About the Wizard Card Game Rules & Cards

Wizard is a popular trick-taking card game and ultimate trump game that was designed by Ken Fisher in 1984. Indeed, this is a game that is more challenging than Rummy and more fun than Hearts. In the card game Wizard, players earn points by accurately predicting the number of tricks they will take at the end of each round.

The game is based on Oh Hell and uses a 60-card deck that includes a standard 52-card deck, four Wizards, and four Jesters. In the Wizard game, the players try to win the exact number of tricks they bid, with each round becoming harder to win.

Wizard Cards and Components

The Wizard card game includes a custom scoresheet to help players keep track of their bids and points. The game includes a deck of 60 cards, a scoresheet, and a rule book. The deck consists of cards of four colors with numbers 1 through 13, plus four Wizards (Z) and four Jesters (N). The Jesters are lowest in value, followed by two up to ace, with the Wizards highest in value.

Wizard Card Game Rules & Instructions

The objective of the game is to correctly predict the number of tricks you will take in each round. The first player to bet chooses the lead suit by putting down a card, and players can play any card they want, but must follow suit if possible.

The player who plays the first Wizard or the highest card in the lead suit wins the trick, and players earn points when they make their exact bid. The game continues until all cards have been played, with the player with the highest score at the end winning.

All players compete in multiple rounds, and the player with the highest score at the end wins, and earns points when they make their exact bid. If it turns out that the players are over or under the bid, they lose points.

A player will get 20 points for not taking any tricks if they bid zero and don’t take any tricks. However, if they bid a single trick and only take 1 trick, they will make their bid of 1 trick.

How to Play Wizard Card Game

The game begins with the players shuffling the cards and handing each other a card, face down. The player with the highest number of cards becomes the dealer for the first round. The dealer then shuffles the deck and deals out the appropriate number of cards for each round, starting with one card in the first round and increasing by one card each round.

Starting the Game

The game starts, and the players then predict how many tricks they think they’ll win, and the top card of the remaining card deck is turned over to determine the trump suit.

When the card is a suit, that suit becomes the trump suit, and if the card is a Jester, it’s turned down, and there’s no trump suit for that round. If the card is a Wizard, the dealer chooses one of the four suits to be the trump suit.

Dealing

The player to the left of the dealer plays a card, and then the others follow as they move clockwise. If a card other than a wizard or jester is played, the players have to follow suit, but it is possible to play a jester or a wizard even if the player has the desired suit.

Taking Turns

In this game, players take turns leading tricks by playing a card of the same suit as the lead card or a trump card, and if they cannot follow suit, they can play any card. The highest card of the lead suit or the top-most trump card wins the trick.

Trumping and Leading

When a trump card is played, all other players must play a trump card if they have one, and if they do not have a trump card, they can play any card.

The first player to bet chooses the lead suit by putting down a card. If the lead suit is a diamond, all players must put down a diamond or a different suit to win or lose the hand.

Playing or Matching the Cards

In the Wizard game, the players can play any card they want, but must follow suit if possible. In addition, players can also play a Wizard or Jester at any time, even if they have cards in the lead suit.

Scoring

In the card game Wizard, players earn points by predicting the number of tricks they will take at the end of each round. They count their tricks and record their new scores on the scoreboard.

The dealer then moves to the left, and the game continues until all rounds are complete. A player can earn 20 points for making the exact number of tricks they bid and an additional 10 points for each trick they bid. 

However, players lose 10 points for each trick they are over or under their bid. In the case of a bid of zero, players can earn 20 points for correctly bidding zero and taking no tricks. 

Winning

After all tricks have been played, players tally their scores, and the player with the most points wins the game. The players compete in multiple rounds, with the player with the highest score at the end winning.

The player with the highest score at the end of multiple rounds wins. Wizard is a game that requires both skill and luck, and it’s a great deal of fun for the whole family.