Hearts Card Game Rules

Game Overview

Hearts is a popular trick-taking card game that originated at the end of the 19th century. The game is played by 4 players and requires a standard deck of 52 cards. You can purchase a suitable deck here on Amazon.

Objective

The primary objective in Hearts is to avoid scoring points. The game ends when a player reaches or exceeds 100 points, and the winner is the player with the lowest score at that point.

Setup

Deal and play are clockwise. All the cards are dealt out one at a time so that everyone has 13 cards. On the first hand, after the deal, each player passes any three cards face-down to the player on their left. During passing, players select the cards to be passed and place them face-down for the receiving player to pick up.

On the second hand, each player passes three cards to the player on their right. On the third hand, each player passes three cards to the player sitting opposite. On the fourth hand, no cards are passed at all. This cycle continues until the end of the game.

How to Play

The person holding the 2 of clubs must lead it to the first trick. Other players, in clockwise order, must play a card of the suit which was led if possible. If they do not have a card of that suit, they may play any card. The player who played the highest card of the suit led wins the trick and leads to the next trick.

It is illegal to lead a heart until after a heart has been played to a previous trick, unless your hand contains nothing but hearts. Discarding a heart, thus allowing hearts to be led in future, is called breaking hearts. A player whose hand consists entirely of hearts may lead any heart, thereby breaking hearts, even if hearts have not previously been broken.

Players are permitted to lead spades to any trick after the first. This is often referred to as "smoking out the queen."

Scoring and End of Game

Normally, each player scores penalty points for cards in the tricks which they won. Each heart scores one point, and the queen of spades scores 13 points. However, if you manage to win all the scoring cards (which is known as a slam or shooting the moon), your score is reduced by 26 points, or you may choose instead to have all other players' scores increased by 26 points.

The game continues until one player has reached or exceeded 100 points at the conclusion of a hand. The person with the lowest score is then the winner.

Common Variants

• Kitty: Only 12 cards are dealt to each player during the deal, and four cards are dealt to a face-down kitty. These cards are added to the tricks of the first player who takes a penalty card. A kitty can also be used to cope with the fact that the cards cannot be dealt evenly when there are more or fewer than four players.
• Passing: Different passing cycles may be used, such as pass left, pass right, pass across, then repeat (no hold hand), scatter instead of hold (players pass one card to every other player), both scatter and hold hands are played (the cycle is left, right, across, scatter, then hold). Another passing method that can be included in the cycle is "mix": everyone discards three cards to a pile in the center, which is shuffled and then redealt to the players.
• Partnership Hearts: Four players can play hearts in fixed partnerships, partners sitting opposite each other. In this variation, partners keep their tricks together, and on each hand, your team scores the total number of penalty points you have taken in your tricks. A slam occurs if one team takes all 14 penalty cards in a hand, allowing them to choose either to give the opponents 26 penalty points or to subtract 26 penalty points from their own score.

Beginner Mistakes to Avoid

• Overemphasizing the queen of spades: Focusing too much on avoiding the queen of spades can lead to neglecting hearts, which are worth one point each. Aim to minimize both.
• Hoarding low cards: Hoarding low cards in an attempt to avoid winning tricks can result in losing tricks with high cards. It's important to find a balance between minimizing high cards and ensuring you have cards to compete for low tricks.
• Ignoring partnership opportunities: While Hearts is not formally a partnership game, there are times when players may find it in their interest to help each other. Be aware of these opportunities and don't hesitate to work together when necessary.

FAQ

• Q: Can I lead hearts on the first trick if I have nothing but hearts in my hand? A: Yes, you can lead any heart, thereby breaking hearts.

• Q: What happens if I win all the tricks (shooting the moon)? A: If you win all the tricks, your score is reduced by 26 points, or you may choose instead to have all other players' scores increased by 26 points.

• Q: Can I pass cards during passing cycles if I don't want to? A: Some variations allow players to pass cards only when required, while others require players to pass cards regardless of their preference. Make sure you understand the rules of your specific game.