Welcome to the Exciting World of Forty One!

Forty One is a thrilling card game that is very popular in Syria. This trick-taking game has its own unique twist, making it stand out from other games. In Forty One, hearts are always the trump suit, and winning is based on each partner’s individual score. These small differences add a whole new level of excitement to the game!

Before we begin, let’s determine the teams. Partners should sit across from each other at the table. It’s time to get ready for some intense gameplay!

Understanding the Cards and How to Deal

First, we need to decide who will be the first dealer and the scorekeeper. We’ll do this by taking cards from the deck. The player who draws the lowest card will become the dealer and keep score. This player will then collect all the cards, give them a good shuffle, and deal them to the players. Now we’re ready to start the game!

In Forty One, each of us gets 13 cards. After the cards are handed out, it’s time to start bidding. But here’s the thing: hearts are always the most powerful cards in the game. That means that any heart card is higher than any other Ace in the game. For example, a 2 of hearts beats any other Ace from the other suits.

Now, let me explain how bidding works. When you bid, you’re basically saying how many tricks you believe you can win. You have to bid at least 1 trick. And, when we add up all the bids from everyone, the total must be 11 or more. If the total is 10 or less, we throw the cards back in and it’s the next player’s turn to deal.

To keep track of everyone’s bids, we use a scorepad. The scorekeeper writes down each round’s bid. Once the bidding phase is over, we can start playing the round.

Now that you understand the basics of Forty One, let’s dive into the gameplay and have some fun!

When it’s time to start playing, it’s your turn! You can pick any card from your hand and throw it into the center. This action is called the trick. After you, it will be the next player’s turn, and this pattern will continue around the table.

Remember, each player has to play a card that matches the suit if they have one. But if they don’t have a matching suit, they can play any card they want. It’s all up to you!

Here’s how the trick works: the player who played the highest card of the same suit as the first card played, or the highest trump card if any were played, gets to take the trick. That player then gets to lead the next trick by choosing a card from their own hand.

We keep playing like this until all thirteen tricks are done. It’s an exciting and challenging game that requires strategy and skill!

SCORING

When a round ends, I receive points based on the number of tricks I successfully bid on. If my bid is between 1 and 6, I earn the same number of points as my bid. However, if my bid is between 7 and 13, I earn double the number of points as my bid. Let’s say I bid 5 and manage to take at least 5 tricks. In this case, I’ll earn 5 points. If my bid is 9 and I succeed in taking 9 tricks, I’ll earn 18 points. It’s important to note that I don’t earn points for any tricks I take beyond my bid. For instance, if I bid 6 and end up with 7 tricks, I will still only earn 6 points.

On the other hand, if I don’t manage to take as many tricks as I bid, I lose points equal to my bid. For example, let’s say I bid 5 but only take 4 tricks. In this situation, I will lose 5 points from my score. Similarly, if I bid 9 but fail to reach that number of tricks, I will lose 18 points from my score.

Do you know how to win at this new game? Well, I’ve got the answer for you. The team that gets a player with 41 points or more is the winner. Pretty simple, right? But wait, there’s a catch. In order to win, your partner also needs to have a positive score. So, even if you reach 41 points, but your partner has a score of -12, sorry, you can’t win just yet. Your partner needs to bring their score into the positives.

Now, what happens if both teams have a player who reaches 41 points at the same time? It’s a tie! But don’t worry, we have a solution for that too. We compare the scores of the partners. The team with the highest scoring partner is the winner. So, it’s all about teamwork and making sure both you and your partner are doing your best!