Partners

Pitch is usually everyone for themselves. With Partners, players team up in pairs that sit across from each other and score together.

Who plays with whom

Partners always sit opposite:

• 4 players: two teams. You and the player across from you against the two at your sides.
• 6 players: three teams. Your partner is the player directly across the table.

Partners aren’t available at 2, 3 or 5 players, because teams are always two people.

What changes

• Points are pooled. Whatever either of you takes counts for the team: if your partner takes High and you take Jack, the team scores 2.
• Game is counted per team. The pips in both partners’ tricks are added together, and the team with strictly the most scores Game.
• Bids are made for the team. In Auction Pitch you still bid on your own turn, but your partner’s points count toward your bid. If you’re set back, the team goes back.
• The default target is 21, since points come in faster with two people earning them. You can still set any target from 7 to 21.

Everything else, from the deal and the pitch to following suit and the tiebreak, is unchanged. Partners never see each other’s cards.