How to Play Twenty-Nine: Card Game Rules & Interactive Tutorial

Twenty-nine is a 4 player "trick-taking" game. There are two teams of two, with partners sitting across from each other. Fans of partnership trick-taking also enjoy Sergeant Major.

Below you'll have a chance to learn the rules of the game with our comprehensive guide. You can play through our interactive tutorial above if it's more to your liking. Whichever way you choose, you'll know how to play Twenty-Nine by the end.

Once you feel ready, you can play Twenty-Nine Online directly at World of Card Games. If you're up for it, you can play against other people online, but we suggest playing a couple of games against our bots first.

Let the bidding begin!

Twenty-Nine at a glance

A four player bidding game from South Asia played with a 32 card deck.

Rank of cards

The Jack card has the highest rank. The next highest rank is the 9 card, followed by Ace, 10, King, Queen, 8, and 7 (lowest). Once the trump suit has been declared, cards in the trump suit outrank all other cards.

Objective

The objective is to be the first team to reach 6 points.

Deal

A random player is chosen to be the dealer.

Each player is dealt a hand of 4 cards from a deck of cards containing only A K Q J 10 9 8 7 of each suit. Everyone gets 4 more cards after the bidding phase.

Bid

Starting with the player to the dealer's left and proceeding clockwise around the table, each player places a bid. The bid is a guess at how many points they think their team can take. Players may choose to pass instead of bidding. If not passing, they must bid at least 15, up to a maximum of 28.

If one player makes a bid, the next player must bid higher than that or pass.

Bidding continues either until a player bids 28, or until 3 consecutive players pass. If a bid has already been made, the passes simply end the bidding and the highest bid wins. If all three players pass before anyone has bid, the dealer is forced to bid 15.

Choosing Trump

The player who bid highest now chooses the "trump suit." Cards with the trump suit outrank cards of all other suits.

When the trump suit is chosen, it remains hidden from everyone. It is known only to the player who chose it. It is only revealed later in the game.

Second Deal

After the trump suit is chosen, 4 more cards are dealt to each player, for a total of 8 cards in hand.

Play

The player to the dealer's left starts the trick by playing any card from their hand. Play continues in clockwise order until 4 cards are in the middle pile. You must play a card of the same suit as the lead card if you have one.

The trick is taken by whoever played the highest card with the same suit as the lead card. This is known as "winning a trick".

The trick-taker is awarded points according to these rules: the Jack is worth 3 points, 9 is worth 2 points, and Ace and 10 are worth 1 point each. Other cards are not counted. For example, if there is 1 Jack in the pile, 2 Aces, and a 7, then the trick-taker is awarded 5 points.

The trick winner starts the next trick.

As soon as a player cannot play a card with the same suit as the lead card, then the trump suit must be declared immediately. After that, the player who could not follow the lead card can play any other card in their hand. Even after trump is declared, players must always play a card from the lead suit unless they cannot because they do not have one.

Each trick is normally won by the person who played the highest card of the lead suit. However, if one or more cards in the trump suit are played in the trick, then the highest trump suit wins the trick instead.

Score

After each hand, scores are calculated for each team by adding up the teammate's points. The team which took the last trick gets an extra point so that the total of both teams' points always sums to 29, hence the name of the game.

The player that chose the trump suit is part of the "Declaring" team.

The other team is the "Defending" team.

If the "Declaring" team makes at least the number of points that they bid, they will receive 1 game point. Otherwise, they will lose 1 game point.

The "Defending" team does not score any points.

Royal Pair

The King and Queen of the trump suit are called the "Royal Pair."

After trump has been declared, the player who holds the Royal Pair in their hand can announce it immediately after they or their partner wins a trick. (Note that it is possible, and even likely, that no one holds the Royal Pair, in which case this rule is never active.)

Announcing the Royal Pair affects the requirements for the bid. If a member of the "Declaring" team does it, their bid is reduced by 4 points to a minimum of 15. If the "Defending" team announces the Pair, 4 points are added to the bid, to a maximum of 28.

Seventh Card

In games where the "Seventh Card" option was allowed, the high bidder may choose the trump suit to be determined by the suit of the seventh card that is dealt to them.

This 7th card is kept out of their hand and may not be played until they cannot follow suit during a trick. It cannot be used to lead a trick unless it is the only card the bidder has left.

If you chose the "Seventh Card" option, be aware that trump suit cards in your hand do not have the power to trump until the trump suit is declared. Do not play a trump suit card and expect it to take a trick unless trump has been declared! When you play your Seventh Card, the trump will be declared automatically. The trump suit is also declared if another player cannot follow suit, as usual.

When trump is declared, the 7th card is moved into the declarer's hand. Then, it may be played according to the usual rules.

Double / Redouble

In games where the "Double / Redouble" option was allowed, either player on the "Defending" team can say "Double", once the bid has been won and before the remaining cards are dealt.

If this is done, scores are incremented or decremented by 2 instead of 1 at the end of the hand. So if the "Declaring" team makes their bid, then they are awarded 2 game points. If they do not, then they lose 2 game points.

In response to a "Double" challenge, either player on the "Declaring" team can say "Redouble". If this is done, scores are incremented or decremented by 4, rather than 2. If the "Declaring" team wins, then they are awarded 4 game points. Otherwise, they lose 4 game points.

Game End

The first team to reach 6 points wins! If a team hits -6 points, they lose.

The rules in practice

The card ranking trips up every new player. Say clubs are led and the trick runs 10 of Clubs, King of Clubs, Ace of Clubs, 9 of Clubs. The 9 wins it. In Twenty-Nine the Jack is the highest card of a suit and the 9 is second, and only then come the Ace, 10, King, Queen, 8 and 7. That trick was also expensive, since the 9 is worth 2 points and the Ace and 10 are worth 1 each, so the winner banks 4 points for their team.

The hidden trump comes out on its own schedule. Suppose the high bidder secretly chose hearts, and later a spade is led to a player who has no spades. Trump must be declared immediately, so everyone now knows hearts are trump. That player may then throw any card, and if they throw a heart, it beats every spade in the trick. If another player is also out of spades and plays a higher heart, they take it instead. Before the declaration, no card had any trump power at all.

Scoring runs through the bid. Say your team bid 17 and chose trump. If your side captures 17 or more of the hand's 29 points, your team scores 1 game point. Capture 16 or fewer and you lose 1 instead, while the defenders score nothing either way. The Royal Pair can move the target. If you held the King and Queen of trump and announced them after your team won a trick, a bid of 20 would drop to 16, which is a much easier hand to make.

Strategy basics

A few habits will win you more hands from your very first game.

• Bid on Jacks and 9s. A hand without at least two Jacks, or a Jack and 9 of the same suit, is usually a pass.
• You only see 4 of your 8 cards when you bid, so keep early bids modest and treat the second deal as a bonus.
• If you have to choose a trump suit without a clear favorite, pick the suit where you hold the most cards.
• Feed points to your partner. When their card is winning the trick, drop your Aces and 10s on it.
• Count the cards. Each suit has only 8, so once 4 have fallen in a single trick, the next lead of that suit is likely to be trumped.
• Fight for the last trick when the hand is close. It carries an extra point, and 1 point is often the whole difference between making and missing a bid.

History

Twenty-nine (29) is among the "Jass" family of card games, in which the Jack and 9 rank the highest. It should not be confused with Twenty-eight (28), a similar card game with slightly different rules. It is especially popular in South Asia.

Frequently asked questions

When is the trump suit revealed?

The first time a player can't follow the lead suit, trump must be declared immediately. Until then, only the player who chose it knows the suit. On tables using the Seventh Card option, trump is also declared automatically when the high bidder plays their seventh card.

What happens if everyone passes during bidding?

Bidding ends after three consecutive passes. If that happens before anyone has bid, the dealer is forced to bid 15 and must choose the trump suit.

Do trump cards win tricks before trump is declared?

No. Before the declaration, the highest card of the lead suit wins every trick. This matters most with the Seventh Card option, where you can hold cards of the eventual trump suit that have no trump power yet. You must also always follow the lead suit when you can, even after trump is declared.

Who gets the extra point for the last trick?

The team that takes the last trick of the hand gets 1 extra card point. That's why the two teams' points always add up to 29 rather than 28.

What does the TRAM button mean?

"The Rest Are Mine." It appears when it's guaranteed you'll win every remaining trick, and clicking it ends the hand right away by giving those tricks to you.

Helpful Links

Pagat.com Twenty-Nine Page