The card game Bezique is a fun, multi-style game played with two players.
Score points through melds and taking tricks.
Find the video tutorial and written explanation for how to play bezique below. Be sure to keep the Bezique quick guide close while playing for a quick reference to help you learn as you play!
Bezique Tutorial
Needed
64 card deck (double deck of aces down to the 7s); two players, pen and paper for scorekeeping
Deal
Eight cards are dealt to each player in sets of three cards, two cards, and three cards. The top card of the remaining deck is flipped up and partially placed under the deck. The suit of the flipped up card is the trump suit for the round. If the dealer flips up a 7 from the deck, he/she is awarded ten points.
Objective
The object of the game is to be the first player to score 1,000 points. Points are scored through melds and winning tricks that include aces or tens.
Card Rank
Highest to lowest - Ace, 10, King, Queen, Jack, 9, 8, 7
Game Play
The round begins with the non-dealer playing the first card. The dealer will then play any card from his/her hand. The trick is won by the player who plays the highest ranking trump suited card. If no trump suited card was played, the winner of the trick is the player who plays the highest ranking card in the lead suit.
After a trick is won, the winning player is able to lay down a meld if he/she has one. The melds are listed below. After a meld is laid down, the points are awarded to the player of the meld. Although the meld is laid down, the cards in the meld can be played into a trick as if they were in the player’s hand.
After a meld is played, or if the winning player did not have a meld to play, the winner of the last trick will draw the top card of the deck, and the loser of the last trick will draw the next card to return their hands to eight cards. The player that won the last trick will lead the next trick.
If a player has the 7 of trump, he/she is allowed to switch it with the flipped up card from the deck after winning a trick. A player that switches a 7 of trump is awarded ten points. Ten points are also awarded to a player who melds a 7 of trump or plays a 7 of trump into a trick.
When the deck only has one card left face down and the trump card face up, there can be no more melds. The winner of the next trick takes the last card from the deck, and the loser of the trick takes the flipped up trump card.
The last eight cards are played for taking tricks only. On these last eight tricks, a player has to follow the lead suit if possible and is obligated to win the trick if possible. The player that wins the last trick is awarded ten points.
Each player will then count the number of aces and 10s won from the tricks he/she took. Each ace or 10 taken is worth ten points.
Meld Points
Trump Run (Ace, 10, King, Queen, Jack) = 250 points
Trump 7 = 10 points
Trump Marriage (King and Queen) = 40 points
Non-Trump Marriage = 20 points
4 Aces in Any Suit = 100 points
4 Kings in Any Suit = 80 points
4 Queens in Any Suit = 60 points
4 Jacks in Any Suit = 40 points
Bezique (Queen of Spades and Jack of Diamonds) = 40 points (2x = 500 points)
Rules
If the same card is played by both players, the first one played wins the trick.
Only one meld can be scored after a trick is won. When multiple melds are laid down together, another trick must be won before scoring an additional meld. For example, the queen of spades from a previously melded marriage and a jack of diamonds currently being melded with four jacks can be combined to form a bezique; but the player can only score the four jacks or the bezique on the turn. The other meld is scored upon winning another trick.
A card can be used for multiple melds if the melds are different. A queen of spades can be melded in a marriage, a sequence, a bezique, and four queens. If a queen is played from a melded four queens, another queen cannot be added to the remaining three queens to score again. All four queens must be different to score again.
A player is not able to play a sequence, and then later take the points for the trump marriage contained within the sequence. A player is able to play a trump marriage, and later add the cards to make it a sequence. This allows a player to score for the marriage, and then later the sequence.