How to play King: rules and scoring
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King is a four player card game where every hand has a different goal: in some you avoid certain cards, in others you collect as many tricks as you can. This guide explains the rules and scoring of King on Boombala.
Deck and deal
A 52 card deck without jokers, 13 cards to each player. Cards rank high to low: ace, king, queen, jack, 10 … 2.
Choosing a hand
Each hand one player in turn is the chooser and says what it is played for. A player may choose each of the 6 penalty games once and a trump hand up to twice: 4 players × 8 choices = 32 hands.
Play
- The chooser leads; play passes counter-clockwise.
- You must follow suit. Without the suit, play any card.
- There are no trumps in penalty games: the highest card of the suit led takes the trick.
- Whoever takes a trick leads the next.
Penalty games
| Game | Penalty |
|---|---|
| No hearts | −30 for each heart taken |
| No tricks | −50 for each trick taken |
| No kings and jacks | −60 for each king and jack taken |
| No queens | −100 for each queen taken |
| Rıfkı | −320 for taking the king of hearts (hand ends immediately) |
| Last two | −180 for each of the last two tricks |
Trump hand
The chooser names trumps. A trump beats every other suit; the highest trump takes the trick, otherwise the highest card of the suit led. Every trick taken scores +50.
Winning
After 32 hands the highest total wins.
Tips
- In penalty games, playing just under the highest card on the table keeps you safe from taking the trick.
- When you cannot follow suit, that is the moment to hand off your costliest card (the king of hearts, a queen, a king).
- Avoid choosing trump with a weak hand; penalty games give you more ways to dodge.