Spite and Malice Rules
Build from Ace to Queen, use your Kings well and empty your pay-off pile first: how to play Spite and Malice.
Spite and Malice (also called Cat and Mouse) is a two-player card game in which both players race to empty a pay-off pile by building shared stacks in order from Ace to Queen, with Kings wild. It is a kind of competitive patience, played in turns rather than at speed. The game is American and first appears in print in the 1960s, and it is a reworking of the older game Russian Bank. Hasbro sells a boxed version under the same name, and Mattel’s Skip-Bo is another. This guide covers the Spite and Malice rules most people play, a full turn, the main variations, how it differs from Skip-Bo, strategy and odds.
Spite and Malice Rules at a Glance
| Spite and Malice | |
|---|---|
| Players | Two (versions for more players exist). |
| Cards | Two standard 52-card packs, shuffled together. Aces are low, Queens high, Kings wild; suits don’t matter. |
| Pay-off pile | 20 cards each, face down, with the top card turned face up. |
| Hand | Five cards, topped up at the start of every turn. |
| Centre stacks | Up to three, shared, built from Ace up to Queen. |
| Side stacks | Up to four of your own. Playing a card to one ends your turn. |
| Winning | The first player to play every card from their pay-off pile. |
How to Set Up
- Shuffle two packs together. That gives 104 cards: eight each of Ace to Queen and eight wild Kings.
- Deal the pay-off piles. Deal 20 cards face down to each player and turn the top card of each pile face up.
- Deal the hands. Each player takes five cards. The rest of the cards go face down between you as the stock.
- Decide who starts. The player whose pay-off card is higher goes first. If they are equal, both reshuffle their pay-off piles and turn up a new card.
How to Play Spite and Malice
- Draw up to five. At the start of your turn, draw from the stock until you hold five cards.
- Build the centre stacks. Start a centre stack with an Ace and add the next card up, regardless of suit: a 6 on a 5, a Jack on a 10. Cards can come from your hand, the top of your pay-off pile or the top of any of your side stacks. When you play your pay-off card, turn up the next one.
- Use Kings as anything. A King played on a centre stack counts as the next card up.
- Five out, five more. If you play all five cards from your hand, draw five more and keep going.
- End with a side stack. When you’re done, put one card from your hand on one of your four side stacks, in any order. That ends your turn.
When a centre stack reaches a Queen it is complete: the other player shuffles it into the stock, which frees the space for a new stack. You can never put a pay-off card on a side stack, move cards between side stacks, or take cards back from the centre.
Winning, Draws and Scoring
The first player to play the last card of their pay-off pile wins. If the stock runs out first, the game is a draw; some players give the win to whoever has fewer pay-off cards left. To play a series, the winner scores 5 points plus 1 for every card left in the other player’s pay-off pile, and the first to an agreed target, such as 50, wins the match.
Spite and Malice Variations
There are many versions of the game, so agree on the rules before you start. The most common differences:
| Variation | What changes |
|---|---|
| Bigger pay-off piles | 26 cards each, or 13 for a quick game. Some groups use 21 or 25. |
| Four centre stacks | Up to four centre stacks instead of three, or no limit at all. |
| Kings can’t be Aces | A King can stand for any card except an Ace, so every centre stack must start with a real Ace. |
| Compulsory Aces | An Ace in your hand or on your pay-off pile must be played to the centre straight away. |
| Jokers | Jokers are added as extra wild cards, or replace the Kings as the only wild cards. |
| More players | Three or more can play, with an extra pack or two; four or six can play in partnerships, using a partner’s pay-off pile and side stacks. |
| The “book” version | Older card-game books deal 26-card pay-off piles from one pack and play from a second pack with jokers; side stacks must go down in order, and an Ace or 2 showing on a pay-off pile or side stack must be played at once. |
Spite and Malice vs Skip-Bo
| Spite and Malice | Skip-Bo | |
|---|---|---|
| Cards | Two standard packs (104) | A special pack of 162 |
| Wild cards | 8 Kings | 18 Skip-Bo cards |
| Stacks run | Ace to Queen | 1 to 12 |
| Pay-off / stock pile | 20 cards (two players) | 30 cards (two to four players) |
| Centre stacks | Up to 3 | Up to 4 |
| Players | Two, or more with variations | Two to six |
The idea is the same, which is why many players treat Skip-Bo as Spite and Malice with its own cards.
Spite and Malice Strategy
- Save Kings for your pay-off pile. In 39,456 simulated two-player games, a player who used Kings only to reach their pay-off card won 59% of games against one who also used them to play out hand cards.
- Watch the other player’s pay-off card. Try not to leave a centre stack one below it.
- Stack your side stacks downwards. A 9 on a 10 on a Jack can later be played to the centre as a run.
- Hold back when it helps you. You don’t have to play a card just because you can, especially if it sets up the other player.
- Empty your hand when you can. Playing all five cards gives you five fresh ones in the same turn.
Spite and Malice Odds
- Game length: with 20-card pay-off piles, the winner needs a median of 31 turns; with 26-card piles, 38.
- Kings: only 8 of the 104 cards are wild, so 34% of opening hands hold one and a 20-card pay-off pile holds 1.5 on average.
- A fast start: your first pay-off card is an Ace or a King, and can be played straight away, 15% of the time.
The game-length and strategy figures come from 40,000 simulated games per set-up, with both players following the same simple strategy.
More Card Games
Try Skip-Bo, the boxed version of the same game. For a fast two-player race played at the same time, see Spit, and for another game of building in order, Kings Corner.
Spite and Malice: frequently asked questions
How do you play Spite and Malice?
Is Spite and Malice the same as Skip-Bo?
How many decks of cards do you need for Spite and Malice?
What is another name for Spite and Malice?
How many cards are in the pay-off pile?
Are Kings wild in Spite and Malice?
What happens when a centre stack reaches a Queen?
What happens if the stock runs out in Spite and Malice?
Fadi Hayek
Author & Casino Expert
After going through several successful experiences with several industry pioneers, Fadi Hayek has managed to excel in the world of content for online gaming by providing unique content for several projects that allowed him to obtain the necessary experience to launch his career. Last but not least, Fadi also holds several certificates, including but not limited to content marketing and iGaming.
