The Deal

The four players are in fixed partnerships, with partners sitting opposite each other. Deal and play are clockwise.

The first dealer is chosen at random, and the turn to deal rotates clockwise. The cards are shuffled and then dealt one at a time in a clockwise order, beginning with the player on dealer's left, until all 52 cards have been dealt and everyone has 13.

Bidding

Each partnership must make a bid, which is the number of tricks they expect to take. It is important to realize that, in Spades, both sides' bids stand (it is not like other bidding games in which only the higher bid counts). First, the player to the left of the dealer bids, and bidding continues clockwise until all four players have bid. There is no discussion of the bidding allowed buring the bidding process. This is radically different than playing face-to-face, where a certain amount of discussion between partners is normally allowed so long as specifics of a players hand are not discussed.

Nil is a declaration that a particular player will not win any tricks during the play. Any single player may bid nil. The nil bidder's partner will also bid the number of tricks to be taken by the partnership.

Blind Nil may be bid by any player before looking at thier cards, given that Blind Nil is allowed in the Options.

Either of the partners on a team may choose to bid "10 for 200" if the bid id allowed in the Options. If this bid is selected, the team must take 10 or more tricks. This bid is worth 200 points, win or lose.




The Play Of The Hand

The person to the left of the dealer goes "leads" first and may not lead a spade. The player who won the first trick leads to the next. Any card except a spade may be led. Each player, in turn, clockwise, must follow suit if able; if unable to follow suit, the player may play any card. A trick containing a spade is won by the highest spade played; if no spade is played, the trick is won by the highest card of the suit led.

The player who wins a trick leads to the next. Spades may not be led until either some player has played a spade (on the lead of another suit, of course), or the leader has nothing but spades left in hand.

Playing the first spade is known as "breaking" spades.




Scoring

A side that takes at least as many tricks as its bid calls for receives a score equal to 10 times its bid. Additional tricks (overtricks or bags) are scored at a point value set in the Game Options, normally 1 point.

Sandbagging rule: A side which (over several deals) accumulates ten or more overtricks (bags) has 100 points deducted from its score. Any overtricks (bags) beyond ten are carried over to the next cycle of ten overtricks - that is if they reached twenty overtricks they would lose another 100 points and so on.

If a side does not make its bid, they lose 10 points for each trick they bid.

If a bid of nil is successful, the nil bidder's side receives 100 points. If the Nil fails (one or more tricks are taken), then the bidders team looses 100 points. In either case, the bid of the Nil's partner is scored normally. Tricks taken by the Nil partner do not count towards completing the team bid, but are counted as overtricks (bags).

A bid of blind nil scores twice as much as an ordinary nil - it wins 200 points if successful and loses 200 points if it fails.

10-for-200: This scores 200 points if a side takes 10 tricks, and loses 200 if they take any less number of tricks.

The side which reaches 500 points first wins the game. If both sides reach 500 points in a single deal, the side with the higher score wins.




Variations Of Spades For Four Players


Jokers: The game is played with a standard pack with two distinct jokers; the twos of clubs and hearts are removed from the pack, leaving 52 cards. The two jokers are the highest trumps. Jokers are considered to be Spades, making for a total of 15 Spades. With Jokers, the rank of Trumps is: Color Joker, Black Joker, A, K, Q, J, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2.

Cut Throat: All players play for themselves, there are no partners.

Crazy Spades: Jokers, Mirrors, Cut Throat and other variations of spades combined to be played in a sequence which rotates for each hand for the duration of a game.

Mirror Spades:  Bid the spades in your hand.  Each hand will have a 13 bid.

Suicide:  Once player from each team is required to have a nil bid each hand of the game.