How to play Sergeant Major (3-5-8): card game rules & interactive tutorial

Sergeant Major is a 3-player "trick-taking" card game in the Whist group, also known as Three-Five-Eight. For more trick-taking with bidding, consider Twenty-Nine.

Below you'll find a brief description of the game, along with a comprehensive set of rules. If you're looking for a more interactive way to learn the game, check out our interactive tutorial above. It will walk you through the game in more detail and give you tips on how to win.

Once you know the rules, it's time to play Sergeant Major online. At World of Card Games, you can play against the computer or against people from all over the world.

So grab your deck and get ready to march into battle as we unveil the secrets of this underrated classic. Sergeant Major, your mission begins now!

Sergeant Major at a glance

Three players chasing different trick quotas that rotate every deal.

Rank of cards

Cards are ranked from Ace (highest) down to 2 (lowest).

Objective

The objective is to be the first player to take 12 tricks in one hand.

Deal

A random player is chosen to be the dealer.

Each player is dealt a hand of 16 cards from a standard deck of 52 cards. The remaining 4 cards form a "kitty" and are placed to one side.

Players are assigned a target number of tricks that they must take. The dealer's target is 8, the player to the left of the dealer has a target of 5, and the player to the right of the dealer has a target of 3.

Choose trump

The dealer picks clubs, spades, hearts, or diamonds as the "trump" suit. Cards with the trump suit outrank cards of all other suits.

Next, the dealer chooses 4 cards to discard and then takes the cards from the kitty.

Play

The player who is left of the dealer leads the trick by playing a card first. Turns are taken in clockwise order, each player "following suit" by playing a card of the same suit as the first card, if possible.

Once everyone has played a card, the pile of 3 cards is taken by the person who played the highest card with the same suit as the lead card. This is known as "winning a trick".

If a player does not have a card with the same suit as the lead card, they may play any card. Cards with the trump suit are special because they override the rank of other cards. If a card in the trump suit is played on the trick, then the highest trump suit card will win the trick.

The trick winner starts the next trick.

Exchange

When all cards have been played, the deal moves clockwise and a new set of cards is dealt to each player.

If a player did not take their target number of tricks in the previous hand, then they are said to have "under-tricked." Players who have met more than their target number of tricks are called "over-trickers" and are given an advantage.

• If only one player over-tricked, they trade with each under-tricker. The number of cards equals how many tricks that under-tricker fell short. Say your target was 8 and you took only 5. You fell 3 short, so the over-tricker trades 3 cards with you.
• If two players over-tricked, both trade with the single under-tricker. Each trades as many cards as they went over their own target. Say you had a target of 3 and took 5 tricks. You went 2 over, so you trade 2 cards. The over-tricker with the higher target for the new hand trades first.
• After cards are handed from the over-tricker to the under-tricker, the under-tricker is forced to return the highest card (or cards) in their hand that are of the same suit as those cards that were given to them. For example, if the under-tricker is given the 2 of Clubs and they have the Ace of Clubs, then they must pass the Ace of Clubs back to the over-tricker!

Discard and play

After the exchange, the dealer calls trump, discards four cards, and takes the four cards from the kitty.

If the dealer under-tricked, they gave one or more high cards back to an over-tricker in the exchange. The dealer must show that over-tricker every kitty card that is higher than a card they gave back in the same suit. For example, say the dealer gave back the Jack and the 4 of Diamonds. If the kitty holds the King and the 5 of Diamonds, the dealer shows both, because each is higher than the 4.

After showing any such cards, play begins. The first card is played by the person who is left of the dealer, as before.

Game end

The first player to take 12 tricks (or more) during a hand wins! The game ends right then, so the rest of the hand is not played.

The rules in practice

Trumps decide most close tricks. Suppose spades are trump and the King of Hearts is led. The next player has no hearts and plays the 2 of Spades. The last player follows with the Ace of Hearts. The 2 of Spades takes the trick, because any trump beats every card outside the trump suit. You're never forced to trump, though. When you can't follow suit, throwing a useless card from another side suit is often the smarter play.

The targets are what make the game. Say you were the dealer with a target of 8 and you took only 6 tricks. The player on your left had a target of 5 and took 7. At the start of the next hand they hand you 2 cards, one for each trick you fell short. For each card you must return your highest card of the same suit. If they pass you the 2 of Clubs and the 3 of Diamonds while you hold the Ace of Clubs and the King of Diamonds, both of those go straight back to them.

The kitty keeps the dealer honest. Imagine you're the dealer after missing your target and the exchange just cost you your King of Hearts. If you pick up the kitty and find the Ace of Hearts inside, you must show it to the over-tricker. They now know exactly where that Ace sits for the whole hand.

Strategy basics

A few habits will win you more hands, because Sergeant Major rewards players who think one hand ahead.

• Beat your target whenever you can. Over-tricking earns you next hand's exchange, where you trade your worst cards for someone else's best.
• As dealer, call trump in your longest strong suit. You choose trump before you see the kitty, so don't gamble on what it might hold.
• Play your Aces early, before the other players go void and start trumping them.
• Trumps alone rarely reach 12 tricks. Count on side-suit winners for the second half of the hand.
• In the exchange, give low cards in the suits where you want the under-tricker's best card. They have no choice about what to return.
• Track everyone's trick count against their target late in the hand. One stolen trick can flip who wins the next exchange.

History

Sergeant Major is said to have been popular in Britain's Royal Air Force, which likely explains the military name. Its other name, 3-5-8, comes from the three seat targets you play toward every hand.

Frequently asked questions

Who leads the first trick in Sergeant Major?

The player to the dealer's left, after the dealer has called trump, discarded 4 cards and taken the kitty. The winner of each trick leads the next one.

Do I have to play a trump if I can't follow suit?

No. If you have no cards of the led suit, you may play any card you like. A trump wins the trick unless someone plays a higher trump, but you're free to throw away a low card from another suit instead.

Do the targets change between hands?

Yes. The deal moves clockwise after every hand and your target follows your seat. The new dealer aims for 8 tricks, the player on the dealer's left for 5, and the player on the right for 3.

What happens when two players beat their targets?

Both of them exchange cards with the single under-tricker. The over-tricker with the higher target for the new hand trades first. Each trades as many cards as they went over their own target last hand.

What does the TRAM button mean?

"The rest are mine." It appears when you lead a trick and the game can tell that your cards win every remaining trick, whatever the others play. It isn't offered on the first or the last trick. Clicking it ends the hand right away by giving those tricks to you.

Helpful links

Pagat.com Sergeant Major (3-5-8) page