Rules of the game of Spades

Game Type

Trick-taking card game.

Deck

Standard 52-card deck.

The game of Spades is relatively new but has already gained many followers. It is a trick-taking game in which the Spade suit is always trump.

Number of Players

Two or three people can play as individuals, or four players can play in two partnerships.

Rank of Suits

Unlike Bridge or Whist, the Spade suit is always trump.

Rank of Cards

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

Object of the Game

To win at least the number of tricks bid.

The Deal

When the game is played between two players, they select from two cards: one face up and one face down. Once a choice is made, the player keeps the chosen card, and the other is discarded. This continues until each player has 13 cards. The other player chooses from the remaining 26 cards in the same way.

When three or more people play, the entire deck is dealt one card at a time, face down. For three-player games, each player gets 17 cards. For four-player games, each gets 13 cards.

The Bidding

Each player decides how many tricks they believe they can take. In turn, each player announces their expected number of tricks. There is only one round of bidding per hand. The minimum bid is “nil” (the player bids that they will not take any tricks), and the maximum bid is 13. No suit is named in the bid because, as the name of the game implies, spades are always trump.

When three or more people play, players cannot see their cards during the bidding until it is their turn. A misdeal may be called if a player has no spades or no face cards (K, Q, or J). In that case, a new hand is dealt. This rule does not apply to two-player games.

The Play

The game is scored by hands, and the winning condition is to reach a predetermined number of points (commonly 100, 200, 300, or 500). Players can also choose to play just one hand (“Quick Game”). One player, chosen at random, makes the opening lead. Players must follow suit if possible. If unable to follow suit, a player may play a trump or discard.

The trick is won by the player who plays the highest trump, or, if no trump is played, the highest card in the suit led. The player who wins the trick leads the next one. Play continues until all cards have been played. Each hand has 13 or 17 tricks, depending on the number of players (13 for two or four players, 17 for three players).

Spades cannot be led until they have been played in a previous trick, or unless the player has only spades remaining.

The Scoring

For fulfilling the contract (winning at least the number of tricks bid), a player scores 10 points per trick bid, plus 1 point for each overtrick. When a player bids nil and successfully takes no tricks, they score 100 points.

Examples:

• If a player bids 7 and makes 7 tricks, they score 70 points.
• If a player bids 5 and makes 8 tricks, they score 53 points (50 for the bid and 3 for overtricks).

Overtricks are called “bags.” Every time a player accumulates 10 bags, they incur a 100-point penalty.

If a player “breaks contract” (takes fewer tricks than bid), they lose 10 points per trick bid. For example, if a player bids 4 and takes only 3 tricks, they score -40.

The objective is to fulfill the bid exactly.

For a nil bid, the score is 100 points. If the player takes at least one trick, they lose 100 points.

When both players on a team bid nil (“double nil”) and succeed, they earn 500 points. If only one partner fails, they score 0. If both fail, they lose 500 points.