Hand rules — how to play

Overview

Hand — also known as Hareega — is a Gulf trick-taking game with no partnerships: each of the four players plays for themselves and is scored alone. Koutchina plays the Kuwaiti rules: five rounds, with eight tricks in each.

The heart of the game is the call: before the first card, each player declares how many tricks they will take — that is their «hand». Then the eight tricks are played, and only a player who hits their call exactly scores. Taking too many hurts exactly as much as taking too few, so the skill is not in winning tricks but in winning the number you called — no more, no fewer.

Deck, deal and card ranking

Hand is played with a 32-card deck: 7 up to Ace in each of the four suits — the same deck as Baloot. It is dealt out completely every round: eight cards to each player, one at a time, starting with the player after the dealer and going counter-clockwise. The deal moves one seat on after every round.

Cards rank naturally: Ace, King, Queen, Jack, then 10, 9, 8 and 7. Baloot players, take note: the 10 sits below the Jack here, not just under the Ace as it does in Sun.

There is no trump in Hand: no suit beats the others, and no trump is chosen in any round. That is what lets you count your tricks from your own cards: the Ace of the suit led always wins, and a low card wins only when nobody beats it in its suit.

The call

After the deal, each player looks at their eight cards and picks a target: the number of tricks they will take, from 0 to 8. Everyone picks at the same time and in secret, so no one sees another call before making their own: the table shows who has locked in, never the number they chose.

A call is final: once confirmed, it cannot change until the round is over. When all four players have locked in, the calls are revealed together and stay on show for the whole round, each seat displaying its tricks taken against its call.

There is no rule on the total of the calls: it may be exactly eight, more or less — and it rarely is eight. If the total is over 8 there are not enough tricks for everyone; if it is under, spare tricks must land on someone. Calling zero is allowed and has its own score: take no trick at all and you earn a flat 25.

Playing the tricks

The player after the dealer leads the first trick with any card, and each player then plays one card in turn. You must follow the suit led if you can; otherwise play whatever you like. With no trump, a card you throw from another suit can never win the trick.

The highest card of the suit led wins the trick, and its winner leads the next. All eight tricks are played every round, even after a player has reached their call — so a trick you don’t want can still find you at the very end.

That is why Hand is played two ways at once: chase tricks until you reach your call, then duck them — following suit with your lowest card, and throwing away your high cards whenever you are out of the suit led. If a player’s turn timer runs out, the table plays for them: a call of zero if they have not called yet, and their weakest legal card in play.

End of the round and the match

After the eighth trick, each player is scored alone. Hit your call exactly and you earn 10 points per trick taken: a call of 3 with 3 tricks is worth 30, and a call of 8 with every trick is worth 80, the most a round can give. A made zero call is a flat 25.

Miss your call and you lose 10 points for every trick of difference, over or under: a call of 4 with 5 tricks is −10, a call of 5 with 2 tricks is −30, and a call of zero that takes all eight is −80. Totals can go below zero.

Five rounds are played; then the highest total wins and the others are ranked by their totals. If two or more players are tied for the lead, the whole table plays sudden-death rounds — three at most — until a single player holds first place. If the lead is still shared after that, the tied players share first place. A tie further down the table never calls for an extra round.

How to play

1. Deal — Deal the whole deck: eight cards each, starting with the player after the dealer.
2. Call — Secretly pick how many tricks you will take, from 0 to 8, and confirm it. The calls are revealed once everyone has locked in.
3. Play the tricks — The player after the dealer leads. Follow the suit led if you can — its highest card wins, and there is no trump.
4. Hit the number — Chase tricks until you reach your call, then duck the rest: an extra trick costs you as much as a missing one.
5. Score — An exact call scores +10 a trick, a made zero +25, and a miss −10 for every trick off.
6. Win the match — After five rounds the highest total wins; a tie for the lead goes to sudden-death rounds, three at most.

Scoring & winning

• Exact call (tricks taken = call): +tricks × 10, from +10 for a call of 1 up to +80 for a call of 8.
• Zero call made (not a single trick): a flat +25 — between a made call of 2 (20) and of 3 (30).
• Over your call: −10 for every extra trick. A call of 4 with 5 tricks is −10 — not +40, not +50.
• Under your call: −10 for every missing trick. A call of 5 with 2 tricks is −30.
• A zero call that takes a trick is an ordinary miss: −10 per trick, down to −80 for taking all eight.
• Each player is scored alone — no result touches another player’s — and totals can go below zero.
• A match is five rounds and the highest total wins. Tied leaders play sudden-death rounds — three at most — and if they are still level, they share first place.

Strategy

FAQ