How to Play Chorizo y Báciga

Chorizo y Báciga is a Uruguayan cousin of Escoba — sweep the table clean, capture toward 15, and declare combinations in your hand for bonus points. Beat your opponent across seven scoring categories, first to 21 wins. Learn the rules here, then play free as part of our Ultimate Scopa Collection.

Overview

Chorizo y Báciga is a Uruguayan cousin of Escoba — sweep the table clean, capture toward 15, and declare combinations in your hand for bonus points. It's what sets this game apart from plain Escoba: each time you're dealt a fresh batch of 3 cards, check your hand before playing from it. If it contains a combination, declare it for instant bonus points — once you play a card from that batch, the chance is gone for good. Beat your opponent across seven scoring categories, first to 21 points wins the match.

How to Play

1. Deal. 4 cards go face-up on the table, and 3 cards to each player's hand.
2. Check for a declaration. Before you play your first card from a fresh batch, look for Flor, Escalera, Chorizo, Báciga or Báciga y Pares in your hand.
3. Play a card from your hand — this is mandatory if the card can capture.
4. Capture or discard. A capture requires two or more table cards summing to exactly 15 — a matching rank alone does nothing here. Discard if nothing sums to 15.
5. Redeal. When both hands are empty, 3 more cards are dealt to each player (no new table cards), repeating until the deck runs out.
6. Leftover cards. Whatever's left on the table at the very end is picked up automatically, but this does not count as an Escoba.
7. Score the seven categories and keep playing rounds until one side's running total reaches 21.

How Capturing Works

Play a card from your hand. It captures table cards only when they sum to exactly 15. Unlike some other fishing-card games, a matching rank alone does nothing here — every capture must add up to 15, whether that's a single table card or several played together. If the card you choose has more than one valid combination, you choose which cards to take. Capturing is mandatory whenever a combination is available.

Card Combinations — Declarations

Combinations can stack — three 3s is both a Chorizo (20) and a Báciga y Pares (3), for 23 points from one hand!

Special Scoring Cards

7 of Oros — the most important card in the game. Whoever captures it scores 1 guaranteed point; always prioritise it.

2 of Bastos — Chorizo y Báciga's own special card, on top of the 7 of Oros. Whoever captures it scores 4 guaranteed points — well worth fighting for.

¡Escoba! — Clearing the Table

If your capture takes the last cards off the table, you score an Escoba — worth +1 point added to your final total. A dealt table that sums to 30 scores 2 Escobas at once. The automatic pickup of leftover cards at the very end of a round does not count as an Escoba.

End of Round — Seven Scoring Categories

Prime Explained

Each player picks their best card from each of the four suits, using this scale: 7 is worth 7 points (the highest), 6 is worth 6, 5 is worth 5, 4 is worth 4, 3 is worth 3, 2 is worth 2, the Ace is worth 1, and the Sota, Caballo and Rey are worth 0 — nothing at all for Prime. Total the four values; the highest total wins the point. A side missing a whole suit cannot win Prime.

Match Play — First to 21

Chorizo y Báciga is played over several rounds in a row, not just one — each round's points add to a running match total. The first player to reach 21 points in the match total wins. If both sides reach 21 in the same round with equal totals, one extra sudden-death round is played, repeating until someone is ahead. If one side already leads (even by 1 point), they win immediately with no sudden death needed.

Strategy Tips

• Never miss a declaration. A Flor or Escalera is 3 free points, and a Chorizo is 20 — always check a fresh hand before you play from it.
• Fight for the 2 of Bastos. At 4 guaranteed points, it's worth more than the 7 of Oros — don't let it slip away cheaply.
• Build toward Prime early. Since face cards score nothing for Prime, holding onto high pip cards (6s and 7s especially) pays off twice — once at capture, once at Prime.
• Watch for sudden death. Once either side nears 21, every declaration and Escoba matters more than usual — a single Chorizo can end the match outright.

Frequently Asked Questions

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