Hearts
The trick-taking game where you would rather win nothing.
Four players, 52 cards, everyone for themselves. The aim is not to win tricks but to dodge the ones holding hearts, and above all the dreaded Queen of Spades. Unless you go for broke and shoot the moon.
- Players
- 4
- Game length
- about 25 min
Rules
Objective
Score as few points as possible. The game ends as soon as a player reaches 100 points: the lowest score wins.
Deal and pass
Each player is dealt 13 cards. Before play, everyone picks three cards to pass to an opponent: to the left on the first deal, to the right on the second, across on the third, then a deal with no pass, and so on.
Playing the cards
The player holding the 2 of clubs leads it. You must follow suit; if you cannot, you may play any card. There are no trumps: the highest card of the suit led wins the trick.
Hearts cannot be led until a heart has been discarded. On the first trick, you may not play a heart or the Queen of Spades.
Scoring
Each heart taken scores 1 point and the Queen of Spades 13, for 26 points per deal.
A player who takes every heart and the Queen of Spades shoots the moon: they score nothing and each opponent takes 26 points.