Card Games Rules

Deck Basics

52 Cards Total—4 suits x 13 ranks

Suits: ♠ ♥ ♦ ♣—Spade, Heart, Diamond, Club

Ranks: A 2-10 J Q K—13 cards per suit

Face Cards: J Q K—Usually worth 10 in most games

Ace—High (14) or low (1) depending on game

Jokers (0-2)—Wild cards; not used in most standard games

Red Suits—Hearts and Diamonds

Black Suits—Spades and Clubs

Blackjack (21)

Goal—Beat dealer by getting closer to 21 without busting

Number Cards = Face Value—2-10 worth their number

Face Cards = 10—Jack, Queen, King all worth 10

Ace = 1 or 11—Player chooses best value for hand

Blackjack—Ace + 10-value card; pays 3:2

Hit—Take another card

Stand—Keep current hand total

Double Down—Double bet, receive exactly one more card

Split—Split matching pair into two hands

Dealer Hits to 17—Dealer must hit on 16 or below

Poker Basics

Royal Flush (Best)—A K Q J 10, same suit

Straight Flush—5 in sequence, same suit

Four of a Kind—4 cards of same rank

Full House—3 of a kind + pair

Flush—5 cards same suit

Straight—5 in sequence, any suit

Three of a Kind—3 cards same rank

Two Pair / One Pair—2 pairs or 1 pair of matching ranks

High Card (Lowest)—Highest card when no combination

Rummy / Gin Rummy

Deal—10 cards each (Gin) or 7-10 depending on players

Goal—Form all cards into melds (sets and runs)

Set (Group)—3-4 cards of same rank, different suits

Run (Sequence)—3+ consecutive cards of same suit

Draw & Discard—Take 1 from stock or discard pile, discard 1

Gin—All 10 cards in melds; bonus 25 points

Knock—Unmatched cards total 10 or less; end round

Deadwood—Unmatched cards; lower is better when knocking

Undercut—Defender has equal/less deadwood; bonus points

Solitaire (Klondike)

7 Tableau Columns—1-7 cards each; only top card face up

Build Down, Alternating Color—Red on black, descending rank

Only Kings Fill Empty Columns—Or stacks starting with King

Foundation Piles (4)—Build up by suit from Ace to King

Stock Pile—Draw 1 or 3 cards when no tableau moves

Waste Pile—Drawn cards go here; top card playable

Move Stacks—Ordered groups can move together

Win Condition—All 52 cards on foundations, A through K

Hearts

4 Players, Full Deck—13 cards each, no trump suit

Goal—Avoid taking hearts and Queen of Spades

Pass 3 Cards—Left, right, across, then keep (rotate)

2 of Clubs Leads—Player with 2♣ starts first trick

No Hearts Until Broken—Can't lead hearts until a heart is discarded

Each Heart = 1 Point—13 hearts = 13 points

Queen of Spades = 13 Points—The most dangerous card

Shooting the Moon—Take ALL hearts + Q♠; others get 26 points each

Game Ends at 100—Lowest score when someone reaches 100 wins

Spades

4 Players, 2 Teams—Partners sit across; full deck, 13 each

Spades Are Always Trump—Spade beats any non-spade card

Bidding—Each player bids tricks they expect to win

Team Bid Combined—Partners' bids added together

Making Your Bid—Win at least bid tricks; 10 pts per bid trick

Overtricks (Bags)—1 pt each; 10 bags = -100 penalty

Nil Bid—Bid zero; +100 if made, -100 if failed

Blind Nil—Bid nil before seeing cards; +200/-200

First to 500 Wins—Or lowest score when opponent hits -200

Bridge

4 Players, 2 Teams—Partners sit opposite; 13 cards each

Bidding Phase—Players bid number of tricks + trump suit

Bid Levels: 1-7—Level = tricks above 6 (bid 3 = win 9 tricks)

Suit Rank: NT > ♠ > ♥ > ♦ > ♣—No Trump highest

Declarer—Wins bid; plays both own and dummy's hand

Dummy—Declarer's partner; lays cards face up

Defenders—Other team tries to prevent declarer's contract

13 Tricks Per Round—Highest card of led suit wins (or trump)

Scoring—Making contract earns points; failing gives to defense

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