Hearts

Hearts (Also sometimes referred to as "Black Maria") is a great card game that will have you entertained for hours. As with all the best card games, it is simple to play but hard to master.

What Type of Game is It?

"Hearts" is a "Trick taking" game. A player starts by putting down a card, and the others have to, if possible, put down a higher card of the same suit. If they don't  have a card of the same suit, they will be able to put down any card of a different suit, but cannot win the hand. After all the players have put down a card, the player with the highest card in the leading suit wins and takes all the cards.

What is the Aim?

Hearts proceeds like a typical trick-taking game as detailed above, but with the following unique twists-

• Players have to avoid capturing any Heart cards. For every heart card a player captures, they get a penalty point.
• Players also have to avoid capturing the Queen of Spades (Also referred to as "Black Maria"). If they do, they get 13 penalty points.
• However, if a player gains the maximum 26 penalty points in a round, they "Shoot the Moon" and gain a reward. Usually, this means that all their opponents get 26 penalty points and they get none.

What Are The Rules?

A game of Hearts can be played by three to seven people. It uses a standard 52-card deck.At the start of each round, the cards are dealt evenly, and one at a time, between the players.

• If there are 3 players, the 2 of Clubs is removed, and each player gets 17 cards.
• If there are 4 players, all the cards are used, and each player gets 13 cards.
• If there are 5 players, The 2 of Clubs and the 2 of Diamonds are removed, and each player gets 10 cards.
• If there are 6 players, all the Deuces are removed, and each player gets 8 cards.
• If there are 7 players, all the Deuces bar the 2 of Hearts are removed, and each player gets 7 cards.

Before the round starts, each player  passes 3 cards (in a 3-4 player game) or 2 cards (in a 5-7 player game) over to the player on their right. Players cannot look at the cards they receive until they have passed their cards over.

Play is started either by the player to the left of the dealer. After each trick, The player who wins it has to start the subsequent trick.

Hearts cannot be played until a player is "void" and does not have a card of the leading suit. From that point onwards, they can be used as the lead suit in a trick.

The round continues until all the cards have been played. At the end of the round, the cards are counted and the penalty points are distributed as mentioned above.

The game continues until a player passes a total of 100 penalty points. At this point, the player with the least penalty points wins.

Any Advice on How To Play?

• You should avoid winning tricks late in the round, as many penalty points are gained through opponents discarding Hearts due to the fact that they are void in the leading suit. However, if you win tricks early in the game, this allows them to lead play and make opponents lose valuable cards. An aggressive approach early in the game allows you to get rid of  your strongest cards quickly and means you are less likely of winning tricks later
• If you are dealt a large number of heats, you don't have to pass them on to an opponent. Small-value hearts are useful, particularly later on in the game when a player might lead a trick with a heart.
• The Queen of Spades does not have to be passed on, especially if you have an above-average amount of spades (In a three-player game, the average amount is roughly three spades per player. In a seven-player game, the average is roughly two spades a player). You can play your lower spade cards until opponents "Void" all their spades, and this allows you to discard the queen later on. 
• If you have an average or below-average amount of spades including the Ace, King or Queen , you might be forced to take the Queen, so pass on the high spades if you can.
• Having a King and/or Ace of spades is dangerous, as it means that you automatically win the trick, and could end up with the queen as a result. 
• It is illegal to "Revoke" and discard cards when you can follow the suit in a trick.If you do so, failure to reverse your move will result in you gaining penalty points (Usually you gain 13 penalty points instead of the player who took the queen of spades. If you took the Queen of spades, you gain the full 26 penalty points).

What Variants are there?

If you wish, you can...

• Make it illegal to pass on the Queen of Spades or the Hearts.
• Make players pass their cards to the left instead of the right.
• Have the player with the Two of spades (In a 4-player game) or the Three of Spades start the game with that card.
• Use any or all the following penalty scores

1. The Queen of Spades is worth 5 penalty points.
2. The Ace of Spades is worth 7 penalty points and King of Spades is worth 10 penalty points in addition to the Queen of Spades.
3. If you get a 10 of Diamonds, you lose 10 penalty points
4. If you capture a Queen of Hearts, you will gain 13 penalty points, as with a queen of spades
5. High-value Hearts carry a larger penalty then low-value hearts (For example, 11 penalty points for a Jack, 12 for a Queen, 13 for a King and 14 for an Ace

• Allow the player who shoots the moon to choose how many penalty points (Up to 26) they lose and how many (Up to 26) are distributed to their opponent.

Good luck and enjoy playing!

Poker-Texas Hold'em

Of all the variants of poker, by far the most popular is Texas Hold'em, the game of choice for most casinos.
Rules
(It is best to limit it to 9 or 10 people a table, but up to 23 can play on a single deck)

1. Each player dealt two cards.
2. There is a round of betting.
3. Three cards are places in the centre and turned over for the "Flop". These are "Community cards"- all the players still in the game can use them.
4. There is another round of betting.
5. A fourth "Community Card" is turned over in the centre of the table for "The Turn".
6. There is another round of betting.
7. A fifth and final "Community Card" is turned over in the centre of the table for the "River"
8. There is another round of betting.
9. The player who can form the best five card hand (See the previous post on Poker basics) from their two individual cards and the five community cards wins and gains all the money in the pot.

Tactics

1. At the start of the game, players are at an advantage if they are dealt two face cards (Jack and Higher), two cards of the same suit (e.g a 6 and an 8 of hearts), two cards in sequence (e.g a 4 of hearts and a 5 of diamonds), or two cards of the same value (e.g two sixes). The best combination of two cards are "Pocket Aces"-A pair of Aces. 
2. If you have any of the above, you are advised to bet. If you don't, you are advised to fold.
3. The difference between the players are the initial cards. As the community cards are visible to all, the key to the game is whether you or your opponents can complete a winning hand using their initial cards. All strategy and gamesmanship is based on those cards.
4. However, the initial two cards are misleading. The game hinges on the five community cards. A player with pocket aces may lose their advantage, and a player with a poor initial hand may benefit from the flop,turn and river.
5. The final five-card hand must include at least one of your starting cards. So observe the community cards carefully, and see which combinations you can make with your cards.
6. Think in the long-term.
7. If you are one card away from a winning hand  (e.g A straight or higher) after the flop, don't be too confident about completing it over the next two rounds, but try anyway. Just don't place too much money on it.
8. As with basic poker, bluffing is a powerful tactic in smaller games.

Have fun and remember not to lose your money!

Poker-The Basics

Out of all the card games in the world, the best known is probably poker. As we stated earlier, we do not encourage gambling, and, whilst poker is synonymous with gambling, this blog would prefer to focus on its status as a card game requiring chance and skill. So don't play it for money, especially not if you are a weak and inexperienced player, and, if playing with friends or family, try and use alternatives to cash such as poker chips (which are fairly expensive but last a lifetime) or counters.

But the bottom line is that poker is a great game, and enjoyable whether you are playing for thousands of pounds, or merely for personal pride. So here are the basic rules for anyone who has never played before or just wants a recap. These describe "Straight Poker", the most simple variant. Other, more complex variants, will be described in later posts.

1. The Game is for two to ten players.
2. Each player is dealt five cards.
3. After the players have been dealt their cards, there is a round of betting . A player makes a starting bet, putting a fixed amount of money (real or fake) in the centre, and the rest can either raise the bet (Putting in more money then the previous player) , meet the initial or raised bet (By putting in the same amount of money), or "fold" and drop out of the round. 
4. Betting continues until all players have either matched a bet or folded.
5. The player with the best hand wins and gains all the money in the centre.

But what is the best hand?

There are 9 different types of poker hand. Below, they are ranked in order, from weakest to strongest. 

• NO PAIR/HIGH CARD- All the cards have different values and different suits. In the event of tie where all the players have a hand of this type, the one with the highest-ranking top card (e.g An Ace against a King) wins. The likelihood of a player getting a hand with a High Card only is over 50 per cent. 
• ONE PAIR- Two cards in the hand have identical values (e.g two 2's or two Aces) and the other three are unrelated  (Idle). In the event of a tie, the player with the highest value pair wins (Two aces beat two 2's). If the pairs are of equal value, the player with the highest individual card wins. Chances of getting this type of hand are over 40 per cent.
• TWO PAIRS- Here,a player gets two pairs of cards with identical numbers, and a fifth idle card. Chances of getting this hand are under 5 per cent. In the event of a tie, the player with the highest value pair wins. If there is still a tie, the results are based on the other pair, then the value of the idle card.
• THREE OF A KIND- Three cards in the hand have the same value and the other two are idle. The player whose three of a kind has the highest value wins. The chances of getting a Three of a Kind are just over 2 per cent. 

(For all of the next five possible types, the chances of getting them are less then 0.5 per cent)

• STRAIGHT- The five cards are in sequence (e.g 2,3,4,5,6) but of different suits. In the event of a tie, the player with the highest top card wins. An Ace can be either high or low,depending on the other 4 cards. If they are a 10, a Jack, a Queen and a King, it can complete a high straight, but if the other cards are a 2, a 3, a 4 and a 5, it can can count as a low card and complete a low straight.
• FLUSH-The five cards are all of the same suit, but not in sequence (They may be all Spades, or all hearts, for example). In the event of a tie, the player with the highest value card wins.
• FULL HOUSE- In this hand,  the player has one set of three and One pair. In the event of a tie, the player with the highest value set of three wins.
• FOUR OF A KIND-Four cards in the hand have the same value (The fifth is idle). In the event of a tie, the player with the highest-value set of four wins. 
• STRAIGHT FLUSH- The cards all in sequence and of the same suit. The highest possible Straight Flush is a "Royal Flush" of a 10, a Jack, a Queen, a King and an Ace, all of the same suit. In the event of a tie, the player with the highest value card wins. Out of all the possible 5 cards hands (There are almost 2.6 million ), there are only 40 possible Straight Flushes

 My Tips

• Sometimes, a player with a weak hand can "Bluff" and make a high bet in order to get opponents to fold, but this strategy is not encouraged in larger games, although it can prove effective in smaller ones.
• In a larger game, a player should fold unless they have two pairs or more. In a smaller game, they have a better chance of winning with a weaker hand, and can bet as they wish.
• Even if you have a brilliant hand (Three of a kind or more), you should try not to go All-In (Betting all your money) immediately, as it will scare off opponents and reduce the amount you could possibly win.
• Keep calm and don't become overconfident or pessimistic.
• Think every move through 

So, to conclude, these are the basic rules of poker. From these rules, you can create thousands of games, many of which will be seen on this blog, and play for hours of fun. Again, we recommend not playing for money, as losing it will spoil your enjoyment of the game.The one thing that matters is having fun. So get yourself some chips or counters and begin playing!

Welcome To The Card Table

What is the Card Table?

The Card Table is a blog dedicated to the numerous card games played today, from Bridge to Blackjack, from Hearts to Stud poker, with a few obscure games thrown in, as well as some invented by me.

You can play these games as often as you like with friends, family and even strangers, but this blog does not condone gambling, so try and keep your money to yourself.

You can enjoy the games on this blog as often as you like. You can buy a deck of cards  for little more then a couple of pounds at any corner shop, and the games we will show you will be fun forever.

So get the cards out and begin playing!