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!