Scopa strategy

Keep the table above ten

No card in the pack is worth more than ten, so a table whose cards add up to eleven or more cannot be swept in one go. When you have to lay a card down, check what the table will add up to afterwards. A table of seven and three is a scopa for any king; add a five to it and nobody can clear it.

The worst thing to leave is a single low card. Whoever holds the match sweeps it, and there are three more of every number in the pack.

Sevens are the game

A seven is worth 21 in the primiera, more than any other card, and the seven of coins — the settebello — is a point of its own. Most deals are decided by who ends up with the sevens, so take one whenever a capture offers it, and think twice before laying a seven down where someone else can pick it up.

If you hold the settebello, use it to capture as soon as you sensibly can. Once it is in your pile it cannot be lost; while it is in your hand you may be forced to leave it on the table.

Count what has gone

There are four cards of every number. If three kings have already been played, a king left alone on the table is safe from everyone but the player holding the last one — and that may be you. Keeping a rough tally of sevens, sixes and the court cards is most of what separates good players from lucky ones.

Count the coins too. There are ten, and once you have six the point for most coins is yours, which frees you to give the rest away.

Choose the capture, not just a capture

When a card can take more than one group, the choice matters more than it looks. Take the group with the coin or the seven in it, or the one that leaves the table harder to sweep. Taking more cards is good for the point for most cards, but a scopa handed to your opponent costs more than two extra cards are worth.

Remember the rule about singles: if your card matches one card exactly, that is the only thing it can take. Leaving a three and a four next to each other only works for a seven if there is no seven on the table already.

Play the end of the deal

The last player to capture takes everything left on the table when the pack runs out, which can be four or five cards and the point for most cards with them. In the last round of three, try to keep a card that can still capture for your final play.

Near the target, play the points you need. If you need only the settebello to win, guard it above everything; if your opponent is one point short, deny them sweeps before anything else.