The cribbage board is essentially a racetrack for points. Your goal is to be the first to complete the circuit. The standard board has 121 holes, and each player has two pegs. You use one peg to mark your current score and the other to show where you were before your last score. This leapfrogging action makes it easy for everyone to see the points just earned and verify the count.

The board is usually arranged in sections of five holes, called "streets." This makes counting easier. For example, moving from the 5th hole to the 12th hole is a score of seven. You'd simply count two holes past the 10-hole mark.

The game concludes when a player reaches or exceeds 121 points. The 121st hole is the finish line. It's sometimes called the stink hole because if your opponent is in the 120th hole (the "stink") and you go out, they're left smelling your victory.

In Cribbage, a card's rank is different from its point value. While a King still beats a Queen in a sequence, their values for counting points are identical. This is the most important concept for scoring.

Aces are always worth one point. Numbered cards from 2 through 10 are worth their face value. All face cards (Jack, Queen, and King) are worth 10 points. Remembering this '10-count' rule is fundamental.

This scoring system is crucial for both pegging and counting your hand, which we'll cover next. For now, just drill this into your memory: any card that isn't an Ace or a 2-9 is a 10 for counting purposes. This simplifies a lot of the addition you'll be doing in your head.

With the board and card values down, you have the foundational knowledge needed to start playing. Everything else in Cribbage builds on these core mechanics.