In other words, if player A bid five tricks and won six, they would have won fifty-one points. Any extra tricks won – called overtricks or “bags” – account for an extra point each. Players that win at least as many tricks as they bid score ten times the points than their bid. It’s important to follow the rules of “breaking Spades.” Players cannot lead with Spades until a) they don’t have cards of any other suit in hand or b) some other player has played a Spade card already. When a player wins a trick, they lead the next one. If the trick involves Spades, the player with the highest Spade wins. The highest card in the leading suit wins the trick. Players must then try to follow suit, but they may play any card if they don’t have any cards in the suit. The game begins with the player on the dealer’s left playing any card except a spade. They earn a bonus if they pull it off but get a penalty if they fail. A “0” bid is called a nil bid, and it is a declaration that the player intends to win zero tricks in the play. Players can bid anything between 0 and 13, but they may not pass or alter their bid once made. Teammates must add up the bids they made, and teams must try to win the total number of tricks they bid. After every player has 13 cards, the player may bid.īidding is announcing the number of tricks a player expects to take. When the dealer is picked, the dealer will need to shuffle the cards and deal them clockwise, beginning from the player to their left. A standard deck of cards is used, with the card ranking being the same as in Poker. Teammates sit across from each other, and the deal and play happen clockwise. Spades involves two players going against two.

If you’re looking to get into playing the Spades card game, it should be as easy as going through this guide. The game was enjoyed by soldiers in WW2 and remains one of the most popular card games on the internet and otherwise.

Spades first appeared in Cincinnati, Ohio, in the late 1940s and spread across the region quickly.