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Hoyle Card Games Help

Welcome to Hoyle Card Games Help. To find out how to play the games, click the items below.

Getting Started
Overview of Hoyle Card Games
Signing In
Making a Face in Face Maker
Starting a Game
Playing Games
Bridge
Canasta
Crazy Eights
Cribbage
Euchre
Gin Rummy
Go Fish
Hearts
Memory Match
Old Maid
Pinochle
Pitch
Poker
Skat
Solitaire
Spades
Tarot
War
Game Options
Customizing Hoyle Card Games
Changing Player Settings
Playing Games in Full Screen Mode
Setting Game Rules and Options
Managing Games
Saving and Restoring Games
Viewing Statistics
Quitting a Game
Overview of Hoyle Card Games
Hoyle

Card Games includes 16 different types of games, from classics like Bridge, Hearts, and Gin
Rummy to family games like Crazy Eights and Old Maidand 50 different Solitaire games!
Many of the games can be played with Hoyle computer players, and some games can be played with
several people in front of your computer.
Game Descriptions
Bridge
The classic bidding and trick-taking game. Includes
rubber bridge and four-deal bridge.
Canasta
A four-player partner game of making melds and
canastas and fighting over the discard pile.
Crazy Eights
Follow the suit, or play an eight. Try the Very Crazy
version for a wild time.
Cribbage
The popular two-player game, complete with board and
pegs and the Muggins option.
Euchre
An aggressive trick-taking game where you try not to
get euchred.
Gin Rummy
Drawing and discarding are what this game is all about.
Can you knock before the other player?
Go Fish
A simple classic. Ask other players for cards, and
remember what they ask for. Enjoy the fishing!
Hearts
A competitive game where the object is not to catch
hearts or the dangerous Queen of Spades.
Memory Match
Try to remember whats under all the cards. Lots of
variations for one or two players.
Old Maid
Pair up all the animals in the farm, and dont get caught
with the pesky troll.
Pinochle
An intensive trick-taking game. Play one of four different
versions, including partnership and double-deck.
Pitch
A quick and easy trick taking game; can you win High,
Low, Jack, and Game?
Poker
Five Card Draw is the game here. Try to get as large a
bankroll as you can. Hoyle players are cagey bluffers.
Skat
A three-handed trick taking game popular in Germany,
with a variety of contracts and sophisticated bidding.
Solitaire
Fifty different variations, including single deck, double
deck, and fast-paced arcade games.
Spades
The fun partnership game where you need to take the
tricks you bid, and not too many more!
Tarot
A trick-taking game popular in France, with varying
partnerships and 21 special trump cards.
War
This childhood favorite requires luck and patience and a
fondness for tanks.

Signing In
When you start Hoyle Card Games, you must first sign in, choosing a name and a picture to represent
yourself. You must create at least one player to play the games, and you can create additional players for
yourself, your friends, and your family members. One reason for creating multiple players is that some
games allow more than one player on the same computer. Another reason is that your high scores and
other statistics are tracked based on your player name.
The first time you sign in, you are asked to create a new player. After that, you can sign in as an existing
player. You can create new players at any time, and you can change your characters face at any time.
To create a new player:
1 Click the New button.
2 Type a name for the new player, and click OK.
3 To create your own unique face, click the Face Maker button. Click here to learn more about using
Face Maker:
OR
To select an existing face, select Standard to select one of the pictures provided for you, or select
Custom to use a picture you have already made using Face Maker. Then, select the face you want to
use by moving the horizontal scroll bar.
4 Click OK to create the new player.
To sign in a player created during a previous session:
1 Click the players name in the list. If necessary, scroll through the list using the vertical scroll bar.
To change the face for this player, see step 3, above.
2 Click OK to start playing games as this player.
Notes:
You can remove a player from the list of players by selecting the player name and clicking the Delete
button. The player and all of their statistics are removed permanently.
You can sign in as a different player after youve started Hoyle Card Games. You might do this if
someone else wants to play games and you dont want to exit. From the Main Screen, click Sign In on
the File menu to sign in as a different player. If you are in a game, click Main Screen on the Go To
menu to get to the Main Screen.

Starting a Game
You can start a game from the Main Screen or from the Go To menu.
To start a game:
From the Main Screen, click the game you want to play, or click the name of the game on the Go To
menu.
From within a game, click the name of the game on the Go To menu. To get to the Main Screen from
within a game, click Main Screen on the Go To menu.
To switch from one game to another:
Click the Go To menu, and then click the name of the game you want to switch to. If youre in the
middle of a game, you are asked if you are sure you want to exit the current game.
Note: You can save a game and come back to play it later by using the Save and Restore commands
on the File menu.

Customizing Hoyle Card Games
You can change many different types of settings in Hoyle Card Games: the cards used in the games, the
background picture displayed in the games, and other environment settings like speed of play,
background music, animations, and character speech. All of these settings are changed using options on
the Options menu.
These settings can be changed from anywhere in Hoyle Card Games and affect all the games.
To change the background:
1 Click Background on the Options menu.
2 Click a background style in the list. A preview of the background appears.
3 Click Apply to see the background in the current game. Click OK to accept the background change.
To change the card design:
1 Click Cards on the Options menu.
2 Click a card back style in the list. A preview of the card back appears.
3 Click the type of card face. A preview of the card face appears.
To play with larger cards that are easier to see, choose Regular, Large or Designer.
4 Click Apply to see the card design in the current game. Click OK to accept the card design change.
To change the game environment (sounds, animations, character settings, and more):
Click Environment on the Options menu and change settings as described below.
Setting Description
Character Speech Sets whether computer players talk while you play. Players only talk
when you have the Hoyle Card Games CD-ROM in your CD-ROM drive.
Animations Sets whether computer players and game elements animate.
Animations only play when you have the Hoyle Card Games CD-ROM
in your CD-ROM drive.
Background Music Sets whether you hear background music while you play the games.
Specify which music you want to hear by selecting it in the Background
Music list. Background music only plays when you have the Hoyle Card
Games CD-ROM in your CD-ROM drive.
Sound Effects Sets whether you hear sound effects during games, such as dealing
cards.
Show Intro Movie Plays the introductory movie whenever you start Card Games with the
Hoyle CD in your computer.
Game Speed Sets the overall speed of all the games. You might want to slow down
the games if they dont perform well on your computer. Move the Game
Speed slider to the left (Slow) or right (Fast) to adjust the speed.
Character Attitude Sets how talkative and animated computer players are during the game.
Move the Character Attitude slider to the left towards Serious for less
attitude or to the right towards Talkative for more attitude.
Note: The attitude is set for all computer players in the game. You
cannot set each players attitude individually.

Playing Games in Full Screen Mode
You can make Hoyle Card Games fill your entire computer screen so that the games are easier to see.
To play in full screen mode:
Click Full Screen on the Options menu. The program resizes to fill the screen.
To return to a windowed mode:
Click Window on the Options menu. The program fits in a window again.
Notes:
Maximizing the game window will not make the screen bigger; you must go to full screen mode. This
may not work on all computers.
Windows users: If you open the in-game help while in full screen mode, the full screen mode is turned
off.
You can press ALT+ENTER to quickly switch between viewing
the program in full screen or in a window.

Changing Player Settings
When you sign in to Hoyle Card Games, you are the host. Up to three other people can play games with
you on your computer; this is called head-to-head play. The following games in Hoyle Card Games allow
head-to-head play: Memory Match, Crazy Eights, Cribbage, War, and the Bowling variation of Solitaire.
In addition, you can play against the Hoyle computer players. To learn more about the Hoyle computer
players, click here:
When you start a game, all of the actively signed-in people are seated in the game, if possible, along with
one or more computer players to fill any empty seats.
You can add or remove players in a game only before you start playing a game. However, you can
substitute one computer player for another at any time, and you can change your player picture at any
time.
To change player settings:
1 Within a game, click the Players menu item on the Options menu.
2 Change player settings as described below. Some settings can only be changed before a game starts.
To replace a player, click the Replace button next to that player. To replace a player with someone
who will play with you on your computer, select Real Person; otherwise, select a computer player.
You cant change the host of a game within a game; to change the host, you must go to the Main
Screen and use the Sign In command on the File menu.
Tip: You can quickly replace players within a game by clicking on the players picture in the game,
and then selecting a new player on the pop-up menu that appears.
To remove a player, click the Clear button next to that player. In games that require a certain
number of players, you wont be able to clear players if you wont have enough players to play.
To add another player to a game, click the Add button in an empty position in the Players dialog
box. To add someone who will play with you on your computer, select Real Person; otherwise,
select a computer player.
To see a description of a computer player, click the Bio button next to that player.
To change the face of a human player, click the Face button next to that player.
Other settings for players in a game, such as player color, are shown underneath each player.
Note:
When you start a game that includes computer players, random players are chosen for you. If you
want to play with a certain player, you can set that players to be preferred so he or she plays with you
in every game. To do this, check the Preferred Player box under that player.
You can set a few players as preferred, or set all players as preferred but one or two (if there are
players you dont ever want to play games with).

Hoyle Computer Players
Hoyle Card Games offers an array of computer players for you to play games with. To learn how to
change the computer players playing in a particular game, click here:



Bart is a country gentleman who earned his gaming experience aboard the
riverboats near his home town. While his cordial demeanor might put you at
ease, don't let down your guard...he'll make his move faster than you can say
"sissified pretty boy."



Elayne is a native Manhattanite who doesn't see why she should ever leave.
This fast-track advertising exec unwinds from a hectic day on Madison Avenue
with some of the most popular games of all time.



Originally from Red Cloud, Nebraska, Ethel raised a family of five children, and
now has eight grandchildren. She enjoys the simple things in life, like visiting
with family and friends and beating the pants off of them in classic games.
Sharp as a tack and a crafty veteran of many games, she will provide ample
challenge for even the best players.



Gax can rearrange his molecules to look like anyone he wants. What started as
a party trick has led to a lucrative career. He hopes to earn enough money to
eventually rebuild his ship and return to his home planet.



Harley is a talking bear who likes food and rolling in the grass naked. He doesnt
like forest fires, tourists, and hikers who think they can run away. He learned to
play games by watching the park rangers play games in their cabin on breaks
(when he wasnt sneaking food out of their fridge). Underneath the growly
exterior, hes a pussycat (unless you are eating and dont offer to share).



Since Jasper left Jamaica years ago, he has traveled the world as a jazz bass
player. All that time on the road has made him a world class gamer. Jasper
points out, "A good game is like a song that starts slowly and builds to a
strategic crescendo."



For a fierce T-Rex, Marvin is quite likeable. Although self-conscious about his
tiny arms and still bitter about the ice age, Marvin hasn't eaten an opponent yet.
Marvin spends his time bird watching, playing games, and avoiding extinction.



Maurice, a fur trapper from 1837, was abducted by aliens and traveled
hundreds of light-years to a distant civilization. He was returned to Earth 150
years later, shaken by the ordeal, and now consults his beaver puppet for
strategic advice.



Ms. Tardee is a high school chemistry teacher who is convinced that the proper
combination of solutions can solve any problem. She encourages her opponents
to do well, but she never lets them forget who the teacher is! Despite being
brilliant, attractive, and practical, she is still single and searching for Mr. Right.



Rick is a stand up comic from Los Angeles who likes money, women, and
staying out late. He is often on the road and knows the hot spots in every major
(and minor) U.S. city. Hes never without a snappy comeback, so watch out!
He is good at games and enjoys showing off.



Robin chucked her big-city brokerage job for the National Forest Service. Now
she spends her days hiking forest trails and communing with nature. But don't
think that being out in the woods all day means she's forgotten anything about
gaming.



Roswell is the sole survivor of the famous crash in Roswell, New Mexico, 1947.
In an extensive effort to keep this UFO incident hidden from the public, the
government employed Roswell for years as a janitor at Area 51. Eventually
granted a reasonable retirement package, Roswell now keeps his oversized
brain (and his unchecked sarcasm) exercised by playing games.

Setting Game Rules and Options
You can set game settings for each game, such as rules for the game, how the game is set up, and how
the game is played.
You can change all the settings for a game before the game begins. Once the game has begun, changing
settings may require you to restart the game.
To set game rules and options:
1 While in the game, click the <Game> Settings menu item on the Options menu. (In Spades, for
example, you would click Spades Settings on the Options menu.)
2 Make the changes you want.
3 Click OK to change the settings.
Note:
After a hand of cards, have you ever thought, What if I had played that hand differently? In some of
the games in Hoyle Card Games, you can answer that question. In addition to being able to review the
tricks of a completed hand, you can also replay the hand starting from any trick.
To use this feature, select Review Tricks in the score box after a hand. Then, use the arrows on the
trick indicator to cycle through the tricks. When you are on the trick you would like to replay from, click
Replay. After replaying the hand, you will see the replay score for reference, but it wont change the
actual game score or player statistics, it is for practice only.
This feature is available in Hearts, Skat, Spades, and Tarot.

Saving and Restoring Games
You can save a game you are currently playing so you can play it later. The next time you start the game,
you can open your saved game using the Restore command. You will then be back in the game at the
same point you left it, with the same players and game settings.
To save a game:
1 Click Save on the File menu.
2 Type a name for the saved game. This can be a descriptive name such as Second game with
Roswell. (You will see a picture of the game when you restore it, to help you identify it.)
To restore a game:
1 Click Restore on the File menu, and then select the game you want to restore.
You can see a picture of each game and the date and time it was saved by selecting the name of the
saved game.
2 Click OK to restore the selected game. It will replace any game you are currently playing (you are
asked if you want to replace it.)
Important! When you try to restore games, you only see games if you saved them with the player name
you are currently signed in with. For example, if you are signed in as Madeline, you wont see any games
that were saved by Emmy.
Note:
Some games can only be stored when it is a human players turn.

Viewing Statistics
You can display statistics, including information on wins, losses, and points as they apply to each game.
You must finish at least one game to see statistics for that game.
Some games (Bridge, Canasta, and Solitaire) also display current standings during a game; to see the
current standings, click Current Standings on the File menu.
To view statistics:
1 Click Statistics on the File menu.
2 Click the name of the player you want statistics for.
3 Select the name of the game you want statistics for.
Notes:
To clear statistics for the current player and game, click the Clear button. Statistics are permanently
cleared for that game for that player.

Quitting a Game
You can quit a particular game or exit Hoyle Card Games altogether. If you want to resume playing a
game later, save the game before quitting.
To save the current game before quitting:
Click Save on the File menu.
To exit a game:
Click Main Screen on the Go To menu. You will return to the Main Screen where you can choose a
different game to play. Or click a game name on the Go To menu to go directly to that game.
To quit the program:
Choose Exit on the File menu.

Making a Face in Face Maker
You can use Face Maker to create a unique picture to represent yourself in Hoyle Card Games. This
picture is shown on the screen when you play games on your computer or over the Internet. You can
make just one face to represent yourself, or you can make several different faces and choose a different
face each time you play!
Click one of the topics below to learn more about Face Maker:
Starting Face Maker
Using Face Maker
The Face Maker Screen
Deleting a Face Maker Face
Starting Face Maker
There are several different ways to start Face Maker.
To start Face Maker:
In the Sign In dialog box, click the Face Maker button.
OR
From the Main Screen, click the Face Maker picture on the screen, or click Face Maker on the Go To
menu.
OR
In the Players dialog box, click the Face button next to your face. Then click the Face Maker button to
start Face Maker.
Note: If you start Face Maker from the Sign In screen, the face you make is automatically assigned to the
currently selected player. And if you make a face when youre already signed in to Card Games, it is
automatically assigned to you.
To change an existing Face Maker face:
In Face Maker, click the Load button, select the name of the face you want to change, and then click
OK to load that face into Face Maker.
Click here to learn how to use Face Maker:

Using Face Maker
You can create a unique picture for yourself using Face Maker. You can start with a new face, or load a
previously created face by clicking the Load button.
For a detailed explanation of the Face Maker screen, click here:
To make a face in Face Maker:
1 Click a feature (head, eyes, nose, and so on) on the Face Maker keyboard.
You can select features in any order, and you dont have to specify every feature (your face can have
no nose, for example).
2 Select the picture you want to use for that feature.
You can select eyes and eyebrows that match, or you can select different left and right ones, if you
like. To select matching eyes or eyebrows, click the mannequin head for the picture you want; to
select each eye or eyebrow separately, click the left and right sides of the pictures you want.
3 You can move features around on the face by clicking the arrow buttons on the Face Maker screen or
by clicking the arrow keys on your keyboard. All features except the body and clothes can be moved.
4 Add any other features you want.
5 Select one of the four skin tones for your face.
6 Click Save to save the face; youre asked to give it a name. You can use the name of the player you
want to use this face with, or a descriptive name for the face (brunette with ponytail). (Note that
naming the face doesnt automatically associate it with a player.)
7 Click Exit to exit Face Maker.
The face you created can be associated with a player using the Players dialog box or the initial Sign In
screen.
To remove a feature from the face:
1 Select the feature you want to remove.
2 Click the Clear Item button.
To clear the entire face:
Click the Reset button to start a new face from scratch. Your current face will be cleared.
Notes and Tips:
Moving eyebrows to different heights is a good subtle way to add personality to your face.
Moving a nose downward can create an impression of a longer nose; moving it upward can make a
shorter nose.
Be creative! Many items can be moved anywhere on the face.
Clothing is specific to the body you select. If you select an article of clothing and then change your
body, you may need to select new clothes for your new body.
To quickly create a unique new face, click the Randomize button. (This is good if youre not feeling
creative, but still want a change.) You can still make changes to the random face, if you want. Be
careful when using this button as this will erase the face currently on the screen.
You can give faces you have made to other people (on a disk, or via e-mail). For instance, you might
want to give faces to other people you know who have Hoyle games.
In Windows, you can find Face Maker faces in the \Program Files\Won\facemaker folder on your
computer.
The file names look like this: Girl with Cowboy Hat.FAC (the first part of the filename is the name you
saved the face with, and the file extension is always .FAC). Tell the person to whom you're giving the
file to copy the Face Maker file to the same folder on his or her computer.

The Face Maker Screen
Click the picture of Face Maker below to get help with that part of Face Maker:


To get a step-by-step description of how to use Face Maker, click here:
Facial features
Shows all of the available options for the current feature you are working with. Click the left and right
arrow buttons to move through the pages of options, or click a numbered button to move to a specific
page.
Body
Selects your body type. Both male and female body types are shown.
Clothes
Selects clothing for your body. You will only see clothes that fit the body shape you chose.
Head
Selects the shape of your head.
Hair and Hats
Selects hair and hat combinations.
Eyebrows
Selects eyebrows. To select matching eyebrows, click the mannequin head on the picture of eyebrows
you want. To select different left and right eyebrows, click the left and right sides of the pictures of the
eyebrows you want.
Eyes
Selects eyes. To select matching eyes, click the mannequin head on the picture of eyes you want. To
select different left and right eyes, click the left and right sides of the pictures of the eyes you want.
Nose
Selects a nose. Move the nose up and down to lengthen or shorten it.
Mouth
Selects a mouth.
Glasses
Selects glasses for your face. Some glasses will hide your eyes.
Facial Hair
Selects a variety of types of facial hair.
Randomize
Randomly selects a number of features for your face (gives you a face you can use right away). You can
make changes to a random face, if desired.
Reset
Resets the current face, and removes all of the faces features, so you can start a new face from scratch.
Face
Shows the face in progress, with any features you have added to your face.
Skin Tone
Selects the skin tone for your head and body.
Clear Item
Removes the currently selected feature from your face.
Arrows
Moves the currently selected feature around in the face. Not all features can be moved.
Help
Opens this help file.
Load
Loads a previously saved face. In addition, you can delete existing faces in the Load dialog box.
Save
Saves the current face. The face will be available in the Sign In and Players dialog boxes.
Exit
Exits Face Maker without saving the current face.
Deleting a Face Maker Face
You can only delete a face within Face Maker.
In Face Maker, click the Load button (as if to load a face). Click the face you want to delete, and then
click the Delete button. Click the Cancel button when you are done deleting faces.

How to Play Bridge
Contract Bridge is played by four people in two partnerships with a standard 52-card deck. The cards in
each suit rank from ace (the highest) to the deuce (the lowest). The suits rank in this order: spades,
hearts, diamonds, clubs.
Cards are dealt one at a time, face down, clockwise until each player has received 13 cards. The bidding
or "auction" stage comes next, beginning with the dealer. The various things you can do are known as
calls:
Pass You may pass rather than make a bid.
Bid This is your declaration that you intend to win a certain number of odd tricks (odd
meaning tricks in excess of six; the first six tricks are called the book). You must either
name a trump suit or choose notrump. The lowest possible bid is one; the highest is
seven. There are 13 tricks in all, but remember that the first six don't count in this process.
For example, you might say, "One diamond," "One notrump," "Four spades," and so on.
Your bid must overcall or top the preceding bid (if any). This is also called making a
sufficient bid. Overcalling a bid means you must name a higher number of odd tricks
and/or a higher-ranking denomination: notrump (high), spades, hearts, diamonds, and
then clubs. One spade will overcall one heart; two clubs will overcall one spade; two
diamonds will overcall one notrump; and so on.
Double You can double the last bid, so long as one of your opponents made that bid and no one
has yet called a double. Calling double doubles the value of tricks taken. However, if the
bid doubled was for, say, three spades, any player in the rest of the bidding could overcall
it with three notrumps, four clubs, and so on, thereby canceling the double. A particular bid
can be doubled only once.
Redouble A player may in turn redouble the last bid, if a) the bid was made by that player or by that
player's partner; b) if the bid has been doubled by an opponent; and c) if the bid hasn't
already been redoubled. This further increases the scoring values, but like the double it
can be canceled by a higher bid. A particular bid can be redoubled only once.
The Auction
The auction begins when any player makes a bid. If all four players pass the first time around, the cards
are thrown in and the next dealer in turn deals. When a bid, double, or redouble is followed by three
consecutive passes, the auction is closed. The suit named in the final bid is the trump suit for that hand (if
the final bid was a notrump, the hand will be played without trumps). Of the two players in the partnership
that made the last bid in the auction, the player who first bid the suit (or notrump) is the declarer. The
number of odd tricks named in the final bid is that player's contract.
The player to the declarer's left leads the first card. The declarer's partner then places his or her hand
face-up. This hand, and declarer's partner, are called the dummy. The declarer's partner takes no further
part in the hand. The declarer selects the cards to play from the dummy hand.
The Object of the Game
The object of play is to win tricks. You are required to follow suit if possible. If youre void in the suit that
was led, you can play trump or any other card.
A trick is won by the highest trump, or, if no trumps come out, by the highest card of the suit led. The
player that wins a trick leads the next. Play continues until all 13 tricks have been taken.
Keeping Score
Bridge score sheets are halved by a horizontal line. The trick score goes below the line; all other scores
go above the line. If the declarer fulfills the contract, winning as many or more odd tricks than the contract
called for, he or she scores below the line for every odd trick named in the contract. Any trick won by the
declarer in excess of his or her contract is called an overtrick, and is scored above the line. Undertrick
points are scored by the opposing partnership above the line (for the number of tricks short of the
contract).
Note: Hoyle Card Games version of the Bridge does not use an actual "horizontal line" to display scores.
Bonus points are awarded for slams, honors, and doubled contracts. You don't automatically get a slam
by winning 12 or 13 tricks -- you must first make the bid. A small slam contract is 6 of a denomination
(suit or notrump). If you make the contract (12 or 13 tricks) you get the small slam bonus. A grand slam
is the same, except it is a contract of 7 of a denomination (all 13 tricks). Honors are the cards ten through
ace (10, J, Q, K, A) of the trump suit. The honors bonus is awarded for having 4 or 5 trump honors in
one hand, or for having all 4 aces in one hand in a notrump contract.
When a side has scored 100 or more points below the line (trick points), it has won a game. A game
may require more than one hand to decide the outcome. The next game begins with both sides back to
zero.
To learn about Bridge scoring, click here:
A side that has won a game is said to be vulnerable. A vulnerable side receives increased bonuses in
some cases, and is subject to higher penalties if it does not fulfill a contract.
A rubber ends when one side wins two games. All points scored by both sides, both above the line and
below the line, are then added up. A rubber bonus is awarded to the winning team.
Playing Bridge
After the cards are dealt, play begins with the auction. To make a bid, click the square for your bid in the
Select Call dialog box. To pass, click Pass (or press Enter on the keyboard). To double, click Double.
To learn about bidding, click here:
If all four players pass the first time around, the cards are thrown in and the next dealer in turn deals.
When a bid, double, or redouble is followed by three consecutive passes, the auction is closed. The suit
named in the final bid is the trump suit for that hand (if the final bid was a notrump, the hand will be
played without trumps). Of the two players in the partnership that made the last bid in the auction, the
player who first bid the suit (or notrump) is the declarer. The number of odd tricks named in the final bid
is that player's contract.
To learn about actions in Bridge, click here:
To play your cards:
Click the card you want to play and drag it to its open spot on the table, then drop it there. Or, right-
click the card to automatically place it on the table.
To learn more about bridge:
See the strategy guide that came with Hoyle Card Games to learn more about bidding in bridge and
strategies for winning play.
Game Options
You have the option of setting your game type, how your cards are sorted, dummy options, and the skill
level for computer players.
To change these options, click Bridge Settings on the Options menu. For help on the options, see the
help area in the Options dialog box.

How to Play Four-Deal Bridge
You have the option of the playing Four-Deal Bridge (also known as Chicago) instead of traditional
Rubber Bridge.
To change your Bridge game to Four-Deal Bridge:
Click Bridge Settings on the Options menu, and then select Four-Deal Bridge.
Playing Four-Deal Bridge
Four-Deal Bridge is played much like traditional Rubber Bridge. In Four-Deal Bridge, four hands are
played and the team with the highest total score wins the round (as opposed to two out of three games in
Rubber Bridge).
A round consists of four deals, one by each player in turn. Vulnerability is automatic, as follows:
First deal: Neither side vulnerable.
Second and third deals: Dealer's side vulnerable; opponents not vulnerable (even if they
previously made game).
Fourth deal: Both sides vulnerable.
A passed-out deal is redealt by the same dealer. A bonus of 300 is given for making game when not
vulnerable and 500 when vulnerable. A part-score carries over as in Rubber Bridge and can help to make
game in the next deal or deals, but is canceled by any game.
A bonus of 100 is given for making a part-score on the fourth deal. After four deals have been played, the
scores are totaled and entered on the back score, as in Rubber Bridge, and a new round begins.
A round in Four-Deal Bridge counts as a rubber in your Bridge statistics.

The Contract Bridge Scoring System
Trick Points (scored below the line by declarer)
Each odd trick bid & made in D or C 20
Each odd trick bid & made in H or S 30
First odd trick bid & made in NT 40
Subsequent odd tricks, NT 30
If bid was doubled, multiply trick score by two.
If bid was redoubled multiply by four.
Overtrick Points (scored above the line by declarer)
Each trick over contract in D or C, undoubled 20
Each trick over contract in NT, H, S, undoubled 30
Each trick over contract in any suit:
Doubled 100 (200 if vulnerable)
Redoubled 200 (400 if vulnerable)
Undertrick Points (scored above the line by defenders)
Not Vulnerable
First undertrick 50
First undertrick, doubled 100
First undertrick, redoubled 200
Second and third undertrick 50
Second and third undertrick, doubled 200
Second and third undertrick, redoubled 400
Each subsequent undertrick 50
Each subsequent undertrick, doubled 300
Each subsequent undertrick, redoubled 600
Vulnerable
First undertrick 100
First undertrick, doubled 200
First undertrick, redoubled 400
Each subsequent undertrick 100
Each subsequent undertrick, doubled 300
Each subsequent undertrick, redoubled 600
Bonus Points (scored above the line by declarer)
Making doubled contract 50
Making redoubled contract 100
Small Slam (6 odd tricks bid & made) 500 (750 if vulnerable)
Grand Slam (7 odd tricks bid & made) 1,000 (1,500 if vulnerable)
Rubber Bonus:
if the opponents won 1 game 500
if the opponents won no games 700
Honors Points (scored above the line by either partnership)
Four trump honors in one hand 100
Five trump honors in one hand 150
Four aces in one hand (NT contract) 150

The Standard Bidding System for Bridge
See the strategy guide that came with Hoyle Card Games to learn more about bidding in bridge and
strategies for winning play.
Hoyle Card Games uses a system adapted from the ACBL Standard Yellow Card System. Yellow Card is
intended as an uncomplicated modern treatment of Standard American bidding rules and conventions,
suitable for play in games where all players use the same system. Although ACBL Standard Yellow Card
System tournaments did not become popular in North America, adaptations of "Yellow Card" are popular
in on-line bridge environments, where the need to reach uncomplicated agreements in casual
partnerships is paramount. Likewise, the environment in Hoyle Card Games invites easy partnerships
with the computer players, while maintaining the potential for either serious competitive play or casual
fun. With exceptions for the most important conventions, most bids are natural, so novices can adapt to
the system with relative ease.
Yellow Card System Bidding
Opening Bids
13 points to open, slightly less with good distribution.
5-card majors in all seats.
Open highest suit of equal lengths (such as 1S over 1H with 5-5 split).
1D with 4-4 in the minors.
1C with 3-3 in the minors.
1NT = balanced 15-17.
2NT = balanced 20-21.
3NT = balanced 25-27.
2C is a strong artificial opening (see below).
2D, 2H, 2S are weak two-bids (see below).
Other bids are preemptive (see below).
Responses to Major Openings
New suit at 1 level (such as a 1S response to 1H) 6 or more points, 4+ cards in suit.
1NT 6-10 points, denies support for opener's suit (NOT a forcing bid).
New suit at 2 level -- 11 or more points, 4 cards or more in suit, forcing bid, willingness to rebid in next
round.
Raise in opener's suit, 3+ trump support, 6-10 points.
Jump raise in opener's suit, limit bid showing 10-12 points and 3+ trump support.
2NT Jacoby 2NT, 13+ dummy points, slam invitational (see below).
Jump shifts (such as 3C over 1S) strong hands inviting slam.
3NT 15-17 balanced points with 2 cards in opener's suit.
Game in opener's suit, weak hand with 5 cards of trump support and a singleton or void.
Opener's Second Bid
Minimum Hand (13-16 points)
a) notrump bid
b) raise of responder's suit
c) non-reverse bid of a third suit (can also show medium hand)
d) rebid of opener's suit
Medium Hand (17-18 points)
a) jump raise
b) jump rebid of opener's suit
c) reverse bid of a third suit
d) non-reverse bid of a third suit (can also show minimum hand)
Maximum Hand (19+ points)
a) jump in notrump
b) double jump raise
c) double jump rebid of opener's suit (i.e. for game)
d) jump shift in a third suit
Responses to Jacoby 2NT
a) 3-bid of a suit shows a singleton *or* void in that suit.
b) 4 of opener's suit shows a minimum hand without a singleton or void.
c) 3NT shows a medium hand without a singleton or void.
d) 3 of opener's suit shows a maximum hand without a singleton or void.
Responder's Second Bid
In response to suit bids by opener, responder chooses between ending the bidding with a partscore,
inviting game, bidding game, or forcing game with another informational bid:
1NT is a signoff bid.
2 of opener's suit shows 2 card trump support and denies support opener's second suit.
2 of a previously bid suit is a signoff bid.
2NT or 3 of a previously bid suit (other than opener's first suit) invites game.
3 of opener's first suit is game-forcing.
A third (or fourth) suit bid (including raises of opener's second suit) invites game, and is forcing.
Fourth suit bids are sometimes used artificially to show minimal support for that suit.
In response to a 1NT second bid by opener, responses are similar:
2 of a previously bid suit is a signoff bid.
A reverse bid or jump shift in a new suit is informational and game-forcing.
Responder can bid game directly.
Responses to Minor Openings
Principles similar to Major Openings, except:
a) Unless there is a clear fit in the opened suit, the immediate focus is on finding a fit in a major suit,
since opener may have a good 4-card major or 3-card support for responder's 5-card major.
b) 4 diamonds are needed to raise a 1D opening.
c) 5 clubs are needed to raise a 1C opening.
d) If opener rebids the minor suit, it shows suit strength greater than the minimum to open.
e) Bidding at the 1 level is "up-the-line", showing lower suits first (without limits on point strength), and
leaving room to return to the original suit at the 2 level if the opener's minor suit is strong.
2NT and 3NT are standard responses showing support of opener's suit and 13-15 and 16-17 points
respectively. Opener chooses between 3NT, game in the suit, or a slam try.
Responses to 1NT Opening
2C is Stayman asking for opener to show a 4-card major; responder must have at least 8 points and 4
of at least one major suit (see responses below). Use of Stayman does not preclude the possibility of a
strong minor suit.
2D and 2H are Jacoby Transfers to hearts and spades respectively, showing a strong suit in hearts or
spades, but not both (see responses below).
2S shows a club or diamond bust, showing a long club or diamond hand without enough point
support for game (see responses below).
2NT shows a balanced hand, invitational for game if opener has a strong hand.
3C and 3D show strength in a minor suit, invitational to game.
3H and 3S show a strong unbalanced hand with slam interest.
3NT shows a balanced hand without a major suit or enough points for slam.
4C is Gerber, initiating a Slam try with a strong, unbalanced hand (see Gerber below under "Slam
Bidding").
4NT is invitational to 6NT (not Blackwood).
In rare cases, 6NT and 7NT show enough balanced strength to bid slam directly.
Responses to Stayman
There are 3 standard responses:
a) 2D shows a lack of a 4-card major.
b) 2H shows 4+ hearts, or 4-4 in the majors.
c) 2S shows 4+ spades.
If responder rebids at the 2 level, it is invitational only.
If responder bids a minor suit at the 3 level, it shows slam interest with at least 5 cards in the suit.
If responder bids a major suit at the 3 level, it is forcing to game.
Responses to Jacoby Transfers
2H is the usual forced response to 2D.
2S is the usual forced response to 2H.
Opener can transfer to the 3 level with 17 points and 4-card support.
Responder can then either:
a) pass.
b) make an invitational bid of 2NT or 3 of the major suit.
c) force game by bidding a second suit, allowing opener to choose.
d) bid game directly with a 6-card suit.
Response to Club or Diamond "Bust" Response to 1NT
Opener is required to bid 3C in response.
Responder passes with a club bust, bids 3D with a diamond bust, which opener must pass.
Responses to 2NT Opening
3C is Stayman, similar to the 2C response to 1NT (see above).
3D and 3H are Jacoby Transfers, similar to the 2D and 2H responses to 1NT (see above).
4C is Gerber, initiating a Slam try with a strong, unbalanced hand (see Gerber below under "Slam
Bidding").
4NT is invitational to 6NT (not Blackwood).
in rare cases, 6NT and 7NT show enough balanced strength to bid slam directly.
Responses to 3NT Opening
4C is Stayman (not Gerber), similar to the 2C response to 1NT (see above).
4D and 4H are Jacoby Transfers, similar to the 2D and 2H responses to 1NT (see above).
6NT and 7NT show enough strength to bid slam.
Strong 2C Opening and Responses
2C is an artificial opening that shows at least 22 points, with a strict minimum of 20 high card points.
2H, 2S, 3C, and 3D are natural suit responses showing at least 8 points and at least 5 cards in the
suit.
2N is a natural response showing 8 high card points and a balanced hand.
A 2D Response to 2C shows less than 8 points or an unbalanced hand without a strong suit.
Opener's Responses to a 2D Response to 2C
2NT shows 22-24 points, and responder's options are the same as if opener bid 2NT initially, i.e.
Stayman, Jacoby transfers, Gerber, and a natural 4NT (not Blackwood) are the allowable
responses, adjusted for a slightly higher point count (see above).
3NT shows 25+ balanced points.
2H, 2S, 3C, 3D are forcing bids showing an unbalanced hand with strength in the suit. Responder can
suggest another suit, bid notrump, or jump to game (slam invitational) or raise in the suit (no slam
interest).
Weak Two-Bid Openings and Responses
2D, 2H, and 2S are weak bids showing 6 cards in the suit (or 7 cards in a weak suit) and 5-11 high
card points.
Responses in a second suit show 12+ points and a strong 5+ card suit (6+ cards if bid at the 3 level),
and are forcing bids. Opener rebids the opened suit with less than 9 points. Other responses are
natural, showing at least 9 points.
2NT Responses to Weak Two-Bids are artificial, showing game interest with at least 15 points (see
below).
A raise bid in the opened suit is a preemptive non-forcing bid, showing support for the suit but weaker
points (similar in effect to the Preemptive Openings, see below).
3NT is a direct game bid, showing a strong hand with stoppers in the unbid suits.
Responses to 2NT Responses to Weak Two-Bids
With less than 9 points, opener rebids the opening suit.
With 9+ points, opener bids a second suit at the 3 level to show an ace or king in that suit. Responder
places the contract.
With 9+ points and lacking a side ace or king, opener bids 3NT. Responder can then place the contract
in a suit if desired.
Preemptive Openings
With 7 or more cards in a suit, but without enough points to open at the 1 level, opener can bid at the 3
level, or even bid game directly.
Because of the danger of a penalty, preemptive bids are sensitive to vulnerability. The less favorable
the conditions, the more suit strength is required to make a preemptive bid.
Without a very strong hand, or a very unbalanced hand in a better suit, responder should pass.
Slam Bidding
4NT Blackwood (often followed by 5NT Blackwood) is used for slam bidding in all cases except
those covered by 4C Gerber.
4C Gerber (often followed by 5C Gerber) is used as a direct response to a 1NT or 2NT opening, and
also as a response to the sequence 2C-2D-2NT. A 4NT response (rather than 4C Gerber) in each of
these cases is natural (inviting 6NT), rather than 4NT Blackwood.
Responses to 4NT Blackwood
In response to a 4NT Blackwood bid, the only responses are:
a) 5C, showing 0 or 4 aces.
b) 5D, showing 1 ace.
c) 5H, showing 2 aces.
d) 5S, showing 3 aces.
To any of these responses, any response except 5NT Blackwood is to play.
Responses to 5NT Blackwood
In response to a 5NT Blackwood bid (available only after 4NT Blackwood), the only responses are:
a) 6C, showing 0 or 4 kings.
b) 6D, showing 1 king.
c) 6H, showing 2 kings.
d) 6S, showing 3 kings.
To any of these responses, any response is to play.
Responses to 4C Gerber
In response to a 4C Gerber bid, the only responses are:
a) 4D, showing 0 or 4 aces.
b) 4H, showing 1 ace.
c) 4S, showing 2 aces.
d) 4NT, showing 3 aces.
To any of these responses, any response except 5C Gerber is to play.
Responses to 5C Gerber
In response to a 5C Gerber bid, the only responses are:
a) 5D, showing 0 or 4 kings.
b) 5H, showing 1 king.
c) 5S, showing 2 kings.
d) 5NT, showing 3 kings.
To any of these responses, any response is to play.
Competitive Bidding
Unless otherwise noted, competitive bidding sequences are natural, and mean approximately the
same thing as in a non-competitive sequence. Some bids are "second choice" bids, and emphasis is
on finding a major suit contract.
Unless otherwise noted, conventional responses are not used if there is an intervening bid.
Overcalls
Defensive overcalls show only 8-16 points if bid at the one-level.
Jump overcall bids are preemptive (see above).
A cuebid of opener's suit in response to an overcall is a forcing bid showing support for the suit and
asking about the strength of the overcaller's hand. With a minimum overcall, the overcaller rebids the
suit at the lowest level.
A 1NT overcall shows a balanced hand with 15-18 points and a stopper in the opener's suit. 2C
Stayman is used in response (see above), but other conventions are not used.
A jump overcall of 2NT is an artificial Unusual 2NT bid showing 5+ cards in each of the 2 lower unbid
suits.
A cuebid overcall of a single suit bid is Michaels cuebid, showing 5+ cards in two suits. If in response
to a minor suit open, the cuebid shows both major suits and 8+ points. If in response to a major suit
open, the cuebid shows the other major, one of the minors, and 10+ points. In response to a major suit
cuebid, 2NT asks for the overcaller to bid the minor suit.
Takeout Doubles
With 17+ points, use a takeout double instead of an overcall.
With less that 17 points, takeout doubles show opening strength and at least 3 cards in each of the
unbid suits.
Balancing Bids
In fourth seat after a bid and 2 passes, bids mean the same thing as regular opening bids, except that
bids can be made with less points that usual (because a game contract is unlikely).
A reopening bid of 1NT shows a balanced 10-15 points.
Competitive Sequences After 1NT
In response to an overcall after 1NT, conventional responses are not used. Cuebids are used to show
unbalanced 10+ point strength.
In response to a double after 1NT, conventional responses remain in effect.
Competitive Responses to Takeout Doubles
Bids at the 1 level are forcing bids, similar to usual responses to 1 bids, but with urgency about finding
a suit.
Bids at the 2 level in a new suit are limit bids showing 6-10 and 6+ cards in the suit.
Redoubles show 10+ points without an appropriate suit bid.
2NT jump bids are limit bids, equivalent to a normal jump raise in the opener's suit.
Jump bids at the 2 level are similar in strength to opening weak 2 bids (see above).
Jump raises at the 3 level are preemptive (see above).
Other Competitive Sequences
Limit bids (10-12 points and support for opener's suit) at the 3 level are still in effect against overcalls.
Cuebidding the suit bid by an overcaller shows strength for game with support for opener's suit.
Negative doubles are used over suit overcalls at the 1 and 2 levels, denying support for opener's suit
and promising 4+ cards in any unbid major suit. If there is only one unbid major, a negative double
promises exactly 4 cards.
Cuebidding opponent's higher suit forces game (with support for opener's suit) in response to a
Michaels cuebid or Unusual 2NT convention.
A double in response to a Michaels cuebid or Unusual 2NT shows 11+ points.
Raises in response to cuebids show less than 11 points but support in opener's suit.
A bid in a major suit shows 5 or more cards in a competitive sequence.
Penalty Doubles
Doubles are only used for penalty against game contracts.
Conventional doubles can be passed for penalty if appropriate.
Defensive Leads
Suit selection is based on standard practices such as favoring partner's overcall suit, playing from AK,
playing a singleton, favoring long suits against notrump, etc.
Defensive Leads within a suit against a suit contract are based on the following conventions:
K from KQx
Q from QJx
J from JTx
T from T9x
J from KJTx
T from KT9x
T from QT9x
4th best card from 5+ cards
Low card from xxx
Low card from xxxx
K from AKx
High card from doubleton (including AK)
Defensive Leads within a suit against a notrump contract are based on the following conventions:
K from AKJx
Q from AQJx
J from AJT9
T from AT98
K from KQJx
Q from KQT9
J from KJT9
T from KT98
Q from QJTx
T from QT98
J from JT9x
T from T98x
4th best card from 5+ cards
Low card from xxx
Low card from xxxx
Defensive Signals
Defensive Signals are not given or recognized in Hoyle Card Games.

Actions in Bridge
During a game of Bridge, you can perform a number of actions; these actions can be found in the Actions
menu and are described below.
Review Auction
Opens the Auction dialog box for you to see how the auction for the hand proceeded. Press Enter on your
keyboard to close this dialog box.
Redeal Hand
Deals a new hand for the game (and gives you a second chance to improve your rubber score). Any
scores for the hand before redeal are thrown out.
Rebid Hand
Opens the Select Call dialog box for all players to rebid. (All previous bids are thrown out.) To pass, press
Enter on the keyboard.
Replay Hand
Deals the same hand for the game (and gives you a second chance to improve your rubber score). Any
scores for the hand before replay are thrown out.
Game play starts again from after the auction.
Save Hand
Saves the current distribution of cards amongst the players. If you continue playing after saving the hand,
then want to revert back to the hand when it was saved, choose Restore Hand.
Restore Hand
Deals a new hand for the game using the hand that you saved using the Save Hand command (instead of
a random deal). If you choose Restore Hand at the end of the hand, the next hand is dealt using the
saved hand.

How to Play Canasta
Rules
Canasta uses two regular decks of cards, including the jokers (two from each deck). Each player is dealt
eleven cards. Players across from each other are partners and play cards to a common area, so each
partner can take advantage of the others play. Canasta is usually played over several hands; the first
team to reach 5000 points wins.
Jokers and twos are wild cards and can be used to represent other cards. Black and red threes have
special properties.
Rules Summary
On your turn, you either draw a card from the draw pile or take the entire discard pile (there are special
rules for picking up the discard pile). You can then play melds and canastas. At the end of your turn, you
must discard a card to the discard pile.
Either you or your partner must make an initial meld for your team. Once your team has made its initial
meld, both of you can play as many melds and canastas as you want on your turns.
If your team has made at least one canasta, either you or your partner can go out if you can play all the
cards in your hand.
Making Melds and Canastas
Teams score points by making melds and canastas.
A meld is three or more cards of the same rank such as 4-4-4, 6-6-6-6-6, or Q-Q-Q-Q-Q. Wild cards
(twos and jokers) can substitute for any card, if needed (the only exception is a meld of black threes,
which cant include any wild cards). For instance, you could have a meld of 4-4-2. A meld must contain at
least two natural cards, and cannot contain more than three wild cards.
Black threes can only be melded as your very last play of a hand before going out.
A canasta is a meld which has seven or more cards of the same rank such as 8-8-8-8-8-8-8. Your team
must make at least one canasta to win a hand. A canasta can contain up to three wild cards. If the
canasta contains only natural cards, it is worth more points.
Making the Initial Meld
The first play your team must make to the table is your initial meld. Either you or your partner must play
to the table, in one turn, one or more melds whose point value is equal to or greater than the initial meld
value.
Your game score at the end of a hand dictates how many points you need for the initial meld in the next
hand. At the beginning of a game, both teams always have an initial meld requirement of 50.
Score Meld Requirement
0-1495 50
1501-2995 90
3000 or more 120
Negative score 15
This system gives the losing team a better chance at a comeback, since they can potentially play to the
table earlier and "go out" earlier. A team with 1600 points must make an initial meld of 90, while the
second-place team, with a score of 1250 points, only needs an initial meld of 50.
Your initial meld value (50, 90, 120, or 15) for the current hand is shown under your score in the upper left
corner of the screen. If your team hasnt yet made the initial meld, it is shown with a 0 in front of it. As you
attempt to make your meld, the points you get are counted in this area.

You can also figure out the meld value by adding up the point values of any cards that you meld. To learn
how much cards are worth, click here:
Example:

If your initial meld requirement is 50, you can make two different initial melds with this hand.
Meld the four queens (4x10=40)
and the three sevens (3x5=15)
for a total of 55.
OR Meld the four queens (4x10=40) and
the two (worth 20)
for a total of 60.



Once either you or your partner has made the initial meld, both of you can play other melds (and
canastas) to the table.
Picking up the Discard Pile
At the beginning of your turn, you can pick up the entire discard pile in certain situations (instead of
drawing a card from the draw pile). To pick up the discard pile, you must be able to immediately use the
upcard (the top card of the pile) in a meld (either adding it to an existing meld or making a new meld with
it using cards already in your hand). You do not get to take the other cards in the pile until you use the
upcard in a meld.
Normally, you can pick up the discard pile if you can use the upcard in an existing meld or use the upcard
in a new meld; to use the upcard in a new meld you must combine it with at least two natural cards from
your hand or with at least one natural card and one wild card from your hand.
However, if someone has discarded a two, or joker to the pile, the pile is frozen. When the discard pile is
frozen, you can only pick it up if you can use the upcard in a meld using at least two natural cards in your
hand.
A pile stays frozen until someone picks it up.
Important: Before your team has made your initial meld, the pile is not shown as frozen, but you can
only pick it up with two natural cards.
You can never pick up a pile if the top card is a joker, two, or black three.
Going Out
Your team is qualified to go out (ending the current hand) if you have at least one canasta on the table.
To go out, either you or your partner must play all of the cards in your hand to the table. The last card in
your hand can either be melded or discarded; this is the only time in the game you are not required to
discard at the end of your turn.
When you are ready to go out, you may, if you wish, ask your partner permission to go out. This gives you
a way to find out whether your partner wants you to go out, or whether your partner still has a lot of points
in his or her hand and wants to continue to play. Asking for permission is optional, but your partners
answer is binding; you can only go out on that turn if your partner gives you permission.
Note: It is possible to go out without previously having placed any melds on the table. This is known as
going out concealed and is worth extra points. You must be able to immediately play all of the cards in
your hand to the table, making your initial meld and at least one canasta. You can discard one card to the
discard pile if necessary. Going out concealed is very difficult to do, because you dont get any help from
your partner.
Canasta Gameplay

At the beginning of the game, one card is flipped to the discard pile. If that card is a two, joker, or red
three, another card is flipped on top of it and the pile is frozen.
Before play begins, any red threes in players hands are automatically played to the 3 pile on the board
and replaced with new cards.
Playing the Game
1 On your turn, click the draw pile to draw a card, or click the discard pile to pick up the pile, if you can.
Click here for rules on picking up the discard pile:
If you pick up the discard pile, the top card of the pile is automatically played to the appropriate card
pile. If the pile was frozen, you must then also play two natural cards to that pile; if you dont, you
wont be able to take the pile.
2 Meld cards to the table, if you want to. (The first play your team can make is the initial meld.) To make
a meld, drag each card to the appropriate meld pile (use the upper left corner of the card to point to
the pile you want) or right-click a card to play it automatically. To play wild cards, you must drag cards
to the appropriate pile, since you need to specify which pile you want to put them on.

Click the Undo All button if you do something wrong; it will undo as much of your turn as possible
(including any melds you have made). It will not undo drawing a card from the draw pile, and it will not
undo taking the entire discard pile (if there is more than one card in that pile).
3 Discard a card by dragging it to the discard pile.
Important: You must always keep at least one card in your hand at the end of a turn, unless you are
going out.
4 Play proceeds with the player on your left. Continue playing until one team goes out or the deck runs
out.
If youre ready to go out, you can go out by laying down all your cards (one card can be discarded, if
desired.) If you wish, you can ask your partner for permission before you go out. You do this by
clicking the May I Go Out button after you draw cards but before you play them. Note: if the May I Go
Out button is not shown after you have drawn, you are not yet qualified to go out, perhaps because
you do not have a canasta, or because you cannot play all your cards by melding and discarding.
If a player draws the last card in the deck, special conditions apply. If the next player cannot take the
discard pile, the hand ends immediately. However, if that player can play the top card of the discard
pile to one of his or her teams melds, the player must take the discard pile and play that card. If the
player can take the discard pile with a card in his or her hand, he or she can choose to either take the
pile or click the End Hand button. In any of these cases, the hand ends, and neither team gets points
for going out.
5 Each team scores points; see Canasta Scoring for information. If either team gets 5000 or more
points, the game ends; otherwise, a new hand is dealt.
Note
The meld piles show you how many cards are in them. To see which cards are in one of the meld
piles, click on the pile and hold down the mouse.
Game options
You have the option of setting the skill level for computer players. To change this option, click Canasta
Settings on the Options menu. For help on this option, see the help area in the Options dialog box.

Canasta Scoring
Each card you play to the table is worth a certain number of points. These points count towards your
initial meld requirement, and are scored at the end of the game. (Note: Any red threes on the table dont
count towards the initial meld points.)
Scoring occurs at the end of a hand, after one team has gone out, or the deck runs out of cards and
someone ends the hand. The team that went out gets points for going out, and each team scores points
for all the cards theyve melded to the table (including the cards in canastas) and any bonus points (points
for any red threes and any mixed or natural canastas). Then, any cards remaining in team members
hands (including the partner of the person who went out) are subtracted from each teams score.
Card Values
4, 5, 6, 7, and black 3 5 points
8, 9, 10, J, Q, K 10 points
A and 2 20 points
Joker 50 points
Red 3 100 points each (800 if your team has all 4 red threes)
Other Scoring
Mixed Canasta 300 points each
Natural Canasta (all natural cards) 500 points each
Going out 100 points
Going out concealed* 200 points
Going out before the other team
has melded The other team loses 100 points per red 3 owned by
that team, or 800 points if that team owns all four red
3s.
* Going out without having made an initial meld on a previous turn.
Note
Additional cards added to a Canasta (beyond the first seven cards) do not give you any points beyond
the normal point value for those cards.

Canasta Strategies and Tips
Try these strategies and tips to improve your Canasta game.
General Strategy
The main reason for making melds is to work with your partner to make canastas. Canastas are worth
a lot more points, so focus on making them instead of a number of small melds.
Be careful not to meld too many cards. Having a small hand is a big disadvantage, because you are
less likely to be able to pick up the discard pile.
However, if your partner has already laid down a meld, it is usually a good idea to play any cards you
can to it, so that you can get closer to having a canasta. If you can make a canasta, you should always
do it!
Except when making the initial meld and taking the discard pile, avoid adding wild cards to piles
(unless you want to finish a canasta). Wild cards are stronger in your hand, since they can be used to
make canastas and freeze the pile.
If you have more than three cards you can meld, try just melding three of the cards, holding the others
back. This gives your partner a chance to play cards to that meld, but leaves cards in your hand that
can potentially pick up the discard pile. It also may let you make a surprise canasta!
Keep track of the discarded cards! If the other team takes the pile, you will want to remember what
cards were in it so you can discard safely. Keeping track of discards also gives you an indication which
cards the other team are short of.
If you have no choice but to discard a card that lets the other team take the discard pile, stick to low
cards (4, 5, 6, 7) whenever possible, since these give the other team less points, and leave more
points in your hand for melds.
Taking the Discard Pile
A key strategy to Canasta is getting the discard pile and preventing your opponents from getting it,
whenever possible. But consider how many cards are in the pile! It is often not worth showing the other
team what cards you want by taking a small pile with four or less cards.
Black threes are valuable discards, since they protect the discard pile. Hold on to them until the
discard pile is large or something you particularly want to defend.
When the discard pile is not frozen and is full of cards the other team wants, try making safe discards,
such as cards that your team already has a large meld of (since you know the other team probably
cant meld them). Or discard cards youve already seen the other team discard, or discards they have
passed up before.
If the other team has more melds on the table, consider freezing the discard pile, so that you can
safely discard cards that your opponents have large melds of.
If the discard pile gets really big, restrain yourself from melding, so that you have more chances to get
the pile.
If youre holding cards that the opponents can meld (and you cant), try to discard them when the
discard pile is frozen, or when it is small.
Going Out
If youre in a weak positionthe other team has melded most of the card ranks, so there are no safe
discards, for exampleconsider going out to minimize your losses.
Asking your partner to go out is sometimes a good way to find out whether your partner can make
more canastas. But dont forget that your partners answer is binding!
If you ask your partner to go out and your partner tells you no, play as many naturals on your turn as
possible, holding on to wild cards and at least one safe discard. This gives your partner more
opportunities to play cards and make canastas. Holding on to the wild cards means that you are more
likely to be able to go out next turn.
If your partner asks you to go out, and you say no (because you have cards left to play), be sure to
play as many wild cards as you can on your next turn, and any natural cards that you can use to make
canastas (or large melds which your partner could potentially make into canastas). Be sure to keep
one card that you can discard safely on your next turn (so that the player to your left cant go out
before your partner)!
If all other things are equal, and the other team has three red 3s and the fourth red 3 hasnt been
drawn, consider going out as soon as possible. If that team gets the last red 3, theyll get 500 more
points! Likewise, if your team has three red 3s, and the fourth red 3 hasnt been drawn, consider
postponing going out until you get that last red 3.

Canasta Glossary
Canasta
A meld with seven or more cards of the same rank.

Frozen pile
If the discard pile is frozen, the pile can only be picked up if you have in your hand two natural (non-wild)
cards of the same rank as the top card of the discard pile.
In the example below, you cant pick up the discard pile, even though you already have a meld of tens,
because you dont have any tens in your hand. You need at least two tens in your hand to pick up the
pile.

Meld
Three or more cards of the same rank. Melds can include wilds.

Meld piles

On a pile, the run number shows you how many cards are in the pile, and the w number shows you how
many of those cards are wild cards. So in the pile above there are three sevens and one wild card (four
cards total).
The different colors of the piles indicate what mix of cards they contain.
Pile Meaning
A meld containing natural cards and wild cards.
A meld containing all natural cards (no wild cards).
A "mixed" canasta containing natural cards and wild cards.
A "natural" canasta containing all natural cards (no wild cards).
Natural card
A card of the desired rank, as opposed to a wild card.
Wild card
A card that can be used in place of other cards. In Canasta, twos and jokers are wild and can be used in
melds and canastas.

How to Play Crazy Eights
Crazy Eights can be played by two, three, or four players. You can play against computer players or up to
three other human players. For help on adding and changing players, click here:
The game uses a 52-card deck with colors instead of suits and ones instead of aces. When two play,
each player receives seven cards; when three or four play, each player receives five cards. The
remainder of the deck is placed face down, and the top card is placed face-up beside the deck and
becomes the starter.
Players play cards to the starter pile that match the top card in the same color or rank. For example, if a
blue 10 is on top, you can play the green, red, or yellow 10, or you could play any blue card.
In Crazy Eights, eights are always wild. An eight may be played at any time, even if you could legally play
another card. If you play an eight, you designate a color, and the next player must play a card of that
color or another eight.
Playing the Game
1 On your turn, you can play a card to the starter pile: either drag the card from your hand to the starter
pile, or right-click the card.
You can play any card that matches the top card of the starter pile in color or rank, or you can play an
eight. If you play an eight, you must select which color you want to change it to.
2 If you dont have a card that matches the top card, or if you choose not to play one of your cards,
you must draw cards until you can play.
You can choose not to play a card, if you like, even if you have one that could be played. For instance,
you might have an eight that could be played, but want to save it to play later in the game. Or perhaps
you want to change the suit to a suit that another player doesnt haveyou could draw to try to get an
eight, or a card with the same value as the current card but a different suit.
3 Once youve played to the starter pile, the turn passes to the next player. If youre playing the Very
Crazy version of Crazy Eights, some cards you play affect other players. See Playing the Very Crazy
Game below for more information.
3 When the deck is exhausted (out of cards), you must play a card if you can. If you cant play, the turn
will pass to the next player.
4 Play ends when a player gets rid of his or her last card. If no one can play a legal card, the game ends
in a block.
If youre playing a non-scoring game, the player who gets rid of all of their cards first wins. If youre
playing a scoring game, the player that goes out first collects points for all cards remaining in the hands of
the opponents: 50 for each eight, 10 for each face card, and the regular value for the remaining cards. If
the game ended in a block, no points are scored.
Playing the Very Crazy Game
You can choose to play the Very Crazy version of Crazy Eights: click Crazy Eights Settings on the
Options menu, and then click Very Crazy Eights under the Game Type.
Very Crazy Eights is played exactly like Crazy Eights, above, except that several types of cards2s,
jacks, kings, and the red queenall have special functions:
Jack: Skips the next players turn.
King: Reverses the direction of play.
2: Makes the next player draw two cards or play a 2. If that player can play
a 2, the next player must then draw four cards or play a 2, and so on.
Red queen: Makes the next player draws five cards and skips their turn.
Note: If any of these cards are the starter card (the first card turned over from the deck), it has no special
effect.
Game Options
You have the option of setting whether your cards are drawn manually or automatically, and whether
youre playing the normal game or the Very Crazy game.
To change these options, click Crazy Eights Settings on the Options menu. For help on the options, see
the help area in the Options dialog box.

How to Play Cribbage
Cribbage is a game for two to four players; Hoyle Card Games includes the two-player version. You can
play against a computer player or a human player. For help on adding and changing players, click here:

The game uses the standard 52-card pack. The cards in each suit rank from the king (the highest) down
to the ace (the lowest). In counting or numerical value, the king, queen, jack, and 10 each count for 10
(and so are called tenth cards), the ace counts as one, and the other cards are what they say they are.
The game operates on the principle of matching combinations of cards: pairs, three or more of a kind,
flushes, runs (sequences), and groups of cards that add up to 15. Players score points for matching both
during and after play (after play, points are totaled for combinations in hand). The first person to score
121 points is the winner. If a player wins by more than 30 points (a skunk), it counts as winning two
games (losing two games for the loser). If a player wins by more than 60 points (a double skunk), it
counts as winning three games (losing three games for the loser).
Cribbage also uses a cribbage board, a rectangular panel with rows of holes that form a sort of track. At
one end, or in the center, you'll find four additional holes, called game holes. Each player has two pegs,
which are placed at the start in the game holes. After each hand, the player advances a peg an
appropriate number of holes (one hole per point) away from the start (assuming that that player scored
any points). The player's second score is recorded by placing the second peg an appropriate distance
ahead of the first. For each subsequent score, the peg in back jumps over the peg in front. The distance
between the two pegs always shows the amount of the last score. This method holds counting errors to a
minimum.
Each player receives six cards, dealt one at a time. After looking over the hand, each player lays away
two cards face down. The four cards laid away, placed in one pile, form the crib. The crib counts for the
dealer (the dealer always has an advantage in this game). The non-dealer therefore tries to lay away
balking cards -- cards that are least likely to create a score in the crib.
To begin play, the dealer turns up the top card of the stock. This card is called 1 for the starter. If this
card is a jack, the dealer immediately "pegs 2" (advances his peg two spaces), traditionally called 2 for
his heels.
The non-dealer begins the play by laying a card from his or her hand face-up on the table, announcing its
value. The dealer does the same (each player discards to his or her own pile). Play continues in the same
way, by alternate exposures of the cards, each player announcing the new total count. The total may not
be carried past 31. If a player adds a card that brings the total exactly to 31, he or she pegs two. If a
player is unable to play another card without exceeding 31, he or she says "Go" and the second player
must play as many cards as possible up to but not over 31. The player who plays the last card under 31
scores a point. The discard process begins again from zero.
After the hands have been emptied, the totals of any matches in the discards are counted and added to
each player's score.
Against human competition, if your opponent forgets to claim any points, you're allowed to yell
"Muggins!" and claim the points for yourself. (The knowledge of who or what a Muggins is has long been
lost to us. The word is also used in a form of Hearts, though with a different meaning.)
These are the most usual point scores:
In Play
Total of 15 2
Pair 2
Three of a kind 6
Four of a kind 12
Run of three or more 1 per card
Turned-up jack 2
Go 1
Total of 31 2
In Hand
Total of 15 2
Pair 2
Three of a kind 6
Four of a kind 12
Run of three or more 1 per card
Flush (four cards) 4
Flush (five cards) 5
Jack, same suit as starter 1
Double run of three* 8
Double run of four* 10
Triple run* 15
Quadruple run* 16
*A run is a sequence of cards such as 6-5-4.
A double run of three means one duplication in a sequence of four: 6-6-5-4.
A double run of four is one duplication in five cards: 7-6-6-5-4.
A triple run is one triplication in a sequence of five: 8-7-6-6-6.
A quadruple run is two duplications in a sequence of five: 8-8-7-7-6.
Playing the Game
1 Put two cards in the crib: drag each card to the crib, or right-click each card. To remove cards youve
placed in the crib, drag them back to your hand, or right-click them again. When youve selected two
cards, click OKAY on the crib.
2 After the top card is shown, drag a card from your hand to your cards on the table, or right-click it to
move it automatically.
The point values for each card you play are calculated for you.
Game Options
You have the option of setting whether you count your card points yourself (allowing your opponent to call
Muggins), whether to play seven complete games, who deals first at the start of a game, how cards are
sorted, and the skill level for computer players.
To change these options, click Cribbage Settings on the Options menu. For help on the options, see the
help area in the Options dialog box.
You can also select the peg color and position (inside or outside track) for each player. Click Cribbage
Players on the Options menu (or click the Players tab in the Cribbage Options dialog box) to change
these options.

How to Play Euchre
Four people play in two partnerships (though the game has been adapted to accommodate as many as
seven players). Euchre uses the standard 52-card pack, but with 28 cards removed (everything below the
nine). Hoyle Card Games does not use the joker.
The Rank of Cards in Each Non-Trump Suit
Ace (the highest), king, queen, jack, 10, 9 (the lowest).
The Rank of Cards in Trumps
The jack of the trump suit (the right bower), followed by the jack of the same color (the left bower) ,
followed by K-Q-J-10-9 of trump. For example, if hearts were trump, they would rank as follows: the jack
of hearts, the jack of diamonds, and then the rest of the hearts. The trump suit always has seven cards;
the next suit (same color as the trump suit) has five; and the "cross" suits (opposite color from the trump)
each have six.
The Object of the Game
The object is to win at least three tricks (of a possible five). If the side that called trumps fails this, it is
euchred. The winning of all five tricks is called march.
In the traditional scoring, the side that called trumps wins one point for making three or four tricks; for
making five tricks or march, they score two points. For the person playing alone: for three or four tricks,
one point; for march, four points. If the side that called trumps is euchred, their opponents win two points.
Four-hand euchre is usually played for a game of five points.
Playing the Game
Five cards are dealt to each player. The pack is placed face down with the top card turned face up. This
card determines the trump suit for the deal.
The first player may either pass or accept the turned-up card as trumps. If the first player passes, the next
player faces the same decision, and so on. As soon as a player accepts the turned-up card as trumps,
the dealer picks up the turned-up card. The dealer must then discard a card from their hand; this can be
any card, including the trump card that was just picked up.
If all players pass, the dealer removes the turned-up card. The first player then has the right to name the
trump suit, or to pass. The suit of the rejected card cannot be named as trump. If a player passes, the
next player can call the trump suit or pass, until the option reaches the dealer again.
If all players pass a second time around, the cards are thrown in for a new deal (from the next dealer in
line). However, if the "Stick the Dealer" option is checked in the Settings dialog box, and all players pass
the second time around, the dealer is forced to choose a trump suit from the available suits.
The player that declares the trump suit has the right to say, "I play alone." The partner of this lone wolf
lays their cards face down and does not participate in the hand.
In play, players must follow suit of whatever card is led (if able). If youre void in the suit that was led, you
can play trump or any other card.
The highest trump played wins the trick. If no trump is played, the highest card in the suit led wins the
trick. The winner of the trick then leads the next card.
Playing Your Cards
Click the card you want to play and drag it to its open spot on the table, and then drop it there. You can
also right-click the card to automatically place it on the table.
Game Options
You have the option of setting the number of points required to win, whether you can "stick" the dealer,
how your cards are sorted, which player leads after a play alone bid, and the skill level for computer
players.
To change these options, click Euchre Settings on the Options menu. For help on the options, see the
help area in the Options dialog box.

Euchre Strategies and Tips
Try these strategies and tips to improve your Euchre game:
Don't get cute. Take tricks whenever you can. Don't hold onto a high card in a suit that has already
been played.
If it's your lead and you're holding two or more trumps, by all means lead a trump. It might not win, but
it will suck most of the remaining trumps out of the other hands. Your other trump cards will become
that much more powerful.
This is another partnership game, so remember to cooperate. Don't play a high trump if your partner
has just done so.

How to Play Gin Rummy
Gin Rummy is played by two people with the standard 52-card pack. The cards in each suit rank from the
king (the highest) down to the ace (the lowest). Each face card counts as 10, each ace counts as one,
and the other cards are their regular values.
Each player receives 10 cards in the deal. The first card always goes to the non-dealer. The rest of the
pack is placed faced-down; this is the stock. The top card of the stock is turned up and placed beside the
stock. This is the upcard.
The non-dealer begins play by taking the first upcard or refusing it; if the non-dealer refuses the upcard,
the option of taking it or refusing it passes to the dealer. If the dealer also refuses, the non-dealer draws
the top card of the stock.
From there, each player in turn draws a card, either the upcard or the top card of the stock, and then
discards one card (the new upcard) face up on the previous discards.
The Object of the Game
The object of all this taking and discarding is to form your hands into matched sets (three or four cards of
the same rank) or sequences (three or more cards in sequence in the same suit).
After drawing, and before discarding, a player may knock if his or her unmatched cards (deadwood)
count 10 or less. The player who knocks lays down 10 cards, arranged in sets and with the unmatched
cards segregated, then discards the eleventh card. If all 10 cards are in matched sets (a gin hand), the
player's count is zero and he or she is said to go gin.
If neither player has knocked by the time the 50th card has been drawn (and a following discard made),
there is no score for either player for that particular deal.
The opponent of the player who knocked may lay off any of his or her unmatched cards that fit on the
knocker's matched sets, thereby reducing his or her own count of unmatched cards.
After knocking and laying off, if the knocker has the lower deadwood count, he or she wins the difference
between the two players' deadwood counts. But if the opponent has an equal or lesser deadwood count,
the opponent is said to have undercut the knocker. The opponent then scores the difference (if any) in the
counts, plus an undercut bonus of 25 points.
The knocker cannot be undercut if he or she has gin (no deadwood). A knocker with gin scores the
opponent's deadwood count, plus a gin bonus of 25 points.
The first player to accumulate 100 points wins the game and a 100-point game bonus. Players get a 25-
point line bonus for each hand won in the game. The winner wins the difference in total scores for the
game. If the loser did not win any hands in the game (a shutout), the winner's score for the game (except
for the line bonus) is doubled.
Multiple games are played until the match is won. See Settings to choose the match type.
Oklahoma Gin
In Oklahoma Gin, you can only knock if your total deadwood count is equal to or less than the value of the
initial upcard. Face cards count as 10 for this purpose, and if the initial upcard is an ace, there is no
knocking; you must have gin to go out.
Additionally, if the initial upcard is a spade in Oklahoma Gin, the winner's final point total is doubled.
Playing the Game
1 To start the game, you can take the upcard by clicking it, or click the Pass button to pass and let the
other player choose to take it or pass.
2 On your turn, draw a card by clicking the deck, or click the upcard of the discard pile to take it.
3 Discard a card in your hand by dragging it to the discard pile or right-clicking it.
4 The hand ends when you or the other player knocks. If youre ready to knock, click the Knock button,
and then discard a card.
5 The game ends after one player wins the match. How matches are won depends on your game
settings.
Game Options
You have the option of setting your game type (Gin Rummy or Oklahoma Gin), how long a match is,
whether to sort cards manually or automatically, and the skill level for computer players.
To change these options, click Gin Rummy Settings on the Options menu. For help on the options, see
the help area in the Options dialog box.
Note:
To sort cards, press the SHIFT key to spread the cards apart, then drag cards where you want them to
be. Manual card sort mode must be checked in the Gin Rummy Settings dialog. (While manual card
sort mode is on, new cards are not sorted automatically by the computer.)

Gin Rummy Strategies and Tips
Try these strategies and tips to improve your Gin Rummy game:
As a general rule, draw from the discard pile only to complete or add to a set, not to form a
combination (two cards that may become a set).
Try to put together two matched sets plus four or fewer unmatched low cards (you usually don't have
time to make three sets).
Knock as soon as you can! You won't make Gin, but you're more likely to pick up a ton of points from
your opponent's unmatched cards.
Success in Gin Rummy depends largely on keeping track of the discards. From this you'll know which
of your own combinations are still "alive" and you'll be able to guess which combinations your
opponent is holding.
According to leading Gin Rummy scientists, the most useful card in this game is the 7, as it figures in
more combinations than any other card. The least useful are the ace and king.
As in Poker, never try to "fill an inside straight" in Gin Rummy. If for example you have a 4 and a 5,
you can add to this with either of two cards, a 3 or a 6. If you have a 4 and a 6, however, you're only
half as likely to run across a 5.

How to Play Go Fish
In Go Fish, you try to collect four cards of the same rank (called a book) by asking other players for
cards. The goal of Go Fish is to make the most books before all the cards are gone.
On your turn, you can ask any other player if they have any of the card you are currently holding. For
example, if you have a five, you might ask Harley: "Do you have any fives?"
If the player has one or more of that card, you get it, and you can go again, asking any player for a card.
If the player doesnt have that card, theyll tell you to Go Fish. When you Go Fish, you get one new card.
In the rare case that you get the card you asked for when you Go Fish, you get another turn.
On other players turns, they can ask you or another player for cards. You have to give them any cards
they ask you for. If you dont have any of that kind of card, you can tell them to Go Fish.
If you run out of cards, you get five new cards.
Playing the Game
1 You are dealt five cards. If you are dealt a book, those cards are removed from your hand and you get
one point.
2 It is your turn when your nameplate flashes. In any order:
Select a player to ask for a card by clicking on the player or the players cards.
Select a card to ask for by clicking on a card of that rank in your hand.
3 If the player has any such cards, that player must give you all of the cards of that type. Those cards
swim into your hand and you can go again, asking any player for any card.
If the player you asked doesnt have any such cards, you must Go Fish by clicking one of the
swimming fish (some of the fish will try hard not to be caught!). (The crab will wave a sign reminding
you that you need to fish.) When you catch a fish, a card will swim into your hand. If you happen to get
the card you asked for, you get to go again.
4 Whenever you get a four-of-a-kind, you get one point.
5 When your turn is over, the player to your left goes next, and so on. If a player asks you for a card that
you have, any of those cards swim out of your hand into that players hand.
If a player asks you for a card that you dont have, click your Go Fish bottle to make that player go
fish:

6 If any player runs out of cards, that player gets five new cards (if cards are available). Play continues
until all players hands are empty and there are no more fish cards to draw. The winner is the player
with the most points at the end of the game.
Notes and Tips:
When all the fish cards are gone, all the fish will swim off the screen.
The best strategy in Go Fish is to remember what cards each player asked for, especially if that player
was successful in getting cards. You might draw a card they have been asking for, and be able to take
all their cards!
It is usually better to draw cards from the player who has the most cards.
Game Options
You have the option of setting the skill level for computer players. (This sets how well they remember
what cards other players have asked for.) To change this option, click Go Fish Settings on the Options
menu. For help on this option, see the help area in the Options dialog box.

How to Play Hearts
There are four players, no teams.
Hearts uses the standard 52-card pack. The cards in each suit rank from the ace (the highest) to the
deuce (the lowest). There is no trump.
The deal rotates clockwise, as does the play of the cards. The entire pack is dealt. Unless it is a no
passing round, or passing has been turned off in the options, each player passes three cards to another
player. You must choose the cards to pass before looking at the ones you'll be receiving. The player with
the 2 of clubs (or, in another variation, the player to the dealers left) leads the first trick.
Whichever card is led first, the other players must try to follow suit. A trick is won by the highest card in
the suit led. The winner of a trick makes the next lead.
The Object of the Game
The object of play is to avoid taking points in tricks. Each heart counts as one point, and the queen of
spades counts as 13 points. However, if you take all the hearts and the queen of spades, you give each
of your opponents 26 points and take none yourself. This is called "Shooting the Moon," and pulling it off
is a difficult feat.
Hearts cannot be led until they've been broken; that is, taken in a previous trick after someone who
couldnt follow suit plays one.
When a player equals or breaks 100 points, the game is over, and the player with the lowest score at that
time is the winner.
Playing the Game
1 At the beginning of each hand, you may need to pass three cards. Drag the cards into the tray, or
right-click them, and click OKAY to pass them.
2 On your turn, click the card you want to play and drag it to the middle of the board. Or, right-click the
card to automatically place it on the table.
Game Options
You have the option of setting how cards are led and passed, whether hands are finished early, how
hearts are broken, how cards are sorted, and the skill level for computer players.
To change these options, click Hearts Settings on the Options menu. For help on these options, see the
help area in the Options dialog box.

Hearts Strategies and Tips
Try these strategies and tips to improve your Hearts game:
Success in Hearts is largely determined by the cards you pass before every hand. (In the rounds when
you don't pass, you just have to hope for some luck to back your skill!)
Always pass an ace or a king if that's all you have in that suit. (Always pass the queen of spades if you
have no spades to back her up!)
High cards are not dangerous if you have enough low ones to back them up (three at a minimum).
It's better to keep the queen of spades and dump her on someone during play than to pass her only to
have her dumped back on you. But you can't keep the queen unless you have enough spades to
defend her (four is best, three is chancy).
When passing, keep every spade you can if you don't have the queen, since you might receive her
from your opponents pass. However, don't keep the ace and king of spades unless you have at least
three other spades to defend yourself.
When passing, if you have the A-K-Q of spades and three or four low spades, give away the A-K and
make somebody sweat!
If you don't have to worry about passing high spades or lone royals, get rid of an entire suit or most of
that suit.
When the first card of a suit appears, if only you and another player are holding that suit, you could be
in big trouble (unless you have the 2-3-4; then you're in the driver's seat). Try to get rid of this suit as
quickly as possible.
The best insurance against picking up the queen of spades is to lead low spades every chance you
get. Force her out of hiding!
If you have four or more cards in a suit, including high cards and low ones, play the high cards early
and save the low ones for the later, more dangerous rounds.
If someone picks up the queen of spades before any other points have been scored, that person may
try to shoot the moon. Hold on to a high card in at least one suit to try to stop that attempt.
Shooting the moon is for the real gambler. The odds are against you! There are few thrills like it in all
of carddom, but don't try it unless you have nerves of steel and the cards to back it up!

How to Play Memory Match
You can play Memory Match by yourself or with another person in front of your computer. To play by
yourself, select One Player when selecting Memory Match from the menu or from the Main Screen; to
play with another person, select Two Players.
Cards are dealt face down into a grid layout. The Object of the Game is to find and remove all matching
pairs of cards. Click on a card to turn it over, then click a second card. If the two cards are a pair, they are
removed from the layout. If not, they are turned face down.
Playing the Game
1 Click on a card to turn it over, then click a second card.
2 If the two cards are a pair, they are removed from the layout. If not, they are turned face down.
If you turn over a wild card along with a regular card, the match for the regular card is also turned
over, and all three cards are removed from the grid.
3 If you find three pairs in a row without a miss, you get a bonus.
4 When all pairs have been found and the board is empty, your score is displayed.
Playing a Two-Player Game
The two-player game is played like the regular game, above, but the objective is to see who can be the
first to find a set number of pairs. The game is played in multiple rounds. At the start of some rounds, the
cards are shown face up for a short time. Other rounds do not start with this "peek" phase.
Scoring (One-Player Game Only)
Matched pairs, misses, bonuses, layout size, and deck difficulty all affect your score. If you play a more
difficult layout (larger grid size) with a more difficult deck, your pairs, misses, and bonuses count more.
For example, if you play a 4 x 6 grid using the medium difficulty deck and you find the 12 pairs with 9
misses and find three pairs in a row 2 times, your score is 105. But if you play the same layout using the
most difficult deck and do just as well, your score is 147.
Your score is computed from a "score factor," based on the grid size and the deck difficulty (the larger the
grid and the harder the deck, the higher the score factor). The computation is: the number of pairs times
the score factor, plus the number of three-in-a-rows times one and a half times the score factor; minus the
number of misses times half the score factor.
Game Options
You have the option of setting the grid size, deck difficulty and color, and two-player options like whether
to allow peeking and how many pairs each player needs to win the game.
To change these options, click Memory Match Settings on the Options menu. For help on these options,
see the help area in the Options dialog box.

How to Play Old Maid
Old Maid is a card-passing game where each player hopes not to end up with the odd card outthe Old
Maid.
In Hoyle Card Games, a special 41-card animal deck is used instead of regular cards. There are 40
animal cards (4 cards each of 10 different kinds of animals), and one Troll card, which serves as the "Old
Maid".
Playing the Game
1 Each player gets ten cards. If you have any pairs of cards (two cards with identical animals), click both
cards to discard them.
2 On your turn, click a card in the hand of the player on your right to take it. If you get a pair, click each
card to discard it.
3 Play continues, with each player drawing cards from the player on their right and discarding any pairs.
4 Eventually one player will be left with the Troll card (the "Old Maid").

That ends the game, and the possessor of the Troll card loses the game and turns into a troll.
Game Options
You have the option of setting whether to use tutorial mode. You can also change this option by clicking
the light-switch in the upper-right of the screen. To change this option, click Old Maid Settings on the
Options menu. For help on this option, see the help area in the Options dialog box.

How to Play Pinochle
Pinochle is a trick-taking game, like Euchre, Bridge, Hearts, Spades, and War. Originally a European
game played by two people, it is now extremely popular in the United States as a game played in teams
by 4 players (Auction with Partners, Double-Pack, and Partnership Pinochle).
The Pinochle deck contains twelve cards in each of four suits: two in each of the ranks A, 10, K, Q, J, and
9. The 10 is the second highest rank (ace is highest).
Hoyle Card Games offers five variations of Pinochle, a two-handed game and four different four-handed
games.
To play the two-handed game, select Two Players when selecting Pinochle from the menu or the Main
Screen.
To play a four-handed game, select Four Players when selecting Pinochle from the menu or the Main
Screen. Then, click Pinochle Settings on the Options menu, and select the Game Type from the list. The
standard game type is Partnership Auction Pinochle.
For the game rules, click the appropriate game below:
Two-Handed Pinochle
Four-handed Pinochle games:
Partnership Auction Pinochle
Double-Pack Pinochle
Partnership Pinochle
Four-Handed Pinochle
Game Options
You can change the game type (for four-handed games), whether hands are finished early, how cards are
sorted, and the skill level for computer players. To change these options, click Pinochle Settings on the
Options menu. For help on these options, see the help area in the Options dialog box.

Partnership Auction Pinochle
Partnership Auction Pinochle is played with one deck of Pinochle cards and four players are grouped in
teams of two. The players sitting opposite each other are partners. It is conventional to name the players
North, South, East, and West. North and South are partners, as are East and West.
The Deck
Partnership Auction Pinochle is played with a 48-card deck. The deck contains twelve cards in each of
four suits - two in each of the ranks ace, ten, king, queen, jack, and nine. The rank of cards differs from
normal custom: the ten outranks everything (within its suit) except the ace.
In the trick-taking phase of the game, the aces, tens, and kings are worth points, and so are called
"counters." queens, jacks, and nines are not worth points (although they can win tricks); thus they are
called "non-counters."
The Deal
Each player receives 12 cards.
The Bid
The winner of the bid has the right to name the trump suit and gets to play the first trick. The minimum
opening bid is 100 points, and the player to the dealer's left starts the bidding. Bids are made in multiples
of 10 points. Each player must either bid at least 10 points higher than the previous bid or pass. When
only one person has not said "pass," that person has won the bid.
The Meld
There are three types of meld, and a card may belong to different melds as long as they are of different
types. Each player places face-up on the table only those cards being melded.
Sequences
A, T, K, Q, J of the trump suit (flush) 150
K,Q in trump (Royal Marriage) 40
K,Q of any other suit (Marriage) 20
Special
One jack of diamonds and one queen of spades (Pinochle) 40
Both jacks of diamonds and both queens of spades (Double Pinochle) 300
Nine of Trump (called the dix, pronounce "deece") 10
Groups
One ace in each suit (hundred aces) 100
One king in each suit (eighty kings) 80
One queen in each suit (sixty queens) 60
One jack in each suit (forty jacks) 40
The partner's separate melds are added into one total, but the team does not actually receive the meld
points until they win a trick.
The Play (Taking Tricks)
All players pick up their melded cards and the bidder plays the opening lead. Proceeding to the left, each
player plays a card on the trick following these rules:
If a player has a card of the same suit as the card that was led, it must be played. If possible, the
player must play a card with a higher rank than the card that currently controls the trick.
If a player has no cards in the suit led, a trump suit must be played if possible. If the trick already
contains trump, the player must beat it with a higher trump if possible.
If a player cannot follow suit and cannot play a trump, any other card may be played.
If someone has already trumped, later players who can follow suit may play any card of the suit led
because no card of the led suit can beat a trump.
The highest trump wins the trick. If no trump was played, the highest -ranking card of the suit led wins the
trick. If there is a tie for highest-ranking card, the trick is won by whichever of the equal cards was played
first. Each counter card won is worth 10 points.
The trick winner leads to the next trick, and so on until twelve tricks have been played. The team that wins
the final trick gets an additional 10 points.
Scoring
Each side adds up the points it won in tricks and adds the points from its melds (if it has won at least one
trick). Bidder's opponents add their total into the accumulated score. If the bidder's team wins at least the
amount of the bid, they add the amount won to the accumulated score. If they don't make the bid, they
subtract the bid from their accumulated score.
The side that first reaches 1000 points wins a game.

Double-Pack Pinochle
Double-Pack Pinochle is played by four people, in two sets of partners like Partnership Auction Pinochle.
The Deck
Double-Pack Pinochle uses a deck of 80 cards, made from two Pinochle decks (or four regular decks) by
discarding everything except the aces, tens, kings, queens, and jacks. There are four of each card.
Therefore, there are four aces of spades, four aces of hearts, etc. The rank of cards differs from normal
custom: the ten outranks everything (within its suit) except the ace.
The Deal
Each player receives 20 cards.
The Bid
After the cards are dealt, the person to the left of the dealer starts the bidding. That person may bid 500
or higher, or may pass. When a person has passed, he or she may not bid again. Bids are made in
multiples of 10.
The bid advances clockwise around the table, skipping those who have passed. When three people have
passed, the remaining bidder wins the bid, and he or she picks the trump suit and will later lead the first
trick.
The Meld
After the bid is over, each player shows the cards that comprise his or her meld.
Double-Pack Meld Table
Type I
Groups

1 Set

2 Sets

3 Sets

4 Sets

Comment
A-A-A-A 100 1000 2000 4000 Ace in all 4 suits
K-K-K-K 80 800 1600 3200 King in all 4 suits
Q-Q-Q-Q 60 600 1200 2400 Queen in all 4 suits
J-J-J-J 40 400 800 1600 Jack in all 4 suits
Type II
Pinochles

Pinochle 40 300 900 2700 Queen spade + jack diamond
Type III
Marriages and Runs

Marriages 20 40 60 80 King + queen in same suit
Marriages of trumps 40 80 120 160 King + queen of trumps
Runs 150 1500 3000 6000 A-10-K-Q-J of trumps
You can count the same card in melds of different types (e.g., a queen of spades could be part of a
marriage, a set of queens, and a Pinochle), but not in more than one meld of the same type (e.g., a king
and two queens does not count as two marriages).
The Play (Taking Tricks)
A trick consists of one card from each player, played in turn clockwise. The bid winner leads the first trick.
The winning card is the highest trump or, if no trump was played, the highest card in the suit led. The trick
winner removes all four cards to be counted later and then leads the next trick.
At the end of each hand, each team counts 10 points for each ace, 10, and king that they took (ace, 10,
and king are the "counters").
Whoever wins the last (20th) trick gets 20 extra points.
Scoring
After the last trick has been played, the teams add to their accumulated score the number of points
scored from melds and the counters taken in tricks. If the bidders did not win at least one trick, they do
not get their meld points. If the bidders do not get at least as many points as they bid, they score nothing
for their meld and tricks and the bid amount is deducted from their score.
The game continues until one team reaches 3550 points.

Partnership Pinochle
Partnership Pinochle is very similar to Partnership Auction Pinochle, except there is no bidding. There are
four player with North and South as one team and East and West as the other.
The Deck
Partnership Pinochle is played with the 48-card Pinochle deck. The rank of the cards are ace-10-king-
queen-jack-9. In the trick-taking phase of the game, the aces, tens, and kings are worth points, and so
are called "counters." queens, jacks, and nines are not worth points (although they can win tricks), thus
they are called "non-counters."
The Deal
Each player receives 12 cards, non-dealer first. The last card the dealer receives is the trump suit and is
turned up so all players can see it.
If the dealer turns over the dix (nine of trump), he automatically scores 10 points. Otherwise a player
(beginning with the dealer's left) holding the dix can exchange it for the trump card and score 10 points
The trump card, or the dix exchanged for it, then becomes part of the dealer's hand, so that each player
has 12 cards.
The Meld
Following the dix trading, each player shows on the table any melds he or she can make, scoring them
according to the following table:
Sequences
A, T, K, Q, J of the trump suit (flush) 150
K,Q in Trump (Royal Marriage) 40
K,Q of any other suit (Marriage) 20
Special
One jack of diamonds and one queen of spades (Pinochle) 40
Both jacks of diamonds and both queens of spades (Double Pinochle) 300
Nine of trump (called the dix, pronounce "deece") 10
Groups
One ace in each suit (hundred aces) 100
One king in each suit (eighty kings) 80
One queen in each suit (sixty queens) 60
One jack in each suit (forty jacks) 40
The partners separate melds are added into one total, but the team does not actually get their meld
points until they win a trick.
The Play (Taking Tricks)
All players pick up their meld cards and the player to the dealer's left leads the first trick. Proceeding to
the left, each player plays a card on the trick following these rules:
If a player has a card of the same suit as the card that was led, it must be played. If possible, the
player must play a card with a higher rank than the card that currently controls the trick.
If a player has no cards in the suit led, a trump must be played if possible. If the trick already contains
trump, the player must beat it with a higher trump if possible.
If a player cannot follow suit and cannot play a trump, any other card may be played.
If someone has already trumped, later players who can follow suit may play any card of the suit led
because no card of the led suit can beat a trump.
After everyone has played a card, the highest trump wins the trick. If no trump was played, the highest -
ranking card of the suit led wins the trick. If there is a tie for highest-ranking card, the trick is won by
whichever of the equal cards was played first. Each counter card won is worth 10 points.
The trick winner leads to the next trick, and so on until twelve tricks have been played. The team that wins
the final trick gets an additional 10 points.
Scoring
Each side adds up the points it was won in tricks and adds the points from their melds (if the team has
won at least one trick). Each team adds their total into the accumulated score. The first side to reach an
accumulated score of 1000 points wins the game.

Two-Handed Pinochle
This is a Pinochle game for two players. The Object of the Game is to win tricks and to meld certain
combination of the cards that have a scoring value.
The Deck
The 48-card Pinochle pack. Rank of the cards are ace, 10, king, queen, jack, 9.
The Deal
Each player receives 12 cards, non-dealer first. The next card is turned up and placed on the table; it is
the trump card and determines the trump suit. The remainder of the pack, the stock, is placed face down.
The Play (The First 12 Tricks)
The non-dealer leads the first trick. If a trump is led, it wins the trick unless the opponent plays a higher
trump. If any other suit is led, the card led wins unless the opponent plays a higher card of the same suit
or a trump. The leader may play any card, and the follower may play any card; there is no requirement to
follow suit. After each trick, both players draw a card from the top of the stock to restore their hands to 12
cards, trick winner drawing first. The trick winner leads the next trick, but first has the option of melding.
The Meld
Upon winning a trick, and before drawing from the stock, a player may meld any combination of cards
having value. The meld is formed by placing the cards face up, where they remain until played in a trick or
until the stock has been emptied.
The various combinations that may be melded and the points they receive are listed below:
Type 1:
Run - A 10 K Q J in trumps - 150 points
Marriage - K Q in same suit - 20 points
Royal Marriage - K Q in trumps - 40 points
Type 2:
Aces around - A in each suit - 100 points
Kings around - K in each suit - 80 points
Queens around - Q in each suit - 60 points
Jacks around - J in each suit - 40 points
Type 3:
Pinochle - J of diamonds and Q of spades - 40 points
Double Pinochle - 2 Pinochles - 300 points (A Double Pinochle is the only meld that gives a bonus
beyond twice the normal meld value. For example, double kings around scores 160 points.)
9 of Trumps (Dix) - 10 points
Melding is subject to the following restrictions:
Only one meld may be made in a turn.
For each meld, at least one card must be taken from the hand and placed on the table.
A card once melded may be melded again only in a different class, or in a higher-scoring meld of the
same class. If a player has melded a Royal Marriage and later adds the A, 10, and J of trumps for a run,
he only scores an additional 110 points instead of 150. If a player has melded a Pinochle and later adds
another Pinochle for a Double Pinochle the player only scores an additional 260 points, instead of 300. (If
the first Pinochle had already been broken up, only 40 points would be scored for the second one.)
If a player has won a trick and has the dix (nine of trump), the player may do one of the following:
Score 10 points by exchanging the trump card for his dix (dix trade) if no player has already done a dix
trade.
Meld the dix for 10 points and lose the chance to dix trade.
The Play (The Last 12 Tricks)
The winner of the twelfth trick, after a possible final meld, draws the last card of the stock, which is shown
to the opponent. The opponent draws the trump card (or the dix, if an exchange has been made). Each
player picks up any meld cards on the table put them back in their hands. The winner of the twelfth trick
now leads and the rules of the play for the final twelve tricks are as follows:
The follower must follow the suit to the card led, if able.
If a trump is led, the follower must overtrump, if able.
There is no melding during the last twelve tricks.
Scoring
Melds are scored when they are made. Scores for cards taken in tricks are added to each players score
as the tricks are won. A player receives 11 points for each ace, 10 points for each ten, 4 points for each
king, 3 points for each queen, and 2 points for each jack taken in tricks. The player who win the last trick
gets a 10 point bonus.
The player who reaches 1,000 points first wins the game.

Four-Handed Pinochle
Four-handed Pinochle is similar to Partnership Pinochle, except there are no teams and each player
fends for himself.
The Deck
Four-handed Pinochle is played with the 48-card Pinochle deck. The rank of the cards is ace, 10, king,
queen, jack, 9. In the trick-taking phase of the game, the aces, tens, and kings are worth points, and so
are called "counters." queens, jacks, and nines are not worth points (although they can win tricks); thus
they are called "non-counters."
The Deal
Each player receives 12 cards, non-dealer first. The last card the dealer receives determines the trump
suit and is turned face up.
If the last-dealt card is a dix (nine of trump), the dealer automatically scores 10 points. Otherwise a player
(beginning with the dealer's left) holding the dix can exchange it for the trump card and score 10 points
The trump card, or the dix exchanged for it, then becomes part of the dealer's hand, so that each player
has 12 cards.
The Meld
Following the dix trading, each player shows on the table any melds he or she possesses, scoring them
according to the following table:
Sequences
A, T, K, Q, J of the trump suit (flush) 150
K,Q in Trump (Royal Marriage) 40
K,Q of any other suit (Marriage) 20
Special
One jack of diamonds and one queen of spades (Pinochle) 40
Both jacks of diamonds and both queens of spades (Double Pinochle) 300
Nine of Trump (called the dix, pronounce "deece") 10
Groups
One ace in each suit (hundred aces) 100
One king in each suit (eighty kings) 80
One queen in each suit (sixty queens) 60
One jack in each suit (forty jacks) 40
A player only gets the meld points if he one she wins at least one trick during player.
The Play (Taking Tricks)
All players pick up their meld cards and the player to the dealer's left leads the first trick. Proceeding to
the left, each player plays a card on the trick following these rules:
If a player has a card of the same suit as the card that was led, it must be played. If possible, the
player must play a card with a higher rank than the card that currently controls the trick.
If a player has no cards in the suit led, a trump must be played, if possible. If the trick already contains
trump, the player must beat it with a higher trump, if possible.
If a player cannot follow suit and cannot play a trump, any other card may be played.
If someone has already trumped, later players who can follow suit may play any card of the suit led
because no card of the led suit can beat a trump.
After everyone has played a card, the highest-ranking trump wins the trick. If no trump was played, the
highest -ranking card of the suit led wins the trick. If there is a tie for highest-ranking card, the trick is won
by whichever of the equal cards was played first. Each counter of the cards won is worth 10 points.
The trick winner leads to the next trick, and so on until twelve tricks has been played. The player that wins
the final trick gets an additional 10 points.
Scoring
Each player adds up the points he or she won in tricks and adds the points from his or her melds (if the
player won at lease one trick).
The first player to 1000 points wins the game.

How to Play Pitch
Pitch is a simple bidding game also sometimes known as Setback or High-Low-jack. Pitch is a good
introduction to more sophisticated bidding games. Although some play Pitch as a partnership game, the
version included in Hoyle Card Games is played by each player competitively, and is sometimes called
Cutthroat Pitch.
Pitch uses a standard 52-card deck, and each player is dealt six cards. In Pitch, you bid on the value of
your hand and play to take tricks and get points. Although one player wins the bid and tries to take all the
points, all players can get points by taking key cards.
The goal is to be the first player to reach the winning score (7, 11, or 21).
How Bidding Works
You can bid on the value of your hand. Possible bids are two, three, four, or smudge (smudge is really a
bid of five).
For two, three, and four, you are bidding how many of the points below you can win. For smudge, you
have to win all the points below, and take all six tricks in the round.
High You win the trick which has the highest available card in the trump suit.
Low You win the trick which has the lowest available card in the trump suit.
Jack You win the trick which has the jack of the trump suit.
Game You get the most game points in the round. All 10s are worth 10, aces are worth 4, kings
are worth 3, queens are worth 2, and jacks are worth 1. Other cards arent worth anything.
Note that since not all cards are dealt every hand, ace and two arent always the high and low card
(sometimes a queen may be the high and a four the low, for instance). And there may not be a jack in any
given hand (since only 24 of 52 cards are dealt in a hand).
If you win your bid, you get the number of points you took, even if this is higher than what you bid. For
instance, if you bid 2, and take high, low, and jack, you get 3.
If you lose your bid, however, you are "set back" (you lose) the number of points you bid, even if you
made some of the bid. For instance, if you bid 3, and get high and low (but not jack or game), you lose 3,
since you did not make all of your bid.
If other players get the points you bid, they score those points. In the above example, if another player got
low and game, he would get 2 points.
It is possible for two or more players to tie for game (both receiving the same amount of total game
points); in this case, no player gets that point.
Note that you must bid smudge to get the fifth point for winning smudge. Merely getting all six tricks and
high, low, jack, and game will still only give you 4 points if you didnt bid Smudge. If you bid smudge, you
must get all 4 points and win all the tricks, or you lose 5 points.
Playing the Game
1 Each player in turn can bid or pass. To bid, you must bid higher than the previous bid. Bidding only
lasts one round (each player only gets one chance to bid or pass). If all players pass, the cards are
redealt and bidding starts again.
2 The player who won the bid (called the pitcher) plays a card by clicking it and dragging it to the
middle of the board; the suit of this card is used as trump.
Each player must play trump if he or she has it (trump is shown in the upper right corner). The player
with the highest trump card wins.
3 The player who won the first trick leads the next trick with any card. Each player, in turn, plays a card.
If you have a card of the suit led, you must either follow suit or play a trump card. If you dont have a
card of the suit led, you can play any card (trump, or any other suit).
Important! In Pitch, you can always choose to play trump, even if you can follow suit. If you dont
have a card in the suit played, you can play any card, including trump.
4 The trick is won by the player who played the highest trump card, or, if theres no trump, the player
who played the highest card of the suit that was led. The winner of each trick leads the next trick, and
may lead any card.
5 When all cards in the hand have been played, the score appears, showing which player won the high,
low, jack, and game points. If the pitcher did not get all of his or her bid, he or she loses the number of
points bid. Note that the jack point is not awarded if there was no jack dealt in this hand, and ties for
the game dont go to any player.
6 The game ends when one player reaches either 7, 11, or 21 (depending on the game options).
Note: Bids are always scored in the order high, low, jack, and game. Scoring stops when one player
reaches the winning score. (This breaks any ties in the game.) For example: in a game played
to a winning score of 11, Gax has 9 points and Roswell has 10 points. If Gax wins high and
low, and Roswell wins jack and game, Gax wins the game, because Gax gets 2 points for high
and low, making 11, and Roswell thus never gets his 2 points for jack and game. (This means
in a close game, the person whos behind can win if he or she wins the right bids.)
Game Options
You have the option of setting the winning score, how cards are sorted, and the skill level for computer
players.
To change these options, click Pitch Settings on the Options menu. For help on these options, see the
help area in the Options dialog box.

Pitch Strategies and Tips
Try these strategies and tips to improve your Pitch game:
Bid based on the strong cards in your starting hand. If you have the ace and a two or three, a bid of 2
is a strong bet. If you have an ace and king, and other high cards, try bidding 4. An ace, king, and two
make an excellent bid of 3.
Be careful about bidding based on holding a jack, unless you have other cards in that suit to protect it
(ideally higher cards); theres no guarantee youll keep a jack in your hand if you dont have supporting
cardsand someone else is likely to get that point.
Watch out for your tens! Tens are worth a lot of points towards the game bid, so be careful you dont
give them away too easily. If you know youre likely to lose a trick (because its been trumped or an
ace has been played), you might want to sacrifice a face card instead of a ten.

How to Play Poker
The variation of Poker played in Hoyle Card Games is 5-Card Draw. Each hand can start with eight
players or less (if a player runs out of cash, or if you remove players before the deal); the minimum
number of players is two, of course. No cards are wild.
Players' hands consist of five cards dealt to each player, all face down. From these five cards, the player
can choose to discard several cards (3 card maximum) and draw the same number of cards to replace
them. (A player can also choose to stand pat, which means not drawing any cards.) A player wins by
having the highest-ranking hand of five cards.
General Poker Concepts
The object of the game is to put together a better poker hand than the other players. The players bet to
see who has the best hand. Each deal is a separate game; the result of each deal has no effect on any
other deal.
All the bets are placed together, forming a pot. The object is to win the pot, either by holding the best
hand after the betting is finished, or by inducing all the other players to fold (drop out).
The deal and the bet all pass clockwise from player to player. Once a player folds, they are no longer
involved in any of the play for the remainder of that deal.
To play, the cards are shuffled and dealt. There follows one or more betting intervals, culminating in a
showdown at the end of the last betting interval, in which players who have not folded show what's in their
hands. The highest-ranking hand wins the pot.
In each betting interval, you can do one of four things:
Fold Leave the hand.
Call Place in the pot only enough chips to stay in play for that betting interval.
Raise Place in the pot enough chips to call, plus additional chips.
Check A "bet of nothing," only possible when no previous player has made a bet in that betting
interval. Checking allows a player to stay in the pot without risking additional chips.
How Play Proceeds
Each player adds his or her ante to the pot. Each player then receives five cards face down, followed by
the first betting interval. The right to open passes to each player, starting with the player to the left of the
dealer button. Players that stay in choose which (if any) of the five cards they want to discard (3 cards
maximum).
Note: to stand pat (not draw any cards), press the spacebar.
The dealer then deals replacement cards to make each players hand total five cards. The second (and
final) betting interval takes place.
After the final betting interval, all players that are still in show their cards. The player with the highest-
ranking hand of five cards wins. If hands tie, the pot is split.
In each betting interval, if more than two players are betting, there is a limit of three raises amongst all
players. If only two players are in the game, there is no limit.
Playing the Game
The type of game (25 hands, 50 hands, or win-it-all) and the pot amount is indicated on the table when
the game begins.
When you are ready to start play, click the Ante button. Each player adds his or her ante to the pot. Each
player then receives five cards face down, followed by the first betting interval. The right to open passes
to each player, starting with the player to the left of the dealer. Players that stay in choose which (if any)
of the five cards they want to discard (3 cards maximum).
If nobody else has opened, you have the option to check, open, or fold. If another player has opened, you
have the option to call, raise, or fold.
Check A "bet of nothing," only possible when no previous player has made a bet in that betting
interval. Checking allows a player to stay in the pot without risking additional chips.
Open Place the first bet in the betting interval.
Raise Place in the pot enough chips to call, plus additional chips.
Call Place in the pot only enough chips to stay in play for that betting interval.
Fold Drop out of the hand.
If you choose to open or raise, the Betting dialog box appearsuse it to choose the chip denominations
for your bet. In a given betting interval, there is always a minimum and maximum bet. These values vary
depending on how many players are left in the game, and what their average bankroll is. As the game
gets down to just a few players who each have a lot of money, the stakes get higher. Also, the bet limits
for the betting round after the draw are generally higher than the bet limits for the round before the draw.
Control/Option Description
<Chips> $1, $5, $25, $100, $500, $1000, $5,000, $25,000
Click on the chips you want to make up the current bet or raise amount. The bet
must meet the minimum bet and not exceed the maximum bet.
Click on a chip with the left mouse button to add it to the current bet.
Click on a chip with the right mouse button to subtract it from the current bet.
Bet/Raise Amount Indicates the current bet or raise amount.
Bankroll Indicates your current available bankroll total.
OK Accepts the current bet and starts the hand.
Clear Clears the current bet amount.
Game Options
You have the option of setting when the game ends: after you win all the money on the table (or lose it
all), or after 25 or 50 hands. To change this option, click Poker Settings on the Options menu. For help
on this option, see the help area in the Options dialog box.
Notes:
You can quickly take any action in a dialog box by pressing the first letter of that action when the dialog
box appears. Press A to Ante or S to Sit Out; press C to Check, O to Open or F to Fold; press C to
Call, R to Raise, and F to Fold. You can also press the number of a chip to add that chip to your bet
when opening or raising.
If you like this poker game, you might enjoy Hoyle Casino, which has seven different poker variations:
Texas Hold'em, Omaha Hold'em, Omaha Hold'em Hi-Lo, Seven Card Stud, Seven Card Stud Hi-Lo,
Five Card Draw, and Five Card Draw Lowball. For more on Hoyle Casino, click the Hoyle Web Site
icon in your Hoyle Card Games program group.

Ranks of Poker Hands
These are the rankings of poker hands, from highest to lowest:
Five of a kind Only possible with a wild card, and therefore not possible in Hoyle Card
Games.
Straight flush Five cards in suit and in sequence
Four of a kind Four cards of any rank; one extra
Full house Three of a Kind plus One Pair
Flush Five cards of the same suit
Straight Five cards in sequence
Three of a kind Three cards of the same rank; two extra
Two pairs One Pair and One Pair; one extra
One pair Two cards of the same rank; three extras
High card Any hand not meeting any of the above specs
When two players have hands of the same type, the higher-ranking hand is determined as follows:
If each player has a straight flush, a flush, a straight, or high card, the hand with the highest card wins.
If each player has five of a kind, four of a Kind, or three of a kind, the hand composed of the highest-
ranking matches wins.
If each player has a full house, the full house with the highest-ranking three of a kind wins. For
example, 4-4-4-2-2 beats 3-3-3-K-K, because the fours beat the threes.
If each player has two pair, the highest pair wins. If each has the same higher pair, the hand with the
higher of the two lower pairs wins. If each has the same two pairs, the hand with the highest fifth card
wins.
If all five cards in two or more players hands are identical, they split the pot.

Poker Strategies and Tips
Some strategies and tips for Poker, specifically for 5 Card Draw, are described below.
Pay attention to how players are betting and the number of cards they're drawing. Learn which
characters are more likely than others to bluff and take chances and which ones are more likely to sit
back until they're dealt a high-ranking hand.
If a player draws three cards, the best he or she can have is a pair. If you want three as well, go ahead
and discard three, but if you're in a gambling mood try taking just two. Even if you have no use for the
third card, this ploy might fake out the other players and cause one or more to fold.
If a player draws one card, he or she may be drawing for a straight or a flush, or may already have a
good hand. Then again, it could all be a bluff! The real secret to Poker isn't making combinations, it's
knowing how to bluff and how to tell when others are bluffing.
If a player does not draw any cards (stands pat), it could be the biggest bluff of all time. Most likely,
that player has a pretty hefty hand, and you'll need something really good to beat it.
With eight players at the table, you will usually need a minimum of Two Pair to win.
Never try to fill an inside straight! For example, if you're holding J-10-8-7-2, don't stay in on the chance
that you can discard the 2 and pick up a 9. The chances aren't good. You are twice as likely to make a
straight if you hold the J-10-9-8-x, because now you're looking for one of two cards: a queen or a 7.

How to Play Skat
Rules
Skat is a three player trick-taking game that uses a 32-card deck consisting of four suits of A, K, Q, J, 10,
9, 8, 7.
Depending on the contract that is being played, cards are ranked in a special order; in most games, the
four Jacks (J , J , J , J ) are the highest trumps and the remaining cards rank A, 10, K, Q, 9, 8, 7.
See Contracts for details.
Each player is dealt 10 cards, and two cards are dealt to a separate pile called the skat.
In Skat, you try to win hands by taking enough cards of certain values (or, in a null game, by taking no
tricks). Whether you score points for winning depends on your game value, which is a formula based on
the type of hand you played, the types of cards you started with, the type of contract you bid, and more.
To learn how the game value works, see Skat Scoring.
The game ends after a certain number of hands, or when one player reaches a certain number of points,
depending on your game settings.
Rules Summary
Three players bid for the chance to play (see Bidding); the winner of the bid is the declarer. The declarer
then decides whether or not to pick up the skat.
The declarer then picks a game contract (see Contracts): diamonds, hearts, clubs, or spades (a suited
game), a grand game, or a null game.
If the declarer did not pick up the skat (or if the Always Allow Announcements game option is on), he or
she can also make one of three optional announcementsschneider, schwarz, or open. (If the declarer
picked a null game, he or she can select open to play a null open game.) See Announcements for more
information.
The other two players (the defenders) become a team to try to keep the declarer from making his or her
bid.
The player to the left of the dealer leads a card, and players play cards from their hands to each trick.
Tricks are taken as described in Playing the Game. After all the tricks are taken, the declarer and
defenders count their card points (see Card Points) and determine the scores (see Skat Scoring).
Bidding
Skat uses a special bidding system; bidding occurs between the three players identified as Forehand,
Middlehand, and Rearhand. Rearhand is the dealer, Forehand is the player to his or her left, and
Middlehand is the player to Forehands right. (After each hand, the deal rotates clockwise.)



In bidding, Forehand is considered senior to Middlehand, who is in turn senior to Rearhand. A senior
bidder need only match the bid of a junior bidder when bidding, and does not need to increase it, where a
junior bidder always needs to increase the bid of a senior bidder when bidding.
How the bid proceeds:
1 Middlehand starts the bidding and can either suggest a bid to Forehand or pass.
If Middlehand bids, Forehand can either match the bid (go to step 2) or pass (go to step 3).
If Middlehand passes, Rearhand gets a chance to bid (go to step 4).
2 If Forehand matches Middlehands bid, Middlehand can either increase the bid (in which case
Forehand can match it again, until one of them passes), or pass.
3 The winning bid (of either Middlehand or Forehand) is presented to Rearhand, who, being junior to
both Middlehand and Forehand, must increase the bid to stay in the bidding. The senior bidder need
only match Rearhands bid; again, bidding continues until one player passes. The remaining player is
the declarer.
4 If Middlehand didnt bid, Rearhand can either bid or pass.
If Rearhand bids, Forehand can match the bid (in which case Rearhand must increase it or pass) or
pass. Bidding continues until either Rearhand or Forehand passes; the remaining player is the
declarer.
5 If Rearhand passes (all players have passed), the hand is redealt, unless the Ramsch game option is
on, in which case players play a game of Ramsch.
Understanding Bidding
Players bid (or match) numbers based on the game value.
For suited and grand games, the game value is a formula based on what contract you bid, which cards
you started the game with, whether you played with or without the skat, and other items. Possible bid
numbers are 18, 20, 22, 23, 24, 27, 30, 33, 35, 36, 40, 44, 45, 46, 48, 50, 54, 55, 59, 60, and so on. It is
usually best to bid the minimum bid you can make (and still beat others bids); there is no benefit to
bidding high.
For null games, the game value can be any of the above numbers, but possible game values you can
achieve in null games are 23 for null games, 35 for null hand games (played without the skat), 46 for null
Open games (played open), and 59 for null open hand games (played open without the skat). Therefore,
if you plan to play a null game, do not bid higher than the possible game value for the null game you plan
to play.
To learn how the game value works in detail, see Skat Scoring.
Although the bidding system in Skat may seem complex at first, after a few games you will have a better
idea how to evaluate your hand. For tips on bidding, see Skat Strategies and Tips.
Picking Up the Skat
If you are the declarer, you have a chance to pick up the skat at the start of the game and exchange
cards between your hand and the skat, laying down two cards in your taken trick pile. Picking up the skat
lets you improve the cards in your hand.
You can choose to play a hand game, where you dont pick up or look at the skat. A hand game is worth
more points towards your score; see Skat Scoring.
Important: Whether you play with the skat or without (a hand game), the cards in the skat still count
towards your card points.
Contracts (Game Types)
If you win the bid, there are three different types of contracts you can choose to play.
Suited The suit you specify (diamonds, hearts, clubs, or spades) becomes trump, and jacks (J)
serve as the highest trumps in that suit. Trump cards are ranked in this order: J , J ,
J , J , followed by A, 10, K, Q, 9, 8, 7 of the trump suit. The other suits are also ranked
in the order A, 10, K, Q, 9, 8, 7.
Therefore, if you chose a contract of hearts, trump cards would be these cards, ranked in
this order: J , J , J , J , A , 10 , K , Q , 9 , 8 , 7
To win a hand, you must take at least 61 card points; you lose if your opponents get 60 or
more points.
Grand The four jacks (J) are the only trump cards, and serve as their own suit. They are ranked
in the same order as above: J , J , J , J . Other cards are ranked in the order A, 10,
K, Q, 9, 8, 7.
To win a hand, you must take at least 61 card points; you lose if your opponents get 60 or
more points.
Null There are no trumps, and cards are ranked in a different order than in the other two
contracts: A, K, Q, J, 10, 9, 8, 7.
To win a hand, you must lose every trick. (If you win a single trick, the hand ends
immediately.)
Announcements
If you decide to play a hand game (play your original hand without picking up the skat, or if the Always
Allow Announcements game option is on, there are several announcements you can make:
Schneider You will take at least 90 card points in the hand.
Schwarz You will win all the tricks in the hand.
Open You will win all the tricks in the hand, and must play with all of your
cards exposed to the other players.
Null Open The only announcement you can make in null contracts. You will lose all
the tricks in the hand, and must play with all of your cards exposed to
the other players.
Note that an announcement of schwarz implies an announcement of schneider, and an announcement of
Open implies an announcement of both schneider and schwarz.
Important: If you get schneider or schwarz during the game without declaring them, youll still get game
points for them, but announcing them beforehand gets you more game points (and costs you
more game points if you dont achieve them).
Indicators for schneider, schwarz, and open appear on the announcing players nameplates.
Card Points
There are 120 possible points in a hand; point values for each card are shown below. In suited and grand
games, you need 61 points to win a hand, and getting 90 points gives you the schneider bonus.
Card points are irrelevant in null games.
Card Points
A: 11
10: 10
K: 4
Q: 3
J: 2
All other cards: 0
Resigning
If you are the declarer, and you pick up the skat, which contains a jack that decreases the number of
matadors you have (thus reducing your chance of making your bid), you can opt to resign the game. You
resign the game by clicking the Resign button in the Choose Contract dialog box. When you resign, you
lose points as if you had played the game and lost; see Skat Scoring for details.
If you are playing a hand game, or if the jack in the skat does not decrease the number of matadors in
your hand, the Resign button is not available.
Schenken
If the schenken option is turned on in the game options, either defender can resign at anytime during the
hand by announcing schenken (conceding the game to the declarer). To resign, click the schenken
button next to your player.
When schenken is declared, the hand automatically ends, with the declarer automatically scoring points
for winning the game as described below:
If the defenders team has taken 30 or more points, the declarer scores the same points he or she
would have had if he or she had won a normal game (without getting schneider or schwarz).
Note: If the declarer announced schneider, he or she cant win less than that level. Even if the
defenders take 30 or more points, if they announce schenken, the declarer will get points for achieving
schneider, even though he or she didnt get it.
If the defenders team has not yet taken 30 points, the declarer will also be credited with a schneider.
If the defenders team has not yet taken a trick, the declarer will also be credited with a schwarz.
A null game is scored as it would be normally.
Kontra and Re
If the Allow Kontra/Re game option is turned on, players can choose to increase the value of the game.
When this option is on a defender can announce kontra before playing a card to the first trick by clicking
the kontra button next to his or her player. Kontra automatically doubles the declarers final score
(whether positive or negative).
Therefore, if a kontra game is played, and the declarer would score 23 for achieving a game value of 23,
he or she would instead get 46 points added to his or her score.
The declarer can then double the stakes again (if desired) by announcing re (clicking the re button next to
his or her player). Note that kontra must be announced by the defender before re can be announced.
If the declarer wants to announce re, he or she must do so before playing his or her next card after kontra
has been said.
You can turn on the "Only If Player Bid 18" option to prevent a defender with a good hand from saying
kontra unless the defender bid at least 18 (or matched an 18 bid) in the bidding round.
An announcement of kontra or re is indicated by an indicator on the announcers plaque.
Note that announcing kontra or re only affects the final score and does not affect the bid that must be
achieved.

Skat Gameplay
To play the game:
1 The game starts with a bidding sequence as described in the Bidding section.
To sort your cards to help see what contract you might want to play, click the contract name in the Bid
dialog; your cards are sorted accordingly (and the game value table at the top of the screen changes
accordingly; this helps you decide what your likely game value will be).
If youre starting the bidding, click the Bid button (18 is the usual starting bid). If everyone else has
passed without bidding, you can only bid 18.
To increase the bid to the next possible bid (or higher), click on the up arrow next to the bid number
to select a bid, and click the Bid button.
To match a bid, click the Accept button.
To pass (and drop out of the bidding), click the Pass button.
The player who wins the bid is the declarer. If all players pass without bidding, the game is redealt,
unless the Ramsch game option is on, in which case a Ramsch game is played.
2 If youre the declarer, youre asked whether you want to pick up the skat.
Click Yes to pick up the skat, the two cards in the skat are moved to your hand. You then must move
two cards to the skat (these can include the cards you just picked up). To move cards to the skat,
right-click each card you want to move, or drag each card to the tray, then click OK when youre ready
to proceed.
Click No if you dont want to pick up the skat.
3 If youre the declarer, choose your contract (suited, grand, or null) and make any optional
announcements (schneider, schwarz, or open) if applicable.
The declarers bid and contract information are shown on his or her nameplate.
4 The Forehand player leads the first card, and each player plays a card to the middle, in clockwise
order, by dragging a card to the middle or right-clicking the card.
Rules for playing cards are as follows:
You can lead any card.
You must follow suit if possible. In a grand game, if a jack (J) is led, you must play a jack if you
have one.
If you cant follow suit, you can play any card.
Important: When playing a suited game, its important to remember that the jacks are members of the
named suit, not their original suit. Therefore, if playing a diamonds game, if diamonds are
led and you have no diamonds but you have a J , the J is considered a diamond in this
hand and you must play it. And similarly, if spades were led in this diamonds game, and
you have no other spades, you could not play the J , since the jack is no longer
considered a spade.
5 A trick is won by the highest card led, or if a trump was played, by the highest trump.
You can review the results of the previous trick as soon as a trick is completed; click the Review Last
Trick button at the lower right corner of the screen to see the cards played on the last trick. You can
also do this at any time by clicking Review Last Trick on the Actions menu.
6 The player who won the trick leads a card, and play continues until all cards have been played.
At the end of the game, a scoring dialog box shows the card points won by the declarer, whether the
declarer won the hand, whether the declarer made his or her bid, and the game points won or lost by the
declarer. See Skat Scoring for details on how scoring works.
You can review all of the tricks in the game by clicking the Review button. Youll see the cards for each
player, and can click the arrows to step through the hand trick by trick, seeing which card was led in each
trick and who won. Click Done when youre done reviewing tricks.
Click OK when youre done examining the score; the deal (and the position of each player) rotates
clockwise.
The game ends after a certain number of hands, or when one player reaches a certain number of points,
depending on your game settings.
Notes
In an open game, your cards are revealed before the first card is led.
In a null game, if the declarer wins a single trick, the game stops immediately.
Playing a Ramsch Game
A game of Ramsch or Schieberamsch can be played if everyone passes when bidding. Ramsch is
essentially a "loser takes all" game where the player who takes the most card points loses. Each player
plays for himself or herself, there are no declarers or defenders.
Ramsch
Ramsch is played the same way as a grand game, with the four jacks (J , J , J , J ) as a separate
trump suit, only each player is trying to take as few card points as possible.
When playing Ramsch, no one picks up the skat. The Forehand player leads.
Depending on your game options, the skat either goes to the winner of the last trick or the person who
lost (by taking the most card points). In the first case, where the skat goes to the winner of the last trick,
the card points in the skat count towards the card point total for winning or losing, but in the second case,
where the skat goes to the person who lost, the card points in the skat dont count toward the card point
total.
The player who takes the most card points loses the hand.
Scoring Ramsch
The player who loses the round (by taking the most card points) normally has the amount of card points
he or she took, (plus card points for cards in the skat, depending on your game options) deducted from
his or her score. If two players tie for taking the most card points, both players lose the same amount.
However, certain multipliers may be applied in certain special circumstances:
If any player doesnt take any tricks (is a "virgin") the amount the loser loses is doubled (x2).
If there are two virgins (the "losing" player wins all the tricks), this is known as Shooting the Moon
(Durchmarsch). If this happens, the player who took all the tricks wins 120 points! This option allows a
player forced into a Ramsch game with good cards a chance to win the game.
The Shooting the Moon option can be turned off, in which case the amount the losing player loses is
quadrupled (x4).
Schieberamsch
Scheiberamsch is a variation of Ramsch that is played like Ramsch with two differences.
1) Before playing Ramsch, each player in turn is offered a last chance to try to play his hand as a normal
grand game. (This last chance is given because your hand may be good enough to beat two "poor"
hands.) There is no bidding at this point; rather, the first player to say they will play a grand hand
becomes the declarer, playing against the other two players. This grand game is played as a hand
game (skat is not offered to any player), and is considered to have a minimum bid (18). The only other
difference from a normal grand game is that the declarer automatically gets the skat at the end of the
hand, and those card points count towards the players card points.
2) If all players pass on the chance to play a grand game, a Ramsch game is played, but first, each
player has the chance to exchange cards from their hand to the skat. Each player in turn, starting with
the player to the left of the dealer, gets to pick up the skat and trade cards from it. (The second player
gets the skat with the discarded cards of the first, and so on.) In this game, Jacks cannot be put into
the skat, although they can be picked up from it.
You can choose not to pick up the skat; each time a player chooses not to pick up the skat, the value
of the current hand is doubled (any doubling values are shown at the top of the screen).
Scoring Schieberamsch
At the end of a hand of Schieberamsch (if a grand game was not played), the player with the most card
points in his hand and the skat loses the hand. His or her card points are multiplied by any special
multipliers for virgins (as in a regular game of Ramsch) as well as any multipliers for players passing on
the skat.
Example: if Eric gets 115 card points, there was one virgin (x2), and two players passed the skat (x4, x8),
Eric gets 1,020 points deducted from his score: 115 x 8 = 1,020.
If the losing player shot the moon, however (and the Shooting the Moon option was on), the player
instead gets 120 times any special multipliers (as described above) added to his or her score.
Game Options
You can set the rules for the game, how the game is set up, and how the game is played.
You can change all the options before the game begins. Once the game has begun, changing some
options may require you to restart the game.
To set game rules and options:
1 Click the Skat Settings menu item on the Options menu.
2 Make the changes you want.
3 Click OK to save your changes.
Option Description
Card Sorting Sets how cards in your hand are sorted. Click Ascending to sort cards
from lowest to highest, by suit, or Descending to sort cards from
highest to lowest, by suit.
Allow Finish Hand Early Ends the hand early if you will win all of the remaining tricks.
Allow Schenken Lets either defender resign before playing a card to the first trick.
Allow Kontra/Re Lets players double the value of the game by saying kontra and re early
in the game. Check Only if Player Bid 18 to prevent a defender from
saying kontra unless the defender bid at least 18 (or matched an 18 bid)
in the bidding round.
Always Allow
Announcements Allows a player to make a schneider, schwarz, or open announcement
even if he or she picked up the skat. This is a non-standard way to play
the game. Uncheck this option to only allow these announcements
during hand games (where the declarer did not pick up the skat).
Show Card/Game Value
Tables Displays a table showing the values of cards, trumps, and card ordering
as well as a description of game scoring.
Show Card Points Taken Displays a running count of the card points taken by each player during
the game.
Show Legal Plays/
Winning Cards On your turn, marks the cards that you can legally play and that may
help you win the trick.
End of Game Sets when the game ends; you can set the game to end after a number
of hands (the player with the most points wins) or after a player reaches
a certain number of points.
Ramsch Options Sets whether you wish to play a Ramsch game when all players pass
up the chance to bid. Ramsch is essentially a "loser takes all" game
where the player who takes the most card points loses. See Playing a
Ramsch Game for details.
Select None to play a normal game (no Ramsch), select Ramsch to
play a game of Ramsch, and select Schieberamsch to play the
Schieberamsch variant of Ramsch.
You can also set options for who gets the points in the skat (Skat taken
by) and for whether to Allow Shoot the Moon (giving points to a
player who manages to take all the card points).
Skill Level Sets the skill level for other players: click Beginner to have all players
play at beginner level, click Intermediate to have all players play at a
medium level, and click Expert to have all players play at expert level.



Skat Scoring
Suited and grand games are scored differently than null games. Only the declarers score is affected.
Suited and Grand Games
In suited and grand games, how you score (if youre the declarer) depends on whether or not you win the
hand and whether or not your game value (see the section below) is greater than or equal to the amount
you bid.
To win the hand, you must get 61 or more card points (for a standard game), or 90 or more card points if
you bid schneider. If you declared schwarz or open, you must also win every trick to win the hand.
Calculating the game value
The game value, calculated after each hand, is a formula based on what contract you bid, which cards
you started the game with, whether you played with or without the skat, and other items.
Game Value=Multiplier x Base Value
Multiplier=
+1 pt for each matador
+1 pt for game (you always get this point)
+1 pt for hand (you get this point if you play without the skat)
+1 pt for schneider
+1 pt for schneider declared (see the Contracts section for information on declaring schneider)
+1 pt for schwarz
+1 pt for schwarz declared (see the Contracts section for information on declaring schwarz)
+1 pt for open
Base Value=
diamonds=9, hearts=10, spades=11, clubs=12, grand=24
How the Scoring Works
If you win the hand and your game value is greater than or equal to your bid, your game value is
added to your score.
If you lose the hand and your game value is greater than or equal to your bid, twice the game value is
subtracted from your score.
If your game value is less than your bid (regardless of whether you won or lost), you lose twice the
amount of the lowest possible game value that would have fulfilled the contract you bid.
Example: You bid 23, and you played diamonds, but at the end of the game, your game value was
only 18. Possible game values of a diamonds game (which has a base value of 9) are 18 (9 x 2), 27 (9
x 3), 36 (9 x 4), and so on. The lowest game value that would allow you to make your bid is 27, so you
would lose 54 points (27 x 2). If you bid 30 in the same game, you would have needed a game value of
36, so you would lose 72 (36 x 2).
If you resign a game, you lose points as if you played the game. However, since you hadnt chosen a
contract before resigning, a contract (and game value) are picked for you so that you will lose the least
possible points. In most cases, you will lose twice your bid.
When your score is shown at the end of a hand, Skat uses a scoring "shorthand" to show your score
added up. If you played a diamonds hand game, had 2 matadors, and got schneider, your score would be
shown like this:
Game worth 36 (With 2, game 3, schneider 4 times diamonds 9)
Scoring Examples
Madeline bid 30, and plays a suited game, bidding spades. She plays with the skat.
In Cases 1, 2, and 3, she was without 2 matadors after picking up the skat.
Case 1:
She wins the hand, taking 62 points. She is without 2 matadors, and no one got schneider or schwarz.
She is without 2, game 3 times 11 (for spades)=33.
Since her game value is greater than her bid, 33 is added to her score.
Case 2:
She wins the hand, taking 91 points. She is without 2 matadors, and got schneider.
She is without 2, game 3, schneider 4 times 11=44.
Since her game value is greater than her bid, 44 is added to her score.
Case 3:
She loses the game, taking 59 points. She is without 2 matadors, and no one got schneider or schwarz.
She is without 2, game 3 times 11=33.
Since she lost the hand, 66 (33 x 2) is subtracted from her score.
In Cases 4 and 5, she was with 1 matador after picking up the skat (the skat contained J ).
Case 4:
She loses the game, taking 59 points. She is with 1 matador, and no one got schneider or schwarz.
She is with 1, game 2 times 11=22.
Since her game value of 22 is less than her bid of 30, she loses points from her score. The lowest
possible game value that she could have achieved to make her bid of 30 with a contract of spades is 33 (a
multiplier of 3 x spades base value of 11), so she loses 66 points (33 x 2).
Case 5:
She wins the game, taking 62 points. She is with 1 matador, and no one got schneider or schwarz.
She is with 1, game 2 times 11=22.
The scoring is identical to case 5, even though she won the game. Since her game value is less
than her bid of 30, she will lose points from her score (see Case 4 above). She loses 66 points (33
x 2), just as she did in Case 4.Notes:
Getting a schwarz gives you an automatic schneider, and getting open gives you an automatic
schneider and schwarz. Similarly, announcing schwarz gives you an automatic point for announcing
schneider (as well as the point for announcing schwarz), and announcing open gives you three points
for announcing open, schneider, and schwarz).
If you declare and/or get schneider or schwarz, you get points added to the multiplier regardless of
whether or not you won the hand. Losing the hand (or failing to achieve the game value you bid)
means these points count against you.
In any game, you are guaranteed a multiplier of 2 (1 for game, and at least 1 matador), so the lowest
possible bid for any game is 18 (2 x 9 for a diamonds game). All bids are based on possible game
values.
Null Games
In null games, you get a flat positive or negative score based on whether you win or lose the game.
If you win the game (by not taking any tricks), you get a flat score of 23 points for regular null games (a
null game played with the skat), 35 for null hand games (a null game played without the skat), 46 for null
open games (a null game played face up with the skat), and 59 for null open hand games (a null game
played face up without the skat).
(This means that you should not bid more than 23 if youre planning to play a null game, or 35 if youre
planning to play a null hand game, and so on.)
If you lose a null game (by taking one trick), you lose twice your bid. For null youd lose 46, for null hand
youd lose 70, and for null open youd lose 96, and for null open hand youd lose 118.

Skat Strategies and Tips
Try these strategies and tips to improve your Skat game. All strategies are for suited games unless noted.
Strategies for Bidding
Try to calculate exactly how many game points you can get with your hand; by calculating the
multipliers and base value you will get when playing your hand, you should be able to figure out the
maximum game value you can achieve. When bidding, bid as conservatively as possible (bid as much
as you need to in order to win the bid, and no more). There is no point in bidding higher than you need
to, as it increases your risk. Do not ever overbid your hand based on what you think you might get in
the skat.
Be cautious when bidding when you are holding matadors against. You may pick up a card in the skat
that changes your matador count, making it impossible or difficult to make your bid.
Bid a suited game when you have at least six trumps, or when you have four or more trumps (with at
least one jack) and a strong supporting hand. The more trumps you have, the more important it is to
have one or more missing suits (be "void" in suits). The fewer trumps you have, the more important it
is that you have strong cards (A, 10) in your supporting suits.
A good grand hand is a hand with at least two jacks and a long run of at least one suit with the A and
10, or a hand with at least one jack and all four As. Ideally, a grand is also supported by a void (no
cards) in one other suit. This lets you control most of the game (by leading your strong suit) and
ensures you are less likely to get trumped.
A good null hand is a hand in which you hold the 7 of each suit that you have. It is not recommended
that you bid null if you dont have both the 7 and 8 of a particular suit, but do have other higher cards.
Strategies for Putting Cards in the Skat
Dont ever put trump cards in the skat.
If you have any suits (again, other than trump) that only has one card thats not an ace, or a suit that
has only two cards, both below 10, you should put those cards in the skat; this lets you "void" yourself
in that suit and enables you to play trump more easily. Voiding yourself in one suit (or two, if you can
do it) is very important if you have a lot of trump.
If you have any suits with an ace missing, consider putting away the 10, as you cant easily protect it.
If you have several comparable choices of cards to put in the skat, put the cards worth the most points
in the skat.
Strategies for putting cards in the skat in a null game: if you have only one or two cards of a suit, and
those cards are higher than 7 or 8, put them away. Always put away the highest card possible.
Strategies for the Declarer
If you bid because you have a long run of trump, lead trump as often as possible to get trump away
from the opponents and keep control of play. Lead trump in order from the highest you have to the
lowest, if youre sure of winning. When youre not sure of winning, consider leading a low point card in
a suit youre trying to void.
If you bid because you have strong supporting suits, lead your strong suits as early as possible (if you
have A and 10 in a suit, lead both of those in order to assure yourself of those points). Leading them
early reduces the chances that these high points will be trumped.
Strategies for the Defenders
Guard your aces and 10s closely. Always give the declarer a king or other face card in preference to
one of these high point value cards.
Similarly, if the other defender plays a card you know will win the trick, take the opportunity to throw
your aces and 10s (or other high point cards) onto the trick so that the declarer wont get them, even if
your hand becomes weaker as a result.
Try to keep track of which suits the declarer still has cards in, since you might want to lead those suits
when youre forced to lead.

Skat Glossary

Matadors
How many trumps you have or dont have, in an unbroken sequence, starting with the highest jack, J .
Matadors include cards in your original hand, plus cards in the skat. Cards in the skat count towards your
matadors even if you are playing a hand game (and didnt get to see the skat).
Matadors are either with you or against you. If you have the J , you are with 1 matador, plus however
many trump you have in sequence. If you dont have the J , you are against 1 matador, plus however
many trump you dont have in sequence.
Examples:
If you have J but no J , you are with 1 matador.
If you have J , J but no J , you are with 2 matadors.
If you have J , J , J , but no J , you are with 3 matadors.
If you have J , J , J , J , but no A of trump, you are with 4 matadors.
If you have J , J , J , J , and A of trump, but no 10 of trump, you are with 5 matadors.
and so on...
If your highest trump is J (you dont have J ), you are against 1 matador.
If your highest trump is J (you dont have J or J ), you are against 2 matadors.
If your highest trump is J (you dont have J , J , or J ), you are against 3 matadors.
If you dont have any Jacks, and your highest trump is A of trump, you are against 4 matadors.
If you dont have any Jacks, and your highest trump is 10 of trump, you are against 5 matadors.
and so on...

Open
You play the game with all of your cards face up on the table. In an open game, you must take all the
tricks to win. (In a null open game, you must lose all the tricks to win.)

Schneider
The declarer gets a schneider if he or she (or the other team) gets 90 or more card points in the hand. If
the schneider was declared before the hand started, it is worth an extra game point.

Schwarz
The declarer gets a schwarz if he or she (or the other team) wins every trick in the game. If the schwarz
was declared before the hand started, it is worth an extra game point.

Skat
A pile of two cards the declarer can pick up (if desired) at the start of the hand. The declarer must then
discard two cards from his or her hand.
A game played with the skat is called a skat game; a game without it is called a hand game (because
youre playing with your original hand).

Trump (in Skat)
Trump cards are cards that when played, always beat non-trump cards. In grand games, all four jacks are
trump; in suited games, all four jacks are trump as well as the A-10-K-Q-9-8-7 of the suit the declarer
makes trump. In null games, there are no trump cards. Ramsch games use the same trump as grand
games.
How to Play Solitaire
Hoyle Card Games includes 50 different Solitaire games, including one and two-deck games and arcade-
style games.
Although Solitaire rules vary widely from game to game, there are many common elements. The goal of
most Solitaire games is to move cards to foundation piles. Most games have columns, rows, or piles you
move cards between (known as the tableau), according to particular rules. You often play cards from a
stock pile onto the tableau and foundations. Some games also have reserve piles that are available for
play.
To learn the specific rules for a game, click the game name in the list below. Click Solitaire Settings on
the Options menu within the game to set game rules and options.
Rules for Solitaire Games
One Deck
Aces Up
Bakers Dozen
Baroness
Beleaguered Castle
Betsy Ross
Bowling
Bristol
Calculation
Canfield
Clock
Cribbage Square
Eagle Wing
Eight Off
Eliminator
Euchre
Flower Garden
Fortress
Four Free

Four Seasons
Gaps
Golf
Klondike
La Belle Lucie
Nestor
Penguin
Poker Square
Pyramid
Scorpion
Seahaven Towers
Shamrocks
Slide
Spiderette
Strategy
Triplets
Yukon
Two Deck
Aces and Kings
Alhambra
Batsford
Colorado
Forty Thieves
Mount Olympus
Red and Black
Spider
Sultan
Terrace
Arcade
3 Towers
Best 21
Fast 21
Pick 2
Sum 11

Hint: Looking for the game many people think of as Solitaire? Try Klondike.
Actions in Solitaire Games
To move a card, drag it to its destination.
To move a card (or stack of cards) automatically, right-click it (Ctrl+Click on the Mac). This generally
works for moving a card to the foundation, but sometimes moves cards to the correct place in the
tableau, depending on the game. Right-clicking the stock pile will flip the stock. In all games but the
Arcade Solitaire games, double-clicking the left button does the same thing as right-clicking.
To undo your last move, click the Undo button or press Ctrl + Z on the keyboard. Select Undo again to
undo multiple times. Some games do not allow Undo.
To stop playing a game, and start a new one, click the New Game button. Your score for the game is
shown and a new game is started. When you click New Game, you can choose to replay the same
deal, or play a new deal.
Notes:
When no more moves are available, your game will automatically end. You can then start a new game,
or undo your last move in the game that ended.
To take advantage of some of the options available within each game, click Solitaire Settings on the
Options menu when you are in a game. Some of the commonly available options are listed below.
You can turn on rollover help that identifies each area of the Solitaire screen (such as the foundations
or the stock pile). The help is shown automatically when you point to an area with your mouse. To use
this option, check the Show Rollover Help option in Solitaire Settings.
In most games, you have the option to Show Movable Cards. This will highlight cards that you can
legally move. When you roll over a highlighted card, the place(s) the card can be moved to will be
highlighted. To use this option, check the Show Playable Cards option in Solitaire Settings.
In some games, you have the option to have the computer deal only winnable hands. How long it takes
to find a winnable hand depends on the game and the game settings. The following games offer this
option: Baroness, Bristol, Canfield, Clock, Eagle Wing, Eight Off, FourFree, Four Seasons, Golf,
Klondike, Nestor, Penguin, Pyramid, Nestor, Baroness, Penguin, and Seahaven Towers. To use this
option, check the Deal a Winnable Hand option in Solitaire Settings.

Aces and Kings
Goal: Build the first four foundations up from ace to king, regardless of suit, and build the second four
foundations down from king to ace, regardless of suit.
Setup: The game begins with eight foundations, two reserve piles containing a row of 13 overlapping
cards each, and four tableau piles containing one card each.
How to Play
Move the topmost cards from the reserve piles and the tableau to the foundations, building the first
four foundations up from aces to kings, the second four foundations down from king to ace. Empty
piles are automatically filled from the stock pile; when the stock pile is empty, tableau piles can be filled
with any available card.
Click the stock pile to flip cards one at a time; the upcard can be played to the foundations. No redeals
are allowed.
Cards can be moved between the foundations, if desired.
Game Actions
Right-click a card (Ctrl+Click on the Mac) to move it automatically, if possible.
Gameplay Hints
Moving a card from an ace foundation to a king foundation (or vice versa) makes it possible to play
different cards to the foundations. Moving a jack from the top of a queen (on the king foundation) to the
top of a 10 (on the ace foundation) makes it possible to play a queen to the foundations, instead of a
10.
If you can choose between moving a card with the same rank from the reserve piles or the tableau
piles, it is usually better to move it from the reserve piles, since that frees up other cards.

Aces Up
Goal: Finish with all four aces at the top of the tableau columns, one ace per column, and no other cards
in the columns.
Setup: The game begins with one foundation and four tableau columns containing one card each. A
waste pile can hold up to five cards.
How to Play
From among the topmost cards of each tableau column, move all but the highest ranking card of each
suit to the foundation. Aces rank highest. Example:

When play comes to a standstill, click the stock pile to deal another row of four cards, one to each
column, then continue to play. You can move cards to the waste pile; up to five cards total. Cards
cannot be removed from the waste pile.
Continue until all the cards from the stock pile have been played and no further moves can be made.
Empty columns can be filled with the topmost card of another column. No other plays are allowed
between columns.
Game Actions and Options
Right-click a card (Ctrl+Click on the Mac) to move it automatically, if possible.
To make the game more difficult, choose the No Waste Pile option in the game settings (click Settings on
the Game menu).
Other Names for this Game
This game is also known as Firing Squad and Idiots Delight.


Alhambra
Goal: Build the first four foundations up from ace to king, in suit, and build the second four foundations
down from king to ace, in suit.
Setup: The game begins with eight foundations, eight reserve piles containing four cards each, and one
waste pile.
How to Play
Move cards from the reserve piles to the foundations, building the first four foundations up from ace to
king, and building the last four foundations down from king to ace. Cards cant be moved between
piles.
Click the stock pile to flip cards one at a time; the upcard can be played to the foundations, or, if it cant
be played there, must be moved to the waste pile. Two redeals are allowed.
When possible, you can play cards from the reserve piles to the waste pile (building up and down in
suit, wrapping from ace to king or king to ace). Example:

Game Actions
Right-click a card (Ctrl+Click on the Mac) to move it automatically, if possible.

Bakers Dozen
Goal: Build the foundations up from ace to king, in suit.
Setup: The game begins with four foundations and thirteen tableau columns containing four cards each
(three face up, one face down). Any kings that are dealt are automatically moved to the top of the
columns, replacing the face down card in that column.
How to Play
Move cards from the tableau columns to the foundations, building the foundations up from ace to king,
in suit.
Build columns down, regardless of suit. Each column can hold a maximum of eleven cards. Only the
topmost card of a column can be moved to another column. Empty columns cannot be filled.
Game Actions and Options
Right-click a card (Ctrl+Click on the Mac) to move it automatically, if possible.
To make the game more difficult, choose the Two Cards Face Down option in the game settings (click
Settings on the Game menu). With this option selected, two cards are dealt face down in each column,
instead of one.

Baroness
Goal: Remove all the cards from the tableau by removing pairs of cards that add up to 13.
Setup: The game begins with five tableau columns containing one card each.
How to Play
Remove cards from the tableau columns in pairs that add up to 13. Aces are worth 1, jacks are worth
11, and queens are worth 12. You can automatically discard kings (worth 13) by themselves. All other
cards are worth their face value.
Therefore, the cards that can be removed are ace+queen, 2+jack, 3+10, 4+9, 5+8, 6+7, and king.
To select a card or pair of cards, click on each card (cards become shaded). (To unselect a card, click
it again.) When one or two cards that add up to 13 are selected, the cards are automatically removed.
Cards cannot be moved between columns.
When play comes to a standstill, click on the stock pile to place a row of five cards on the tableau, one
to each column. The last two cards from the stock pile are placed in separate columns and are also
available to play.
Other Names for this Game
This game is also known as Five Piles and Thirteen(s).

Batsford
Goal: Build the foundations up from ace to king, in suit.
Setup: The game begins with eight foundations and ten tableau columns in a Klondike-style layout (the
first column has one card, and each column contains one more card than the previous column). Only the
topmost card of each column is face up; all the rest are face down. A reserve pile at the bottom of the
screen can hold up to three kings.
How to Play
Move cards from the tableau columns to the foundations, building up from ace to king, in suit.
In the tableau, you can build columns down in alternating colors. Each column can hold a maximum of
between thirteen (leftmost column) and twenty-two (rightmost column) cards. Single cards and packed
cards can be moved between columns. Empty columns can be filled with kings or packed cards
starting with kings.
You can move kings to the reserve pile at any time; three kings at most. You can play the topmost king
to the foundation, when possible.
Click the stock pile to flip cards one at a time; the upcard can be played to the foundations or the
tableau. No redeals are allowed.
Game Actions
Right-click a card (Ctrl+Click on the Mac) to move it automatically, if possible.

Beleaguered Castle
Goal: Build the foundations up from ace to king, regardless of suit.
Setup: The game begins with four foundations, each started for you with an ace. All cards are dealt face
up to eight tableau rows, each containing six cards.
How to Play
Move cards from the tableau rows to the foundations, building the foundations up from ace to king,
regardless of suit.
You can build tableau rows down, regardless of suit. Each row can hold a maximum of 13 cards. Only
the topmost card of a row can be moved to another row. Empty rows can only be filled with kings.
Game Actions and Options
Right-click a card (Ctrl+Click on the Mac) to move it automatically, if possible.
To make the game more difficult, choose the Build Foundations In Suit option in the game settings (click
Settings on the Game menu).
Other Names for this Game
This game is also known as Laying Siege and Sham Battle.

Betsy Ross
Goal: Build the foundations up, regardless of suit, using a defined numerical order for each foundation.
Setup: The game begins with four foundations started with a 2, 4, 6, and 8. An ace, 2, 3, and 4 are
placed in a column next to the foundations as guides to remind you of the arithmetic differences by which
the foundations are built up. (For instance, the 3 row is built up by threes, starting with 6.)
How to Play
Click the stock pile to flip cards one at a time, and build the foundations up, regardless of suit, in the
order below.
2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 J Q K
4 6 8 10 Q A 3 5 7 9 J K
6 9 Q 2 5 8 J A 4 7 10 K
8 Q 3 7 J 2 6 10 A 5 9 K
Two redeals are allowed.
Game Actions
Right-click a card (Ctrl+Click on the Mac) to move it automatically, if possible.
Other Names for this Game
This game is also known as Four Kings, Musical Patience, and Quadruple Alliance.

Bowling
Up to four players can play this game. Click here for information on playing with other players:
Goal: Score the highest possible bowling score by filling in as many pins each frame as possible. A
score of 230 or greater wins the game. Scoring follows normal bowling scoring rules.
Setup: The game begins with a tableau of ten spaces organized in a triangle shape. The spaces
represents bowling pins, and are numbered from one to ten as follows:
7 8 9 10
4 5 6
2 3
1
There are two waste piles at the left side of the tableau. Each waste pile can hold three cards and
represents one of the two bowling balls thrown for each frame. A standard bowling scorecard is used to
keep track of the points scored by each player.
How to Play
1 Click the stock pile to flip cards one at a time. Place the upcard onto the 10-pin grid if possible,
according to the following rules:
In order to place a card on a given pin number, the card must be ranked in sequence in between
the previous and next pin. Aces rank lowest. Example:

Cards of identical rank can be placed on the same pin slot.
2 When a card cannot be placed on the grid without breaking the placement rules, the card must be
placed onto the waste pile for the current ball being thrown (the top pile is for the first ball). Three
cards in a waste pile constitutes one ball thrown.
3 If you fill all ten pin spaces before there are three cards in the first waste pile, you score a strike for the
frame.
If you fill all ten pin spaces before there are six cards in the waste piles (from three to five cards), you
score a spare for the frame.
If six cards are placed in the waste piles, the score for that frame is one point for each pin space filled.
Note: Saving games is not supported in Bowling.
Game Actions and Options
Right-click a card (Ctrl+Click on the Mac) to move it automatically, if possible.
To make the game more difficult, choose the Waste Piles Hold Two Cards option in the game settings
(click Settings on the Game menu).

Bristol
Goal: Build the foundations up from ace to king, regardless of suit.
Setup: The game begins with four foundations and eight tableau columns containing three cards each.
How to Play
Move cards from the tableau columns to the foundations, building the foundations up from ace to king,
regardless of suit.
You can build columns down, regardless of suit. Each column can hold a maximum of fifteen cards.
Only the topmost card of a column can be moved to another column. Empty columns cannot be filled.
Click the stock pile to flip cards three at a time, one to each of three piles. These cards can be moved
to a column or to a foundation. Empty spaces in these piles can only be filled with cards from the stock
pile. No redeals are allowed.
Game Actions and Options
Right-click a card (Ctrl+Click on the Mac) to move it automatically, if possible.
To make the game more difficult, choose the Build Foundations In Suit option in the game settings (click
Settings on the Game menu).
To make the game easier, choose the Kings Can Fill Columns option in the game settings. This allows
empty tableau columns to be filled with kings.

Calculation
Goal: Build the foundations up, regardless of suit, according to a defined numerical order for each
foundation.
Setup: The game begins with four foundations. An A, 2, 3, and 4 are placed in a column next to the
foundations as guides to remind you of the arithmetic differences by which the foundations are built up.
(For instance, the 3 row is built up by threes, starting with 6.) There are five empty tableau columns.
How to Play
Build the foundations up, regardless of suit, in the order below.
2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 J Q K
4 6 8 10 Q A 3 5 7 9 J K
6 9 Q 2 5 8 J A 4 7 10 K
8 Q 3 7 J 2 6 10 A 5 9 K
Click the stock pile to flip cards one at a time. The upcard can be played to the foundations or onto one
of the five tableau columns. Each column can hold a maximum of eighteen cards. Cards cant be
moved between columns.
Move cards from the tableau columns to the foundations, if possible.
No redeals are allowed.
Game Actions and Options
Right-click a card (Ctrl+Click on the Mac) to move it automatically, if possible.
To make the game more difficult, choose the Only Four Columns option in the game settings (click
Settings on the Game menu).
Gameplay Hints
Since kings are played to the foundations last, you might want to use one column just for kings.
Similarly, you might want to use another column for cards you wont need until later in the game, and
another for hot cards you should be able to use soon.
Other Names for this Game
This game is also known as Broken Intervals.

Canfield
Goal: Build the foundations up, in suit, starting from a randomly selected card.
Setup: The game begins with four foundations, one containing a randomly selected card. Four tableau
columns each contain one card, and ten cards are dealt to a reserve pile.
How to Play
Move cards from the tableau to the foundations, building the foundations up, in suit, from the rank of
the randomly selected card in the first foundation. Wrap from king to ace, if necessary.
You can build tableau columns down in alternating colors, wrapping from king to ace, as necessary.
Each column can hold a maximum of fifteen cards. Single cards and packed cards can be moved
between columns. Empty columns are automatically filled with cards from the reserve pile; when the
reserve pile is empty, empty columns can be filled with an upcard from the stock pile.
Click the stock pile to flip cards three at a time onto a waste pile; the upcard can be played to a
foundation or a tableau column. Cards you uncover are also available for play. You can redeal as often
as you like. If there are no more moves left and you have gone through the stock pile once, the game
will end.
The topmost card of the reserve pile can be played to a foundation or a tableau column.
Game Actions and Options
Right-click a card (Ctrl+Click on the Mac) to move it automatically, if possible.
To make the game more difficult, choose the options for Thirteen Card reserve (the reserve pile has
thirteen cards instead of ten) and Move Only Full Builds (all packed cards must be moved as a complete
unit between columns) in the game settings (click Settings on the Game menu).
Other Names for this Game
This game is also known as Demon, Fascination, and Thirteen.

Clock
Goal: Move all of the cards onto the correct foundations before drawing all four kings.
Setup: The game begins with twelve face-down foundation piles containing four face-down cards each,
arranged to represent the numbers on a clock face, and one waste pile.
How to Play
1 A card is flipped from the stock pile. Place that card on the tableau pile matching the clock number
corresponding to that card. (The number is indicated next to the card.) For example, if you draw a 6,
place it on the lower middle pile (corresponding to the location of the 6 on a clock).
aces go on the 1 pile, jacks go on the 11 pile, and queens go on the 12 pile. (kings go on a separate
pile.) Example:

2 The card you placed on the pile is moved to the bottom of the pile, and the top card of that pile is
revealed. Place that card to its correct pile.
3 Continue to place cards until a king appears. When a king appears, move it to the waste pile on the
left of the clock. After a king is drawn, a new card is flipped from the stock pile for you.
4 If you get all 12 numbers to appear (by placing all four cards for each number on the pile) before you
draw a fourth king, you win. The game ends if all four kings are drawn.
Game Actions
Right-click a card (Ctrl+Click on the Mac) to move it automatically, if possible.
Other Names for this Game
This game is also known as Four of a Kind, Hidden Cards, Sun Dial, and Travelers.

Colorado
Goal: Build the first four foundations up from ace to king, in suit, and build the second four foundations
down from king to ace, in suit.
Setup: The game begins with eight foundations and 20 tableau piles containing one card each.
How to Play
Move cards from the tableau piles to the foundations. The first four foundations are built up from ace to
king, in suit, and the second four foundations are built down from king to ace, in suit. You must build
each suit both up and down (in other words, the first four foundations must contain aces of four unique
suits, and the last four must contain kings of four unique suits).
Empty tableau piles are automatically filled with cards from the stock pile. If a pile contains several
cards, only the top card can be moved to the foundations. Cards cant be moved between piles.
Click the stock pile to flip cards one at a time; the upcard can be played to the foundations or on top of
any of the tableau piles. There are no rules for placing the upcard on the tableau, you can place it on
any pile you like. You must play each flipped card somewhere. No redeals are allowed.
Game Actions
Right-click a card (Ctrl+Click on the Mac) to move it automatically, if possible.
Gameplay Hints
You can lift any card from a tableau pile to peek under it and see what card (if any) is underneath.
In general, you might want to try to place cards on tops of piles of cards of the same suit. Then, when
you remove a card from a pile, you might be able to use the card under it sometime soon.
Try not to cover up cards that youll need soon.
If two of the tableau piles hold the same card (rank and suit), you might want to cover one of those
piles with a card, since you are unlikely to need both cards at the same time.

Cribbage Square
Goal: Score the highest possible Cribbage hand in each row and column, thus scoring the highest
possible overall score. To win, you must get a total score of at least 75 points.
Setup: The game begins with a tableau containing sixteen spaces (four rows and columns). Each space
in the tableau can only contain one card.
How to Play
Cards are flipped up from the stock pile one at a time. Each card must be placed either on the tableau
or in the waste pile. The waste pile can hold up to four cards.
Try to place cards in the most advantageous positions to form the best Cribbage hands. Example:

There are a total of eight handsone in each of the four rows and columns. Once placed, a card
cannot be moved again. When all the spaces in the tableau are filled, the game is over.
The final card dealt is the starter card, which is included in every cribbage hand on the tableau. In
other words, the first hand would be the first row of cards plus the starter card, the second hand would
be the second row of cards plus the starter card, and so on.
Scoring
Scoring follows normal cribbage scoring as described below.
Hand Score Definition (Example)
Four of a kind: 12 points Four cards of the same rank (3, 3, 3, 3)
Three of a kind: 6 points Three cards of the same rank (jack, jack, jack)
Each pair: 2 points Two cards of the same rank (6, 6)
Each 15: 2 points Combinations of cards totaling 15* (2, 3, king)
Each run: 1 point per card Three or more cards in sequence regardless of suit (8, 9, 10)
Flush: 1 point per card All four non-starter cards have same suit (the 2, 4, 5, and 8 of
clubs), or all five cards (including the starter) are the same suit
(the 2, 4, 5, 8, and 10 of clubs)
Nobs: 1 point Contains jack in the same suit as the starter card
Heels: 2 points The starter card is a jack
* Aces are worth 1, jacks, queens, and kings are worth 10, and all other cards are worth their face value.
Any number of cards can be combined to make 15.
Game Actions and Options
Right-click a card (Ctrl+Click on the Mac) to move it automatically, if possible.
To make the game more difficult, choose the No Waste Pile option in the game settings (click Settings on
the Game menu).
To see a continuous scoring summary as you play, choose the Show Scoring Summary option in the
game settings.

Eagle Wing
Goal: Build the foundations up, in suit, starting from a randomly selected card.
Setup: The game begins with four foundations; the first foundation contains a randomly selected card.
There are also eight tableau columns containing one card each, and a reserve pile containing fourteen
cards.
How to Play
Move cards from the tableau to the foundations, building the foundations up, in suit, from the rank of
the randomly selected card in the first foundation. Wrap from king to ace, if necessary.
You can build tableau columns down, in suit, wrapping from ace to king as necessary. Columns cannot
exceed three cards. Single cards and fully packed cards can be moved between columns. Empty
columns are automatically filled with cards from the reserve pile; when the reserve pile is empty, empty
columns can be filled with single cards from the stock pile or with single or packed cards from other
columns.
Click the stock pile to flip cards one at a time; the upcard can be played to a foundation or a tableau
column. One redeal is allowed.
The topmost card of the reserve pile can be played to a foundation or a tableau column.
Game Actions and Options
Right-click a card (Ctrl+Click on the Mac) to move it automatically, if possible.
To make the game more difficult, choose the Seventeen Card reserve option in the game settings (click
Settings on the Game menu).
Other Names for this Game
This game is also known as Thirteen Down.

Eight Off
Goal: Build the foundations up from ace to king, in suit.
Setup: The game begins with four foundations and all of the cards dealt to eight tableau columns, four
columns with seven cards and four columns with six cards. There are eight reserve piles at the bottom of
the tableau.
How to Play
Move cards from the tableau to the foundations, building the foundations up from ace to king, in suit.
You can build tableau columns down in suit. Each column can hold a maximum of eleven cards. Only
the topmost card of a column can be moved to another column. Empty columns can be filled with the
topmost card of another column or a card from a reserve pile.
You can move the topmost card of any column to a reserve pile. Each reserve pile can hold one card.
Cards in the reserve pile can be played to a foundation or a tableau column.
Game Actions and Options
Right-click a card (Ctrl+Click on the Mac) to move it automatically, if possible.
To make the game more difficult, choose the options for Only Kings Fill Empty Columns or Four Cards
Dealt To reserves in the game settings (click Settings on the Game menu).

Eliminator
Goal: Remove all cards from the four tableau columns.
Setup: The game begins with eight foundations, and all the cards dealt to four tableau columns
containing thirteen cards each.
How to Play
Move cards from the tableau to the foundations, building each foundation either up or down,
regardless of suit. You can start each foundation with any card you like, wrapping from king to ace or
ace to king as necessary. Cards cannot be moved between columns, and empty columns cannot be
filled.
For a challenge, try to use as few foundations as possible. At the end of the game, you get 10 points
added to your score for each foundation you dont use.
Game Actions and Options
Right-click a card (Ctrl+Click on the Mac) to move it automatically, if possible.
To make the game more difficult, choose the Foundations In Alternating Colors option in the game
settings (click Settings on the Game menu).
To make the game easier, choose the Use One-Card reserve option in the game settings. With this option
selected, a one card reserve pile is added to the game; you can move any card to this pile, and move it to
the foundations later.

Euchre
Goal: Score the most possible points by winning euchre tricks played against the deck.
In Euchre Solitaire, you are playing a game of Euchre against the deck. (The deck acts as another
player.) A special Euchre deck (containing 24 cards, nines through aces only) is used. Tricks are taken
(won) using rules from the card game Euchre.
Setup: The game begins with a hand of five cards, and two card spaces (one for your card, and one for
the deck).
How to Play
1 A card is flipped from the stock pile; you are asked to select whether or not you want to use this card
as trump. Click Order It Up to use the suit of the upcard as trump, or click Pass to choose another
suit to be trump. Example:

If you order up the trump, the upcard will be played as the decks first card. Otherwise, the upcard is
put at the bottom of the deck.
If you think you can take all five tricks, check the Double Stakes box to get double points; you get
double points if you succeed, but you lose points if you dont take all five tricks. (You can do this
regardless of whether you order up trump or choose it yourself.)
The trump suit is shown in the upper left corner.
3 On the first trick, place one of your cards onto your card space. If you ordered up the trump, the deck
will play the upcard as its first card. Example:

Otherwise, the deck draws cards until it reaches a card that either follows suit* or is trump, and then
plays that card.
4 The trick is taken by you or the deck according to Euchre rules (see the section below).
If you take the trick, you lead (play the first card for) the next trick, and the deck draws cards until it
reaches a card that either follows suit* or is trump, and plays that card.
If the deck takes the trick, the top card on the deck is played, and you must play in response to that
card. You must always follow suit*, if possible. If youre out of a suit, you can play any card, including
trump.
5 A hand ends after five tricks are taken. (Note: If the deck runs out of cards, you win the remaining
tricks by default.) You continue to play Euchre hands until either you or the deck gets 10 points.
* Note: In Euchre, the jack of the same color as the trump suit is called the left bower; its considered
to be a trump card and is no longer considered a member of its original suitwhen its led, it should
be followed with trump, not with its original suit. See below for more information.
How Tricks are Taken
The highest card of a suit led takes the trick unless a trump card is played. The cards in non-trump suits
rank in their usual order, A-K-Q-J-10-9, but in this game, as in Euchre, the trump suit is ranked differently:
the highest card is the jack of that suit (the right bower), and the second highest card is the other jack of
the same color (the left bower). For instance, if spades is trump, then the jack of spades is the highest
ranking card, followed by the jack of clubs, ace of spades, king of spades, queen of spades, 10 of
spades, and 9 of spades.
Suit Order of Cards
Non-Trump Ace, king, queen, jack, 10, 9
Trump Jack of trump (right bower), jack of same color as trump (left bower), ace, king, queen, 10,
9
Scoring
Euchre Solitaire hands are scored as follows:
On each hand, you score 1 point if you win three or four of the five tricks, and 2 points for winning all
five tricks. Otherwise, you are euchred and lose 2 points. The computer scores only by euchring you.
If you elected to play for Double Stakes, however, you score 4 points if you take all five tricks,
otherwise you lose 2 points.
Whoever gets 10 points first wins.
Game Actions
Right-click a card (Ctrl+Click on the Mac) to move it automatically, if possible.

Flower Garden
Goal: Build the foundations up from ace to king, in suit.
Setup: The game begins with six tableau columns containing five cards each. The remaining 22 cards
are dealt to a reserve pile.
How to Play
Move cards from the tableau to the foundations, building the foundations up from ace to king, in suit.
You can build tableau columns down, regardless of suit. Each column can hold a maximum of fourteen
cards. Only the topmost card of a column can be moved to another column. Empty columns can be
filled with any available card.
Any card from the reserve pile (not just the topmost card) can be played to a foundation or a tableau
column.
Game Actions and Options
Right-click a card (Ctrl+Click on the Mac) to move it automatically, if possible.
To make the game more difficult, choose the Sixteen Card reserve option in the game settings (click
Settings on the Game menu).
Other Names for this Game
This game is also known as Bouquet and The Garden.

Fortress
Goal: Build the foundations up, in suit, starting with a card you select.
Setup: The game begins with four foundations. All 52 cards are dealt face up in ten tableau rows, the top
two rows containing six cards and the other eight rows containing five cards.
How to Play
First, select the topmost card of any row as the starting card for the foundations by moving that card to
one of the foundations.
Move cards from the tableau to the foundations, building the foundations up, in suit, from the rank of
the card you selected. You can wrap from king to ace, as necessary.
You can build tableau rows up and down, regardless of suit, wrapping cards if necessary. Each row
can hold a maximum of thirteen cards. Only the topmost card can be moved to another row or
foundation. Empty rows can be filled with any available card.
Game Actions and Options
Right-click a card (Ctrl+Click on the Mac) to move it automatically, if possible.
To make the game more difficult, choose the options for Only Aces Start Foundations or Only Kings Fill
Columns in the game settings (click Settings on the Game menu).

Forty Thieves
Goal: Build the foundations up from ace to king, in suit.
Setup: The game begins with eight foundations and ten tableau columns containing four cards each.
How to Play
Move cards from the tableau to the foundations, building the foundations up from ace to king, in suit.
You can build tableau columns down in suit. Each column can hold a maximum of fifteen cards. Only
the topmost card of a column can be moved to another column. Empty columns can be filled with any
available card.
Click the stock pile to flip cards one at a time; the upcard can be played to the foundations or a tableau
column. No redeals are allowed.
Game Actions
Right-click a card (Ctrl+Click on the Mac) to move it automatically, if possible.
Other Names for this Game
This game is also known as Big Forty, Le Cadran, Napoleon at St. Helena, and Roosevelt at San Juan.

Four Free
Goal: Build the foundations up from ace to king, in suit.
Setup: The game begins with four foundations, eight tableau columns (the first four containing seven
cards each, the last four containing six), and four reserve piles.
How to Play
Move cards from the tableau to the foundations, building the foundations up from ace to king, in suit.
You can build tableau columns down in alternate colors. Each column can hold a maximum of
eighteen cards. Only the topmost card of a column can be moved to another column. Empty columns
can be filled with any card from the tableau or reserve piles.
Any card can be moved to a reserve pile. Reserve piles can hold one card each. Cards on the reserve
piles can be played to the tableau or to the foundations.
Game Actions
Right-click a card (Ctrl+Click on the Mac) to move it automatically, if possible.

Four Seasons
Goal: Build the foundations up, in suit, starting with a randomly selected card.
Setup: The game begins with four foundations (found in the four corners of the tableau). The upper left
foundation contains a randomly selected card. There are five tableau piles containing one card each (the
piles form a cross shape).
How to Play
Move cards from the tableau to the four corner foundations, building the foundations up in suit, starting
from the rank of the randomly selected card in the upper left foundation. You can wrap from king to ace
if necessary.
You can build tableau piles down, regardless of suit. You can move cards between piles, if possible.
Example:

Empty piles can be filled with the topmost card from the stock pile or with the topmost card from
another tableau pile.
Click the stock pile to flip cards one at a time; the upcard can be played to the foundations or to the
tableau. No redeals are allowed.
Game Actions
Right-click a card (Ctrl+Click on the Mac) to move it automatically, if possible.
Gameplay Hints
You can lift any card from a tableau pile to peek under it and see what card (if any) is underneath.
Since you can fill empty spaces at any time, you might want to wait to fill a space with a card youll
need soon, rather than filling it right away.
Other Names for this Game
This game is also known as Corner Card, Czarina, and Vanishing Cross.

Gaps
Goal: Arrange four rows of cards, one row of each suit, sequentially from Two to king.
Setup: The game begins with all cards dealt face up, in four rows. All Twos are automatically placed at
the beginning of each row. After all of the cards have been dealt, the aces are removed from the game,
forming four gaps.
How to Play
You can fill gaps with the next higher card of the same suit as the card on the left of the gap, or with
the next lower card of the same suit as the card on the right of the gap. Wrapping from king to ace is
not allowed.
In the example below, you could move the 7 of hearts or the 8 of spades into the gap.

To move a card, click the mouse on the card you want to move (the card becomes shaded), and then
click on the destination gap. (To unselect a card, click it again.)
Game Options
To make the game more difficult, choose the Play Only Higher Than Left option in the game settings
(click Settings on the Game menu). With this option selected, a card can be moved into a gap only if it is
of the same suit and of one rank higher than the card to the immediate left of the gap. Note that no card
may be moved into a gap at the right of a king. Continue filling gaps as they are created, until all are
blocked by kings.
To make the game easier, choose the Two Redeals option in the game settings. With Two Redeals
selected, when play comes to a standstill, all cards that are not in the proper order are gathered, the four
aces added back, and the deck shuffled and redealt. The aces are then removed again to form gaps and
play continues. Two redeals are allowed.
Other Names for this Game
This game is also known as Montana.

Golf
Goal: Move all the cards to the foundation. In Golf, you score based on the number of cards left in the
columns. As in real golf, the lower the score, the better.
Setup: The game begins with one foundation and seven tableau columns, each containing five cards.
How to Play
First, choose any card from any column and move it to start the foundation.
Move cards from the tableau columns to the foundation, building the foundation pile up or down,
regardless of suit. Ace is low and king is high. You cannot wrap from king to ace or from ace to king.
Cards cannot be moved between columns.
When play comes to a standstill, click the stock pile to flip a card onto the foundation and continue
play. Keep playing until no cards remain in the stock pile.
Game Actions and Options
Right-click a card (Ctrl+Click on the Mac) to move it automatically, if possible.
To make the game more difficult, choose the options for Six Columns (play begins with six tableau
columns, each containing six cards) or Cant Play On Kings (no cards can be placed on kings, neither
aces nor queenskings are the end of the line) in the game settings (click Settings on the Game
menu).

Klondike
Goal: Build the foundations up from ace to king, in suit.
Setup: The game begins with twenty-eight cards dealt to seven tableau columns. The first column has
one card, the second two cards, and so on. All cards are face down except for the topmost card of each
column, which is face up.
How to Play
Move cards from the tableau to the foundations, building the foundations up from ace to king, in suit.
You can build tableau columns down in alternating colors. Each column can hold a maximum of
between thirteen (leftmost column) and twenty-two (rightmost column) cards. Single cards and packed
cards can be moved between columns. Empty columns can only be filled with kings (or packed cards
starting with kings).
Click the stock pile to flip cards three at a time; the upcard can be played to a foundation or a tableau
column. You can redeal as often as you like. If you have no more moves left and you have redealt one
time, the game will end.
When all the cards are either face-up on the tableau or played on the foundations, you can have the
game play out automatically.
Game Actions and Options
Right-click a card (Ctrl+Click on the Mac) to move it automatically, if possible.
You can choose one of four different types of Klondike games; to change game types, click Settings on
the File menu.
Game Types
Flip Three Cards, Infinite Resets: The standard game. Cards are flipped over three at a time, and
you can redeal as often as you like.
Flip One Card, No Resets: A more difficult game. In this game, cards from the stock pile are flipped
over one at a time, and no redeals are allowed.
Flip One Card, One Reset: This variation is less difficult than the One Reset variation, but more
difficult than the Infinite Resets variation. In this game, cards
are flipped over one at a time, and you can redeal just once.
Money Klondike A gambling variation similar to solitaire games that have been played in
casinos. Played just like the standard game except that you
start with -$52 (you bet 52 dollars), and you get $5 for each
card you move to a foundation. See how much money you can
win!
Other Names for this Game
This game is also known as Demon Patience, Fascination, and Triangle. It is sometimes incorrectly called
Canfield; Canfield is an entirely different game.

La Belle Lucie
Goal: Build the foundations up from ace to king, in suit.
Setup: The game begins with four foundations (started for you with aces), and sixteen tableau columns
containing three cards each.
How to Play
Move cards from the tableau to the foundations, building the foundations up from ace to king, in suit.
You can build tableau columns down in suit. No more than seven cards can be played to a column.
Only the topmost card of a column can be moved to another column. Empty columns cannot be filled.
When play comes to a standstill, click on the Reset button to gather, shuffle, and redeal all the cards.
Three redeals are allowed. Note: unlike the official Hoyle rules, this game is merci-less; namely, after
the last redeal, any one card CANNOT be pulled out and played.
Game Actions and Options
Right-click a card (Ctrl+Click on the Mac) to move it automatically, if possible.
To make the game more difficult, choose the Only Two Redeals option in the game settings (click
Settings on the Game menu).
Other Names for this Game
This game is also known as Alexander the Great, Clover Leaf, Midnight Oil, and Three Shuffles and a
Draw.

Mount Olympus
Goal: Build the first row of foundations up by odd numbers, in suit, and build the second row of
foundations up by even numbers, in suit.
Setup: The game begins with two rows of eight foundationsthe top row containing four aces, the
second row containing four Twosand nine tableau columns containing one card each.
How to Play
Move cards from the tableau to the foundations, building the first row of foundations up by odd
numbers, in suit, and the second row of foundations up by even numbers, in suit:
First row: A, 3, 5, 7, 9, J, K
Second row: 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, Q
You can build the tableau columns down by twos, in suit.
Single cards and packed cards can be moved between columns. Empty columns are automatically
filled from the stock pile; when the stock pile is empty, you can fill columns with single or packed cards
from the tableau.
Click the stock pile to place a row of nine cards on the tableau, one to each column.
Game Actions
Right-click a card (Ctrl+Click on the Mac) to move it automatically, if possible.

Nestor
Goal: Play all cards to the foundation.
Setup: The game begins with one foundation and six tableau columns containing seven cards each. The
remaining cards are placed in ten separate reserve piles containing one card each.
How to Play
Play pairs of cards of the same rank (two 5s, two jacks, etc.) to the foundation. Pairs may be played to
the foundation in any sequence. You can select cards from the tableau (the topmost cards only) or
cards from the reserve piles.
To select a pair of cards, click the first card (the card becomes shaded), and then click another card.
(To unselect a card, click it again.) If the cards match, they are automatically moved to the foundation.
Game options
To make the game more difficult, choose the Only Four reserve Cards option in the game settings (click
Settings on the Game menu). With this option selected, eight cards are dealt to each column, instead of
seven, and only four cards are dealt to the reserve.

Penguin
Goal: Build the foundations up, in suit, from a randomly selected card.
Setup: The game begins with four foundations and seven tableau columns containing seven cards each.
A random card is selected, and three cards of that rank are removed from the deck and placed on three
of the four foundations. The last foundation card is randomly placed among the columns. There are seven
reserve piles; each pile can hold one card.
How to Play
Move cards from the tableau to the foundations, building the foundations up in suit, from the rank of
the randomly selected card. You can wrap from king to ace, as necessary.
You can build tableau columns down in suit, wrapping from ace to king as necessary. Each column
can hold a maximum of eighteen cards. Single cards and fully packed cards can be moved between
columns. Empty columns can be filled with single or fully packed cards from another column.
The topmost card of a column can be moved to a reserve pile. Cards in the reserve piles can be
played to a column or to a foundation.
Game Actions and Options
Right-click a card (Ctrl+Click on the Mac) to move it automatically, if possible.
To make the game more difficult, choose the options for Filling Empty Columns Restricted or Fourth
Starter Card Dealt First in the game settings (click Settings on the Game menu).
With Filling Empty Columns Restricted selected, empty columns can be filled only with a card ranked one
lower than the starting rank. Therefore, if the starting rank is 3, empty columns can only be filled with 2s
(or fully packed cards starting with a 2), and if the starting rank is queen, empty columns can only be filled
with jacks (or fully packed cards starting with a jack.
With Fourth Starter Card Dealt First selected, the fourth foundation starter card is always dealt first, to the
top of the first column.

Poker Square
Goal: Score the highest possible poker hand in each rows and column, thus scoring the highest possible
overall score. To win, you must get a total score of at least 100 points.
Setup: The game begins with a tableau containing 25 spaces (five rows and five columns). Each space in
the tableau can only contain one card.
How to Play
Cards are flipped from the stock pile one at a time. Each card must be placed in the tableau or on the
waste pile. The waste pile can hold up to five cards.
Try to place cards in the most advantageous positions to form the best poker hands. Example:

There are a total of ten handsfive rows and five columns. Once placed, a card cannot be moved
again. When all the tableau spaces are filled, the game is over.
Scoring
Each poker hand is scored according to the table below.
Hand Score Definition (Example)
Royal flush: 100 Ace, king, queen, jack, 10, all in the same suit
Straight flush: 60 All five cards in sequence, all in the same suit (the 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8
of clubs)
Four of a kind: 30 Four cards of the same rank (9 of hearts, 9 of spades, 9 of
diamonds, and 9 of clubs)
Straight: 25 All five cards in sequence, regardless of suit (7, 8, 9, 10, and jack)
Full house: 20 Three of a kind and one pair (5, 5, 5, and 2, 2)
Three of a kind: 15 Three cards of the same rank (8, 8, 8 of hearts)
Flush: 10 All five cards in the same suit (the 3, 7, 10, jack, and king of
hearts)
Two pair: 5 Two pairs of cards, each with the same rank (4, 4, and 7, 7)
One pair: 2 One pair of cards of the same rank (queen, queen)
Note: The hands are not ranked as in Poker, but in accordance with their relative difficulty in the solitaire
game (per Hoyle rule book).
Game Actions and Options
Right-click a card (Ctrl+Click on the Mac) to move it automatically, if possible.
To make the game more difficult, choose the No Waste Pile option in the game settings (click Settings on
the Game menu).

Pyramid
Goal: Move all the cards from the tableau to the foundation .
Setup: The game begins with twenty-eight cards dealt face up in a pyramid-shaped tableau, seven
reserve piles containing one card each, and one waste pile.
How to Play
Remove cards from the tableau, the reserve piles, and the waste pile in pairs which total 13. Aces are
worth 1, jacks are worth 11, queens are worth 12, and kings are worth 13 (and can be removed by
themselves). All other cards are worth their face value.
Therefore, the cards that can be removed are ace+queen, 2+jack, 3+10, 4+9, 5+8, 6+7, and king.
To select a pair of cards to remove, click the first card (the card becomes shaded), then click another
card. If the cards add up to 13, they are automatically moved to the foundation. (To unselect a card,
click it again.)
Click the stock pile to flip cards one at a time. Cards you dont use are automatically moved to a waste
pile. The topmost card of the waste pile can also be used to form pairs.
No redeals are allowed.
Game options
To make the game more difficult, choose the options for Show Covered Cards Face Down, Play All Cards
To Win, No reserve, or No Waste in the game settings (click Settings on the Game menu).
With Show Covered Cards Face Down selected, cards in the pyramid covered by other cards are shown
face down.
With Play All Cards To Win selected, all 52 cards in the deck (as opposed to just the cards in the tableau)
must be played to the foundation in order to win.

Red and Black
Goal: Build the foundations up from ace to king in alternating colors, regardless of suit.
Setup: The game begins with eight foundations (started for you with aces), and eight tableau columns
containing one card each.
How to Play
Move cards from the tableau to the foundations, building the foundations up from ace to king in
alternating colors (red-black-red-black or black-red-black-red), regardless of suit.
For example, you would build a black Two on a red ace and a red Two on a black ace.
You can build tableau columns down in alternating colors. Only the topmost card of a column can be
moved to another column. Empty columns are filled automatically with the upcard from the stock pile; if
there is no upcard, columns are filled from the stock pile.
Click the stock pile to flip cards one at a time; the upcard can be played to the foundations or a tableau
column. One redeal is allowed.
Game Actions
Right-click a card (Ctrl+Click on the Mac) to move it automatically, if possible.
Other Names for this Game
This game is very similar to Rouge et Noir.

Scorpion
Goal: Build cards down on the tableau from king to ace, in suit.
Setup: The game begins with seven tableau columns containing seven cards each (two cards face down
in the first four columns). The remaining three cards form the stock pile.
How to Play
You can build tableau columns down, in suit. Each column can hold a maximum of twenty-two cards.
Any card that is face up (either partially or completely exposed) can be moved to the topmost card of
another column, as long as the column is built down in suit from the topmost card. Cards below that
card move with it. Example:

Empty columns can be filled with any card or group of cards.
When play comes to a standstill, click the stock pile to flip the three cards in it to the first three
columns. Continue play, if possible.
Game options
To make the game more difficult, choose the options for Three Cards Face Down (the game begins with
three cards dealt face down in four of the columns) or Only Kings Fill Columns (empty columns can only
be filled with kings or groups of cards starting with kings) in the game settings (click Settings on the
Game menu).

Seahaven Towers
Goal: Build the foundations up from ace to king, in suit.
Setup: The game begins with four foundations and ten tableau columns containing five cards each.
There are four reserve piles, two which contain one card each.
How to Play
Move cards from the tableau to the foundations, building the foundations up from ace to king, in suit.
You can build tableau columns down in suit. Each column can hold a maximum of eighteen cards.
Only the topmost card of a column can be moved to another column. Empty columns can only be filled
with kings.
Cards from the reserve piles can be moved to the tableau or to the foundations. Any card can be
moved to an empty reserve pile.
Game Actions
Right-click a card (Ctrl+Click on the Mac) to move it automatically, if possible.

Shamrocks
Goal: Build the foundations up, in suit, from a card you select.
Setup: The game begins with four foundations, and all of the cards dealt to eighteen tableau rows; all of
the rows contain three cards, except the last row, which only contains one card.
How to Play
First, move the topmost card of one of the rows to a foundation. The card you select is used as the
starting rank for all the foundations.
Move cards from the tableau to the foundations, building the foundations up, in suit, from the rank of
the selected card. You can wrap from king to ace, as necessary.
You can build tableau rows up or down, regardless of suit, wrapping from king to ace and ace to king
as necessary. However, no row can contain more than three cards at any one time. Empty rows
cannot be filled.
Game Actions and Options
Right-click a card (Ctrl+Click on the Mac) to move it automatically, if possible.
To make the game more difficult, choose the Only Aces Start Foundations (foundations are built from ace
to king) option in the game settings (click Settings on the Game menu).

Slide
Goal: Arrange cards in the grid so that three cards of the same rank are aligned vertically. Form as many
three-of-a-kind sets as possible. A score of 300 or greater wins the game.
Setup: The game begins with twenty-four cards dealt face up in a 6 x 4 grid.
How to Play
Try to align three cards of the same rank (three jacks, for instance) so that they are vertically aligned.
You can move rows of cards left or right on the grid by sliding them. Click on the slider arrows on the
ends of each column to move the cards. When three cards of the same rank align vertically, the set of
three cards is removed from play and set to the side. Example:

As cards slide to the right or left, the upcard from the stock pile is automatically placed at the beginning
of the row, and a new card is flipped from the stock pile. Cards that slide off the end of a row are
automatically placed onto the waste pile. However, if any two cards in the row (including the new card
that was just added) have the same rank, the card that slides off the end of the row is placed at the
bottom of the stock pile and is available to be played again.
After cards are removed, you can fill empty spaces in the grid either by directly placing a card from the
stock pile in the space, or by sliding a card to the space.
Scoring
The first three-of-a-kind set scores 1 point times the rank of the set of three cards. The second three-of-a-
kind set scores 2 points times the rank of the set. The third three-of-a-kind set scores 3 points times the
rank of the set, and so on, up to 13 points times the rank of the set.
aces are worth 1, jacks are worth 11, queens are worth 12, and kings are worth 13. All other cards (2
through 10) are worth face value.
Game Options
To make the game more difficult, choose the All Slides To Waste Pile option in the game settings (click
Settings on the Game menu). With this option selected, all cards that slide off the end of a row go to the
waste pile, regardless of whether there is another card of the same rank in the row.

Spider
Goal: Build cards down on the tableau from king to ace, regardless of suit, and remove each completed
set from the tableau.
Setup: The game begins with ten tableau columns; the first four columns contain six cards, and the next
six columns contain five cards. The topmost card of each column is face up, the rest are face down.
How to Play
You can build tableau columns down from king to ace, regardless of suit. Each column can hold a
maximum of twenty-five cards. Single cards and fully packed cards can be moved between columns.
Empty columns can be filled with single or fully packed cards.
When play comes to a standstill, click the stock pile to place a row of ten cards on the tableau, one to
each column.
When a set is completed within a column (descending from king to ace), it is automatically removed
from the tableau.
Game Actions
Right-click a card (Ctrl+Click on the Mac) to move it automatically, if possible.

Spiderette
Goal: Build cards down on the tableau from king to ace, regardless of suit, and remove each completed
set from the tableau.
Setup: The game begins with seven tableau columns; each column contains two face down cards and
one face up card.
How to Play
Build tableau columns down from king to ace, regardless of suit. Each column can hold a maximum of
twenty-five cards. Single cards and fully packed cards can be moved between columns. Empty
columns can be filled with single or fully packed cards.
When play comes to a standstill, click the stock pile to place a row of seven cards on the tableau, one
to each column. Continue play, if possible.
When a set is completed within a column (descending from king to ace), it is automatically removed
from the tableau.
Game Actions and Options
Right-click a card (Ctrl+Click on the Mac) to move it automatically, if possible.
To make the game more difficult, choose the Three Cards Face Down option in the game settings (click
Settings on the Game menu). With this option selected, the game begins with three cards dealt face
down in each column, instead of two.

Strategy
Goal: Build the foundations up from ace to king, in suit.
Setup: The game begins with four foundations, started for you with aces, and eight empty tableau
columns.
How to Play
The stock pile is flipped one card at a time. Play each flipped card to any of the eight tableau columns,
regardless of suit or rank. Each column can hold a maximum of thirteen cards. Once a card is played
to a column, it cannot be moved until all cards have been played from the stock pile to the columns.
After all cards have been played to the columns, play as many cards as possible to the foundations,
building up from ace to king, in suit. Cards cannot be moved between columns.
No redeals are allowed.
Game Actions and Options
Right-click a card (Ctrl+Click on the Mac) to move it automatically, if possible.
To make the game more difficult, choose the Only Six Columns option in the game settings (click
Settings on the Game menu). This gives you only six columns, rather than eight.
Gameplay Hints
Since kings are played last, you might want to use one column just for kings (or kings and queens).
Be careful never to place a card on the bottom of a column that already contains a lower ranking card
in the same suit (placing a 10 of spades on a column that already contains a 6 of spades, for
example). Otherwise, you wont be able to finish the game.

Sultan
Goal: Build the foundations up (from ace to king and from king to queen, depending on the foundation), in
suit.
Setup: The game begins with the king of hearts (the Sultan) placed in the middle of the tableau. Eight
foundations are placed surrounding the Sultan; seven foundations contain one king each, and the eighth
foundation (above the Sultan) contains the ace of hearts. There are four tableau piles on each side of the
Sultan; these piles can hold one card each.
How to Play
Move cards from the tableau to the foundations, building the foundations up, in suit. Build the top
middle foundation (the ace) from ace to king, and the other seven foundations from king to queen,
wrapping from king to ace. You can fill empty tableau piles with cards from the stock pile (each pile can
hold one card).
Click the stock pile to flip cards one at a time; the upcard can be played to a foundation or an empty
tableau pile.
Two redeals are allowed.
Game Actions
Right-click a card (Ctrl+Click on the Mac) to move it automatically, if possible.
Gameplay Hint
Since you can fill the empty tableau piles at any time, you might want to wait to fill a pile with a card
youll need soon, rather than filling it right away.
Other Names for this Game
This game is also known as Emperor of Germany and Sultan of Turkey.

Terrace
Goal: Build the foundations up, in alternating colors, starting with a card you select.
Setup: The game begins with nine tableau columns; the first three columns contain one card each. A
reserve pile contains eleven overlapping cards.
How to Play
First, move one of the three initial tableau cards to one of the eight foundations. That card is used as
the starting rank for all the foundations. Once youve done that, one card is dealt to each of the
remaining tableau columns.
Move cards from the tableau to the foundations, building the foundations up in alternating colors from
the rank of the card you selected. Wrap from king to ace, as necessary.
You can build tableau columns down in alternating colors. Each column can hold a maximum of fifteen
cards. You can wrap from ace to king, as necessary. Only the topmost card of a column can be moved
to another column. Empty columns are filled automatically with the upcard from the stock pile; if there
is no upcard, columns are filled from the stock pile.
Click the stock pile to flip cards one at a time; the upcard can be played to the foundations or a tableau
column.
The topmost card in the reserve pile can be played to the foundations. Cards in the reserve piles
cannot be played to the tableau.
No redeals are allowed in Terrace.
Game Actions
Right-click a card (Ctrl+Click on the Mac) to move it automatically, if possible.
Gameplay Hint
When picking the initial card to use to start the foundations, look at the reserve pile to see which cards
will be available soon, and which wont. If there are two 5s buried deep in the reserve pile, 5 (or 4, or 3)
may not be a good choice as a starting rank for the foundations.
Other Names for this Game
This game is also known as Queen of Italy.

Triplets
Goal: Play all cards except one to the foundation by removing them in sets of three cards of sequential
rank, regardless of suit.
Setup: The game begins with sixteen tableau rows containing three cards each, and two tableau rows
containing two cards each.
How to Play
Remove the topmost cards from rows in sets of three cards sequential cards (known as triplets),
regardless of suit. For example, 7-8-9, 2-3-4, and 3-4-5 are all triplets. K-A-2 is also a triplet.
To select a set of three cards, click on each card in the set (cards become shaded). To unselect a
card, click it again. When a valid triplet is selected, the set is automatically moved to the foundation.
Cards cannot be moved between rows.
Scoring
Triplets uses traditional scoring, except that if the last card left is a king, the score triples.
Game options
To make the game more difficult, choose the Three Different Suits option in the game settings (click
Settings on the Game menu). With this option selected, the three cards in each triplet must all be of
different suits.

Yukon
Goal: Build the foundations up from ace to king, in suit.
Setup: The game begins with four foundations and seven tableau columns. The first column has one face
up card; the other six columns, left to right, have increasing numbers of face down cards (starting with
one face down card in the second column, then two, three, four, five, and six), and five face up cards in
each column.
How to Play
Move cards from the tableau to the foundations, building the foundations up from ace to king, in suit.
You can build tableau columns down in any suit other than the suit being built upon (for example, a five
of spades can be played on a six of clubs, hearts, or diamonds, but not on a six of spades). Each
column can hold a maximum of twenty-two cards. Any card that is face up (either partially or
completely exposed) can be played to another column. Cards below that card move with it. Example:

Empty columns can only be filled with Kings or groups of cards starting with Kings.

Game Actions and Options
Right-click a card (Ctrl+Click on the Mac) to move it automatically, if possible.
To make the game more difficult, choose the Columns In Alternating Colors option in the game settings
(click Settings on the Game menu). With this option selected, the tableau columns must be built in
alternating colors (black or red, red on black).
Gameplay Hints
Try to free up aces right away, if you can, before moving other cards.
Try to uncover face down cards as soon as you can. As soon as all the cards are revealed, you should
be able to win the game!

3 Towers
Goal: Get the highest score possible by removing cards from the towers before time runs out. Get points
for removing cards, for clearing an entire tower, and for making runs.
3 Towers has two rounds of play; each round lasts 60 seconds. Finishing the second round with more
than 50,000 points earns a bonus round. Finishing the bonus round with 75,000 wins the game.
How to Play
One card is flipped from the stock pile; this is the upcard. Click a card in the tableau that is one higher
or one lower than the upcard to move that card to the deck, then click another card one higher or lower
than that upcard, and so on.
For example, if a 5 is on the deck, you could click these cards on the tableau, in order: 6, 7, 8, 9, 8, 7,
8, 9.
You can wrap from king to ace and from ace to king.
When you cannot find a card higher or lower than the upcard, click the stock pile to get a new card,
and try again.
When youve played as much as you can, click the Take Score button. The game proceeds to the next
round (or ends, if youre on the last round).
Scoring
You get 100 points for each card you clear from the tableau. Clearing additional cards after the first card,
without having to flip up a card, is a run. The number of current runs is shown on the screen. Each time
you add a card to a run, you get 100 more points for that card. For example, if you have cleared 4 cards
in a row, you get 100 for the first card, 200 for the second card, 300 for the third card, and 400 for the
fourth card. As soon as your run ends (and you have to click the stock pile to get a new card), your
number of runs is reset; the first card you clear is again worth 100, and additional cards in a run increase
the score.
Each time you have to click the stock pile to get a new card, your score is decreased by 100 points.
Clearing a tower is worth 5,000 points. Clearing a second tower gives you 10,000 points, and clearing the
third tower gives you 15,000 points.
Finishing a round quickly gives you a time bonus. You get 100 points for each second remaining on the
clock when you click the Take Score button.

Best 21
Goal: Get the highest score possible by making five high scoring blackjack hands before time runs out.
Best 21 has three rounds of play; each round lasts 45 seconds. Finishing the third round with more than
120,000 points earns a bonus round. Finishing the bonus round with 160,000 or more points wins the
game.
How to Play
Move cards one at a time from the stock pile to one of the five blackjack hands, or to the reserve pile.
The reserve pile can only hold one card each round.
Play cards to try to make hands that score 21 or close to 21, without going over 21. Example:

Current hand totals are shown next to the hand. Jacks, queens, and kings are worth 10, aces are
worth 1 or 11, and all other cards are worth their face value. Note that although aces are worth 1 or 11,
only their hard value is shown. In other words, an ace and an 8 are shown as 19, not 9, although they
can be worth either 9 or 19. You can hit these hard hands, if desired.
Busting any hand (going over 21) ends the round immediately.
When youve played as much as you can, click the Take Score button. The game proceeds to the next
round (or ends, if youre on the last round).
Scoring
You score 100 times the total of all your final blackjack hands. Getting 21 in any hand gives you a bonus
of 10,000. Finishing a round quickly gives you a time bonus; you score 100 times the amount of seconds
remaining on the clock when you finish the round.
For example, If you got hands of 21, 20, 20, 18, and 15, with 32 seconds left on the clock, youd get this
score:
9,400 points for your five hands (21 + 20 + 20 + 18 + 15 = 94 x 100=9400)
+ 10,000 points for the hand of 21
+ 3,200 point time bonus (32 seconds left x 100)
= 22,600 points total

Fast 21
Goal: Get the highest score possible before time runs out. You get points for making high blackjack
hands, and for making 21s and 5-card Charlies (5 cards under 21). You also get points for each card
youre able to use in a hand.
Fast 21 has three rounds of play; each round lasts 90 seconds. Finishing the third round with more than
30,000 points earns a bonus round. Finishing the bonus round with 40,000 or more points wins the game.
How to Play
Move cards one at a time from the stock pile to one of the four blackjack hands or to the reserve pile.
The reserve pile can hold three cards each round.
Play cards to try to make hands that score 21 or close to 21, without going over 21. Example:

Making a hand of 21 or a 5-card Charlie (5 cards under 21) in a hand clears that hand so you can play
on it again (and gives you bonus points).
Current hand totals are shown next to the hand. Jacks, queens, and kings are worth 10, aces are
worth 1 or 11, and all other cards are worth their face value. Note that although aces are worth 1 or 11,
only their hard value is shown. In other words, an ace and an 8 are shown as 19, not 9, although they
can be worth either 9 or 19. You can hit these hard hands, if desired.
If you play a card that busts a hand (makes it go over 21), that card is returned to the stock pile and
your score is reduced by 100 points. You can then play that card to another pile or to the reserve pile
(or end the round if you cant play it).
When youve played as much as you can, click the Take Score button. The game proceeds to the next
round (or ends, if youre on the last round).
Scoring
You score 1,000 points for each 21 you get in a round, and 750 points for each 5-card Charlie. Busting a
hand reduces your score by 100 points. You also score 100 points for each card you played to a
blackjack hand in the round, and you score the total of all other hands you make. (You score points for
each card as you play it, but if you make 21 or a Charlie in a hand you only get points for the 21 or
Charlie.)
Playing all 52 cards to the blackjack hands (without passing any cards) scores you a bonus 10,000
points.
For example, if you got three 21s and one 5-card Charlie, with 22 cards played to the blackjack hands,
and final hands of 20, 20, 18, and 17, youd get this score:
3,750 points for the three 21s and one Charlie
+ 2,200 points for playing 22 cards
+ 75 points for your four hands (20+20+18+17=75)
= 6,025 points total

Pick 2
Goal: Get the highest score possible by removing cards in pairs and sequences before time runs out.
Pick 2 has two rounds of play; each round lasts 60 seconds. Finishing the second round with 80,000 or
more points earns a bonus round. Finishing the bonus round with 120,000 or more points wins the game.
How to Play
One card is flipped from the stock pile. You can use this upcard, as well as the cards on the tableau, to
make pairs (2-2, Q-Q, and so on) and sequences (4-5, 9-10, Q-K). Both A-2 and K-A can be used as
sequences. Pairs and sequences do not have to include the upcard.
Click on two cards to select them; if the cards are a pair or sequence, they are removed. To unselect a
card, click it again.
When you cant make any more combinations, click the stock pile to get a new card, and try again. The
previous card is moved to the tableau (if theres space available). Otherwise, it is moved to the bottom
of the stock pile.
When youve played as much as you can, click the Take Score button. The game proceeds to the next
round (or ends, if youre on the last round).
Scoring
You get 3,000 points for each pair you remove, and 500 points for each sequence you remove. If you
clear all of the cards on the tableau, you get a bonus 10,000 points.
Finishing a round quickly gives you a time bonus. You get 100 points for each second remaining on the
clock when you click the Take Score button.

Sum 11
Goal: Get the highest score possible by removing combinations of cards which total 11 before time runs
out.
Sum 11 has two rounds of play; each round lasts 90 seconds. Finishing the second round with 80,000 or
more points earns a bonus round. Finishing the bonus round with 120,000 points wins the game.
Sum 11 uses a special card deck with 2-10 of each suit, 16 aces, and no face cards. Aces are always
worth 1 (never 11).
How to Play
One card is flipped from the stock pile. You can use this upcard, as well as the cards on the tableau, to
make combinations of cards (using any number of cards) that add up to eleven. Combinations do not
have to include the upcard.
For example, if the upcard was a 6, and there was an ace and a 4 on the tableau, you could select the
6, ace, and 4 to make eleven. Or you could select an 8 and 3 on the tableau to make eleven.
Click on cards to select them; when youve selected cards that add up to eleven, they are removed. To
unselect a card, click it again.
When you cant make any more combinations, click the stock pile to get a new card, and try again. The
previous card is moved to the tableau (if theres space available). Otherwise, it is moved to the bottom
of the stock pile.
When youve played as much as you can, click the Take Score button. The game proceeds to the next
round (or ends, if youre on the last round).
Scoring
You get 1,500 points for each combination of elevens you remove. If you clear all of the cards on the
tableau, you get a bonus 10,000 points.
You also get points for each card you remove from the tableau based on which row that card is in, with
higher rows worth more points. The bottom row is worth 100, the next up is worth 200, and so on.
Each time you have to click the stock pile to get a new card, your score is decreased by 200 points.
Finishing a round quickly gives you a time bonus. You get 100 points for each second remaining on the
clock when you click the Take Score button.

Solitaire Glossary
build up
Assemble cards into an exact numeric sequence from low rank to high. Usually cards are built up from
ace to king, as shown:
Ace, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, jack, queen, king
build down
Assemble cards into an exact numeric sequence from high rank to low. Usually cards are built down from
king to ace, as shown: king, queen, jack, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, ace
foundation

A pile of cards on the screen that you move cards to in a certain order. Most games require you to win the
game by moving cards to Foundations. Many foundations are started with an Ace, and built up in
sequential order to King.
fully packed cards
A group of cards, usually in a tableau column, that have been built up or built down according to the rules
of the game and cannot be moved except as a single unit.
packed cards
A group of cards, usually in a tableau column, that have been built up or built down according to the rules
of the game. You can often move packed cards as a unit.
redeal
To flip the stock pile and go through the cards again. This can also mean to deal a new set of cards to the
tableau (sometimes involving shuffling).
Many games dont allow a redeal, or allow only one, two, or three redeals. Other games allow unlimited
redeals.
reserve pile

An area used to hold one or more cards, usually temporarily.
stock pile

A pile of face-down cards. Cards are flipped over (usually one or three at a time) and can usually be
played to the tableau or to foundations.
You sometimes need to click the stock pile to reveal new cards.
tableau

The layout of cards on the table. In many games, cards can be moved within the tableau to try to make
cards available to be moved to the foundations.
tableau column

Cards dealt or placed vertically on the tableau. In a column, only the topmost card is available unless
specifically indicated in the game rules.
tableau pile
Cards dealt or placed on the tableau in a single pile (one on top of another), usually face up. In a pile, only
the topmost card is available unless specifically indicated in the game rules.
tableau row

Cards dealt or placed horizontally on the tableau. If a row is overlapping, only the topmost card is
available unless specifically indicated in the rules.
topmost card
The fully exposed card at the bottom of a column, the edge of a row or the top of a pile. This card must be
played before cards beneath it can be played.
trick
Cards played and won in a single round of a card game. Winning a trick is referred to as taking that trick.
trump
A card, or the suit, which is especially privileged to win over cards of other suits. Trump cards are usually
played at the beginning of a game.
upcard

A face-up card that is available for play, usually to the tableau. Usually the upcard is flipped from the
Stock.
waste pile

A pile of cards that is usually made up of cards from the stock pile that couldnt be used. The upcard (top
card) of the Waste Pile is usually available for play.
wrapping
When the sequence of cards (building up or building down) is continued by playing an ace on a king or a
king on an ace.
For example, if wrapping is allowed in a game, you could build up on a jack like this: jack, queen, king,
ace, 2, 3, 4
or build down on a 4 like this: 4, 3, 2, ace, king, queen, jack...
How to Play Spades
Spades is played by four people in two partnerships. The cards rank ace (the highest) to the deuce (the
lowest). Spades are always trump.
Each player receives 13 cards dealt one at a time. Bidding and play proceed in a clockwise direction. In
the bidding phase you declare the number of tricks you intend to win; in the playing phase you try to win
those tricks. The object of the game is to fulfill the total bid by the partnership.
Note: In some variations of Spades, cards are passed between players before the hand starts. The Hoyle
Card Games version of Spades does not include passing.
You may choose to bid nil, meaning you intend not to win any tricks. Before you even pick up your cards,
you may bid double nil. This is the same as a nil bid, except that all rewards and penalties are doubled. If
one or both players in a partnership bid nil, their bids are scored independently, then combined to
determine the partnership's score.
Note: Not all Spades games use bags, but Hoyle Card Games does. Every point in excess of your total
bid counts as one bag. If you collect 10 bags, you lose 100 points. When your nil or double nil bid gets
set, any tricks you take count as bags, but you are not given a point for these bags, as you would be for
bags taken in a non-nil bid.
You must follow suit if you can, otherwise you may take the trick with a trump card or discard something
from a non-trump suit. If youre void in the suit that was led, you can play trump, or any other card.
Spades cannot be led until they've been broken (until they've been used to trump an earlier lead). A trick
is always won by the highest trump, and if no trump is played, by the highest card of the suit led.
If you make your bid you receive 10 points for each trick bid, one point for each trick above the bid. If you
are set (you fail to make your bid), you lose 10 points for each trick bid. A nil bid counts for 100 points if
you succeed, 100 against if you fail. Double nil is 200. The game ends when a partnership wins 500
points or loses by going under -300 or more points. If both partnerships go under -300 in the same hand,
the partnership with the lower score loses.
Playing the Game
1 First, select the number of tricks you intend to win (the object of the game is to fulfill the total bid with
your partner). Click Show Hand to see the cards in your hand and decide on your bid (you cannot bid
double nil once you see your cards).
2 To make a bid, click a numbered square. You also can decide to bid nil after you see your cards (click
Bid Nil).
3 The player to the left of the dealer begins play.
4 On your turn, click the card you want to play and drag it to its open spot on the table, then drop it
there. Or, right-click the card to automatically place it on the table.
Game Options
You have the option of setting whether the game is finished automatically, the winning and losing scores,
card sorting, and the skill level for computer players.
To change these options, click Spades Settings on the Options menu. For help on these options, see the
help area in the Options dialog box.

Spades Strategies and Tips
Try these strategies and tips to improve your spades game:
Remember that spades is a team game. If your partner bids nil, try not to lead a trick with a low card
that might send him or her up. If it's late in the hand and your partner still needs a trick to make his or
her bid, do it yourself!
If your partner leads a trick with a high card, don't play a high card in that suit (unless you've bid nil, or
if it's your last card in that suit).
Trump cards are useful not only for taking tricks, but also as your "reentry." Once you've trumped in
and taken a trick, you lead the next trick. In this way you can steer the game in the direction that most
benefits your partnership.
If you hold the king and queen of a particular suit, lead one. It will either win or be topped by the ace, in
which case your other card becomes the suit leader and an eventual trick-winner.
Bidding nil with four trumps in your hand is chancy but doable, provided the trumps are low (including a
2, 3, or 4, and with nothing above 9 or 10). An even distribution of trumps (4-3-3-3) spells doom for
your bid. Even a close to even distribution (4-4-3-2) could be trouble. Best for you is if another player
holds five or more trumps and/or one player has none at all.
The odds are very much against you when bidding nil with a face-card trump (K-Q-J) in your hand.
Even if you have two or more low trumps to defend it, you're dead if the highest trumps come out
unexpectedly.
You should try to avoid taking extra tricks and accumulating bags, since the penalty is so great.
However, if you do collect 10 bags, it'll usually take so long to collect another 10 that you can stop
worrying about extra tricks.

How to Play Tarot
Rules
Tarot is a French trick-taking game typically played with four players. Tarot uses a special 78-card deck
that was the precursor to the popular fortune-telling tarot decks.
The Tarot deck consists of the four customary suits (spades, hearts, diamonds, and clubs) with 14 cards
in each suit, ranked in this order: R (roi), D (dame), C (cavalier), V (valet), 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1.
The deck also includes a 21-card trump suit (the "picture" cards numbered 1-21), and a special card
called the excuse. The excuse, the 1 of trump, and the 21 of trump are special cards known as bouts.
Each player is dealt 18 cards, and 6 cards are dealt to a separate pile called the chien.
The object of the game is to get points by bidding and making your bid (or by preventing others from
making their bids). To make a bid, you must take enough cards of certain values. The game ends when
one player reaches a certain number of points, or after a certain number of hands, depending on your
game settings.
Rules Summary
A round of bidding starts the game. Possible bids are Prise (Take), Garde (Guard), Garde Sans (Guard
without), and Garde Contre (Guard against). For more on bids, see the Bids section. The player with the
highest bid is the taker, and the three other players become a team (the defenders) to try to keep the
taker from making his or her bid.
If the taker bid Prise or Garde, he or she picks up the chien.
The taker (and sometimes defenders) can make other optional declarations, if possible: chelem,
poigne, and misre (see the Bids section).
One player leads a card, and players play cards from their hands to each trick. Tricks are taken as
described in the Gameplay section. After all tricks are taken, the taker counts the points in his or her
taken cards to see if the bid was achieved, and scoring occurs as described in Tarot Scoring.
Bids in Tarot
In Tarot, you bid if you think you can take sufficient card points during a hand. The amount of card points
you need depends on what cards you manage to take; see Card Points.
The possible bids are listed in order, below. Each player has only one chance to bid.
Bid Value Meaning
Prise (Take) x1 You get to pick up the chien, taking the cards into your hand and then
discarding six cards.
Garde (Guard) x2 The same bid as Prise, but at increased stakes (you gain or lose two
times the points).
Garde Sans
(Guard without)
x4 No one sees the chien, but the chien counts for you.
Garde Contre
(Guard against)
x6 No one sees the chien, but the chien counts for the defenders.
In addition to these bids, players may be able to make one or more special declarations:
Chelem (Slam): Youre declaring that you will take all the tricks. This is a risky declaration; you win
400 points if you make it, but lose 200 points if you dont. If you happen to take all of
the tricks without making this declaration, you score 200 points anyway.
Only the taker can make this declaration.
Poigne: You have a single poigne (10 or more trumps), a double poigne (13 or more
trumps), or a triple poigne (15 or more trump). You must show the poigne to the
other players before playing. If you hold the excuse, it can be counted towards your
poigne, but only if you dont have enough trumps otherwise.
A poigne is worth 20 points (for a single), 30 points (for a double), or 40 points (for a
triple).
Note: You can declare poigne as either taker or defender.
Misre: This is an optional declaration; to allow this option, turn on the Allow Misre
Declarations option in the game options. If youre dealt a hand with no court cards (R,
D, C, or V) or no trumps, you can declare misre. This declaration can be made
whether you are the taker or a defender. Declaring this adds 30 points to the
declarers score, and deducts 10 points from the score of the other three players,
regardless of who the taker and defenders are and regardless of the outcome of the
hand. (This is independent of the normal hand scoring.)
Declarations made by players are shown by indicators on the player nameplates.
Picking up the Chien
If you bid Prise or Garde, you pick up the chien, taking the cards from it into your hand. You must then lay
down six cards from your hand; these cards are laid face down and will count for you at the end of the
game. You cannot lay down any trump cards, any bouts, or any roi (R) cards. (In the rare case where you
have so many trump in your hand that you must put trump back in the chien, the trump cards must be
shown to the defenders.)
If you bid Garde Sans or Garde Contre, no one gets to look at the chien; the chien cards count towards
your taken cards (for Garde Sans) or the defenders taken cards (for Garde Contre).
Card Points
There are 91 card points possible in a hand. Most cards (1-10 of any of the four suits, and most of the
trump cards) are only worth one half point (0.5).
Card Points
Bouts: 4.5
R (roi): 4.5
D (dame): 3.5
C (cavalier): 2.5
V (valet): 1.5
All other cards: 0.5
The points you need to win a hand depend on how many of the bouts you manage to take. Note that
bouts include cards in the tricks you take, as well as any cards in the chien (unless you bid Garde Contre,
in which case the cards in the chien belong to the defenders team).
If you take You need this many card points to make your bid
3 bouts 36 card points
2 bouts 41 card points
1 bout 51 card points
0 bouts 56 card points
Bonus points: Petit Au Bout
If either the taker or one of the defenders takes the 1 of trump on the last trick, they receive a special 10
point bonus known as the petit au bout. See Tarot Scoring for more information.

Tarot Gameplay
To play the game:
1 The game starts with a bidding round; the player to the right of the dealer starts the bidding. On your
turn, click one of the four possible Bids, or click Pass. Each player in turn can either pass or increase
the bid; once a player has passed, he or she cant bid again.
If all players pass, the cards are redealt, and the deal rotates.
2 If the bid is Prise or Garde, the chien is shown to all the players (click OK when you are done viewing
it). Or, if you are the taker, click OK to pick up the chien, and then discard six cards from your hand:
drag cards into the tray and click OK when you are done. If you are the taker, you can also declare
chelem at this time by clicking the chelem check box in the chien tray.
3 Other declarations (poigne, misre) may be made by players at this time. If it is possible for you to
make any of these declarations, a box appears; select any declarations you wish to make, and click
OK. If you make a poigne declaration, 10, 13, or 15 cards are automatically placed in the center tray.
If you have a choice of trump cards to show, you can drag cards to and from your hand. Click OK
when youre ready to show the cards to the other players.
4 Play starts with the player to the dealers right (unless the taker declares chelem, in which case he or
she leads); each player plays a card to the middle, in turn. To play a card, drag it to the middle or
right-click it. Play is counter-clockwise.
Rules for playing cards are as follows:
You can lead any card.
The excuse can be played at any time, regardless of the card led. If the excuse is led, it is ignored,
and the second card played is considered the lead for the trick.
You must follow suit if possible (or play the excuse).
If you cant follow suit and you hold a trump card, you must play it (or play the excuse). If you cant
follow suit and dont hold trump, you can play any card (including the excuse).
When you play a trump card, you must always overtrump: you must, if possible, play a trump card
higher than the highest trump card played so far. (If you dont have a higher trump card, you can
play any trump card.)
5 The trick is won by the player who plays the highest card of the suit led, unless a trump card was
played, in which case the player who played the highest trump card wins the trick.
Note that the excuse, unless it is played in the last trick (see the Notes section below for details)
cannot win a trick. However, the team that played it gets points for it, regardless of which team won
the trick. If the team that played the excuse won the trick (because another team member played a
winning card), that team gets the full 4.5 points for it. But if the team who played the excuse lost the
trick, that team still gets 4 points for the excuse (and it still counts as 1 bout for that team), while the
team who won the trick gets 0.5 points (the value of the lowest card in the game) in exchange.
6 The player who won the trick leads the next card, and play continues.
You can review the results of the previous trick as soon as a trick is completed; click the Review Last
Trick button at the lower right corner of the screen to see the cards played on the last trick. You can
also do this at any time by clicking Review Last Trick on the Actions menu.
The hand ends when all cards have been played. The takers card points are then counted, and points
are then scored or deducted from each players score, depending on whether the taker made his or her
bid. See the Tarot Scoring section for details.
To review the hand in detail, viewing each trick that was played, click the Review Tricks button in the
scoring dialog box. Youll see the initial cards for each player, and can click the right arrow to step through
the hand trick by trick, seeing which card was led in each trick, who won, and how many points were
taken. Click and hold down the Original button to see the cards that were originally in the chien. Click
Done when youre done reviewing tricks.
The deal rotates counterclockwise, and play continues until the game ends.
Notes and Tips:
For help on which cards you can play to a trick, turn on the Show Legal Plays option in the game
settings.
Chelem can be declared either during the bidding phase (for bids of Garde Sans or Garde Contre) or
during the chien exchange (for bids of Prise or Garde).
If the cards youre dealt allow you to make a poigne or misre declaration, you can make these
declarations before you play a card to the first trick. (You can change the game options to require all
declarations to be made before anyone in the game plays a card to a trick.)
In the rare case that a player is dealt the 1 of trump and no other trump cards (and is also not dealt the
excuse), the game is redealt, since that player has such a weak hand and it is very difficult for him or
her to win the 1 of trump whether declarer or defender.
Special situations apply if the excuse is played in the last trick of the hand. The excuse is taken by the
player who wins the trick, either taker or defender (scoring its full 4.5 points, and counting as 1 bout for
that players team); no points are given for it in exchange). If the excuse is led as the first card in the
last trick, and the team that led it has won the previous 17 tricks, the excuse wins the trick. (This latter
rule is a matter of fairness: it allows a player to get a chelem even if he or she holds the excuse.)
If a player has taken the first 16 tricks (is trying for a chelem), and takes the 1 of trump on the next to
last trick, and the excuse on the last trick, that player gets the petit au bout bonus (in addition to the
chelem bonus) even though the 1 of trump was not played on the last trick. This lets a player who
holds both the 1 of trump and the excuse make a chelem and still get the petit au bout bonus. (Note
that it is also possible for a player to make a chelem, play the excuse in the last trick, and win the 1 of
trump in that last trick from a defender. In this case, the player gets the petit au bout bonus for taking
the 1 of trump in the last trick, as usual.)
Game Options
You can set the rules for the game, how the game is set up, and how the game is played.
You can change all the options before the game begins. Once the game has begun, changing some
options may require you to restart the game.
To set game rules and options:
1 Click the Tarot Settings menu item on the Options menu.
2 Make the changes you want.
3 Click OK to save your changes.
Option Description
Allow Finish Hand Early Ends the hand early if you will win all of the remaining tricks. This only
occurs if the excuse and the 1 of trump have already been played to a
trick.
Taker Always Leads
First Trick Makes the taker lead the first card to the first trick, regardless of who
dealt. Uncheck this option to always have the player to the dealers right
lead the trick (except in the case of chelem, where the player declaring
chelem always leads).
Allow Misre Declarations Allows players with no trumps or court cards (R, D, C, or V) to declare
misre and get extra points. See Bids in Tarot for more details.
Make All Declarations
Before Playing Requires players to make all declarations before any player plays a card
to the first trick. Uncheck this option to let each player wait to declare
options until just before he or she plays a card to the first trick.
Show Points Taken Displays a running count of the points taken by each player during the
game.
Show Card Point Values Displays a table showing the card point values of cards in the game.
Show Legal Plays On your turn, marks the cards that you can legally play.
End of Game Sets when the game ends; you can set the game to end after a player
reaches a certain number of points, or after a certain number of hands
(the player with the most points wins).
Skill Level Sets the skill level for other players: click Beginner to have all players
play at beginner level, click Intermediate to have all players play at a
medium level, and click Expert to have all players play at expert level.
Card Sorting Sets how cards in your hand are sorted. Click Ascending to sort cards
from lowest to highest, by suit, or Descending to sort cards from
highest to lowest, by suit.

Tarot Scoring
In Tarot, you score points depending on how much you exceeded, or didnt exceed, the points you
needed to win.
The basic formula for scoring in Tarot is:
(25+[card points gained or lost] +[10 or -10 points for petit au bout, if any]) x (bid value of 1, 2, 4, or 6)
+ (20, 30, or 40 points for any poignes declared)
+ (400, -200, or 200 points for a chelem, if any)

The different parts of the score are explained in detail below.
Card points gained or lost: The difference between the points the taker made and the points the taker
needed to make.
Points for a petit au bout: +10 points if the taker got petit au bout and made his or her contract; or if
the defenders got petit au bout and the taker didnt make his or her
contract.
-10 points if the defenders got petit au bout and the taker made his or her
contract, or if the taker got petit au bout and the taker didnt make his or
her contract.
Bid value: A multiplier based on your bid: x1 for Prise, x2 for Garde, x4 for Garde
Sans, and x6 for Garde Contre.
Points for a poigne: 20 points for a single poigne (10 trump), 30 points for a double poigne
(13 trump), and 40 points for a triple poigne (15 trump).
If a defender declared poigne, the points are also added to the score,
since the game is then worth more.
Points for a chelem: +400 points if the taker declared chelem and got it.
+200 points if the taker got chelem without declaring it.
-200 points if the taker declared chelem and didnt get it, but won the
hand.
+200 points if the taker declared chelem, and didnt get it but did not win
the hand. (Points are added in this case as a penalty, since three times
the base score will be deducted from the takers score.)
How the Scoring Works
If the taker wins the hand, he or she gets three times the base score added to his or her cumulative
score, and each defender gets the base score subtracted from his or her score.
If the taker fails to win the hand, he or she gets three times the base score subtracted from his or her
cumulative score, and each defender gets the base score added to his or her score.
Scoring Examples:
Louise wins a game with 55 points. She bid Garde, and was able to take petit au bout (the 1 of trump on
the last trick). She did not get or make any other special bonuses (chelem, poigne).
She had 1 bout, so needed 51 card points to win.
Louises base score is:
25 + 4 (the difference between 51 and 55) = 29
+ 10 (for her petit au bout) = 39
x 2 (for Garde bid) = 78
So Louise scores 78 x 3 = 234, and her opponents each score -78.

If Louise, in the same game, had only gotten 50 points (not enough to win), her base score would be:
25 + 1 (the difference between 50 and 51) = 26
- 10 (for her petit au bout) = 17
x 2 (for Garde bid) = 34
Since she didnt make her bid, she scores 34 x 3 = -102, and her opponents each score 34.
Note that the petit au bout is subtracted from her score in this case, so that it helps Louise lose fewer
points than she would have lost if she hadnt gotten it.
Note:
Declaring misre adds 30 points to the declarers score, and deducts 10 points from the score of each
other player, regardless of who the takers and defenders are, and regardless of the outcome of the
hand.

Tarot Strategies and Tips
Try these strategies and tips to improve your Tarot game.
Bidding Strategies
The number of bouts you have is critical. If you dont have any bouts (or only have one), make sure
you have a lot of trump and your suited cards are very strong; roi (R) cards are especially useful, as
are roi (R) & dame (D) combinations (sometimes called a big marriage), and dame (D) & cavalier (C)
combinations (sometimes called a small marriage), especially if you have four or fewer cards in those
suits.
Another slightly less important strategy in deciding whether to bid is the number of trump you hold.
(Remember that the number of bouts you have is the most important strategy to consider.) If you have
eight or more trumps, it is usually worth bidding; otherwise, consider the strength of the trump you hold
and the supporting cards. Its usually not a good idea to bid unless you have at least five trump in your
hand, not including the excuse.)
Another element that makes your hand stronger is holding a suit of four or more cards with a high card
of dame (D) or roi (R). Holding a long suit lets you keep control of the play and also helps you get
others to play their trump.
Playing Strategies for the Taker
Try to get rid of other players trump by leading cards from your longest suit (ideally this is a suit with
one or more high court cards (R, D, C, V)). If you hold both the R and D in a suit, play the R (and then,
most of the time, the D) to draw out others cards in that suit and ensure your points.
Lead the lowest trump possible to try to draw out trump. In general, do not play your highest trump until
you need to.
If you dont have the 1 of trump, try to get it with the following strategy: first lead one or two of your
lowest trumps to try to shake out others trumps, then lead your highest trumps (if you have the 21, 20,
and 19, lead them in order).
If you hold the excuse, it can be useful to play it when you dont want to play a trump card, and it may
be worth holding back for this reason. This is true especially in the case where youre being forced to
overtrump (for example, if someone plays the 19, and you hold the 20). This is true for both taker and
defenders.
Playing Strategies for the Defenders
A good general strategy for a defender is to try to draw out as much of the takers trump cards as
possible. Two good ways to do this are: 1) Lead low cards in suits that you know the taker is already
void in (the taker has played all his or her cards in that suit), and 2) Lead cards from your longest suit
(the suit you have the most cards in), since the taker is likely to be void in those suits.
A key basic strategy: play valuable cards whenever you see one of your partners is going to take a
trick; dont hold back a roi (R), dame (D), or other high card if you can play it to a partners trick.
When forced to overtrump (whether taker or defender), always play the lowest trump possible (with the
exception of the 1 of trump). This keeps higher trumps in your hand for later.
If you have seven or more trump (or six or more strong trump), lead your low trump whenever possible
to get the taker to play his or her trump. (If you have only a few trump, however, save them to take
tricks that have high point values.)
When youre leading, and the taker wont be the last person to play a card, lead a card from your
shortest suit (or a suit you think the taker still has cards in), so that the taker will likely have to follow
suit and your partners can then take the trick with their high point value cards.
If you hold the 21 of trump, and you suspect one of your partners has the 1 of trump, lead the 21 as
soon as possible to give your partner a chance to play the 1 of trump. Note that if the taker has made a
high bid (Garde Sans or Garde Contre), and you hold the 21, the taker is very likely to have the 1 of
trump.
If you begin a hand with two or less trump, and you are confident that your partners dont have the 1 of
trump (or its already been played), consider leading trump. This lets you void yourself in trump, which
may let you later play high point cards on trump tricks that your partners are winning (since you wont
have any trump to play). Again, make sure that neither of your partners holds the 1 of trump, since
leading trump might force them to play it, giving the taker an easy chance to take it.

Tarot Glossary
bouts
Pronounced "Boo". Sometimes known as oudlers.
The bouts are the three most valuable cards in Tarot: the 1 of trump, the 21 of trump, and the excuse.

Taking these cards in tricks reduces the number of card points required to make your bid.
chien
A pile of six cards the taker picks up (if his or her bid allows) at the start of the hand. The taker must then
lay down six cards from his or her hand.
If you bid Prise, Garde, or Garde Sans, cards in the chien (or discarded to the chien) count towards your
game score.
chelem
A special bonus you get for taking all 18 tricks. You can declare chelem at the beginning of the game to
get twice as many points, but declaring chelem means you risk losing points.
excuse
One of the special bout cards, sometimes called the Fool.

The excuse can be played at any time and is usually taken by the person who played it, regardless of who
wins the trick. (See the Gameplay section for details.)
misre
A declaration you can make if youre dealt a hand with no court cards (R, D, C, or V) or no trumps. Misre
gives you extra points whether youre taker or defender.
petit au bout
A special bonus for taking the 1 of trump on the last trick. Either the taker or the defenders can get petit au
bout.
poigne
A special bonus you get for having 10 or more trump cards. See the Bids section for more information.
trump (in Tarot)
A special suit of cards. In some other games, trump can be any suit, but in Tarot the trump suit is a suit all
its own.
Trump cards always beat non-trump cards. You must play a trump card, if possible, when youre out of the
suit that was led.

How to Play War
War is a quick and easy game usually played between two players. You can play War against a computer
player or a human player. For help on adding and changing players, click here:
In War, a standard deck of cards is split between two players, who each play one card at a time to the
middle. The player with the higher card takes both cards. Aces are high.
If the cards are the same, there is a "war," each player plays three cards face down ("W-A-R") and a
fourth face up ("spells War!").The player who plays the higher face-up card wins all the cards in the war,
unless the two cards again form a pairin that case, you must have another war. (A player with
insufficient cards remaining to fill out this procedure puts down as many cards as he or she has left. The
opposition matches this number.)
The object of the game is to win all the cards or a certain number of wars, depending on your game
options.
Playing the Game
1 Click your deck to flip a card (or press the spacebar). The player whose card is higher (suits don't
matter) wins both cards and places them at the bottom of his or her pack.
If the cards are the same, there is a war. Three cards are placed face down, and you can click your
deck again to place a fourth card face up (the war card). The player whose card is higher takes all of
the cards, unless the two cards again form a pairin that case, you must have another war.
2 Play continues until one player wins all the cards or a certain number of wars are won, depending on
your game settings.
Notes
If your game settings are set to end the game when a number of wars are won, the person who runs
out of tanks loses. You have 3, 6, or 9 tanks, which are shown 3 at a time; destroyed tanks are
replaced, if possible.
The number shown on your player plaque under your name shows how many cards you have in your
pile.
You can also right-click the deck to flip a card.
Game Options
You have the option of setting how the game ends (after 3, 6, or 9 wars, or when one player is out of
cards) and whether the helicopter flies overhead after every war.
To change these options, click War Settings on the Options menu. For help on these options, see the
help area in the Options dialog box.

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