Spades

Spades is a classic trick-taking card game played by four participants in two partnerships. Utilizing a standard 52-card deck, players bid on expected trick victories before each round. Using click-to-play controls, the ultimate objective is to reach 500 points by meeting your team's bid.

Setup

• Players: 4 players divided into 2 teams of partners (sitting opposite each other).
• Cards: All 52 cards are dealt, giving exactly 13 cards to each player.
• Bid phase: Before playing, each player bids the number of tricks they expect to win. Partner bids are combined to form the team's total contract.

Controls

• Play card: Click or tap a card in your hand to play it into the central trick area.
• Mobile: Direct touch controls for selecting and playing cards.

Rules

1. The player to the dealer's left leads the first trick by playing any card (except Spades).
2. You must follow the suit led if possible. If you are out of that suit, you can play any card, including a Spade.
3. Spades are always the trump suit; a Spade automatically wins the trick unless a higher Spade is played.
4. Spades cannot be led until they have been broken (played to trump a different suit led in a previous trick).
5. The highest card of the suit led wins the trick, unless a Spade is played. The winner leads the next trick.
6. Scoring: If your team meets its bid, you earn 10 points per bid trick. If you fail, you lose points equal to your bid.
7. Nil Bid: Bidding "Nil" (0 tricks) yields a 100-point bonus if successful, or a 100-point penalty if you win even a single trick.

Tips

• Accumulating too many "overtricks" (winning more tricks than you bid, known as "sandbags") will result in a 100-point penalty once you collect 10 bags.
• Pay close attention to your partner's bid; defend their hand and help them win their targeted tricks.
• Keep track of which high Spades have been played to safely navigate late-round tricks.