About Free Printable Egyptian Ratscrew Rules
A Jack gives the next player 1 chance, a Queen 2, a King 3 and an Ace 4. Each chance is one flip from the top of their pile. If a face card or Ace turns up in time, the challenge moves to the next player at the new card's count.
By the ToolFluency team · Updated October 2026
Egyptian Ratscrew (also called Egyptian Rat Screw or ERS) is a fast slapping card game for 2 or more players, best with 3 to 6, played with one standard 52-card deck. Players flip cards onto a centre pile, battle through face-card challenges and race to slap matching combinations, and the winner is the last player holding cards. A game usually takes 10 to 30 minutes. The full printable rules sheet, with card diagrams for every slap and the challenge counts, is on this page.
How to play Egyptian Ratscrew
- Deal the whole deck face-down, one card at a time, clockwise. Hands can be uneven by one card. Each player squares their cards into a face-down pile without looking, and the table agrees which optional slaps are in play before the first flip.
- Starting with the player to the dealer's left and going clockwise, each player takes the top card of their pile and flips it face-up onto the centre pile. Always flip away from yourself so everyone sees the card at the same moment.
- If you flip a number card (2 to 10), play simply passes to the next player.
- If you flip a Jack, Queen, King or Ace, the next player is challenged: they get 1, 2, 3 or 4 flips to turn up another face card or Ace. If they do, the challenge passes on to the next player at the new card's count.
- If the challenged player runs out of chances with only number cards, the player who laid the most recent face card or Ace takes the whole pile, puts it face-down and unshuffled under their own pile, and starts the next round.
- At any moment, anyone may slap the pile when a legal combination appears. The two core slaps are the Double (two same-rank cards in a row) and the Sandwich (same rank with one card between). The first hand on the pile wins it.
- A false slap costs you one card (two at some tables), placed from your pile to the bottom of the centre pile. If two hands land together, the lowest hand wins.
- If you run out of cards you leave the rotation, but you can slap back in on a legal combination while at least two other players still have cards. The last player holding cards, in effect all 52, wins.
Face-card challenge counts
| Card played | Chances for the next player |
|---|
| Jack | 1 |
|---|
| Queen | 2 |
|---|
| King | 3 |
|---|
| Ace | 4 |
|---|
Examples
Strategy tips
- Watch every card, not just your own turn. Slaps happen during challenges too, and a Sandwich often appears while two players trade face cards.
- Keep your slapping hand resting near the pile rather than in your lap. Distance is the biggest factor in who wins a race.
- Do not slap on reflex at every pair of similar colours. One card lost per false slap adds up fast, and it feeds the pile someone else will win.
- When the won pile goes under your stack unshuffled, remember roughly where its face cards sit. Knowing an Ace is coming soon tells you when you can beat a challenge.
- If Top-Bottom is in play, note the bottom card of the centre pile as soon as a new pile starts, then watch for its match.
- Out of cards? Stay at the table and stay alert. Players regularly come back from zero by winning one big slap.
Example: a challenge chain
Ana flips a King, so Ben has 3 chances. Ben flips a 4, then a Queen on his second try, so the challenge passes to Cara with 2 chances. Cara flips a 9 and a 6, both number cards, so she fails. Ben laid the most recent face card (the Queen), so Ben takes the whole pile and starts the next round.
Frequently asked questions
How many chances does each face card give in Egyptian Ratscrew?
A Jack gives the next player 1 chance, a Queen 2, a King 3 and an Ace 4. Each chance is one flip from the top of their pile. If a face card or Ace turns up in time, the challenge moves to the next player at the new card's count.
Who gets the pile when a challenge fails?
The player who laid the most recent face card or Ace, not the player who started the chain. They put the pile face-down and unshuffled under their own cards and lead the next round.
Can you slap during a face-card challenge?
Yes. Slaps are allowed at any moment, including in the middle of a challenge and by the player whose turn it is. A legal slap wins the pile immediately, no matter whose challenge it was.
What happens if you slap when there is no combination?
You burn one card (some tables play two) from the top of your face-down pile to the bottom of the centre pile, and play carries on from the last legal card. Some groups add a three-strikes rule that takes away slapping privileges for a few rounds.
Who wins when two players slap at the same time?
The player whose hand is lowest, directly touching the pile under the other hands, wins it.
Are you out when you run out of cards?
Not yet. You stop taking turns, but you can slap back in on any legal combination as long as at least two other players still have cards. You are only eliminated when you have no cards and fail to slap your way back.
Which slaps are optional house rules?
Only the Double and the Sandwich are always in play. Marriage (King and Queen together), Tens (two cards adding to 10, Ace counts 1), Four in a Row, Top-Bottom, the 6-9 slap and Jokers are optional, so agree on them before the deal.
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