Baloot is one of the most popular card games in Saudi Arabia. It is a four-player game where two players sit across from each other to form a team. The objective of each team is to try to gain the highest number of points by collecting the most tricks.
Cards and Distribution
A single deck of 32 cards is used, excluding the two jokers and cards numbered from 2 to 6. At the beginning, each player receives 5 cards, and the distribution goes counterclockwise from right to left. Then, a card is revealed on the table, known as the "buyer," which determines the type of the game: San or Hukm. The order of cards in San and Hukm from weakest to strongest is as follows:
· Hukm: 7 - 8 - Q - K - 10 - A - 9 - J
· San: 7 - 8 - 9 - J - Q - K - 10 - A
Determining the Game
The buyer, the player to the right of the dealer, has the following options:
１. San (play without Tarneeb): If chosen, the buying process ends, and the game type is immediately determined as San.
２. Hukm (choosing a Tarneeb card): If selected in the first round, the game type is not immediately determined as Hukm. The round continues, and if the player chooses San after selecting Hukm, the game type becomes San immediately without asking the other players. This is because San is stronger than Hukm.
If a player chooses Bess (pass) after selecting Hukm, the question returns to the player who chose Hukm. They can either confirm Hukm or change the game type to San. For example, if the buyer card is an Ace, then the game type becomes Hukm, and Aces are considered the strongest regardless of their value.
1. Bess (pass without any request): This means the player does not want to buy in this round. If all players choose Bess in the first round, the second round begins. In the second round, players have three options: San, Wala, or Second Hukm.
· If any player chooses San in the second round, the game becomes San immediately.
· If Second Hukm is chosen (the Hukm chosen by the player in the second round after all players chose Bess in the first round), it differs from regular Hukm. The type of Hukm is different from the buyer card.
2. Ashkal (visible to the dealer and the player on the left): Ashkal is the same as the San, but the only difference is that the player who wins the buying process gives the buyer card to their partner instead of keeping it.
*Note: After completing the buying process, the winner gets the buyer card and two additional cards. Three cards are then distributed to each of the other players.
Doubling the Game Result
If Hukm is confirmed, and one of the players chooses to double, the Hukm seeker and the opposing team are given the option to double the points in the following order:
· Double: Double the points of the winning team in the round.
· Triple: Triple the points of the winning team in the round.
· Four: Quadruple the points of the winning team in the round.
· Gahwa: If the team wins the round, their points are calculated, and they are automatically declared the winners without completing the game.
If the game result is doubled or quadrupled, the player must specify the type of play, either open or closed!
- Closed Play: No player is allowed to start any round with a Hukm card if they have any other type in their cards.
- Open Play: Any player is allowed to start any round with a Hukm card. If San is chosen and the team that chose it has more than 100 points, and the other team has fewer than 100 points, the team with fewer than 100 points is given the option to double.
How to Play
1. The player who won the buying process starts by playing any card on the floor, and other players must play cards of the same suit.
2. The player with the highest card wins the trick, and the winner throws the next card.
3. If a card is played on the floor, and no player has a card of the same suit, and the game is Hukm, the player has the option to play a Hukm card, as Hukm cards are stronger than any other card.
4. The winner of the trick is the player who played the Hukm card unless another player plays a stronger Hukm card.
5. The round ends when the players run out of cards.
Projects
These are additional points that players can earn if they have certain card combinations, as follows:
- Sara (three in a row): Three consecutive cards of the same suit.
- Khamsin (fifty): Four consecutive cards of the same suit.
- Mia (hundred): This type is only found in Hukm, and it is to have five consecutive cards of the same suit, or four cards (10 – J – Q – K ) of the same suit, or four Aces.
- Arba'miya (four hundred): This type is only found in San, and it is to have four Aces.
- Baloot: This type is only found in Hukm, where the player has both King and Queen among their cards.
Projects are announced in the first round, and each player is allowed to announce only two projects (the Baloot project is automatically added). The team with the larger project is allowed to reveal their project in the second round.
Scoring Game Points
The game ends when one of the teams accumulates 152 points or when one of the teams wins a "Qahwa" round. The scoring process is divided into two stages:
1. Calculating the Abnats
In this stage, each team calculates the sum of the values of the cards they collected during the round. The values of the cards in San and Hukm are as follows:
San Card Values:
9 – 7 = 0
10 = 10
J = 2
Q = 3
K = 4
A = 11
Hukm Card Values:
8 – 7 = 0
9 = 14
10 = 10
J = 20
Q = 3
K = 4
A = 11
Calculating Points:
· In San: The sum of the Abnats is rounded to the nearest ten, multiplied by 2, and then divided by 10. If rounding is difficult, double the sum and divide by 10.
· In Hukm: Divide the sum of the Abnats by 10 and round it to the nearest whole number (e.g., 15.5 is rounded to 15, 15.6 is rounded to 16).
· Add to each player's points the points from the projects and table points (the team that takes the last trick gets 10 additional Abnats). If the winning team cannot achieve the required points in San, they lose the round and receive 0 points, while the other team gets 26 points in San and 16 points in Hukm. If one team takes all the tricks in a single round, they get 44 points with project points, and the other team gets 0 points.