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Top 5 Trick-Taking Card Games

The best trick-taking card games played with a traditional deck of cards.

By Erik Arneson, About.com

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A trick-taking card game is one in which players take turn playing cards and the highest card played each round wins the trick. Of course, there are many variations within the genre, and trick-taking card games are among the most popular and enduring. Here are my favorite trick-taking card games.

1. Euchre

For 4 players (2 partnerships). Euchre is a relatively simple trick-taking game played with just 24 cards. Three-Handed Euchre is a version for three players, and Railroad Euchre is a set of variants designed to speed gameplay.

2. Spades

For 4 players (2 partnerships). Spades is a very popular trick-taking game in which the goal is to be the first partnership to reach 500 points by bidding and then winning the number of tricks they bid.

3. Oh Hell

For 3 to 7 players. Oh Hell is a simple trick-taking card game that nonetheless presents good opportunity for strategic play. The game Wizard, published by U.S. Games, is based on Oh Hell. This game is sometimes referred to as Oh Pshaw or Blackout.

4. Hearts

For 3 to 7 players. The 18th century ancestor of Hearts was called Reverse, because in this card game, you want to lose certain tricks rather than win them. Popular versions of Hearts include Cancellation Hearts and Omnibus Hearts.

5. Pitch

For 3 to 7 players. Pitch is also known as Auction Pitch or Setback. These rules are for solo-play Pitch. It can also be played as a partnership game with two teams of two players.

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Erik Arneson
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