3 STEPS to learn the game
Step 1 – learn the basics
- Gather 4 players and sit around the table. You can play with 3 or 5 players, but 4 is the best number.
- Shuffle the entire deck of 52 cards. Deal all cards, one by one, to all players. Each player should have 13 cards (if you play with 5, each player has ten cards and two cards will be left out of the game).
- The dealer puts a card of his choice on the table – we call it "first lead".
- Then, the play continues clockwise. The player to the left of the "first lead" plays a card on the table.
- MAIN RULE – FOLLOW SUIT: Each player MUST play a card of the same symbol – we call them suits. You can choose any card you want in that sui, but you don't have to play a higher card. It depends on your strategy.
- There are 4 suits: ♠ - spades, ♥ - hearts, ♦ - diamonds, and ♣ - clubs.
- Once all 4 players play a card, we can claim the winner of this round. We call one round of 4 cards a "trick". The player who played the highest card wins.
- (S)He places all cards in front of him/her to indicate his/her win and leads a new card of his/her choice. It can be any card of any suit, but the main rule apply in all tricks – other players must follow the suit.
- FOLLOWING SUIT RULE: At some point, it will happen that you do not have any card in the suit led. In that case, you can play any card, but you cannot win a trick. The highest card in the suit led wins the trick.
- There are 13 cards in each player's hand so there are 13 rounds (tricks).
- Congratulation: If you do not have any cards left in your hand, you have finished your first game. You can play more games to get familiar with the basic rules before you move forward. The strategy and the winner will be determined in STEP 2.
- HINT: Place the winning card in another direction so everyone can see which card won the trick. At the end, go through the winning cards and adjust your strategy for next games.
- DIFFICULT ALTERNATIVE: Turn around the cards so they are not visible once they are played. This way, players have to remember them to adjust their strategy.
Step 2 – setting the contract
- Before you start playing, each player must set a goal for him/herself. We call it a "contract".
- Take a paper and pen or a mobile phone. Before the first lead, write secretly on the paper (phone) how many tricks you expect to win in the game.
- After each player mark his/her contract, you play the game as in STEP 1. When all 13 tricks were played, count the tricks for each player and compare them with their contract.
- The goal of the game is to win exactly the same amount of tricks you have chosen before the game started. If you manage to make the exact number of tricks, you win points if at least one of your opponents didn't make their contract.
- If you make your contract add all the points your opponents "lost" to your score. Follow the table to count the total of points you won.
- Play 4 games, each player will lead to the first trick once. The overall winner is the player who scored the most points in all 4 games combined. You do not get any minus points if you don't make your contract, but you give your "lost" points to all other players who made their contract.
Example of scoring one game of 4 deals
Step 3 – play with trumps
- Before players choose their contract, the dealer can set one suit as trumps. If (s)he decides not to play with trumps, he can announce a no-trump game.
- The game then continues the same as in STEP 2.
- TRUMPS: cards of one suit that beat the other cards in the game.
- Players can play a trump card only if they are out of cards in the suit led. You can lead a trump as a first card in the trick – all other players must follow suit, and play trumps as well.
- The highest card in the suit led wins the trick unless there is a trump played to the trick. In that case, the highest trump wins the trick.
- Scoring is the same as in the game with no trumps.
- With 3 players, take one suit out of play. That means you will play with a deck of 39 cards with 3 suits. All the other rules stay the same, including scoring.
- With 5 players, deal 10 cards to each player and take the last 2 cards out of the game. You can discard 2 different cards out each round or you can discard the ♣2 and ♦2 permanently for all games. You should adjust your strategy with 5 players because the cards will be divided in 5 hands which changes the distribution and there are only 10 tricks instead of 13. Otherwise, the rules remain the same.
- Easy to teach and learn – 5 minutes to teach, learning during playing
- Sticky game – easily taught from person to person
- No special equipment is needed – just 1-2 packs of standard cards (deck of 52 cards)
- Game of skill – while the rules are easy, it is a pure game of skill. The cards you were dealt do not influence your chances to win.
- Competitive – the scoring is easy, but at the same time challenging and determines the winner.
- For individuals – you can play with 3-5 players, no partnerships needed
- Fun in every age – great game to play for all generations, good for kids from the age of 8.