400 Arba3meyeh (four hundred) is an Arabic trick-taking multiplayer card game played in two partnerships, with trumps and bidding. Played in Syria, Lebanon, Palestine, Jordan, and Iraq. Also known as forty-one (41).
The first team to accumulate 41 points or more wins; points are acquired by winning at least the number of tricks bid in each hand, where each trick bid is worth one point. Cards rank: A K Q J 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2.
Each player decides how much to bid (minimum is 2), and no player may pass. Hearts are always trump. The total sum of all 4 bids needs to be at least 11, if not, cards will be dealt again. If a player’s score is 30-39 his minimum bid becomes 3, and the total will be 12; if the score is 40-49 his minimum bid becomes 4, the total number of bids must equal 13, and so on. Each bid is independent of the partner’s bid in a hand.
Each hand consists of several tricks, 13 per player. Once the first card is played, players must follow suit, if possible. The trick is won by the player who plays the highest trump, or, if no triumph was played, by the player who played the highest card in the suit led. The player that wins the trick leads next. This continues until there are no cards left.
The player scores 1 point for each trick won. If a player doesn't win the number of tricks they bid, they will lose that amount of points. Bidding for a higher amount of tricks results in a higher value of points, as follows: 2-4 tricks results in 1 point per trick, 5-8 tricks double the number of points per trick, 9-10 tricks triple the number of points per trick and 11-12 tricks equals 4 times the number of points per trick. With 13 tricks you win big or lose 52 points.
Play on your mobile phone or tablet with your friends live from home or wherever you are with the online 400 Arba3meyeh app from ConectaGames!
You can find more information on our Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/playfourhundred
