Vint - Description of Vint

Description of Vint

Vint has many similarities to rubber bridge: The cards have the same rank. The score of tricks is entered under the line, and points for slam, honors, and penalties for undertricks above the line. The bidding is similar to bridge, one bids the number of tricks and the trump suit or no trump.

During the progress of the bidding and declaring, opportunity is taken by the players to indicate by their calls their strength in the various suits and the high cards they hold, so that, when the playing begins, the position of the best cards and the strength of the different hands can often be fairly accurately estimated.

Unlike Bridge, in Vint there is no dummy, all taken tricks count toward a game (that is, the tricks taken by the defenders as well as the tricks taken by the declarer side including overtricks, regardless of whether the contract was made or not), and the bidding ends after eight consecutive passes (everyone passes twice including the player who made the last bid.) The value of a trick depends on the level of the contract. In higher contracts the value of a trick is higher.

The card play follows the standard whist formula. One must follow suit, but if unable to do so, one can play any card. The trick is won by the highest trump, if there are trumps in the trick, otherwise by the highest card of the suit led. The winner of the trick starts the next one.

Points are awarded also for honours. In a no trump declaration aces count only as honors; in a suit declaration both the aces and the five next highest cards.