ONLINE Sergeant Major 3 5 8

Sergeant Major (3-5-8) is a trick taking card game for 3 players, using a standard 52 card deck.

Every player has „obligation“ for number of hands, which he has to collect. They are 8, 5 and 3. The initial order of number of hands for every player : 8, 5 and 3 is random

The player who has to get 3 hands, is dealing the cards. Every player get 16 cards and the remaining 4 cards are left aside and called "talon cards".

The player at position 8 announces trump (clubs, diamonds, hearts, spades or no trump), after which he can swap 1 to 4 cards from the "talon cards" (swap is done by selecting the desired talon cards with the mouse and selecting same amount from his cards).

The player at 8 plays some card. Next player which is at position 5 is playing card from the same type or if he has no card from that type - gives trump card (or random other card of trump is also not available). Every hand is won by the strongest trump or the strongest card in the required type, if no trump is played. The strength of cards in descending order is: A,K,Q,J,10,9,8,7,6,5,4,3,2. The hand winner plays next.

Raising on trumps is obligatory and on non trump is not. If you don't have card from the required type, you are obligated to use trump. If the player before you uses trump, but you don't have stronger trump - it is not necessary to use one. After all 16 hands are played, the result and the obligations are compared. The player which got more hands than the requirement, are „+“, and the ones who did not reach the requirement are „-“.

The obligations are shifted. As in the beginning the player at 3 is dealing the cards. The player at 8 is selecting trump type.

Every player which was on „+“ in the previous round, gives by one card to "-" player, for every additional hand he has. That player returns the strongest card he has from that type, or random one, ако there isn't stronger card from that type.
If 2 players are „+“, first who is swapping is the one with more hands in advance

* On game type "late swap" swapping is done after the 8 player announces the new trump type (and swapping player can not swap from trump cards), unlike to the regular game where the swap is done before the 8 player to announce trump type