BELOTE

 

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OBJECTIVE OF BELOTE: The objective of Belote is to win tricks to score 1000 points.

NUMBER OF PLAYERS:  2 to 4 players

MATERIALS: One modified 52-card deck, a way to keep score, and a flat surface.

TYPE OF GAME: Trick-Taking Card Game

AUDIENCE: Any

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OVERVIEW OF BELOTE

Belote is a trick-taking game playable by 2 to 4 players, though it is widely accepted that 4 player Belote is best. In 4 player Belote players are in partnerships of 2. In 2 and 3 player Belote there are no partnerships. In 4 player games, partnerships are fixed so that partners are always players sitting across from each other. 

Players will bid on who determines trump, make declarations about their and play through a series of tricks. How many and which tricks are won will matter for scoring.  

SETUP

To set up, a deck of 52 cards will need to be modified to be 32 cards. All cards 6 and below will be removed. This will leave Aces, Kings, Queens, Jacks, 10s, 9s, 8s, and 7s. 

Belote has a strange way of dealing where the deck is never shuffled. Instead, the player to the dealer’s left will cut the deck and then players will start to receive their hands.  오공슬롯

The dealer will first deal each player a batch of three cards, then a batch of two cards in counterclockwise order. After these cards are received the dealer will flip the next card on top of the deck face up in the center of the play area. The bidding portion of the deal will begin.

The player to the dealer’s right will be the first to decide if they would like to take the card in the center or pass. If they take the card then they are declaring their team the takers for the round, the card in the center will determine trump and they will need to score at least as many points as the opponent team to complete their contract. If they pass this decision goes to the next person in a counterclockwise order until a player has taken the card, or all four players have passed.

If all players pass, then there is another round of bidding where taking the card now means that the player’s team will be the taker and they will still need to complete the above contract but now they may choose trumps. If all players pass again, all cards are collected, the dealer passes to the right, and the round restarts. 

Once a player decides to take the card the bidding is over. That player will take the card into their hand and the dealer continues to deal cards in the same order. All other players receive three cards, while the taker receives 2. All players should have 8 cards in hand. 

Card Rankings and Values

Belote has three separate card rankings and some cards hold value used for scoring. 

The trump suit has its ranking and scores. The ranking is Jack (high), 9, Ace, 10, King, Queen, 8, and 7 (low). Their values in the same order are 20 points, 14 points, 11 points, 10 points, 4 points, 3 points, and 8s and 7s receive zero points. 

The ranking for other suits is Aces (high), 10s, Kings, Queens, Jacks, 9s, 8s, and 7s (low). Their Values in order are 11 points, 10 points, 4 points, 3 points, 2 points, and 9s, 8s, and 7s receive zeros points. 

Declarations also follow their ranking. So, when cards must be in ranking order, they follow the traditional ranking of Ace (high), King, Queen, Jack, 10, 9, 8, and 7 (low). They have different scores based on whack declarations are made. These will be discussed below.