across). In a game of more than two players, the goal is to complete a hand. The player that lays the fifth card, completing any hand, receives the points.
Total each five-card hand on the grid once all cards have been played.
Continue playing until one player wins by reaching 31 points.
Scoring
Score two points for pairs and for cards that total 15.
Score six points for three of a kind and 12 points for four of a kind.
Score eight points for a double three card run (for example 3, 3, 4, and 5); two points for the pair, plus six points for the double run. Score 10 points for a double four card run (for example 3, 3, 4, 5, 6). Score 15 points for a triple run (3, 3, 3, 4, 5).
Score five points for a flush (a run of at least four cards in the same suit).
Score two points for the dealer if he draws a Jack when cutting the cards and one point if he reveals a Jack in his hand that is the same colored suit as the cut card.
Things You'll Need:
- Paper
- Pencil
- CrossCribb game mat
- Playing cards
Tip
Try to build your hands while not giving your opponent points. If you lay a queen in a row that has a 4, 5, and 5, your opponent could have a 10 or possibly a 6, making his score high. If you’d score more by placing the card than he would, then it’s a good play. The key is to ensure you’ve earned more points in the placement of your card.
These scores can be combined in one hand. For example a flush that also has a pair (4, 4, 5, 6, 7) would be totaled five points for the flush and then 10 points for the double four card run for a total hand of 15 points.
Tips
- Try to build your hands while not giving your opponent points. If you lay a queen in a row that has a 4, 5, and 5, your opponent could have a 10 or possibly a 6, making his score high. If you'd score more by placing the card than he would, then it's a good play. The key is to ensure you've earned more points in the placement of your card.
- These scores can be combined in one hand. For example a flush that also has a pair (4, 4, 5, 6, 7) would be totaled five points for the flush and then 10 points for the double four card run for a total hand of 15 points.
Writer Bio
Renee Miller began writing professionally in 2008, contributing to websites and the "Community Press" newspaper. She is co-founder of On Fiction Writing, a website for writers. Miller holds a diploma in social services from Clarke College in Belleville, Ontario.
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