Welcome to Auction House!

Auction House is an exciting card game designed for four players. The objective of the game is simple: accumulate the most points over the course of 13 rounds.

I’m Andrew Walker, the creator of Auction House, and I’m here to give you some additional information about how to play.

Getting Started

Before we dive in, let’s set up the game. First, we need to separate the deck of cards. Take out all the face cards – the Kings, Queens, and Jacks – and set them aside. These cards will form their own special deck called the trump deck, which consists of 12 cards. Shuffle the trump deck and place it facedown in the middle of the playing area. The remaining 40 cards will be shuffled to form the deck that we’ll draw from.

Now, let’s determine the first dealer. This will be done randomly, and the dealer will change with each new round, moving to the left. The dealer will then shuffle the deck and deal 10 cards to each player.

The Auction Phase

Once the cards are dealt, we move on to the auction phase. Starting with the player on the left of the dealer, each player can either choose to start an auction or pass. If a player passes, then the next player to their left gets the same options.

If all four players pass, there is no auction for that round, and the game continues.

Now, let’s talk about what happens when a player decides to start an auction. First, they choose a card from their hand and place it face-up on the table for everyone to see. Then, they announce a suit. But here’s the catch: the suit they call must be different from the suit of the card they chose.

Now it’s time for the other players to pick a card from their hand and put it face down on the table in front of them. When everyone is done, we reveal the cards. The person who started the auction has to trade their card. If they declared a suit, they have to choose the highest-ranked card of that suit. But if there are no cards of that suit, they can choose any of the three cards available to trade with. Once the trade is done, all the cards go back to their owners’ hands and the auction is over.

Kitty

After the auction round is closed or passed, each player chooses one card from their hand and places it face down on the table. These four cards are taken and put to the side of the play area. This collection is called the “kitty.” The player who wins the most tricks at the end of the round will get to score the cards in the kitty.

Card Ranking and Point Values

Let me explain how the cards are ranked in this game. We start with the highest card, which is 10 (high). Next come 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, and finally, Ace (low).

Now, each card has a certain number of points associated with it. This is important because these points are used to score the cards that you win from the kitty. The points correspond to the value of the card. So, if you have a 10, it’s worth 10 points. A 9 is worth 9 points, and so on. The Aces are a bit special; they’re only worth 1 point each.

GAMEPLAY

Now, let’s talk about how the game is played. After the Auction is held or passed, we move on to the round. Each player starts with 9 cards in their hand. To kick things off, the player to the left of the dealer reveals the top card from the trump deck. This card determines the trump suit for the whole round. However, in the final round, which is round 13, there won’t be any card to reveal, and the round will be played without any trumps.

Once the trump cards have been revealed, I, as the player sitting to the left of the dealer, get to lead the first trick by playing any card. The game then proceeds in a clockwise direction. If the other players have a card of the same suit as the one led, they must follow suit. However, if they don’t have a matching card, they can play any card they want, including trump cards.

The trick is won by playing the highest-ranked trump card, if there are any. If there are no trump cards in play, the trick is won by playing the highest-ranked card of the suit that was led. The winner of the trick then leads the next trick.

Once all 9 tricks have been played, it’s time to start scoring.

SCORING

Each player will count the number of tricks they have won in the round. The player who has won the most tricks gets to score all the cards from the kitty.

If there is a tie for the most tricks won in a round, nobody scores the kitty. Instead, the points from the kitty are added to the score of the next kitty.

If there’s a tie for the kitty during the 13th round, no more points are scored for the game.

Once the scoring phase of the 13th round is finished, the game comes to an end.

END OF GAME

The game concludes when the 13th round is completed and scored. The player with the highest number of points is declared the winner. In the event of a tie, all players who tied win.

CREATOR’S NOTES

The trump suit in this card game is kept secret until after the players have set their hands and built the kitty. This adds an element of risk to the auction and allows for more strategic decision-making as the game progresses. However, if all players agree at the beginning, the trump suit can be revealed right from the start as an optional house rule. This is especially recommended for players who are newer to trick-taking games, as it helps them make more informed choices. The idea for this game was inspired by the elements of Oh Heck and Rook, two other card games, and these influences can be seen in the rules and overall flow of the game.

Hey, I’m Amber (They/Them), and I’m a writer and gaming enthusiast from Austin. I consider myself a gaming master, and when I’m not playing games, I love spending time with dogs, taking care of plants, and playing Dungeons & Dragons.

Hey, I’m Amber (They/Them), and I’m a writer and gaming enthusiast from Austin. I consider myself a gaming master, and when I’m not playing games, I love spending time with dogs, taking care of plants, and playing Dungeons & Dragons.