How to Play
A short tutorial for this online Casino table—what you’ll see on screen and how to make your first captures, builds, and trails. For full rules and scoring, see the Rules page.
1. Start or join a game
- Enter your name on the home screen.
- Join with a room code, pick a public room, or Create / Host a new game.
- As host you choose play-to score (11 / 21 / 50), optional partnerships (4 players), and the optional single builds as cards variation.
- In the lobby, everyone ready’s up; the host starts when at least two are seated.
2. What’s on the board
- Header — round number, target score (e.g. “to 21 points”), room code.
- Scores strip — each player’s match score.
- Opponents — face-down hand count and sweep count.
- Table — face-up cards and any build piles (shown with their value).
- Your hand — your four cards, plus your sweep count next to the label.
- Actions — Capture, Build, and Trail (enabled only when the move is legal).
A green outline on your hand means it’s your turn. After a sweep, the next player must trail.
3. Selecting cards
- Tap a card in your hand (it highlights).
- Tap one or more table cards or builds (also highlight).
- Tap Capture or Build.
- For a trail, select only a hand card (nothing on the table) and tap Trail.
Buttons stay disabled until the selection is a legal move—so if Capture won’t light up, try a different set of cards.
4. Capture — your first take
Pairing: Hand has a 7; table has a 7 → select both → Capture.
Combining: Hand has a 9; table has 4 and 5 → select hand 9 + table 4 and 5 → Capture.
Build: Hand has an 8; table has a build of 8 → select both → Capture.
If you clear the whole table, you’ll see a sweep celebration—that’s +1 point.
5. Build — lock cards for later
Building combines your hand card with table cards into a pile you plan to capture later. You must still hold a card that can capture the announced number.
Single build: Hand has 3 and 6; table has 3. Play the 3 on the table 3, announce 6 (and keep your 6). Result: a build of 6.
Multiple “8s”: Table has 8 and 3; hand has 5 and 8. Select hand 5 + both table cards → Build → choose 8s. The 5+3 form one unit; the table 8 is a second unit. Only an 8 can take it, and it cannot be raised to 9 or 10.
If more than one legal announced value is possible (e.g. 5 on 5 as 5s or as 10), a chooser appears so you pick the value.
6. Trail — leave a card
When you can’t capture (or choose not to), select a hand card and Trail. You can’t trail a card that could capture, or trail while you own a build.
7. Between rounds
When the round ends, a score screen shows what each player took (Big/Little Casino, cards, spades, aces, sweeps). Tap Ready for next round. When everyone is ready, the next deal begins. Match ends when someone reaches the target score.
8. Tips for new players
- Watch for Big Casino (10♦) and Little Casino (2♠)—they’re worth extra points.
- Most cards (+3) and most spades (+1) often decide close games.
- Don’t build if you can’t keep a capturer in hand.
- Owning a build forces you to act on it—you can’t trail away.
- Tap the last-action line after a capture to review what was taken (until the next move).
9. Optional rule in the lobby
If the host enables Single builds count as cards, you can capture or build using a single build as if it were one loose card of that value. Example: a 6-build plus a 4 can both be taken by a 10. Details on the Rules → Variations section.