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Card Games

Portuguese point-trick game · 2 players

Bisca dos Nove

Keep nine cards in hand, read the changing stock, and save your trumps for the final stretch.

You 0—0 Opponent
Deal 1Trick 1/20Stock 22Trump ♣
OOpponent9 cards
Stock · 22
Open playYour turn — play any card.
YYou9 cards
01 How to play

Nine in hand.
Two phases.

Bisca dos Nove is a Portuguese point-trick game for two players. Unlike most trick games, you can normally play any card.

01

Deal nine cards

Use a 40-card deck without 8s, 9s or 10s. Each player receives nine cards. The next card is turned face up to show trumps and the other cards form the stock above it.

02

Play any card

The non-dealer leads. While cards remain in the stock, either player may play any card: you do not have to follow suit, trump or beat the first card.

03

Win the trick

The highest trump wins. If no trump is played, the highest card of the suit led wins. The trick winner leads next.

04

Draw back to nine

After every trick, the winner draws first and the loser draws second. The face-up trump indicator is the final card drawn.

05

The stock changes play

After the stock is empty, a player answering a trump lead must also play a trump if able. A non-trump lead still allows any response.

06

Card strength and value

  1. A11 pts
  2. 710 pts
  3. K4 pts
  4. J3 pts
  5. Q2 pts
  6. 6 5 4 3 20 pts
07

Score the deal

There are 120 card points. Winning with 61–81 scores 1 game point. Taking at least 82 without every trick scores 2. Winning every trick scores 4. A 60–60 tie scores nothing.

08

Win the match

The first player to reach 4 game points wins the match. The deal alternates, so the non-dealer and first leader also alternate.

02 History & variants

A longer hand of Bisca.

Portuguese card-table tradition

Bisca belongs to the broad Ace–Ten family of point-trick games found around the Mediterranean. In Portugal it is played with a 40-card pack and the unusual strength of the Ace and Seven makes counting captured points more important than simply winning many tricks. Bisca dos Nove is the nine-card, two-player form of that tradition.

Different ways to play

Local Bisca games may deal three, seven or nine cards, while partnership versions support four players. Groups also vary the target score, match length and whether a won trick is gathered before the next card is drawn. What identifies this version is the large opening hand and the face-up trump beneath the stock.