A TEAM PLAY CARD GAME

the element of surprise

HOW TO PLAY

OVERVIEW

Dive into The Element of Surprise, where strategy, bluffing, and teamwork are essential to outsmart your opponents and secure victory! Enjoy the blend of tactical bidding and dynamic gameplay in your quest to be the first to 1500 points!

Recommended Age:

Game Duration:

12+

45-90 minutes

CONTENTS:

  • Deck: 90 cards including two Elemental cards and two cards from each of the four colors (red, purple, blue, green), numbered 5 through 15.

OBJECTIVE:

Be the first player to score 1500 points by winning rounds through bidding and card play while having fun!

GAME PHASES:

  1. Dealing: Each player is dealt 14 cards. The dealer can set aside six cards to create a Bank during the deal.

  2. Bidding: Players bid on the total points they believe their team can win, starting at 180 points. Players can raise the bid in increments of five or pass. The last player to remain in the bid wins the opportunity to call trump and partners.

  3. Banking: The winning bidder claims the Bank cards and sets aside six cards. They must declare any point cards deposited.

  4. Calling Partners: The winning player chooses a trump color and two partner cards, which remain hidden. Calling more than two cards results in a misdeal, with penalties for the winning bidder.

  5. Playing: Players take turns playing cards, following suit or playing trump if they cannot follow suit. The highest card, or trump card, wins the round, with Elemental cards acting as the lowest trump.

  6. Scoring: After all rounds, points are totaled. The bidding team scores their collected points if they meet their bid; otherwise, they receive negative points. If a team fails to meet their bid, all team members score negative points equal to their bid amount, while the other players score positive points based on their collected point totals.

faqs

  • You want to make sure that you only call two possible partners. So, looking at the cards in your hand and identifying what cards would be most helpful to you is a great first step. Remember there are two of each card I  the deck, so if you don’t have either 15 in your trump color, you could call both of the 15’s of trump as partner. Or, you may have all the high trump cards, and want to secure the Elemental cards. You can call two of the same card as long as you don’t have one of them in your hand. If you have a 15 of trump and a 14 of trump, but only one of each, you can call the other 15 and 14 of trump as your partner. So, before the hand starts, after announcing trump, you declare which cards will be your partners for that hand.

  • When deciding what suit to call as trump, you want to pick the suit that you have the most of and preferably that you have some high cards in. 

  • You can take the bid as low or as high as bidding stops. A “normal” bid range is anywhere from 250-280 points.

  • If you have six or more of one suit with higher cards in that suit, you’ve got a good place to bid from. Even better would be that you have some 15’s in other suits. But ultimately, there’s a lot of luck in what your partners and other players have in their hands as well as what cards you will pick up in the bank. The best way to learn is to take the bid and take the chance to lead out! You’ve got this!!

  • The person who wins the bid will call two cards as their team members. The players with these cards in their hands will know they are on the team. Everyone else will find out as cards are played through the hand.