Rules The game is played in two teams of 2 (sit across each other) The deck consists of 32 cards (7s

to Aces of all suits) The card values are the most important function of this game and must be learned by any level of players for the game of Belote. The game is played until the first team reaches 3010 points (301 points for short) Card Value and Hierarchy Breakdown: Trump Suit (ATU) J 20 points 9 14 points A 11 points 10 10 points K 4 points Q 3 points 8 0 points 7 0 points Non-Trump Suit (Non-ATU) A 11 points 10 10 points K 4 points Q 3 points J 2 points 9 0 points 8 0 points 7 0 points

*NOTE: The winner of the last hand gets an additional 10 points, making each round of the game worth 162 points (10 points + 3 Non Atu sets + 1 Atu Set). Once a firm grasp of these points is understood and partially memorized, we move on to the calls of the game. (much like poker). Special Case Point Breakdown (in order of power): 4 of a kind Js 200 extra points 4 of a kind 9s 150 extra points 4 of a kind (except 7,8,9,and J) 100 extra points 5 in a row of the same suit (100) 100 extra points 4 in a row of the same suit (50) 50 extra points 3 in a row of the same suit (Ters) 20 extra points Belote (King and Queen combo of the trump suit) 20 extra points 4 of a kind 7s Re-deal (Must be used the first chance the player can speak) 4 of a kind 8s Voids all calls except Belote (Must be used the first chance the player can play a card) *NOTE: You cannot use the same card in two locations (unless its Belote). For example, If you have 4 Jacks and a 10, 9 of diamonds, you do not have 200 + 20 points (200 and Ters). You CAN however use the same card in two locations IF one of special cases is Belote. (Ters + Belote, etc). How the game is played: (1) The deck is shuffled then cut by the person to the left (2) 8 cards are passed out to each person in a counter clockwise pattern starting with the person to the right. (usually done in two sets of 4 cards) (3) The person to the right of the dealer may pass or bid (starting at 80) with a suit choice for the Atu. For example, if a player has J, 9, A of hearts along with an A, 10 from any suit,

that player can easily bid 80 points for hearts. NOTE: If the team picks hearts for a bid of 80, 80 of the 162 points must be collected by the team that picked it or else the opposing team gets all 162 points, PLUS what the bid was. This is called (bargeel or Sleep). NOTE: It is also important to note that calls do not count against a team, but do count in favor. For example, if I have a Ters and Belote and I call 130 spades, I only need to collect 90 points due to my extra 40. (4) The next person in a counterclockwise position will take on this responsibility of making a next bid of passing. Each bid must increase in increments of 10. NOTE: It is very common to use 8, 9, 10, 11 for bids instead of 80, 90, 100, 110 respectively. (5) If all people pass on the first round, A re-deal takes effect and the bidding process begins again. If a call is made and everyone agrees or passes, that call is written down and is the Trump Suit (atu). Sans - Atu I decided to give Sans Atu its own section because Belote, as it is already confusing, gets very complicated in a Sans Atu case. A Sans Atu case is one in which you wish to play the game with NO trump suits. This means that all the cards of all the suits share the hierarchy of the Non-Trump Suit. As simple as that sounds, the point system changes. Sans Atu (All Suits) A 19 points 10 10 points K 4 points Q 3 points J 2 points 9 0 points 8 0 points 7 0 points As you notice, Aces are 19 points instead of 11. This is to make up for the point losses from the Trump Suit which would normally be picked (no 34 points from the J and 9 of the Atu) and to emphasize the importance of Aces in this bid. Aside from this, a few of the Special Calls change as well. Below are the changed ones, all others remain the same: 4 of a kind As 200 extra points 4 of a kind 10s 150 extra points 4 of a kind Js 0 extra points 4 of a kind 9s 0 extra points Belote Does not exist (Sans Atu is much like calling any other, you make a bid and specify Sans Atu as the suit)

ONCE THE ATU IS PICKED, BELOTE BEGINS!

Some Key terms which will be explained and exemplified later: Coup If you dont have any of the suit being played, but you have an atu, you must use that atu to coup the hand. It is a trump card and can only be beat by a higher level atu. Soor Coup If a member of the opposing team coups a hand and it is your turn. You must soor coup the hand if you possess a higher level atu and do not have any of the suit being asked for. Under Coup If a member of the opposing team coups a hand and it is your turn. You MUST under coup the hand if you only possess a lower level atu and do not have any of the suit being asked for. GAMEPLAY: **The general objective is to collect as many points as possible you collect points by beating the cards of the opposing team and collecting the resulting cards along with their point value** All Special Case Points (except Belote) such as Ters MUST be announced before you play your 1st card AND shown face up for everyone to see before you play your 3rd card. In the case of a Belote, once you play the queen, regardless of what number card it is, you simply say belote as you play the queen, and rebelote as you play the king. If you call Ters, and a member of the opposite team has a Ters with a higher card, their ters will negate yours (much like poker). Also, If you have a ters but a higher power special case is presented by the other team (such as a heesoon [50]), their 50 will again negate anything lower then what they have including your ters. (Belote cant be negated) The person to the right of the dealer begins the game. And can play any card he or she chooses. If an Atu is playedyou must play a HIGHER Atu if you possess one. If you do not possess an Atu you may play any card but keep in mind that you dont want to give points to the opposing team. If the person starting the hand does not play atu then you must play a card with the same suit that the person plays. Again, your goal is to win the hand (dont forget your partner) If you do not possess the suit being played, you MUST use a coup, unless your partner is the leader of the hand and has the highest card on the floor; in which case you want to give as many points possible. This process continues until all 4 players have put a card down. The person with the highest point value will win unless a coup was played. If a coup was played the highest Atu will win the hand. Please refer to Soor Coups and Under Coups at the top of this page. Veteran and good belote players will very easily catch if this is not executed. The person who wins the hand collects the cards, puts the face down next to them, and will get to begin the next hand. This process is continued until all the cards have been played (dont forget the winner of the last hand gets an additional 10 points. - The game is played until the first team reaches 3010 points (301 points for short)