Trade commodity cards as quickly as possible, corner a market, and be the first trader to reach 500 points.
Use one complete nine-card commodity suit for each player. PIT is played by three to seven players.
Set up
- Choose the same number of complete commodity suits as players.
- For the basic game, remove the Bear and Bull. For the advanced game, add both cards before shuffling.
- Deal all cards. With the Bear and Bull included, some players will receive ten cards.
- Give players time to sort their hands, then ring the bell and open the exchange.
Trading
- Offer one to four face-down cards of the same commodity by calling only the number offered.
- The other trader must exchange the same number of cards, normally all from one commodity.
- The Bear may be included with cards of one commodity in a trade.
- Continue until someone corners a commodity and rings the bell.
Commodity values
| Commodity | Points |
|---|---|
| Cocoa | 100 |
| Platinum | 85 |
| Gold | 80 |
| Cattle | 75 |
| Oil | 65 |
| Rice | 60 |
| Silver | 55 |
| Gas | 50 |
Corners and scoring
- Regular Corner: Nine cards of one commodity. Score its listed value.
- Bull Corner: Eight cards of one commodity plus the Bull. Score the normal listed value.
- Double Bull Corner: Nine cards of one commodity plus the Bull. Score double the listed value.
Bear and Bull penalties
When another player makes a corner, the player holding the Bear loses 20 points and the player holding the Bull loses 20 points. If one player holds both, that player loses 40 points. The corner winner is not penalized for a special card they hold.
In the scorekeeper, select the Bear holder and Bull holder after every corner. For Bull and Double Bull Corners, the Bull holder is automatically the corner winner.
Winning
Reshuffle and deal again after every corner. The first player to reach 500 points wins.