Manfee

Overview

Manfee is a four-player trick-taking match for two teams. Spades are always trump. Each deal, the players call how the 13 tricks will split, then try to hit that number exactly.

• Players: 4 on two teams (Bottom & Top vs Left & Right)
• Deck: Standard 52 cards. Ace is high, 2 is low.
• Cards dealt: 13 per player, all at once
• Trump: Spades, every deal. Nobody chooses a suit.
• Match goal: First team to reach 52 points

Calling

The dealer does not call. The other three players each say how many tricks they expect to win.

• Calling starts with the player to the dealer's right and continues counter-clockwise: the dealer's partner, then the player on the dealer's left.
• A call can be 0, up to whatever is still left of the 13 tricks.
• The three calls are added together. The dealer is given whatever is left.
• Example: calls of 3, 4, and 2 use 9 tricks, so the dealer takes the remaining 4.

Accept or Pass

The two teams' targets always add up to 13. The dealer looks at the split and either accepts it or passes.

• Accept: the dealer's team target is the partner's call plus the dealer's remainder. The opponents' target is the sum of their two calls.
• In the example above, if the partner called 4 and the opponents called 3 and 2, accepting means 8 for the dealer's team and 5 for the opponents.
• Pass: the dealer's team buys the opponents' total plus 1. In that example the opponents called 5, so the dealer's team must make 6 and the opponents get 7.
• A pass cannot ask for more than 13. If the buy would go past 13, the dealer's team takes 13 and the opponents take 0.
• On a pass, everyone memorizes the hand they are holding. Those hands then move one seat to the right, and play begins with the new hands.

Playing the Tricks

Each deal has 13 tricks. Play moves counter-clockwise: Bottom → Right → Top → Left.

• The player to the dealer's right leads the first trick and may play any card.
• Everyone else must follow the suit that was led if they have it.
• If you have none of that suit, you may play any card, including a spade.
• The highest spade wins the trick. If no spade was played, the highest card of the led suit wins.
• Any spade beats any card of another suit, even a low spade.
• The player who wins the trick leads the next one. A trick won counts for that player's team.

Scoring a Deal

A team wants to land on its target, not just beat it. Going over is a different score from hitting it exactly.

• Exact: if all 13 tricks are played and both teams hit their targets, each team scores its own target. An 8–5 split banks 8 for one team and 5 for the other.
• Over: the moment one team wins more tricks than its target, the deal ends. That team scores 13 and the other team scores 0.
• An 8-target team that wins a 9th trick banks 13, not 9.

Winning the Match

• Deal scores add up. The first team to reach 52 points wins the match.
• If both teams reach 52 on the same deal, the higher total wins.
• After each deal the dealer moves one seat to the right, and a new deal is dealt.

Teams and Seats

When you sit at Bottom, your partner is Top. Your opponents are Left and Right.

If multiple humans play on one device (hot-seat), extra human seats are filled clockwise from Bottom:

• Remaining seats are filled by bots. You can assign bots randomly or pick a character for each side.

Playing a Card (This App)

On your turn, legal cards are highlighted. To play:

• Press and hold a legal card to select it (only one card is previewed at a time).
• While holding, you can slide to another legal card to change your choice.
• Push the card toward the center (the court) and release to play it.
• If you release without pushing far enough, the card returns to your hand.

Card-Play Signals

No secret talk is allowed, but you may hint to your partner by how you play a card. Signals are turned on with the Allow signals option when a game is created (on by default); online it is chosen by the game creator and applies to everyone.

On your turn, tap Give a signal, pick a signal, then play a card — all four players see the animation.

• Slam: You slam the card down. This tells your partner you'd like them to lead this suit the next time they lead.
• Drop: You drop the card from a few inches up. This tells everyone you have no more cards of that suit.
• Signals are only a hint from how you play — they never change the rules, scoring, or which card wins.

Quick Reference

Bots

Bots play by the same rules but do not see hidden hands — only their own cards and what has already been played. Harder bots count cards and play more strategically; easier bots make more mistakes.

Named bots (Easy → Advanced): KADO, POCHAQ, PUCHOQ, SADA, TANA, JANGARA, TANOOR, TIZAB, ZELZELA.