What is the Rook card game? Rook is a trick-taking card game for four players in two partnerships, played with a 41-card deck that includes the special Rook Bird card. Teams bid for the right to name the trump suit, capture point-valued cards called counters by winning tricks, and race to 300 points. The answers below cover the questions players ask most. They’re drawn from the official Rook rules and the documented variations, and where a variant differs from the official game, it’s named. So if you’re settling a table argument, the ruling you need is probably here.
The basics
What is the Rook card game?
Rook is a trick-taking card game for four players in two partnerships, played with a 41-card deck that includes the special Rook Bird card. Teams bid for the right to name the trump suit, then capture point-valued cards called counters by winning tricks. The first team to reach 300 points wins.
How many players can play Rook?
The official rules are written for four players in two teams of two, with partners sitting opposite each other. There is also a five-player adaptation played with a standard deck plus a joker as the Rook: it is scored individually, and the bid-winner may name a card to make its holder a secret partner.
How many cards are in a Rook deck?
The official game is played with 41 cards: the 1s, 2s, 3s, and 4s are removed and the Rook Bird card is added. Some variants, such as Western New York Rook, keep the 1s through 4s in the deal, giving each of the four players 13 cards with five in the nest.
Can you play Rook with a regular deck of cards?
Yes. Remove the 2s, 3s, and 4s from a standard deck and add the joker to serve as the Rook Bird card. Aces play high in tricks; each 5 is worth 5 points, each 10 is worth 10 points, each ace is worth 15 points, and the joker is worth 20 points.
Bidding and the nest
How do you bid in Rook?
Bidding starts with the player to the left of the dealer and passes clockwise, in increments of 5 points. The minimum bid is 70 and the maximum is 120, the value of all the counters in the game. A player who passes may not bid again that round. The high bidder takes the nest, lays five cards aside, and names the trump suit.
What is the nest in Rook?
The nest is a group of five cards dealt to the center of the table during the deal. The high bidder adds the nest to his or her hand and lays any five cards aside before naming trump. The player who takes the last trick of the round captures the nest and scores any counters in it. In some variants it is called the kitty, the widow, or the Kat.
Who gets the nest points in Rook?
The player who takes the last trick in a round captures the nest and scores any counters in it. The Kentucky West(ish) rules are similar: the winner of the last hand gets the points from the kitty.
How is trump chosen in Rook?
The winner of the bidding names the trump suit. After the high bidder adds the five-card nest to his or her hand and lays five cards aside, he or she names the suit that will be trump for the hand.
Trick play and the Rook Bird card
Do you have to follow suit in Rook?
Yes. A player must either follow suit or play the Rook Bird card, which is the only card that may be played even when you can follow suit. A player with no cards of the leading suit may play any other card, including a trump card or the Rook Bird card.
Can you lead trump in Rook?
Yes. Under the official rules the player leading a trick may play any card of any suit, including trump. The Kentucky West(ish) rules differ: trump cannot be led until someone has played a trump card on a trick where they could not match the color led.
Is the Rook card high or low?
Under the official rules the Rook Bird card is the highest trump in the game and takes any trick in which it is played. Several variants reverse this: in the Kentucky West(ish) rules and Western New York Rook, the Rook is the lowest trump, beating any non-trump card but losing to every other trump.
Can you play the Rook at any time?
Yes. Under the official rules the Rook Bird card may be played at any time, even if you are able to follow suit, and it is the only card that may be played this way. One forced play applies: if the trump suit is led and you have no other trump card, you must play the Rook Bird card. In the Woodson Patrick variant, by contrast, the Rook must follow suit whenever possible.
Scoring
How much is the Rook Bird card worth?
The Rook Bird card is worth 20 points, making it the most valuable single counter in the deck. By comparison, each 5 is worth 5 points and each 10 and 14 is worth 10 points under the official rules.
How many points do you play to in Rook?
The official game is played to 300 points: the first team to reach 300 wins, and if both teams have over 300 at the end of a round, the higher total wins. Several variants play longer games: the Kentucky West(ish), Western New York, 2-High, and Western Kentucky versions all play to 500.
What does “set” mean in Rook?
A bidding team goes set when it fails to capture at least as many points as it bid. The team loses a number of points equal to the amount of the bid and scores nothing for the counters it captured that round, while the opposing team receives points for any counters it captured.
Keep reading
- Official Rook rules: the complete rulebook
- Rook variations: regional and standard-deck versions
- Rook glossary: every term defined
Questions answered? Play Rook online.