Euchre guide

Goal

Win three of the five tricks each hand with your partner, using a trump suit chosen each deal.

Choosing trump

• Only twenty-four cards are used, nine up to Ace in each suit, five dealt to each player.
• A card is turned up and players take turns ordering it up as trump or passing.
• If everyone passes, a second round lets players name a different suit instead.
• With the stick-the-dealer option on, the dealer cannot pass in that second round once everyone else has - they must name a suit.
• The team that fixes trump is the makers and must take at least three tricks.

The bowers

Trump ranking is not the usual one. The Jack of the trump suit is the right bower and the highest card in the game; the Jack of the other suit of the same colour is the left bower and ranks second - and it counts as a trump, not as its printed suit, which catches out almost every new player.

Scoring

• Makers taking three or four tricks score one point; all five scores two.
• If the makers fail to take three they are euchred, and the opponents score two.
• Unless the host turns it off, the trump caller may go alone, playing without their partner: all five tricks alone is worth four.
• The first team to the target score wins - 5, 10 or 15, set in the lobby.