I come not, friends, to steal away your hearts...
-Julius Caesar, Act III, scene ii
=======================================================================
Hearts
=======================================================================
A FAQ written by Ian Rogers
mr_bean88@hotmail.com
Drop me a line if you have a question, comment, or just want to say hi.
____________________________________
Microsoft Hearts for Windows FAQ
Version 1.0
12/29/00
____________________________________
Revision History:
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Version 1.0
12/29/00
Initial release, so every single thing is new.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Ah yes, I remember my first game of Hearts. There was that excitement
of getting rid of all your high cards, the fear of being stuck with the
Queen, and of course, the humorous moment when someone tries to shoot
the moon and loses by a single card. Those were good times.
Actually, they still are. Nothing's really changed in the least, I'm
still an avid Hearts player, and so are a lot of other people in this
world. That's why I'm here to bring you a complete FAQ on the next
best thing to a real game: the Microsoft PC version of Hearts.
So whether you haven't foggiest idea how to play this game that you
found free with Windows, or if you're just looking for a few tricks to
beat the computer, sit back, relax, and enjoy the show...er...FAQ.
Table of Contents
1. How to Play Hearts
-Setting Up
-The Object of the Game
-Winning Tricks & Following Suit
-Breaking Hearts
-The Late Game
-The Queen of Spades
-Counting Points
2. Shooting the Moon
3. Tips for Success
4. Playing with Friends
5. Game Options & Miscellaneous
6. Frequently Asked Questions
7. Acknowledgements & Copyright Info
_____________________________
1. How to Play Hearts
_____________________________
So you don't know how to play Hearts, big deal. That's why you're
here, to learn. I've taught people how to play Hearts before, and I'll
do it again.
To begin, Hearts is a game much like Euchre or Bridge. If you have a
general idea of how to play either of these games, Hearts should come
easier to you.
The Object of the Game
----------------------------
In Hearts, the object is to end up with as few points as possible.
Points are tallied after each hand, and the player who gets to 100
points first loses, while the player with the fewest points at that
time is declared the winner.
You get points by winning certain cards in each trick. Each heart card
is worth one point, while the Queen of Spades is worth a whopping 13
points. Needless to say, you want to avoid ending up with either of
these cards.
Setting Up
--------------------
Hearts is a four player game in which each participant sits on one side
of the square, so that you have one player to your left, one to your
right, and one directly across from you (See diagram below).
Player 3
Player 2 Player 4
You
Play always goes clockwise. Therefore, after you put down a card, it
is Player 2's turn to move, then Player 3, and on to 4. The sequence
in which each player put down a card is called a trick (More on this
later).
To begin the game, the standard deck of 52 cards is dealt out between
the players, which works out to each player getting 13 cards. The
helpful computer will automatically sort your cards by suit, first
clubs, then diamonds, followed by spades, and finally, Hearts. Each
suit is also sorted in order from lowest to highest (Aces are high).
To begin the hand, each player chooses three cards to pass to another
player. You should choose cards that you really want to get rid of.
In the first hand, junk cards are passed to the player on your left, on
the second hand to the right, and across on the third hand. No cards
are passed during the fourth hand of the game. On the fifth hand,
players go back to passing to the left, and then right, and it
continues in that fashion (More on this later).
When starting the hand, the player who has the two of clubs leads (puts
down the first card of the trick). As I mentioned before, play
continues clockwise, with each other player putting down a card.
That was just beginning a game, now I'll get to the crucial details.
Winning Tricks & Following Suit
---------------------------------------
Playing a hand of Hearts is made up of winning tricks. Now, remember
how I said before that the person with the two of clubs starts the
hand? Well, let's say that Player 2 leads (puts down the first card)
the two of clubs. Then we go to Player 3, moving clockwise. Player 3
looks at his hand, and if he has a club, he HAS to play it. Player 3
plays his club, and we move on to Player 4. He also has a club, so he
MUST play that club. You are the last person to play a card, and since
you also have a club, you HAVE to put it down. This is called
following suit.
In a situation such as this, the player who played the highest club
wins the trick. So, if the 2, 6, Jack, and Ace of clubs are all
played, the person who put down the Ace takes all four cards, turns
them over, and places them aside.
The cards that have been turned over are not used again during play.
Instead, they are used to count each players points at the end of the
hand.
After the first trick, the player who won that trick (by playing the
highest card) gets to choose any card from their hand to begin the next
trick (except for a Heart card, you'll find out why later). If he
chooses a diamond, then each player also has to put down a diamond if
they have one, with the highest diamond winning the trick. Then, it
all begins again, with another player playing another card.
I know what you're thinking, you want to know what happens when a
player leads with a suit that you don't have. Example: Player 2 leads
with the 10 of spades, Player 3 plays the 5 of spades, and Player 4
puts down the Jack of spades. Now you have to put down a card, but you
don't have any spades!
Since you don't have any of the suit that was lead, you can put down
any card that you want, usually either a card that you just want to get
rid of, or a heart. Regardless of what card you play, the player who
put down the highest card who followed suit wins the trick. So in the
previous scenario, the player who put down the Jack of spades won the
trick, taking all of the cards.
Player 3
5 Spades
Player 2 10 Spades Jack Spades Player 4 (Wins)
--Any card--
You
In a situation such as that, you may have wanted to play a heart card.
If you did, that guy with the Jack takes it, so now he'll be getting
some points at the end of the hand, unluckily for him. And all because
you couldn't follow suit!
Breaking Hearts
---------------------
Putting down the first heart card in a hand is called Breaking Hearts.
(If you have the sound turned on, you'll hear a little sound of
breaking glass when this happens). Once hearts are broken (meaning
that one heart has been played) any player can now lead with hearts.
Remember how I said you couldn't before? Well when one player has put
down a heart, you can!
You can play a heart anytime after the first trick. No point cards at
all can be played on the first trick.
Leading with hearts can be a tricky business. Let's say you lead the 2
of hearts, Player 2 plays his lowest heart, which is the 3 of hearts,
Player 3 plays the 5 of hearts, and Player 4 plays the 4 of hearts:
Player 3 (Wins)
5 Hearts
Player 2 3 Hearts 4 Hearts Player 4
2 Hearts
You
Unluckily, Player 3 must take all four of those hearts, adding four
points to his score when the points are tallied at the end of the hand.
When you're the first person to lead with Hearts, always lead with the
4 of Hearts or below, that way it's almost a sure thing that you won't
win the trick and take the points.
The Late Game
------------------
Eventually as the game continues, players will lose several cards of
each suit, making it difficult to get rid of your lead. For example,
let's say that it is the second to last trick of the round, you lead
the Jack of Diamonds, and it goes like this:
Player 3
Queen Clubs
Player 2 Ace Hearts 8 Hearts Player 4
Jack Diamonds
You (Wins)
No one else has any diamonds left, so you just won the trick, giving
yourself two points. And if your last card is another diamond, you'll
win the next trick too, since no one can follow suit.
When trying to get rid of your lead, try to play your lowest card in a
suit that has not been lead many times throughout the game. This
increases your chances of passing the lead over to someone else.
Also note that leading or playing an Ace will also cause you to
automatically win the trick, for better or for worse.
The Queen of Spades
----------------------
Also, let's not forget the Queen of Spades. This card is worth 13
points, and most of the game revolves around NOT getting this evil
card. If you start out with the Queen, try to play it and give it to
someone else as soon as possible. There are two easy ways to do this:
The easiest way is to short suit yourself on any suit other than
spades, then play the Queen when that suit is lead. Example: If Player
2 leads the 4 of Diamonds, and you don't have any diamonds, play the
Queen of Spades!
Player 3
3 Diamonds
Player 2 4 Diamonds 10 Diamonds Player 4 (Wins)
Queen Spades
You
Since you had no diamonds, you just got rid of the Queen, giving Player
4 a whopping 13 points.
The other easy way to get rid of it is to wait for another player to
play either the King or Ace of Spades, and then give it to them.
Example: Player 2 leads the Jack of Spades, Player 3 plays the 4 of
spades, but the only spade that Player 4 has is the Ace, leaving you a
golden opportunity to give the Queen to him...
Player 3
4 Spades
Player 2 Jack Spades Ace Spades Player 4 (Wins)
Queen Spades
You
Of course, this can also backfire in your face is spades are lead, and
the only spade you have to play is the Queen, meaning that you will
probably win the trick:
Player 3
6 Spades
Player 2 2 Spades 7 Spades Player 4
Queen Spades (Wins)
You
You can also get stuck with the Queen if another player is out of one
suit, and chooses to play the Queen instead. If Player 2 leads with
the 6 of Clubs, Player 3 plays the 4 of Clubs, Player 4 has the Queen
of spades and no clubs, and your only club is the 10 of clubs, you're
in trouble. See below:
Player 3
4 Clubs
Player 2 6 Clubs Queen Spades Player 4
10 Clubs
You (Wins)
Counting Points
----------------------
When everyone has run out of cards, and all 13 tricks have been played,
each player looks at the cards that they have won. The computer will
automatically count out these points for you. All other cards except
the Queen of Spades and the Hearts are worth nothing, so they are not
displayed.
The computer will count up your points. Remember, the Queen of Spades
is worth 13 points, and each Heart is worth 1 point.
The one exception to this is when one player manages to take all 13
hearts, and the Queen of Spades. This is called Shooting the Moon and
gives each other player 26 points. Refer to the next section for more
information.
Then, the hand is over. The cards are then shuffled and dealt out
again, and a whole new hand begins. Start again with choosing cards to
pass to another player, then leading the two of clubs.
As I said before, the game is over when one player reaches 100 points.
When that happens, the player with the least points is declared the
winner.
Well, I think I've told you everything I can about learning to play
Hearts. I'm sure you didn't 100% follow everything I said, but that's
OK. As long as you somewhat got the gist of it, you should be fine.
You should be ready to try playing Hearts for real now. Don't worry;
the computer will stop you from making any real mistakes (not following
suit, leading hearts before hearts are broken, etc.). Just remember
what I've taught you, and you should be fine.
________________________
2. Shooting the Moon
________________________
As I mentioned before, if a player manages to get all 13 hearts plus
the Queen of Spades, they Shoot the Moon and the other three players
each receive 26 points, while the player who Shot the Moon gets
nothing.
Of course, if this was easy, everyone would always do it. But of
course, it isn't easy at all. That's why this portion of the FAQ is
here.
The easiest way to shoot the moon is to start with all of the highest
hearts in your hand, plus the Ace or King of Spades. This way, you can
use your high spade to win the Queen, then play all of your high hearts
to win all of the heart tricks. Hopefully, you should be able to do
this before any of the other players realize what is going on.
The other way to Shoot the Moon is to have almost all of one suit,
especially clubs, then an Ace of another suit for good measure. I say
clubs because you can just use your Ace to win the first trick, then
continue grabbing up the cards from there.
Of course, in the unlikely event that you end up with EVERY single card
in a suit (except clubs) then there is no way to shoot the moon. This
is because it will be impossible for you to win the lead. If you do
have every club, you can start by leading the 2, then continue on
taking tricks when no one can follow suit! Needless to say, this has
never happened to me, and is extraordinarily rare.
The final way to shoot the moon is actually quite simple: do it
accidentally. This is especially possible with computer Hearts, but
sadly, it just doesn't happen in real life. The first time I ever shot
the moon in Microsoft Hearts was by accident, and what a day that was
too.
Remember, shooting the moon is risky business, because if even one
other person takes a point card, then you can't shoot the moon and
you'll be stuck with a whole lot of points. Paying close attention to
the game is extremely important in this scenario, as you'll need to see
if anyone has taken any hearts yet.
With that in mind, good luck.
_________________________
3. Tips for Success
_________________________
If you're having trouble beating the computer, or you just want to get
a little extra bit of info, read this section. Be sure to read my "How
to Play Hearts" Guide first.
*If you don't have the Queen of Spades, make sure that you don't get
stuck with it! Do this by leading spades every chance you get, and
eventually it should be played, and will usually be given back to the
person who held it.
*Two of the worst cards you can get are the King and Ace of Spades.
These cards could win you the Queen if you can't get rid of them
quickly. Do this by either tossing them away first chance you get
(even before breaking hearts) or by playing the fourth card in a spade
trick. Example: If Player 2 has the lead, you are the last one to play
a card, play the Ace and win the trick, just to get rid of it:
Player 3
4 Spades
Player 2 10 Spades Jack Spades Player 4
Ace Spades
You (Wins)
*Know when to keep the Queen in your hand when passing cards. If you
have five other spade cards and no diamonds, there's a good chance that
you can easily get rid of the Queen when diamonds are lead, yet still
be prepared if spades are lead several times.
*However, if you have too many spades in your hand, pass the Queen to
someone else. Having too many spades can get you into trouble if you
have nothing else to lead, or if you keep winning tricks.
*Short suiting yourself is very important. I usually try to get rid of
all my diamonds or clubs when passing cards, this way I can get rid of
any Hearts or high cards when that suit is played.
*Be warned though, never try to short suit yourself in spades! The
reason is that if someone passes you the Queen or the Ace of spades,
you're in big trouble.
*If you think that one of your opponents is trying to Shoot the Moon,
then hang on to your Hearts and your high cards at all costs! You'll
need to then try and give the points to someone else, even if that
someone is yourself.
*Needless to say, when trying to avoid winning tricks, try to play your
highest card that you can without going over. This is especially
important when playing a Hearts trick. Example: Player 2 leads the 9
of Hearts, and since no one wants to win, but wants to hang on to their
lower cards, they play accordingly:
Player 3
8 Hearts
(Wins)Player 2 9 Hearts 7 Hearts Player 4
6 Hearts
You
*Since no one can play a point card on the first trick, it is an
excellent opportunity to get rid of any high clubs, or high cards in
any other suit, especially the Ace or King of Spades.
*If it's later in the game and the Queen has not been played yet, try
to figure out who exactly has it. For example, if someone leads
spades, and no one can follow suit, it's a sure thing that they have
the Queen.
*If you have either the 2 or the 3 of Hearts, try to lead it as soon as
you can. This way, there is almost no possible way you will win the
trick, plus, several more Hearts will be out of the way with.
*If you get an opportunity to play a heart over to someone else, always
play your highest heart. Especially do this if you have a large gap in
between your cards, say the 5,6,7,8 and King of Hearts, play the King!
*When passing cards, try to keep any low Hearts that you might have as
guards for your higher Hearts, in case you might be passed some high
hearts anyway. For instance, if you have the 3, Jack, and Ace of
Hearts, give away the Jack and the Ace, but keep the 3 just in case
someone else passes you a higher heart.
*If you are the last person to play a card in a trick, and there is no
way that you can avoid winning it, play your highest card of that suit
just so that you can get rid of it. Example: If the 8 of hearts is the
card that you have to beat, and you have the 9 and the Ace of hearts,
play the Ace, since there is no way you can avoid winning.
*If you have the Queen, try to avoid leading with spades, since you'll
need to save them as backup for when someone else leads spades.
*Finally, try to play your higher diamonds and clubs earlier in the
game. The reason for this is that it is much more likely that the
other players will be able to follow suit, and thus, not stick you with
the Queen or any hearts. One of them might even throw one of their
higher cards and win the trick from you!
____________________________
4. Playing With Friends
____________________________
Microsoft Hearts allows for multiplayer games, so if you've got a few
friends and some networked computers, you can play a game of Hearts to
pass the time.
Unfortunately, it is NOT possible to play Microsoft Hearts over the
Internet or using a modem. I found that out the hard way, heh heh. If
you want to play Hearts against your friends online, just go to Yahoo
Games and play there, it's nearly as good.
Anyway, to play Hearts over a network, you will need 2 or more
networked computers and as many friends or coworkers. Make sure that
the computers are successfully networked together before attempting to
play, otherwise you will run into millions of problems that I couldn't
even begin to describe here.
To begin, one person needs to be the dealer. They should open up
Hearts first, check the "I want to be dealer" box, type in their name,
then click OK.
Any other players wishing to join should go to their computers, open
Hearts, type in their name, then check, "I want to connect to another
game." Now, click OK.
Now you will be faced with a box that reads "Type in the dealer's
computer name." So, do exactly that. Make sure you correctly enter in
the name that the computer is registered on the network with, otherwise
there will be more problems.
If all goes well, you should be now connected to the dealer's game of
Hearts. After waiting for your friends to join (if any) press F2 to
begin the game.
Since I've never actually played Hearts over a network, this section is
just based on what I've read and heard about from others, no firsthand
experiences. If you do notice a crucial detail that I'm missing,
please don't hesitate to email me about it.
_______________________________________
5. Game Options & Miscellaneous
_______________________________________
In order to make this FAQ more complete, I've added a list of the
various game options and such. And, here they are:
Sound Options
---------------------
Press F8 (Or go to the "Game" pull-down menu and click "Sound") to turn
the sound on or off.
There are only two sounds effects in Hearts, a little clink of breaking
glass when hearts is broken (Clever, eh?) and a sinister sound when the
Queen of spades is played.
The only real purpose of these sounds is to make it easier for players
to pay attention to what important events are going on in the game, as
it is sometimes easy to miss when the Queen is played or when Hearts is
broken.
Score
-------------
Press F9 (Or go to "Score" in the pull-down menu) to view the current
score. The Score option displays the current score as tallied from the
previous round, it will not show an updated score from during the
current hand.
Animation Speed
---------------------
From the main options menu (Press F7, or select "Options" from the
pull-down menu) you can select 3 different variations in the game
speed, Slow, Normal, or Fast. These should be self explanatory enough.
I like the Normal setting myself, although many prefer Fast.
Computer Player Names
---------------------------
You can also select this from the main Options menu (Press F7). You
can change the names of the 3 computer players to whatever you like.
The first box corresponds to the player on your left, the second to the
player across from you, and the third box goes with the player on your
right.
Quote
-------------
The Quote can be accessed by going up to the Help menu and selecting
"Quote." I'm sure you know it, as it's the same one that I used to
begin this FAQ, way back up at the top before the title.
____________________________________
6. Frequently Asked Questions
____________________________________
Here are some Frequently Asked Questions about Hearts:
Q: What's the easiest way to get rid of the Queen of Spades?
A: My method of choice is to try and get rid of all of my cards of a
different suit (preferable diamonds or clubs) then put down the Queen
when that suit is played. You can also get lucky if spades is lead and
the player before you puts down the Ace or the King, then you can
easily give the Queen to him.
Q: When should I try to Shoot the Moon?
A: That's a tough one. Only try it if you feel very confident in the
cards that you have, almost all of one suit, or all of the high hearts,
or both. And of course, if you have all 13 clubs, you can't help but
shoot the moon.
Q: Should I try to win or lose tricks?
A: Most of the time, I strongly recommend avoiding winning any tricks
at all, especially later in the hand. Not only could you get more
points that way, but you could also get stuck with the lead and be
unable to get rid of it when no one else can follow suit.
Q: Can I play Microsoft Hearts over the Internet?
A: Nope, you need a network if you want to play with friends. I myself
would have found an Internet playability feature quite useful.
Q: Where do I find Hearts?
A: Hearts is one of four games that comes free with Windows 95. You
can find it by clicking the Start Menu, selecting "Programs," then
"Accessories," then "Games." Hearts should be there if you set it up
when you installed Windows.
Q: I don't have Hearts installed on my Windows 95 (or later) computer!
How do I get it?
A: In Windows 95, simply go to the Start Menu, click "Control Panel,"
then open up "Add/Remove Programs." From there, click the "Windows
Setup" tab. Look through the list of programs, then select
"Accessories." Now click "Details," and it should give you a long list
of familiar programs. Find "Games" in that list, and make sure that
the box is checked. Click OK, then insert your Windows 95 CD into your
CD drive. There should be a short installation process, after which
you should find Hearts where I mentioned it would be in the previous
question.
Q: Why can't I select a new game while a current game is progress?
A: I'm not sure, for some reason the option is disabled while you are
currently playing a game.
Q: Why can't you play a point card on the first trick?
A: That would make it very easy for someone to get rid of the Queen of
Spades. Simply get rid of all your clubs, then give it away on the
first trick, as I tried to do in my first real game of Hearts.
Instead, if you have no clubs on the first trick, try to get rid of any
of your higher cards, especially spades.
Q: I can't beat the computer at Hearts! It's just way too good for me!
What should I do?
A: It took me several days of constant practicing before I was able to
beat the computer at Hearts, and I can tell you that it isn't easy
(either that or I'm just bad at the game). The only advice I can give
you is read my Tips section, and be sure to practice!
Q: Why a FAQ for Hearts?
A: Well, as of now, there are no other FAQs for Hearts on the Net, so I
thought I'd write one. Plus, in my opinion, the Help feature for
Hearts does a sub-par job of explaining the game.
Q: Where did you learn how to play Hearts?
A: A couple of my friends taught me how to play it in study hall
earlier this year. Until then, I had never heard of the game, much
less did I know that it was available with Windows.
Q: Does the Jack of Diamonds serve any special purpose in Hearts?
A: In a popular house rule, the Jack of Diamonds allows the player who
gets it to subtract ten points from his score. This can make for a
longer and harder game. According to the house rules, the Jack is also
necessary in order to Shoot the Moon. Unfortunately, Microsoft Hearts
doesn't offer this house rule as an option.
Q: How do you play Euchre or Bridge?
A: Bridge and Euchre are two similar games to Hearts in that they
involve winning tricks and have four players that sit across from one
another. In my opinion, Euchre is more fun than Hearts, so I wish that
they had included a version of it with Windows as well.
Q: Where does that quote come from?
A: The quote that is listed in Hearts, and covers the top of my FAQ is
from William Shakespeare's famous play "Julius Caesar," Act III, scene
ii to be exact.
Q: Can I change the picture on the deck of cards like in Windows
Solitaire?
A: No.
Q: Do you change the computer player's names?
A: Yes, I often change them. Usually you can find me playing Hearts
against the James Bond villains, the Dragonball Z fighters, or even
Alvin and the Chipmunks.
____________________________________________
7. Acknowledgements and Copyright Info
____________________________________________
I suppose that the biggest word of thanks should go to Microsoft for
making Hearts and distributing it free with Windows. And I place heavy
emphasis on the FREE part.
I'd also like to thank my friends for teaching me how to play Hearts in
the first place, otherwise, this FAQ wouldn't be here.
And how could I forget GameFAQs for posting this FAQ on the Internet,
and all my other FAQs as well.
Finally, Shakespeare also deserves a hearty congratulations (no pun
intended) for writing his play Julius Caesar, and the quote that opens
my FAQ and comes with Hearts.
Thanks a lot everybody!
This FAQ is Copyright 2000 by Ian Rogers
This FAQ is intended solely for private use, and not for any sort of
profit. This FAQ may only be used on websites with prior permission
from the author (just email me first), and may not be translated into
HTML under any circumstances. Any tampering or altering of this FAQ
(including changing the name of the author) is plagiarism and is
strictly forbidden. This FAQ may also not appear in magazines or other
publications without prior permission from the author.
Well, if you're reading this, you've reached the end of the FAQ, and
that's all there is to it. Hopefully I've taught you a thing or two
about Hearts, or even how to play the game itself.
Remember to email me with any information, questions, or comments that
you might have. And with that in mind, I guess I'll see you later.
Bye.
