Spades (and Acorns)

The original Spades is a trump-based trick-taking game played by two teams of two people each. Teammates sit across from each other and take turns dealing each round (progressing clockwise) and bidding on tricks. The first bidder, and the player to lead the first trick, is the player to the left of the current dealer. Players bid individually based on how many tricks they think they can take each round (13 total tricks per round) and the team's bid is the combined total of each member's bid. If the team makes their bid, regardless of whether each individual player did, they get 10 points times the number of their bid plus 1 extra point for any additional tricks (in some variants, these extra tricks are known as 'bags' and getting 10 bags, i.e. ten total points from extra tricks, results in a 100 point penalty). If they failed to meet their bid, they instead lose 10 points times the number of their bid regardless of how many tricks they did take. Play normally proceeds until one team reaches 500 points (200 for a short game).

Like in Hearts, each player must play the same suit as the lead card if possible. If they can't, they can play any card in their hand but it will lose regardless of the card's rank unless it is a Spade which trumps all other suits (except other Spades). Spades may not be played as the lead suit until at least one player has played a Spade (known as 'breaking the suit').

There are two special bids as well, known as Nil (100 points) and Blind Nil (aka Double Nil, worth 200 points) which means the player is betting on taking no tricks at all (their partner may still take tricks though). If the player bidding one of the Nil options takes even a single trick themselves, they lose the number of points indicated. If they succeed in taking no tricks, they gain those points. Both players in a partnership are allowed to bid Nil. Blind Nil differs in that the player bids Nil before looking at their hand and is allowed to trade up to three cards with their partner. If for whatever reason both players in a partnership bid Blind Nil, no cards are exchanged.

So, how does the Heckadeck change things? Glad you asked.

For one, the introduction of a whole new suit of trumps, the Acorns. Like Spades, Acorns cannot be the lead suit unless another player has played an Acorn already. You can't lead an Acorn if only Spades has been broken and vice-versa.

For a game of Spades (and Acorns), you will be using the eight suits of sixteen cards each for a 128-card deck, dealing 32 cards to each player and having that many tricks per round. If you like, you may include Travelers and Hunters for an additional two cards per player and tricks per round.

If playing with Hunters and Travelers, you must play them as the lead suit if possible, even if this means they will not be counted as a trump. When leading with them, you must declare which of their two suits is being led. In the case of those with the option of one of the two trump suits, you cannot declare them to be leading as a trump suit unless that suit has been broken. Travelers and Hunters do not count as breaking a trump suit unless explicitly played as a card of that suit. However, when taken they still count as a card of both their suits (which will make the new bidding Nil rules below very interesting indeed).

Card ranks are as follows (copied from my More War post):

0 < A < 2 < 3 < 4 < 5 < 6 < 7 < 8 < 9 < 10 < 11 < B < T < J < H < Q < K < A

Travelers slip in between Beasts and Jacks while the Hunters go between Jacks and Queens. However, if you prefer, you can move them down so Travelers are between elevens and Beasts and Hunters between Beasts and Jacks. Up to you.

But wait, I hear you say. Why is the Ace listed twice? Good question. With the introduction of zeroes, the Ace can occupy two spaces in the ranks of cards, the '1' between zeroes and twos, or greater than the King. So when is it which rank? Well, when it's just number cards, the Ace has a value of '1'. But when any face card is played, then the Ace outranks them all.

(/copied) The Ace being possibly two different ranks makes this game especially interesting as a card which could be counted on to reliably take a trick in the normal Spades game may not be so certain a bet in Spades (and Acorns).

Dueling Trumps: The most interesting thing about Spades (and Acorns) is the existence of two trump suits, begging the question of which of the two trumps outranks the other. I could declare them equal, but not only would that potentially result in ties, it wouldn't be as fun. So here's how the superior trump is determined:

The first trump suit to be broken in each round of play is the superior trump for the remainder of that round's tricks. This resets with each new deal.

Now one round of tricks Spades might beat Acorns, only for Acorns to beat Spades on the next deal.

Special bids:

Nil Spades (100 points): The player bids that they will take no tricks containing Spades. The Nil bid fails if they take even a single Spade card in a trick (including a double-suited Traveler or Hunter if playing with them even if they were not originally played as a Spade). They may still make an additional normal bid on top of their Nil bid, but not another Nil bid.

Nil Acorns (100 points): The player bids that they will take no tricks containing Acorns. The Nil bid fails if they take even a single Acorn card in a trick (including a double-suited Traveler or Hunter if playing with them even if they were not originally played as an Acorn). They may still make an additional normal bid on top of their Nil bid.

Full Nil (240 points): The player bids that they will take no tricks whatsoever, and the bid fails if they win a single trick regardless of the cards involved. They make no other bids.

All Nil bids may be made Blind if done before the player looks at their cards for double points. In this case, they may trade three cards with their partner for a Nil Spades or Nil Acorns bid, or six cards for a full Nil bid.

A single player may only make one Nil (or Special) bid per round.

Play should go to at least 1000 points for a full game, or 400/500 for a short game.

Variant gameplay (8 players): Play as four teams of two or two teams of four. Each round is 16 tricks (or 17 with Travelers and Hunters). Bids of Nil are worth half as many points. Play proceeds to 500 or 200 points depending on desired game length.