Needed to play: 4 players. 1 standard deck of playing cards

Whist is a trick-taking game and is a forerunner to the card game Bridge. In the United States, Bridge is played more than Whist, but in the UK Whist is still very popular. Whist was played a lot in the 18th and 19th centuries and has inspired many spinoff games. Some Whist versions you may have heard of include Hearts and Spades, which were both created in America.

Whist is a game for four players. All cards are dealt out, and the highest ranking card is ace while the lowest is two. The last card to be dealt, which belongs to the dealer, is placed face up on the table. This card determines the trump for the hand.

The player to the dealers left goes first and plays a card. You must follow the lead suit if you can. If you can and don't, you and your partner will suffer a penalty that is decided upon before the game begins. An example of a penatly would be that the other team receives one game point. A trick is won by the highest trump or if not trumps were played then by the highest card of the suit led.

Winning the game takes seven points. The team with more than six tricks gets one point for each trick after that. Points are also scored for honors, which are the Ace, King, Queen, and Jack of trumps. The team that is dealt these honors receive points. If one team received three honors, they score 2 points. If a team is dealt all four cards, then they add four to their score.

There are variations to the standard game of Whist. Many involve adding the element of bidding to the game. The version Kitty Whist takes the last 4, 5, or 6 cards of the deck and places them in the middle of the playing area. The winner of the bidding round wins the card and can add or any they want to their hand. Dummy Whist allows for three people to play the game with the dummy fourth hand played also by the dealer.

Whist has all the game mechanics that should seem familiar. The basic Whist game is fairly straightfoward while variations of the game are a little more complicated. Because of the simplicity with the basic Whist game, it makes a good card game for families to play together.