Spades

Object of the Game

You win by achieving the highest score, through a process of bidding and adding of points by winning "tricks" and making your "contract".

Overview

Spades uses a standard 52-card deck. Within each suit, the cards are ranked from lowest to highest: 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, J, Q, K, A.

Spades is played with two to four players and 32 spectators. When less than four players are selected, the computer will play the empty spots.

The Spades suit is always trump. That means any Spade will win over any card of any other suit. Hearts, Clubs, and Diamonds all have equal value below Spades. So, the 2 of Spades has a higher value than the Ace of any other suit.

Bidding

The game begins with a single round of bidding. The goal of bidding is to predict correctly the number of tricks you will win. A trick is a set of four cards, one card from each player.

Players examine their cards and bid the number of tricks they think they can win in that hand. Players may also bid "Nil" or "Blind Nil". You now have a "contract" which you must fulfill by getting the number of tricks you bid.

A bid of Nil means the player will try not to win any tricks at all. A successful bid of Nil earns substantial bonus points if it is made, and substantial penalty points if it is set. A bid of Blind Nil doubles these points, but players can bid Blind Nil only before examining their hands.

The bidding round is completed when each player has made a bid.

Playing

The goal is to make your contract.

You make a contract by winning or losing tricks. That is, if you have bid high, you want to win tricks. If you've bid low, you want to lose tricks to your opponents. Tricks are won by the highest card played in either the trump or the suit led. The suit led is determined by the person who leads off a round. So if, for example, the player who leads off a round plays a 10 of Hearts, then Hearts is the suit led.

The first player begins by double-clicking on the desired card. Play then proceeds clockwise. Each player in turn must follow suit--that is, play another card of the suit led. If a player holds no cards of the suit led, that player may play any card she or he chooses.

The trump suit is always spades. The highest card in the trump suit always wins the trick. If no trump cards are played, the trick goes to the highest card of the suit led.

Example 1: North leads a trick with the ten of Diamonds. East follows suit with the five of Diamonds, South follows suit with the King of Diamonds, and West follows suit with the eight of Diamonds. South wins the trick.

Example 2: North leads a trick with the Ten of Diamonds. East holds no diamonds, and plays the four of Spades. South holds no diamonds, and plays the Ace of Clubs. West follows suit, playing a Diamond. East wins the trick, because it is the only trump card played. Had South played another trump card--the Jack of Spades, say--instead of the Ace of Clubs, then South would have won the trick, because it played a higher-value Spade.

Players who lead may play any card they wish, with one exception: No player may lead with a Spade until one has been discarded in a previous round, or unless Spades are the only suit left in the hand. Once a Spade has been discarded, Spades are said to be "broken," and they may be led.

The play continues until all 13 tricks have been played.

Scoring

Once all 13 tricks have been played, the score is tallied automatically and a new hand is dealt.

Each trick is worth ten points, so a contract of six is worth 60 points if completed. Remember, the number of tricks bid at the beginning of the round determines the value of each contract.

If a contract is set by winning fewer tricks than was bid, the player is penalized the entire value of that contract (or 60 points, in the above case).

If a contract is set by winning more tricks than was bid--called overtricks--the player receives the value of their contract, plus one additional point per overtrick. In the above case, if seven tricks were won, the player would receive 61 points. Their penalty for going over their bid is to receive one "Bag" point per overtrick.

A Bag point by itself has no value. However, these Bag points accumulate (number of bag points are shown in the upper left-hand scoring table under 'B'). When you accumulates ten bag points, you are penalized 100 points. Once the points are deducted, the bag is emptied. Every set often bag points incurs a 100-point penalty.

Making a Nil bid is worth 100 points, and making a Blind Nil bid is worth 200 points. These bids bring with them 100-point and 200-point penalties, respectively, if they are set (that is, if the player who bid Nil or Blind Nil is forced to take a trick during the hand).

The first player to reach the maximum number of points wins the game. If two players go over in the same hand, the player with the higher score wins. The game will also end if a player finishes a round at or below the minimum number of game points.

Game Strategies

Bidding Strategies

Spades are trump, and therefore will win over cards of the other suits. Therefore, the Ace of Spades is a guaranteed trick. Having many trump means you will have extras after other players have run out, and this may result in extra tricks you can take.

Aces in other suits are likely to take tricks, especially if played in the first round of that suit. Once a few rounds have gone by, players are more likely to be out of that suit, and can then play trump.

The total number of tricks bid by all four players is important. If the number of tricks bid comes exactly to 13, then one extra trick taken by you will set the opponents. On the other hand, if the bids are very low, there will be overtricks and the corresponding penalty points. Play your hand so that your opponents get stuck with the bags and not you.

Playing Strategies

If you have bid high and need to take extra tricks, you can try to short-suit your hand. Then you can play trump the next time that suit is led. Nil Strategies If one of your opponents bid Nil, you must reverse your strategy. Lead low in order to force the Nil player to take a trick. If he has the highest card showing on the table, make sure you don't play higher or trump the trick. Watch for any suits he is out of, and avoid those. Do not give him any opportunities to discard his high cards if possible.

Spectators

The game accommodates up to 28 spectators. If you join a game in progress you will be joining as a spectator. (If there are any AI players, you can take their spot.) As a spectator, you may text and voice chat, and see the cards that have been played. To avoid cheating you cannot see cards in players hands. If you are playing the game and choose to leave and re-renter, an AI will take your spot and you will re-enter as a spectator. You can, however, kick the AI out of your spot and rejoin the game.

Kick Out the AI and Join the Game!

If you wish to join the game as a player simply click on the icon of any white robot computer player (if there are any). The computer picture will turn yellow if your join request is accepted, indicating that spot has been spoken for. Also, the chat window should get a message telling you if you joined or not. If the join is successful, you will be dealt in the next hand, replacing the computer.

Game Settings

Before launching the game, the Moderator can select to set a Time Limit for each player's turn. The default is 30 seconds. If a player does not play a card within the time limit, AI will play a card automatically. The Moderator can also choose a score limit for the game. The default limit is -200 or +500 points.

Password

The Moderator can choose a password for the game. Players must provide the password when clicking "Ready To Play" to join the game as a player or a spectator.

Auto Play

At any time, click the "AUTO" button in the upper right hand corner to have the AI play for you. The button will remain depressed. Be warned, the AI isn't a very good player! To play for yourself again, simply click the "AUTO" button again.

Text Chat

To text chat, simply begin typing. You will see your message in the chat window. Press 'Enter' to send.

Voice Chat

In order to Voice Chat, you're required to have a PC compatible microphone plugged into your computer. To talk, click and hold the "TALK" button in the upper left hand corner of your screen. Without shouting, be sure to speak clearly into your microphone. Singing entire operas is generally frowned upon!

Find Out Who is in the Game Room

To see a list of players and spectators currently in the game room type '/who' and press enter. The list will appear in the chat window.

Want a bigger Chat Window?

Hit F9 to toggle between a standard size and large chat window.

Need to Check Settings During Game?

Type /settings during play for an update of the current game settings.

Leaving and Re-Entering the Game

Leave the game by clicking the 'Close' icon in the window title bar, or by pressing ESC. You may later re-enter the game, but the AI or another player may have taken over your spot. If your spot is still available, click the white robot and you'll rejoin on the next hand. While you're waiting, perhaps singing a little opera is in order.

Launching the game with more than 4 players

You can launch the game with as many as 32 players. The moderator will get a spot in the game and 3 other players will be randomly assigned places in the game. The rest will be spectators.

Known Bugs

On rare occasion the moderator will launch a game but will be classified as a player by the computer. The moderator and other players will see an error message and will have to revert back to the lobby.

Then join the official Spades league of Mplayer run by Case's Ladder . You compete against the best players in the game. Try to climb the "ladder" to the number one spot or compete in daily tournaments. Our leagues are simple to learn and fun to play in. Simply sign up on Case's Ladder , play your games on Mplayer and then report your matches to Case's Ladder .

COMMUNITY LEAGUES


CrimsonWings

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