Rules of Pepper
Want to learn a great card game? We learned the game from good friends of ours, Stan and Judy, who learned the game in eastern Iowa. It appears to be a variation of euchre. I've never seen the rules published anywhere, so I've written a set of rules describing the way that Sue and I learned to play. It's our favorite card game!
PLAYERS: This is a four-player partnership game. Partners face each other across the table.
CARDS: A special deck of 24 cards is used. From a regular deck of 52 cards, discard all twos to eights inclusive, retaining the nines through aces.
RANK: Before playing each hand, a determination is made as to whether the hand will be played in “no-trump”, or with one of the four suits as trump. In the event that the hand is played as no-trump, the rank of cards in each of the four suits for that hand is A (high), K, Q, J, 10, 9.
In the event that one of the four suits is declared as the trump suit for that hand, the highest trump is the Jack of the trump suit. The second-highest trump is the other Jack of same color, called the “Jick”. For example, if spades are trumps, the Jack of Spades is the highest card in the trump suit, and the Jack of Clubs is the second-highest card in the trump suit. The rest of the trump suit ranks A (third-best), K, Q, 10, 9. In each of the other three suits, the rank is A (high), K, Q, J (if not the Jick), 10, 9.
THE DEAL: Each player receives six cards, dealt one at a time. After the first hand, the deal for each succeeding hand rotates clockwise around the table until the game is complete.
THE BIDDING: Each player in turn, beginning with the player to the left of the dealer, has one chance to bid or pass. The possible bids are one, two, three, four, five, six, or “Pepper”. No suit is mentioned. Each bid must be higher than the preceding bid. The winning bidder then names the trump suit, or declares that the hand is to be played in no-trump. Hereinafter, The term “trump suit” will be assumed to include both no-trump, and trump in any of the four suits. The winning bidder will be referred to simply as “the bidder”, and the partner of the winning bidder will be referred to as “the bidder’s partner”. The team who wins the bid will be referred to as the “offensive team”. The other team will be referred to as the “defensive team”.
PEPPER BID: The “Pepper” bid is a special bid to take all six tricks. A Pepper bid completes the bidding for that hand, as there can be no higher bid. When Pepper is bid, variations in play are introduced. First, the player who bids Pepper identifies the trump suit by declaring “I’m going to Pepper in … (the selected trump suit)”. The bidder then has the option of asking his/her partner for their best card in the selected trump suit. If this option is exercised by the bidder, the bidder and the bidder’s partner each select one card from their respective hands. The two cards are placed face down on the table, and the exchange of cards takes place. The bidder also has the option of declaring that he/she has elected to play their hand as dealt, without an exchange of a card with the bidder’s partner. Once the exchange of cards is completed, or the bidder declares that he/she is going to play their cards as dealt, the bidder’s partner lays his/her cards face down on the table. When Pepper is bid, the bidder and the two members of the opposing team play the hand without the participation of the bidder’s partner.
DECISION TO PLAY: As soon as the bidder completes the naming of the trump suit (and the exchange of cards, if Pepper has been bid), the defensive team must decide whether to play the hand, or to cede the hand to the offensive team. To make this decision, each member of the defensive team may make general statements, or ask general questions, of their partner. Examples might include “Do you think you can take a trick?”, or “I think I can take a trick”, or “I might be able to take a trick, but I have some doubt”. The defensive team may review the bidding just completed, and may review and discuss the team scores. The defensive team may not, however, indicate in any way the contents of their hands, or the possible contents of the hands of the offensive team, or possible strategy for playing the hand.
THE PLAY: The bidder makes the opening lead. The hands are played out in tricks. The play rotates clockwise around the table. Each player must follow suit to the lead, if possible. If unable to follow suit to the lead, a player may play any card. If the hand is being played in no-trump, a trick is won by the highest card played of the suit led. If one of the four suits was declared as trump, a trick is won by the highest trump played, or, if no trump was played, by the highest card played of the suit led. A winner of a trick leads to the next trick.
SCORING: The score is kept on paper, with a separate column for each of the two teams. If the hand was ceded by the defensive team, their team score does not change, and the offensive team is awarded six points, unless Pepper was bid, in which case the offensive team is awarded 12 points.
If the hand was played, each team counts the number of tricks taken. If the offensive team has taken at least the number of tricks they bid, the team scores a point for each trick taken, unless Pepper was bid, in which case the offensive team is awarded 12 points (two points for each of the six tricks taken). If the offensive team failed to make or exceed their bid, six points are deducted from their team score, unless Pepper was bid, in which case 12 points are deducted from their team score. If the defensive team captures at least one trick, the defensive team scores the number of tricks won. If the defensive team failed to capture at least one trick, six points are deducted from their team score.
GAME: The team that first reaches a total of 42 or more points wins the game. In the event that both teams reach a total of 42 or more points on the same hand, the team with the greatest number of points wins the game. In the event that both teams reach a total of 42 or more points on the same hand, and both teams have the same score, the team that won the bid on the last hand played wins the game.
NEW DEAL: There must be a new deal by the same dealer if a card is exposed or found face up in the deck during the deal, of if the deck is found to be incorrect.
CUE BIDS: During the bidding round, a bid of one or two by either of the players in the first two positions to the left of the dealer is a special “cue” bid, intended to provide information to the bidder’s partner. A bid of one in either of the first two positions always means that the bidding player has one or more aces in his/her hand. A bid of two in either of the first two positions always means that the bidding player has at least one black jack and at least one red jack in his/her hand. A player in the first or second position should never bid one or two unless his/her hand meets the condition of that special “cue” bid.
EXCHANGING CARDS: When Pepper is bid, and the bidder asks the bidder’s partner for their best card in the trump suit, the bidder’s partner should always provide the bidder with the highest-ranking trump card from the hand of the bidder’s partner. If one of the four suits was declared to be trump, and the bidder’s partner has no card in that suit, then the highest ranking no-trump card in the hand should be passed. For example, if spades are declared as trump, and the bidder’s partner has no spade to pass, then an Ace in another suit would be the best card to pass. And, if no-trump is declared to be trump, the best card to pass would be an Ace.
When Pepper is bid, and the bidder requests a best card from his/her partner, the defensive team will watch facial expressions as trump is named and the exchange card is requested, will watch speed of card selection as the bidder’s partner selects a card to pass, and will watch facial expressions as the bidder receives the card passed by his/her partner, all in an attempt to discern the comfort level of the offensive team with their Pepper bid. The offensive team may try to camouflage their comfort, or lack of comfort, with words or actions designed to mislead the defensive team.
PLAYING HIGH OR LOW: Play often begins with the bidder capturing the first few tricks played. The bidder’s partner has an opportunity to substantially assist his/her team though the proper selection of cards played on those first few tricks captured by the bidder. If one of the four suits was declared trump, the bidder’s partner will normally (though not always) want to play their lowest card of the suit led by the bidder. If, however, the hand is being played in no-trump, the bidder’s partner should play their highest card of the suit led by the bidder. If the bidder leads the Ace of Clubs, and his/her partner has the King of Clubs and the Ten of Clubs, the King should be played. In some cases, this will result in the loss of a later trick that might have been captured by the King. But, more often, the exposure of the King will help the winning bidder set up a long suit (Clubs in this example), and make other smaller Clubs good, at the same time allowing the bidder to retain control of the lead.
SIGNALS: Play typically begins with the bidder capturing one or more tricks. When the bidder elects, or is forced, to relinquish control, he/she would typically like to pass control to their partner, by leading a card that will result in the capture of the trick by their partner. While the bidder is in control, his/her partner may be able to signal the best suit for the bidder to lead in order to pass control to the partner. If the bidder’s partner has an opportunity to slough a card on a trick that will be won by the bidder, the first such slough should be considered by the bidder to be an invitation from his/her partner to lead a card in the same suit as that of the sloughed card. As an example, if the bidder’s partner holds an Ace and a Queen in Diamonds, and Diamonds are not trump, the slough of the Queen by the bidder’s partner, on a trick that will probably be won by the bidder, is a signal to the bidder to lead a Diamond if he/she wants to pass control to their partner. The bidder’s partner can then, hopefully, capture the Diamond trick with their Ace, and will then have an opportunity to lead any other strong trick-taking cards in their hand. The defensive team should also watch for these signals, as they may want to avoid leading a card of the suit signaled by the bidder’s partner.
STRATEGY: A cue bid of one or two by either of the players in the first two positions to the left of the dealer can be very valuable to the cue bidder’s partner. A bid of one, indicating one or more Aces, can be of great value to the bidder’s partner considering either a no-trump bid or a Pepper bid. A bid of two, indicating possession of at least one red Jack and one black Jack, often provides the cue bidder’s partner with the information he/she needs to bid Pepper in one of the four suits. Pepper is seldom bid in a suit without both the Jack and the Jick. A cue bid of two tells your partner that you can provide a Jack or a Jick, in an exchange of cards, in any suit that your partner might consider naming as trump on a Pepper bid.
If a cue bid of two is made, and the cue bidder’s partner wins the bid at a level other than Pepper and declares one of the four suits as trump, the winning bidder will want to exercise caution about leading the Jack or Jick of trump on the first trick. The partner who made the cue bid may be forced to waste his/her singleton Jack or Jick on a good trick. Often, a better strategy for the winning bidder is to initially lead a low trump, and allow the cue bidder to take the trick with his/her Jack or Jick of trump.
PLAYERS: This is a four-player partnership game. Partners face each other across the table.
CARDS: A special deck of 24 cards is used. From a regular deck of 52 cards, discard all twos to eights inclusive, retaining the nines through aces.
RANK: Before playing each hand, a determination is made as to whether the hand will be played in “no-trump”, or with one of the four suits as trump. In the event that the hand is played as no-trump, the rank of cards in each of the four suits for that hand is A (high), K, Q, J, 10, 9.
In the event that one of the four suits is declared as the trump suit for that hand, the highest trump is the Jack of the trump suit. The second-highest trump is the other Jack of same color, called the “Jick”. For example, if spades are trumps, the Jack of Spades is the highest card in the trump suit, and the Jack of Clubs is the second-highest card in the trump suit. The rest of the trump suit ranks A (third-best), K, Q, 10, 9. In each of the other three suits, the rank is A (high), K, Q, J (if not the Jick), 10, 9.
THE DEAL: Each player receives six cards, dealt one at a time. After the first hand, the deal for each succeeding hand rotates clockwise around the table until the game is complete.
THE BIDDING: Each player in turn, beginning with the player to the left of the dealer, has one chance to bid or pass. The possible bids are one, two, three, four, five, six, or “Pepper”. No suit is mentioned. Each bid must be higher than the preceding bid. The winning bidder then names the trump suit, or declares that the hand is to be played in no-trump. Hereinafter, The term “trump suit” will be assumed to include both no-trump, and trump in any of the four suits. The winning bidder will be referred to simply as “the bidder”, and the partner of the winning bidder will be referred to as “the bidder’s partner”. The team who wins the bid will be referred to as the “offensive team”. The other team will be referred to as the “defensive team”.
PEPPER BID: The “Pepper” bid is a special bid to take all six tricks. A Pepper bid completes the bidding for that hand, as there can be no higher bid. When Pepper is bid, variations in play are introduced. First, the player who bids Pepper identifies the trump suit by declaring “I’m going to Pepper in … (the selected trump suit)”. The bidder then has the option of asking his/her partner for their best card in the selected trump suit. If this option is exercised by the bidder, the bidder and the bidder’s partner each select one card from their respective hands. The two cards are placed face down on the table, and the exchange of cards takes place. The bidder also has the option of declaring that he/she has elected to play their hand as dealt, without an exchange of a card with the bidder’s partner. Once the exchange of cards is completed, or the bidder declares that he/she is going to play their cards as dealt, the bidder’s partner lays his/her cards face down on the table. When Pepper is bid, the bidder and the two members of the opposing team play the hand without the participation of the bidder’s partner.
DECISION TO PLAY: As soon as the bidder completes the naming of the trump suit (and the exchange of cards, if Pepper has been bid), the defensive team must decide whether to play the hand, or to cede the hand to the offensive team. To make this decision, each member of the defensive team may make general statements, or ask general questions, of their partner. Examples might include “Do you think you can take a trick?”, or “I think I can take a trick”, or “I might be able to take a trick, but I have some doubt”. The defensive team may review the bidding just completed, and may review and discuss the team scores. The defensive team may not, however, indicate in any way the contents of their hands, or the possible contents of the hands of the offensive team, or possible strategy for playing the hand.
THE PLAY: The bidder makes the opening lead. The hands are played out in tricks. The play rotates clockwise around the table. Each player must follow suit to the lead, if possible. If unable to follow suit to the lead, a player may play any card. If the hand is being played in no-trump, a trick is won by the highest card played of the suit led. If one of the four suits was declared as trump, a trick is won by the highest trump played, or, if no trump was played, by the highest card played of the suit led. A winner of a trick leads to the next trick.
SCORING: The score is kept on paper, with a separate column for each of the two teams. If the hand was ceded by the defensive team, their team score does not change, and the offensive team is awarded six points, unless Pepper was bid, in which case the offensive team is awarded 12 points.
If the hand was played, each team counts the number of tricks taken. If the offensive team has taken at least the number of tricks they bid, the team scores a point for each trick taken, unless Pepper was bid, in which case the offensive team is awarded 12 points (two points for each of the six tricks taken). If the offensive team failed to make or exceed their bid, six points are deducted from their team score, unless Pepper was bid, in which case 12 points are deducted from their team score. If the defensive team captures at least one trick, the defensive team scores the number of tricks won. If the defensive team failed to capture at least one trick, six points are deducted from their team score.
GAME: The team that first reaches a total of 42 or more points wins the game. In the event that both teams reach a total of 42 or more points on the same hand, the team with the greatest number of points wins the game. In the event that both teams reach a total of 42 or more points on the same hand, and both teams have the same score, the team that won the bid on the last hand played wins the game.
NEW DEAL: There must be a new deal by the same dealer if a card is exposed or found face up in the deck during the deal, of if the deck is found to be incorrect.
CUE BIDS: During the bidding round, a bid of one or two by either of the players in the first two positions to the left of the dealer is a special “cue” bid, intended to provide information to the bidder’s partner. A bid of one in either of the first two positions always means that the bidding player has one or more aces in his/her hand. A bid of two in either of the first two positions always means that the bidding player has at least one black jack and at least one red jack in his/her hand. A player in the first or second position should never bid one or two unless his/her hand meets the condition of that special “cue” bid.
EXCHANGING CARDS: When Pepper is bid, and the bidder asks the bidder’s partner for their best card in the trump suit, the bidder’s partner should always provide the bidder with the highest-ranking trump card from the hand of the bidder’s partner. If one of the four suits was declared to be trump, and the bidder’s partner has no card in that suit, then the highest ranking no-trump card in the hand should be passed. For example, if spades are declared as trump, and the bidder’s partner has no spade to pass, then an Ace in another suit would be the best card to pass. And, if no-trump is declared to be trump, the best card to pass would be an Ace.
When Pepper is bid, and the bidder requests a best card from his/her partner, the defensive team will watch facial expressions as trump is named and the exchange card is requested, will watch speed of card selection as the bidder’s partner selects a card to pass, and will watch facial expressions as the bidder receives the card passed by his/her partner, all in an attempt to discern the comfort level of the offensive team with their Pepper bid. The offensive team may try to camouflage their comfort, or lack of comfort, with words or actions designed to mislead the defensive team.
PLAYING HIGH OR LOW: Play often begins with the bidder capturing the first few tricks played. The bidder’s partner has an opportunity to substantially assist his/her team though the proper selection of cards played on those first few tricks captured by the bidder. If one of the four suits was declared trump, the bidder’s partner will normally (though not always) want to play their lowest card of the suit led by the bidder. If, however, the hand is being played in no-trump, the bidder’s partner should play their highest card of the suit led by the bidder. If the bidder leads the Ace of Clubs, and his/her partner has the King of Clubs and the Ten of Clubs, the King should be played. In some cases, this will result in the loss of a later trick that might have been captured by the King. But, more often, the exposure of the King will help the winning bidder set up a long suit (Clubs in this example), and make other smaller Clubs good, at the same time allowing the bidder to retain control of the lead.
SIGNALS: Play typically begins with the bidder capturing one or more tricks. When the bidder elects, or is forced, to relinquish control, he/she would typically like to pass control to their partner, by leading a card that will result in the capture of the trick by their partner. While the bidder is in control, his/her partner may be able to signal the best suit for the bidder to lead in order to pass control to the partner. If the bidder’s partner has an opportunity to slough a card on a trick that will be won by the bidder, the first such slough should be considered by the bidder to be an invitation from his/her partner to lead a card in the same suit as that of the sloughed card. As an example, if the bidder’s partner holds an Ace and a Queen in Diamonds, and Diamonds are not trump, the slough of the Queen by the bidder’s partner, on a trick that will probably be won by the bidder, is a signal to the bidder to lead a Diamond if he/she wants to pass control to their partner. The bidder’s partner can then, hopefully, capture the Diamond trick with their Ace, and will then have an opportunity to lead any other strong trick-taking cards in their hand. The defensive team should also watch for these signals, as they may want to avoid leading a card of the suit signaled by the bidder’s partner.
STRATEGY: A cue bid of one or two by either of the players in the first two positions to the left of the dealer can be very valuable to the cue bidder’s partner. A bid of one, indicating one or more Aces, can be of great value to the bidder’s partner considering either a no-trump bid or a Pepper bid. A bid of two, indicating possession of at least one red Jack and one black Jack, often provides the cue bidder’s partner with the information he/she needs to bid Pepper in one of the four suits. Pepper is seldom bid in a suit without both the Jack and the Jick. A cue bid of two tells your partner that you can provide a Jack or a Jick, in an exchange of cards, in any suit that your partner might consider naming as trump on a Pepper bid.
If a cue bid of two is made, and the cue bidder’s partner wins the bid at a level other than Pepper and declares one of the four suits as trump, the winning bidder will want to exercise caution about leading the Jack or Jick of trump on the first trick. The partner who made the cue bid may be forced to waste his/her singleton Jack or Jick on a good trick. Often, a better strategy for the winning bidder is to initially lead a low trump, and allow the cue bidder to take the trick with his/her Jack or Jick of trump.
