SPADES


SPADES.COM is a computerized version of the classic card game
Spades. You will be playing against 3 computer opponents, trying to
accumulate a total of 250 points to win the game. Please note that this
is a bit different from the card game. In the card game you have a
partner and the game goes to 500 points. Other than these two
differences, the games are exactly the same.


Game Overview

A game is played in a series of "hands" until one player has
reached 250 points. Each hand, all of the cards are dealt out to the
players equally, giving each player thirteen cards. After examining the
cards, each player bids on the number of "tricks" (rounds of play) he
thinks he can win with his hand. After all players have bid, the first
trick is started by the player who bid the highest. He plays one card
on the table, face up. The other players play one card going clockwise

around the table. Each player MUST play the same suit (hearts,
diamonds, clubs) as the first card played IF POSSIBLE. If he doesn't
have any cards of the correct suit, he may play any suit including
spades, which is the trump suit and beats any card played. The cards
played are compared by rank (2 is the lowest, the ace "A" is the
highest). The person who has played the highest card (or the highest
trump card) is the winner of the trick. The winner of the previous trick
then starts the next trick, and play continues until the entire hand is
played. Then the scores are tallied and the next hand begins unless one
of the players has won the game.


Bidding

When you bid, you are "telling" the other players how many tricks
you think you can win. It is usually a good idea to bid one for every
high card you have in your hand. For example, an ace in your hand is
almost always worth a bid of one because an ace can't be beaten unless
it is trumped; thus, the Ace of Spades can NEVER be beaten. It is also a
good idea to add a few points to your bid if you have a large number of
trumps (spades). Here is an example hand and bid:

HAND:

Spades Hearts Diamonds Clubs
King King Ace King
Ten Ten Jack Seven
Eight Nine Six
Three Four

BID: The three kings should be worth 1 each and the ace is
definitely worth 1, so the bid for this hand is 4.

Be careful in bidding very high, however. If you do not take as many
tricks as you have bid, you will go "set" which means you get a negative
score.


Playing Spades

Because spades are trump cards and are very powerful, special rules
are used when playing spades. Spades may not be played during a trick
unless the player is unable to play in the suit led (played first). If
the player is unable to play in the suit led, he may play ANY suit he
likes including spades. Spades may not be led (played as the first card
in a trick) unless they have been played by someone who couldn't play in
suit in a previous TRICK, or the player who is leading has no other
suits in his hand.


Scoring

Scoring is relatively simple. If you have won at least as many
tricks as you have bid, you will get a positive score. You score 10
points for every trick you bid plus 1 point for every trick you won over
the number of tricks you bid. For example, if you bid 4 tricks and you
won 6, you would score 40 points for winning the 4 tricks you bid (4 x
10) plus 2 points for the extra two tricks you won, for a total of 42
points.
If you don't win as many tricks as you have bid, you go set, which
means you get a negative score. You get a MINUS 10 points for every
trick you bid if you don't win as many as you bid. For example, if you
bid 5 tricks and only won 3 tricks you would get a score of -50 (5
tricks you bid x -10 for not winning all the tricks you bid).


Mechanics of the Computer Game

The cards in your hand will be displayed for you and you will be
asked for your bid. You may bid any amount from 0 to 13. The computer
will bid for the other three players. If you did not bid the highest,
the computer will go ahead and lead and play for the other players until
your turn comes to play. Then, a pointer will appear above your hand.
You can move this pointer by using the left and right arrow keys. Once
you get the pointer over the card you want to play, press and
your card will be played. The computer will not let you play an illegal
card. When the hand is through, the computer will compute the score for
each player and display it on the screen.