RockIt to Destiny Card Game - Strategy Tips & Tricks

If you haven't yet played RockIt to Destiny (a.k.a. "RockIt", this post won't make much sense to you. So go back and read the rules and find a play mate and try it out, ok? Then come back here....

Now, if you HAVE played already, here are a bunch of additional tips to enhance your RockIt pleasure:

NOTE: don't read this part until you've played at least 1-2 times, otherwise it will only confuse you!

No player is obligated to explain what they just played for the benefit of an opponent who was not paying attention. You can, you just don't have to.

Trash talking is completely optional. And yet, highly recommended. Typically in a two-person game, loser shuffles. Which is a PAIN with two decks. Loser may also have to make a snack/drink run, go check on the kids, and perform various other less desirable tasks. :-)

No player is required to make a play. During any given turn, a player can choose to draw a card and end their turn -- even if they have a valid play they could make. This is especially useful if your opponent only has a few cards left, as your new lay down could result in your opponent's ability to go out and win the game. You cannot "pass" however -- you must either make a play OR draw a card.

One strategy with a two-card game (with two different color decks, i.e., one red deck and one blue deck) involves only picking cards from the same color deck. There are advantages and disadvantages to this strategy...which is why we suggest you try it out both ways once you've got the hang of the game.

If you jack up the board only to discover that you CAN'T actually make it work the way it seemed to make sense in your mind, you can either put the whole board back the way it was, or just end your turn (IF you didn't play any cards), either way is fine BUT you must ensure that every play on the board is a valid play.

If a player jacked a play (for example, let's say they played a 4 of spades and two 4s of diamonds) and no one noticed it until the end of the NEXT person's turn, then they "got away with it" and play stays jacked. It is not recommended to attempt to make dishonest/illegal moves, but from time to time it happens and we have found that after the next player's turn, it becomes impossible to remember who jacked what, so it's easier to leave it as is. If someone DOES catch the error before the NEXT player says "RockIt" then the player who made the error has to make it right (pick up cards, or play the correct card if they have it in their hand).

You gotta watch people with Joker stealing -- I can't tell you how many times I've seen someone try to steal a Joker and then combine it with a card from the board -- when you steal a Joker, the WHOLE NEW PLAY has to come from inside your hand. AND you can't even steal the Joker unless you're holding the card it represents IN YOUR HAND. (Yes, I'm watching and you cheater-babies know who you are...)

When you've been playing RockIt all night and you're getting bleary-eyed, you've also got to watch that someone isn't playing invalid tricks. It's rarely intentional, but it just gets hard to concentrate after a couple of hours because this game is so intense.

"Killing" a Joker. When a Joker is played and the only cards that could replace it are already on the board, we call that "killing the Joker." In other words, if someone plays the Joker as the 3 of diamonds, and you're playing with 2 decks and there are already two 3 of diamonds out on the board, they just killed the joker because you can't borrow the card you need to steal the Joker. Can also kill it by playing the final 3 of diamonds instead of stealing the Joker (why would you do that? Because you don't have a play in your hand to make with a stolen Joker, so you can't steal the Joker and you'd rather kill it than have to draw another card).

When you can't come in because you don't have a 30-point play and you have to keep drawing cards and you start to get a hand cramp, we call that a "CT" or "carpal tunnel" hand. A hazard of play of course, but totally worth it when you nearly go out in one round. Woo-hoo! :-)

If one of your playmates seems to take FOREVER to complete their turn...you might consider using a timer from Scattergories or the like, to keep each game from running ridiculously long. Or you can always hum the theme song from "Jeopardy."

We have not yet configured a way to play the game for money....if you figure that part out, let us know. Right now, we're just teaching it to as many people as possible

OK, I think that's it. Have fun with RockIt!

NOTE:
The name RockIt to Destiny, the game itself, and these rules are (c) 2008 Amy Scott Grant and Francois Camenzuli. All rights reserved. So don't be a weenie and try to claim it as your own! Just have fun playing :-)