Trick-taking Game - Winning and Scoring A Deal

Winning and Scoring A Deal

When all tricks have been played, the winner of the deal and the players' scores can be determined. The determining factor in plain-trick games (the most popular form of trick-taking games in English-speaking countries) is simply how many tricks each player or partnership has taken. In point-trick games, certain card values are worth varying points, and the players sum the points from cards in their "scoring piles" that were accumulated by taking tricks. Points for cards, and the method of counting points, vary by game; in Rook, for example, the 5-card of each color is worth 5 points, the 10 and 14 (or Ace) is worth 10, and the Rook Bird (or Joker) is worth 20, while all other cards are worth nothing. Pinochle has many popular scoring variants usually based on point values for face cards and Aces, while pip cards score no points. In French Tarot, all cards have a value including a half-point, and are traditionally scored in pairs of a high-value and a low-value card which results in a whole-point value for the pair.

In the most common positive or race games, players seek to win as many tricks or card points as possible. To win a deal, a player typically needs to win a minimal number of tricks or card points; this minimal threshold is usually called the "contract", and may be defined by the game's rules (a simple majority of total available points or tricks, or tiered thresholds depending on which player or side has captured certain cards), or the result of an "auction" or "bidding" process. A player who wins more than the number of tricks or card points necessary for winning the deal may be rewarded with a higher score, or conversely (in exact-prediction games) they may be penalized.

There are also negative or evasion games, in which the object is to avoid tricks or card points. E.g. in Hearts each card point won in a trick contributes negatively to the score. A special type is misère games, which are usually variants of positive games which can only be won by not winning a single trick.

Other criteria also occur. Sometimes the last trick has special significance. In marriage games such as Pinochle the winner of the last trick receives 10 points in addition to the card points, while in final-trick games such as Cắt Tê only the winner of the last trick can win a deal. There are also blends between positive and negative games, e.g. the aim may be to win a certain prescribed number of tricks. Many card games, regardless of their normal scoring mechanism, give bonuses to players or partnerships who win all tricks or possible points in a hand, or conversely lose all tricks or points.