Today we're going to play one of the greatest card games of all time: Spades. Spades is a trick-taking game played with four players in two teams of two. The object of Spades is to be the first team to reach a final score, usually 500 points. Points are won by accurately predicting the number of tricks you and your partner can win each round. The suit of spades is always the trump suit, giving the game its name. The strategic element, combined with the bidding process and the touch of team coordination, makes Spades one of the greatest card games of skill and strategy.
Errors and Easter Eggs:
Whoops made a mistake at 1:11… team on left should have a combined score of 7 not 6. Sorry, so sorry, sorry, my bad, really sorry about that friend, darn, what a mistake, sorry. All mistakes and errors are just Easter Eggs for super smart views to catch and note in the comments. This video has 28 Easter Eggs, find them all!
Back to Spades:
You'll need a standard 52-card deck and a pen and paper to keep score. Players sit around the table with partners sitting opposite each other. You will win or lose with your partner, so choose wisely. Communication with your partner about strategy is not allowed. Shuffle the deck and deal all the cards, giving each player 13 cards. Each player, starting with the player to the left of the dealer, bids the number of tricks they expect to win. Bids can range from zero (nil) to 13. Players' bids are added together, and this is the total number of tricks each team must win to score.
The player to the dealer's left leads the first trick and can play any card except spades. Players must follow suit if they can. If they cannot, they may play any card, but not spades on the first trick. The player with the highest card in the lead suit wins the trick. Spades can be played on subsequent tricks if a player cannot follow suit. The player who wins the trick leads the next one.
If a team meets or exceeds their bid, they score ten points for each trick they bid. If a team fails to meet their bid, they lose ten points for each trick they bid. If you have a terrible hand, you can bid nil. If successful, your team gets 100 points, but if you win just one trick, you score -100 points. The game continues until a team reaches 500 points. The team with the highest score at the end of the game wins.
00:00 Spades
00:08 Object
00:31 Set Up
00:52 Bidding
01:32 Gameplay
02:17 Scoring
02:44 Bidding Nil
03:15 Ending Game
03:27 Other Rules
03:45 Strategy
04:15 Variations
04:34 Just Play Spades!
Other rules include penalties for not following suit and strategies for bidding and gameplay. Variations like Blind Nil and Ten for Two add more excitement. Spades is a culturally significant game that fosters community and competition. Now that you know how to play, gather some friends and enjoy!
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By Christopher Cannucciari
www.cannucciari.com
www.dynmcrange.com
All Rights: Dynamic Range
