Trumps

Contributed by Stan J. Towianski (stantowianski@comcast.net)

Cards Dealt out

Basically All. The most that will still give all players the same amount. When there is an extra card, as with 3 players, one extra card is left in the middle to start play.

Rank of Cards

A K Q J 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2

Winning A Game

Points:

At the end of each hand, each player or team gets 1 point per 1 trick won.

Winning:

50 points. Player/Team with most points, 50 or more, at the end of a hand.

In Case of a Tie:

Another hand is played and the player/team with the most points at the end of the hand wins.

Everyone plays the extra hand and is permitted to win.

Another tie necessitates another tie breaking hand.

Play of a Hand

Before the first lead

Setting your future Trump

Each player places 1 of their cards face down in front of them off to their right to denote which suit they will be allowed to call as trump later. They can later call trump by turning over this hidden card to reveal that suit as their trump.

Passing Cards

• For 3 or 4 player/teams, each player chooses 3 cards to pass to a neighbor.
• For 5 or more player/teams, each player chooses 2 cards to pass to a neighbor.

Cards are passed in an alternating sequence as in Hearts, except that there is no hold hand.

The first hand you will pass the cards to the person on your left; the next to your right; the next to your left-across; to your right-across; etc... Then back to the left, etc...

For 4 players with 2 on a team, this would mean passing to the left, then the right, then left, then right. Team players are not allowed to pass to each other.

The first lead

Normally the player to the left of the dealer leads with any card they choose.

If there is an extra card as in 3 player play, then the dealer will turn over the extra card to start play followed by the player to the dealer's left. If no one plays a higher card than this one, the trick is thrown out and no one gets it. The dealer then gets to start the next trick.

Subsequent leads

Whoever took the last trick leads with any card they choose.

Play

Play follows to the left, around clockwise.

You do not have to play a higher card if you have one, but

The others must follow suit if possible.

If they cannot, then they must play their trump, if they declared one.

If they cannot, they can play any card. (This will obviously not be able to take the trick)

Calling Trump

Each player or team has their own trump.

They have no trump until they declare one. You never have to declare one. You can declare trump by flipping over your hidden trump card and declaring that suit to be your trump, right before you play a card on some trick.

You must play a trump at that point.

From that point on, any card of that suit played by you or your team is trump, not before then, even in that hand, i.e. if your partner played a club first and then you declared clubs trump and played a club, only your club is trump in that trick since his was not when he played it.

For team play, the team only has one trump suit so the first person on a team to call trump, makes that suit trump for the whole team.

Winning the trick

The first played highest card. (If two jack of trumps are played, the first one wins.)

Trump cards beat regular cards.

Cards played in suit beat cards played out of suit.

Example: Suppose my trumps are hearts and yours are another suit (or undeclared). If you play the 7 of hearts and I play the 4 of hearts, my 4 will beat your 7, because my hearts are trumps and yours are not.

Other Stuff

Reneging

In general, play stops when a renege is figured out and the reneger gets 0 points for that hand, while the others get the points they have at that point.

This is ok as long as it is not done intentionally. If someone has suggestions for a better way, drop me an email.

Keep your declared trump card visible.

Stair step or otherwise keep your tricks visible to be counted by the other players.

Copyright © 2001 Stan J. Towianski