Auction 45 Rules & How to Play the Game
Message from the Editor
These are Nova Scotia Rules
I've been fortunate enough to have been playing card games for most of my life. I've learned a lot of card games over my 40+ years but I must say that Auction 45's is my favorite. To be honest, there are a number of "variants" to this game. It's probably a good idea to ask for the "house rules" before starting a game. It's as if each region in Nova Scotia and abroad can have certain rules to abide by. However, these are the rules my family uses. Hope you enjoy the game as much as we do (every Thursday night)!
Suits
This is a trump game, hence all suits come into effect… Spades, Diamonds, Hearts and Clubs.
Who can Play?
My son started when he was 12, so I’m going to say 12 and above. However, if the person you are teaching the game to has ever played a trump game, they should be able to catch on pretty quickly. You can either play with 4 or 5 people.
Decide on the Game Structure
PARTNERS
4 people
4 people in Total
When playing partners (2 people per team), you always have the help of your partner and vice versa. Depending on which one of you made the bid, you can help your partner reach their bid by playing the trump you have strategically.
CUT THROAT
5 people
5 people in Total
When playing cut throat you "call" for the next lowest card you need. Whoever has this card has to play that card in the second round (there are 5 rounds to each hand) and is therefor your partner for that round only. Even your "partner" can play to their advantage and not necessarily how you want them to play.
The Basics of Auction FortyFives
Simply, the object of the game is to accumulate 125 points (regardless of game structure chosen above) by acquiring as many tricks as you can in each round. There are 5 tricks to each round.
You start off by shuffling the deck. Your partner (if playing partners) should be diagonally across from you. Then whoever shuffled the deck of cards deals one card to each person playing until a jack (of any suit) appears. The first person to get the first jack, is the dealer for the first round. From this point forward, the person to the left of the dealer will be the next dealer and so on for the remaining rounds until someone reaches 125 points.
When the dealer has been determined, they will shuffle the deck again. Once shuffled, they will pass out three cards per person playing. Then they will put two cards in the middle of the playing area. This area is often called the kitty. They will then proceed to give each person the remaining two cards/person for a total of five cards each. The dealer will then place two more cards in the kitty for a total of 4 cards.
The person to the left of the person who dealt will start the bidding. You can bid as follows:
* Assuming you have the highest trump.
** You can bid 60/120 ONLY if you are below zero in points.
The person who was the dealer for any round always has the final say. They can say “take it!” or “hold ya!“. Whoever wins the bidding calls trump. They keep whatever trump is in their hand as well as the kitty. However, before they take the kitty, they must tell everyone what trump is (ie spades, diamonds, clubs or hearts).
Time
The amount of time it takes to play a game depends on the group playing. However an average game takes around 45 minutes.
Scorekeeper
This game requires a scorekeeper. The scorekeepers job is to record the "tricks" each person or group received after each round. It is also their duty to let everyone know when anyone (or team) reaches 95 points.
Kitty
The 4 cards in the middle of the playing area is called the kitty. These cards are awarded to the player who won the bidding.
Game Objective
The object of the game is to acquire 125 points by earning tricks. Other variations only require 120. For other rules and how to play the game, go to the rules page.
Playing the Game
When the players have discarded all of their non-trumps, the dealer will then ask them how many cards they require. If the answer is more then 3, then the dealer hands them 3 cards the first time around and then comes back around for the second time and give them either 1 or 2 cards.
Once everyone has their cards dealt to them, the person to the left of the bidder (person who won the bidding, see above) starts. The person to the left of the bidder can lay a trump or non-trump card. If a trump card is led, then you MUST play a trump card (if you have any). If a non-trump (suit that is not trump) is played the next player can play a non-trump or a trump depending on their own strategy.
Normally, the player to the right of the bidder will what we call “ruff” them. Ruffing means you will force the bidder to play a high trump card to win the trick.
The highest to lowest trump cards are listed in the image below (you can download the below image here):
Tricks
Each round there is what is called "tricks". Tricks are simply who won a round. For instance, if trump was spades and everyone played a trump and the final person played the three of spades (which happens to be the highest trump in this example), then this would be one trick worth 5 points. If anyone plays the 5 of trump then they would earn 10 points for that one trick. All tricks should add up to 30 points when a round has been completed (regardless if the 5 was played or not).
Ruffing
The term "ruffing" refers to making the bidder play a high trump card to win a trick.
Points
Every "trick" is worth 5 points, except for the trick that has the highest trump (usually whoever played the 5) is worth 10 for a total of 30 points.
What are the top 3 cards after trump is called?
5
The five of trump is always the highest card worth 10 points.*
Jack
The jack of trump is always the second highest card and is worth 5 points.
Ace of Hearts
Regardless of trump suit, the Ace of Hearts is always the 3rd highest card and is worth 5 points.
* However, if the 5 is not played, the next highest trump is worth 10 points.
Trump and Non-Trump
Trump is the suit (diamonds, clubs, hearts or spades) that the bidder has called once they were determined to be the successful bidder or the dealer elected to hold (see above). From this point forward all trumps win over non-trumps.
Non-trumps (suits that are not trump) are still viable and can win you a trick (often in the last round of a hand). The important thing about non-trump is that whatever non-trump suit was laid, is the highest card unless someone can beat that card in the non-trump hierarchy.
You can download the following image here.
The following are Optional Rules
Reneging
You can only renege the 5, Jack or Ace of Hearts. However if the 5 or Jack is played and you only have the Ace of Hearts, then you would have to play it. Same goes for the Jack, if they 5 was played and the Jack is your only trump, then you must play it. However, as long as one of these three cards are not led and you have other trump, you don’t have to play them. A good rule of thumb is that you can only renege on trump lower than the card you have.
Top 6
If a person doesn’t have anything in their hand to go on (ie a force bid), they have the option of going on the kitty. However, if there is nothing to go on in the kitty, they can opt to take the Top 6 cards off the deck. When this is their choice, they must discard one card and cannot draw any further after they call trump.
Misdeal
If a person misdeals a hand, their dealer status is revoked and the next player to their left is granted to be the new dealer. Hence, pay attention to the cards you are dealing, it may cost you the game!
Ticks
Every time you lose a bid, you get a tick. Accumulating 4 ticks (at least in our house) is called going out the back door. Your part in the game is over. If playing the cut throat version of Auction Forty Fives, the remaining players continue on until there is a winner. Also with cut throat, you MUST bid in order to win. You can't win on the coat-tails of another player.