How to play Hucklebuck: rules of the bidding card game

Hucklebuck (or Huckleybuck) is a bidding trick-taking game from the kitchen tables of Nebraska and Iowa. Bid the tricks you will take, name trump, then everyone decides whether to stay in or drop - and anyone who takes all five tricks shoots the moon.

• Players3–7
• Cards52-card pack, aces high
• Hand5 cards
• GoalFirst to 15 (out at −25)

The deal

Five cards each from a 52-card pack, aces high. The rest is the stock, for swapping. The deal passes to the left each hand.

Bidding

Starting on the dealer's left, bid the number of tricks you will take, or pass. The lowest bid is 2 and each bid must beat the one before. Bidding goes round until everyone but one has passed. If everyone passes, the dealer must bid. A bid of all five is shooting the moon, and ends the bidding at once.

Trump, and staying in

The high bidder names trump. Then, from the bidder's left, each other player stays in or drops out of the hand. If you stay, you may swap up to five cards from the stock. The bidder swaps last and cannot drop.

Play

The bidder leads. Follow suit if you can; if you can't, play anything. The highest trump wins the trick, otherwise the highest card of the suit led. The winner leads the next.

Scoring

• A point for each trick you take. Stay in and take none: lose 5.
• The bidder scores only by making the bid; a bidder who is set loses 5.
• Shoot the moon: take all five and win the game on the spot if your score was above zero (from zero or below, back to zero). Miss, and lose 15.
• If everyone else drops, the bidder scores 5.
• At −25 you are out of the game. The first to 15 wins.

Questions

How many people can play Hucklebuck?

Three to seven. With five cards each from a 52-card pack, even seven players leave a stock to swap from.

What does shooting the moon mean in Hucklebuck?

Bidding all five tricks. Take them all and you win the game at once (if your score is above zero); miss and you lose 15.

Can I play Hucklebuck online?

Yes, free: tables of three to seven, with the computer in any empty seat.