Online Spades review

Spades is a game invented in the USA in the 30s of the XX century, which is played with a standard deck of 52 cards. The task is to take exactly as many card takes as were announced before the start of the round. It is traditionally played by 4 people in teams of two (partner trump peak), as well as 3, 5 or 6 individually.

Rules of the game

Distribution and betting in Spades

At the beginning of the round, the dealer distributes the cards equally to everyone. In a game of three, one of the twos is removed so that each has 17 cards (a total of 51); in a game of five, two twos are removed (10 cards each, a total of 50), and in a game of six, all twos are removed (8 cards for each, 48 in total).

As soon as the hand is over, each player must declare how many tricks he thinks he can win during the round. Each bet is made independently of the others, there is no need to bet more than the others are, and it is forbidden to pass. Everyone must declare a number from zero to 17, 13, 10 or 8, respectively, depending on the number of players. In a team game, the bets of each member are summed up into the total number of card takes that the team needs to win.

Drawing of cards

The drawing of cards proceeds according to the classical scheme: the player following the dealer starts a take by playing any card of his choice. The one who played the highest card of the trump suit takes the card, or, if there is none, then the card of the leading suit, and then the one who won this take starts the next one. The trump suit always remains spades, it never changes (hence the name of the game).

You must always go to the suit, i.e., if possible, play a card of the same suit as the previous one.

If you do not have a card of the leading suit, you can play any card, including the trump peak. In this case, they say that you are hitting with a trump card.

You do not have the right to beat trump if you have cards of the leading suit.

It is forbidden to start a trick with a peak card if the previous card played was not of the same suit, except if there are no more matching cards in the hand.

The order of the cards is quite common, ace is the oldest, and 2 is the youngest card, both among trumps and among other cards. The one who played the highest card of the trump suit takes the card, and if there is no such card, then the highest card of the initial suit.

Scoring points

At the end of the round, points are calculated according to the number of declared and won takes. In a team game, the declared takes of members of one team are summed up.

A fulfilled contract, i.e. when you have won as many takes as you have declared, gives you points ten times the number of declared takes and one point for each additional bribe. For example, if you claimed 4 takes and won 6, then you get 10 * 4 + (6 -4) = 42 points.

A failed contract, i.e. when you won fewer takes than you did claimed, takes away points ten times more than the number of card takes claimed. For example, if you claimed 5 takes, but you did not win them, you lose 50 points.

One of the features of the trump peak is that the bribes won over the contract are counted as ballasts. In the example above, when you claimed 4 takes and won 6, 2 points represent ballasts. If you score 10 points, you lose 100 points. By the time you get the twentieth ballast, you will lose another 100 points, etc. if your score is positive, the last digit of the number of points can always determine the number of ballasts.

Intentionally collecting ballasts can be an interesting strategy for a while, but it should not be used throughout the game, as you will get more penalty points as ballasts accumulate. They need to be taken neither more nor less – this is one of the main strategic principles of the game.

The game often goes up to 500, sometimes up to 1000, 1500 or 2000 points.