Partners sit across from each other. Nine cards are dealt to each player and the remaining five are placed face down to form the "nest."
Starting with the player to the left of the dealer, each player may bid to the chance to name trump. Bids may be no lower than 70 and no higher than 120. All bids must be higher than the last, and must be a valid score in the game (a multiple of five). Once a player passes, they may not rejoin the bidding. The last player to bid, once all have passed, wins the auction.
The winner of the auction ("declarer") takes the nest and adds it to their hand. They then set any five cards from their hand face down out of play. The declarer then announces which suit will be trump for the round.
The player to the left of the declarer leads the first trick by playing any card that they wish. Each player then takes turns playing a card into the trick (clockwise). Cards of the same suit as the leading card must be played unless a player is out of that suit, in which case they can play any card they wish. Once everyone has played into the trick, whoever played the highest trump card takes the trick, otherwise whoever played the highest card of the leading suit takes it. The winner of a trick leads the next. Tricks are played until no cards are left.
The lone joker in the deck is known as the "rook." It automatically wins any trick it's played in. Unlike any other card, it can be played at any time, regardless of what the leading suit is. If the rook is led, the other players treat it like a trump and must follow suit if possible. If another player leads trump, and the only trump you have is the rook, you must play it.
At the end of the round, each team counts of the value of the cards that they took. Only certain cards, called "counters" have value:
| Card | Value |
|---|---|
| 5 | 5 |
| 10 | 10 |
| A | 15 |
| Rook | 20 |
If the bidding team's final score is less than their bid, they lose an equal number of points to their bid and receive no points for counters taken. If their final score is equal or greater to their bid, they receive all the points for their counters. The opposing team receives the score for their counters regardless.
The first team to reach 300 points is the winner. If both teams reach 300 in the same round, then whichever team has the higher score wins. If both teams are tied, another round is played.
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