Call Break Rules: How to Play
Call Break rules fit on one line of the score sheet: you call how many tricks you will take, from 1 to 13, play the 13 tricks with spades always trump, then score your call if you made it, plus 0.1 for each extra trick, or lose your call if you fell short. Call 4 and take 5, and you write down 4.1. Call 4 and take 3, and you write down −4.
Call Break rules in short
- Four players, each playing alone, 13 cards each from a standard 52-card deck.
- Starting left of the dealer, each player calls 1 to 13 tricks; the dealer calls last.
- Spades are always trump and may be led from the very first trick.
- Follow suit and beat the highest card of the led suit if you can. Out of the led suit? Play a spade; if a spade is already down, beat it if you can, otherwise play any card.
- Make your call to score it, plus 0.1 per extra trick. Fall short and you lose your call.
- Five rounds make a match. The highest total wins, and a tie at the top means extra rounds.
A round on the score sheet
East deals all 52 cards, 13 each. South, on the dealer's left, calls first and East calls last. The four calls add up to 12, so one trick is going spare.
| Seat | Call | Took | Writes down |
|---|---|---|---|
| South | 3 | 3 | 3 |
| West | 5 | 4 | −5 |
| North | 2 | 3 | 2.1 |
| East | 2 | 3 | 2.1 |
West was one trick short and loses all five. North and East each took one more than they called, and that extra trick is worth a tenth. South made the call exactly. The rest of the rules decide who ends up with those 13 tricks.
Seats, cards and the deal
- Four players, and each plays alone. The player across the table is a rival, the same as the other two.
- A standard 52-card deck, aces high. All the cards are dealt, 13 to each player.
- Spades are always trump. Nobody picks trump and it never changes: every ♠ beats every heart, diamond and club.
- The deal moves one seat clockwise each round.
Making your call
Calling starts on the dealer's left and goes clockwise, so the dealer calls last and hears the other three numbers first. A call is a number from 1 to 13, and the table sees it as soon as it is made. You cannot call zero. There is no nil in Call Break, so even a hand with no spades and no aces calls 1 and tries to take a trick.
Counting your hand
- Count your spades first. High spades win tricks, and low spades win them too once you run out of a side suit.
- Side-suit aces usually win, unless a player who is out of that suit cuts them with a spade. The more cards you hold in the suit, the sooner that happens.
- A short side suit is useful: once it is gone, the rules make you cut with a spade every time it is led.
What you are allowed to play
The first lead comes from the dealer's left and can be any card, spades included. There is no rule that spades must be "broken" first. After that, whoever wins a trick leads the next one. On your turn, go down this list and stop at the first line that fits your hand:
- You hold the led suit. Play it, and if you can beat the highest card of that suit on the table, you must. Only when you cannot beat it may you play a lower card of the suit.
- You are out of the led suit but hold a spade. You must cut with a spade. If a spade is already on the trick, yours must beat it when you have one that can. If none of your spades can, you may play any card.
- You hold neither the led suit nor a spade. Play anything.
The highest spade on the trick wins it. With no spade on it, the highest card of the led suit wins. One detail our tables apply strictly: even after someone has cut with a spade, a player who still holds the led suit must beat the highest card of that suit if they can, although that card can no longer win.
One trick from that round
North leads the 9♦. Each player after North is squeezed by the rules:
The 7♠ wins. East had to give up a queen and South spent a spade for nothing. Seeing these forced cards a trick ahead is most of the skill in Call Break: a low lead can pull a big card out of the next player for free.
Scoring the round
| Result | Score | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Call made exactly | + your call | Call 4, take 4: 4 |
| Call made with extra tricks | + call, +0.1 per extra trick | Call 4, take 6: 4.2 |
| Call broken (fell short) | − your call | Call 4, take 3: −4 |
The tenth is what sets Call Break scoring apart. Eight tricks on a call of 8 scores 8. The same eight tricks on a call of 2 score 2.6. A bigger call pays far more than the same tricks taken as extras, so an honest call beats a timid one. The Call Break scoring page has a score calculator and a printable score sheet.
Five rounds make a match
Scores carry from round to round. In this app a match is 5 rounds, or 3 if you pick the quicker game. With four players and five rounds, one player deals twice. The highest total after the last round wins. If two or more players are level at the top, the table plays extra rounds until one of them is ahead.
House rules you may meet
Rules shift from table to table. These three come from the Call Bridge page on pagat.com, which lists the game as popular in Bangladesh, India and Nepal:
- Minimum call of 2. pagat's Call Bridge rules say every call must be at least 2. Our tables let you call 1.
- Your call, or one over. In pagat's main rules you succeed only by taking exactly your call or one trick more, and a made call of 8 or more scores 13. Some versions pay 0.1 for each extra trick instead. Our tables play the 0.1 version, with no limit on extra tricks and no bonus for a big call.
- How long a game lasts. pagat's rules have no fixed end; some tables play exactly five deals and some play ten. Ours is five rounds, or three in the quick game.
The Call Break variants page covers the rest, such as a redeal when somebody holds no spades.
How this app runs the table
- Each card has a 15-second timer and each call 30 seconds. If time runs out, your lowest legal card is played for you, or a call is made from your hand.
- The strict rules often leave only one legal card. When that happens, the app plays it after a short highlight, so nobody can make an illegal play and the table keeps moving.
- Online, every call and card is checked on the server, and a hand is never sent to anyone but its owner.
Questions players ask
Can I lead a spade on the first trick?
Yes. Call Break has no rule that spades must be broken first, so you can lead one on trick one. Some tables forbid a spade lead to the first trick; ours allow it.
Can I call zero, like Nil in other games?
No. The lowest call is 1. With a hopeless hand you call 1 and try to win a single trick.
What does "must head the trick" mean?
When you follow suit, you must beat the highest card of that suit already played if you can. Holding K♦ and 5♦ after a Q♦ has been played, you have to play the king. The 5 is not allowed.
What if I can't beat the spade already played?
If you are out of the led suit, you can play any card in your hand, a low spade or a card from another suit. You are never forced to play a smaller spade under it.
What happens if I break my call?
You lose the whole call. Call 5 and take 4, and the round costs you 5 points, the same as taking none.
How many rounds is a match?
Five in this app, or three in the quick game. The deal moves one seat each round, so in five rounds one player deals twice. The highest total wins, and a tie at the top means extra rounds until it breaks.
Is Call Break the same as Call Bridge?
Yes, it is the same game under its two common English names. Tables differ on details: the Call Bridge rules on pagat.com set the minimum call at 2, for example. Our tables allow a call of 1 and play the strict beat, cut and overtrump rules.
Is Call Break related to Spades?
They are cousins, and both keep spades as trump every hand. Call Break is played alone instead of in pairs, has no zero call, makes you beat the trick and cut when you can, and pays extra tricks in tenths.
Why did the app play a card for me?
Either only one card was legal, so the app played it after a short highlight, or your 15 seconds ran out and it played your lowest legal card.
What's the best first call for a beginner?
Count your spades plus your side-suit aces, and call that. It is careful, but breaking a call costs the whole call while an extra trick earns only 0.1.
Do my cards stay private online?
Yes. Every call and play is checked on the server, and a hand is never sent to anyone but its owner.
How is Call Break scored?
Make your call and you score your call; each trick above it adds a tenth of a point. Miss your call and you lose your call. Call 3 and win 4 scores 3.1; call 3 and win 2 scores −3.
Do you have to beat the highest card in Call Break?
Yes. If you can follow suit you must play higher than the highest card already played in that suit when you are able to. This "must head the trick" rule is what separates Call Break from Spades.
How many players do you need for Call Break?
Four, each playing alone, with no partnerships. That is another key difference from Spades, where the game is 2 against 2.
Glossary
- Call
- Your public promise of tricks for the round, from 1 to 13.
- Break
- Falling short of your call and losing the whole call.
- Cut
- Playing a spade on a suit you are out of. Compulsory when you hold one.
- Head
- To beat the highest card of the led suit. Compulsory when you can.
- Overtrick
- A trick above your call, worth 0.1.
- Overtrump
- Beating a spade already on the trick with a higher one. Compulsory when you can.
- Void
- Holding none of a suit, which is what lets you cut.
More on Call Break
- Call Break Multiplayer: play online with friends in a private room, free.
- Call Break Strategy: calling and forced play.
- Call Break Variants & House Rules
- Call Break Scoring: points, tenths and a score calculator.
- Call Break vs Spades: the rules that differ.