Bid Whist Help

Bid Whist Rules

These are the standard NeuralPlay Bid Whist rules. You may customize the rules to your liking as described in Rule Options.

Bid Whist is a four-player partnership game played with a 54-card deck, including 2 jokers. You form a team with the player across from you. The game ends when a team reaches 7 points or falls to -7 points, and the team with the higher score wins.

Each hand has 5 stages: dealing, bidding, kitty exchange, play, and scoring.

Dealing

At the start of the game, the dealer is chosen randomly. The deal then rotates clockwise after each hand. Each player is dealt 12 cards, and 6 cards are dealt to the kitty.

Bidding

The player to the dealer's left bids first. Bidding proceeds clockwise, giving each player one opportunity to bid or pass. Each bid must rank higher than the previous bid. If the first three players pass, the dealer must bid.

A bid consists of a level from 3 through 7 and one of the following directions.

• High. There will be a trump suit, and high cards beat low cards.
• Low. There will be a trump suit, and low cards beat high cards.
• Notrump. There will be no trump suit. The winning bidder later chooses whether high or low cards win.

The level is the number of tricks above 6 that the bidder's team contracts to take. For example, a bid of 3 requires 9 tricks, and a bid of 5 requires 11 tricks.

Bids are ranked first by level. At the same level, notrump ranks above high and low. High and low rank equally, so one cannot follow the other at the same level. The bid ranking from lowest to highest is:

• 3 High or 3 Low
• 3 Notrump
• 4 High or 4 Low
• 4 Notrump
• 5 High or 5 Low
• 5 Notrump
• 6 High or 6 Low
• 6 Notrump
• 7 High or 7 Low
• 7 Notrump

After everyone has had an opportunity to bid, the highest bidder becomes the declarer. For a high or low bid, the declarer chooses the trump suit. For a notrump bid, the declarer chooses whether the hand is played high or low. The winning bid and these choices form the contract.

Here is an example bidding sequence: 3 High, 3 Notrump, 4 Low, Pass. The first bid, 3 High, indicates that the player's team contracts to take at least 9 tricks, that there will be a trump suit, and that high cards will beat low cards. The next bid, 3 Notrump, outranks 3 High and indicates that the player's team contracts to take at least 9 tricks with no trump suit. The final non-pass bid, 4 Low, indicates that the player's team contracts to take at least 10 tricks, that there will be a trump suit, and that low cards will beat high cards. The player who bid 4 Low wins the bidding, becomes the declarer, and chooses the trump suit.

Here are some example contracts.

• 3 High Notrump. The declarer's team must take at least 9 tricks. There is no trump suit, and high cards beat low cards.
• 4 High Hearts. The declarer's team must take at least 10 tricks. Hearts are trump, and high cards beat low cards.
• 5 Low Clubs. The declarer's team must take at least 11 tricks. Clubs are trump, and low cards beat high cards.

Kitty Exchange

After the contract is determined, the declarer takes the 6 kitty cards into their hand and discards 6 cards face down to the kitty.

Play

The kitty counts as one bonus trick for the declarer's team. The players then play 12 tricks. The declarer leads the first trick, and play proceeds clockwise.

Each player plays one card to a trick. Players must follow the suit led when able. A player who cannot follow suit may play any card; however, in a notrump contract, they must discard a joker if they have one. After all four cards have been played, the best trump card wins the trick. If no trump card was played, the best card of the suit led wins. The player who wins the trick leads the next one.

In a suit contract, the jokers are the highest trump cards, with the black joker highest. In a notrump contract, jokers cannot win a trick. When a joker is led in notrump, the first non-joker played determines the suit led.

Card ranks are shown below from lowest to highest.

• High suit contract: 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, J, Q, K, A, red joker, black joker.
• Low suit contract: K, Q, J, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, A, red joker, black joker.
• High notrump contract: 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, J, Q, K, A.
• Low notrump contract: K, Q, J, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, A.

Scoring

The declarer's team makes the contract by taking at least 6 plus the bid level in tricks, including the kitty trick. When they make the contract, they score the bid level plus 1 point for each overtrick. When they are set, they lose points equal to the bid level. Notrump scores are doubled, whether the contract is made or set.

For example, suppose the contract is 4 High Hearts. Taking 10 tricks makes the contract and scores 4 points. Taking 11 tricks scores 5 points: 4 for the contract and 1 for the overtrick. Taking only 8 tricks sets the contract and scores -4 points.

Suppose the contract is 3 High Notrump. Taking 9 tricks makes the contract and would normally score 3 points. Because notrump is doubled, the team scores 6 points. Taking only 8 tricks sets the contract and scores -6 points.

The hand score is added to the game score, and the deal rotates clockwise. Hands continue until a team reaches 7 points or falls to -7 points. The team with the higher score wins.

Web Links

There are many helpful websites that discuss Bid Whist. Here are a few we like.

• Wikipedia
• Pagat.com

Solo Bid Whist

Solo Bid Whist follows the Bid Whist rules above with the following differences. Each player bids, plays, and scores alone.

The bidding level represents the number of tricks to be taken during play and ranges from 1 through 12. Players bid the level and whether there will be trump or notrump. There is a single round of bidding. At a given level, notrump ranks higher than trump and may be bid over trump at the same level; otherwise, each player must bid higher than the previous bid.

After the bidding is complete, the declarer chooses the suit and direction (high or low) for a trump contract. For a notrump contract, the declarer chooses the direction.

The declarer exchanges cards with a 6-card kitty, but the kitty does not count as a bonus trick.

When the declarer makes a suit contract, they score 1 point for each trick taken. When they are set, they lose points equal to the bid level. Each defender scores 1 point for each trick they take. Scores for notrump contracts are doubled.

The game ends when a player reaches 30 points or falls to -30 points. The player with the highest score wins.

52 Bid Whist

52 Bid Whist is much like the Bid Whist rules above, with a few exceptions. This section focuses on the differences.

52 Bid Whist is played with a 52-card deck, no jokers, and a 4-card kitty. Each player is dealt 12 cards, and 4 cards are placed in the kitty.

The bidding consists of one round. Beginning with the player to the dealer's left and continuing clockwise, each player may pass or bid a level from 1 through 7. Each bid must be higher than the previous bid. The dealer is the exception and may match the current bid to win the bidding. If the first three players pass, the dealer must bid. The player who wins the bidding becomes the declarer.

The winning bid indicates the number of tricks above 6 that the declarer's team must take to make the contract. For example, a bid of 3 requires the team to take at least 3 + 6 = 9 tricks.

Next, the declarer chooses the trump suit or notrump and the card ranking. The available card rankings are shown below from lowest to highest.

• High: 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, J, Q, K, A.
• Low, aces good: K, Q, J, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, A.
• Low, aces bad: A, K, Q, J, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2.

Play is much the same as in the Bid Whist rules above. The difference is that the kitty trick is not given to the declarer. Instead, the player who captures the first played trick receives the kitty trick, making that trick worth 2 tricks.

After the hand, the tricks taken by each team are counted. If the declarer's team makes the contract, they receive points equal to the bid level. If they are set, the defenders receive points equal to the bid level. There are no negative scores. The game ends when a team reaches 21 points.

Preset Game Rules

The following preset rules are available from the main screen.

• 4 Card Kitty. Uses a 52-card deck with no jokers and a 4-card kitty. The game is played to 7 points.
• 5 Card Kitty. Uses a 53-card deck with 1 joker and a 5-card kitty. The game is played to 7 points.
• 6 Card Kitty. Uses a 54-card deck with 2 jokers and a 6-card kitty. The black joker is the highest trump. These are the standard rules described above.
• Solo. Each player bids, plays, and scores alone. See Solo Bid Whist.
• No Kitty. Uses a 52-card deck with no kitty. Each player receives 13 cards, and the minimum bid is 1.
• 52 Bid Whist. Uses level-only bidding, a 52-card deck, and a 4-card kitty. See 52 Bid Whist.

Learning Features

NeuralPlay Bid Whist offers many features to help you learn and improve your play. These features may be enabled, disabled, or adjusted in Settings. The features include the following.

• Hints. By default, the AI shows a hint when you ask for one. You may ask the AI to always show a hint, or ask it to check your bid, kitty discard, or play and show a hint only when its choice differs from yours.
• AI tricks taken estimate. When enabled, each play hint shows the estimated number of tricks that will be taken for each legal play. The estimate is an average across many simulations. The AI-suggested play may differ from the play with the highest estimate because of strategy or simulation noise.
• Card counter. When enabled, a counter shows which cards have been played.
• Analyze bid. When enabled, an "Analyze" button appears during bidding. Select a proposed bid to estimate its chance of making.
• Competitive mode. Enable competitive mode to play without assistance. Hints, undo, viewing or playing all hands, analyze bid, and other learning aids are disabled.

Rule Options

NeuralPlay Bid Whist offers many popular rule options so you can customize the game to your liking. Rule settings include the following.

Kitty

• Size. Choose 6 cards (2 jokers), 5 cards (1 joker), 4 cards (no jokers), or no kitty (no jokers).
• Sport. Choose no, only declarer sees; yes, always; or yes, when there is a trump suit.

Bidding

• Style. Choose one of the following bidding styles.
  • Level and high/low or notrump. Bid a level with high, low, or notrump. The declarer then chooses the trump suit or the notrump direction. This is the standard style described above.
  • Level, then suit/nt and high/low. Bid only a level. The declarer then chooses a suit or notrump and high, low with aces good, or low with aces bad.
  • Level, then suit/nt, high only. Bid only a level. The declarer then chooses a suit or notrump, and high cards always win.
  • Level and trump/notrump, then suit and high/low. Bid a level with trump or notrump. The declarer then chooses the suit, when applicable, and whether high or low cards win. This style is used for Solo play.
• High/low bid ranking. Choose whether high and low bids are equivalent at the same level or low beats high.
• Minimum bid. Choose a minimum bid from 1 through 4.
• Dealer can steal. When enabled, the dealer may match the last bid to win the bidding instead of bidding higher.

Playing

• Joker during notrump. Choose how jokers must be played during notrump contracts.
  • Discard normally. A joker may be discarded whenever the player cannot follow suit.
  • Must discard ASAP. A player who cannot follow suit must discard a joker before another card.
  • Play anytime. A joker may be played even when the player could follow suit.
  • Exchange with kitty. After the declarer discards, jokers held by any player are exchanged for non-jokers from the kitty.
• 2♠ becomes high trump. Make 2♠ a high trump between the ace and the jokers in a suit contract.
• Finish hand when score determined. When enabled, the hand finishes as soon as the score is determined. Depending on the rule options, this may occur as soon as the declarer is set.

Scoring

• Partnership. When enabled, the player across from you is your partner. When disabled, each player bids and scores alone.
• Style. Choose Standard scoring as described above or Point a Hand scoring. With Point a Hand scoring, the declaring team scores 1 point for making the contract, or the defenders score 1 point for setting it. The selected notrump and Boston multipliers still apply.
• Notrump scoring. Choose whether notrump contracts are worth double the points of suit contracts.
• Boston scoring. Choose whether or not Boston (7 High, 7 Low, or 7 Notrump) contracts are worth double the points of suit contracts. Also choose whether or not one must bid 7 to receive the bonus points. The Boston and notrump multipliers are cumulative.
• Overtrick scoring. Choose no points or 1 point each for tricks taken beyond the contract.
• Defender scoring. Choose one of the following.
  • No. Defenders do not score separate trick points.
  • Yes, for taking >6 tricks. Defenders score 1 point for each trick above 6. The selected notrump multiplier applies.
  • Yes, for taking >6 tricks, 1 point each always. Defenders score 1 point for each trick above 6 without a notrump multiplier.
  • Yes, 1 point per trick. Defenders score every trick they take. The selected notrump multiplier applies.
• Kitty trick. Award the bonus kitty trick to the declarer, to the player who captures the first trick, or to no one.
• Positive-only scoring. When the contract is set, add the contract points to the defenders instead of subtracting them from the declaring team.

Game Over

• Game over at. End the game at a selected number of points or after a selected number of hands.
• Points to game over. Choose the positive and negative point threshold for the game.
• Hands to game over. Choose the number of hands to play. The team or player with the higher score after the final hand wins.
• Set limit to game over. Choose no set limit or end the game when a team is set 2, 3, or 4 times. The team that reaches the limit loses.

Computer Players

NeuralPlay computer players offer 6 levels of play. Level 1 is reasonably easy and good for beginners. Level 3 should be fun for most players. Level 6 is the most challenging.

The computer players employ different AI methods depending on the level. Levels 1 and 2 use smaller Monte Carlo simulations to provide an introduction for beginners.

Level 3 uses rule-based card play. The AI follows rules such as: "In 3rd seat, do not trump partner's high card" and "In 4th seat, play just high enough to take the trick when an opponent is winning." We find the rules work quite well and provide good play. Level 3 uses simulation-based bidding.

Levels 4 through 6 use Monte Carlo simulation to determine the best play. The AI deals out the unknown cards randomly. It then tries each legal play and plays the deal to the end to get a result. This is repeated for many deals of the unknown cards. The average result for each legal play is computed, and the play with the best average result is chosen.

Levels 4 through 6 differ in how many times the unknown cards are dealt out. In general, the more deals considered, the more accurate the simulation and the better the quality of play. The trade-off is that more deals take more time, so level 6 may play more slowly than level 4 depending on the device.

Since levels 4 through 6 do not use rules for card play, you may observe surprisingly good plays or odd mistakes that do not seem to follow a logical rule. Overall, our tests show that these levels play better than the rule-based level 3. We also find that the randomness makes the computer feel more human-like and fun.

If you prefer a more consistent, logical, and predictable partner or opponent, level 3 may be best.

You may adjust bidding aggressiveness without changing the selected level. Higher settings make the AI more willing to bid. The Custom level provides separate play thinking, bid thinking, and bidding aggressiveness settings for each seat. South's custom settings control the strength of the hints you receive.

We are continuing to research and develop improvements to the computer players.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I change the hand sorting?

In Settings, choose Hand Sorting. You can change the rank order and suit order and choose whether to alternate red and black suits.

How do I reset the game settings?

On the main screen, open the menu and choose Reset.

What are North, South, East, and West?

You are always South, and your partner is North. East and West are the opposing team. The letters N, S, E, and W are abbreviations for these seats.

Why did a joker not win the trick in notrump?

Jokers cannot win a trick in a notrump contract. When a joker is led, the first non-joker played determines the suit led.

What does claim mean?

A claim means the player expects to take all the remaining tricks. The app checks the claim before ending the hand. If the claim succeeds, the claiming team receives those tricks and the hand is scored.

How do I contact NeuralPlay with suggestions and feedback?

Please email support@neuralplay.com.