304 Card Game Rules

304 is a four-player trump game in the 28 family, played across Sri Lanka, Tamil Nadu and Kerala. Teams bid for points, the winner hides a trump card, and the bidding team must collect at least its bid from the 304 points in the pack.

🃏 Play it now: open the 304 card game.

Cards and points

32 cards: 7 to Ace in each suit. Ranking in every suit: J, 9, A, 10, K, Q, 8, 7.

Dealing and bidding

• 4 players, two teams, partners opposite. Deal and play go anticlockwise.
• Four cards each, then bidding. The player on the dealer's right must open.
• Bids go up in tens from 160 to 300. Bidding goes round until everyone else has passed.
• To bid over your own partner you need at least 200.
• Redeal if the first bidder's four cards hold no points.

Trump

• The final bidder places one card face down. Its suit is trump, known only to them until it is shown.
• A player who can't follow suit may ask for the trump to be shown; if they hold a trump, they must cut with it.
• The bidder may not lead trump before it is shown (unless they have nothing else).

Second round

After four more cards each (eight in all), anyone may raise to 250 or more. A new bidder places a new trump card.

Double and redouble

Before the first lead the other team may double, and the bidders may redouble: scores ×2 or ×4.

Scoring (Cheettukali)

304 has many local versions: some start at 150 or 170, use "stones" instead of points, or have special bids like "partner close caps". Cheettukali uses a simple version close to 28 so that anyone who knows 28 can play straight away.

📖 ഈ നിയമങ്ങൾ മലയാളത്തിൽ വായിക്കാം

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