Truco

Truco is Argentina’s favorite card game, and it’s as much about bluffing as about the cards. Play Truco free in your browser against a computer opponent, with the classic two-player Argentine rules, the 40-card Spanish deck, and every call explained in English as it happens.

How to play Truco

The Spanish deck has 40 cards in four suits: espadas (swords), bastos (clubs), oros (coins) and copas (cups). Each suit runs from 1 to 7, plus the Sota (10), Caballo (11) and Rey (12). There are no 8s or 9s.

• The deal: each player gets 3 cards. The non-dealer, the mano, leads first and wins envido ties. The mano switches every hand.
• Tricks: the higher card wins, and you don’t have to follow suit. Win two of the three tricks to win the hand, which is worth 1 point unless someone called Truco.
• Ties (parda): equal cards tie the trick. If the first trick is a parda, the next trick decides the hand. If a later trick is a parda, the winner of the first trick takes the hand. If all three are pardas, the mano wins.

The card ranking

From highest to lowest:

1. 1 of espadas (the ancho de espadas)
2. 1 of bastos (the ancho de bastos)
3. 7 of espadas
4. 7 of oros
5. All 3s, then all 2s
6. 1 of oros and 1 of copas
7. Kings (12), then horses (11), then jacks (10)
8. 7 of copas and 7 of bastos
9. All 6s, then 5s, then 4s

Apart from those four top cards, suit doesn’t matter in a trick. A 3 of copas ties a 3 of bastos.

Envido

Envido is a side bet on who holds the better pair of cards in one suit. Your envido points are 20 plus the values of two cards of the same suit, where the 10, 11 and 12 count as 0. The 7 and 6 of a suit make the maximum, 33. With no two cards of a suit, your highest single card counts.

• Envido bets 2 points, Real envido bets 3, and Falta envido bets the points the leading player still needs to win the game.
• The other player answers Quiero (I accept), No quiero (I decline), or raises.
• If it’s accepted, the higher envido takes all the points, and the mano wins a tie. If it’s declined, the bettor scores 1 for a first bet, or what the earlier bets in the chain were worth.
• Envido can only be called during the first trick, before you play your first card. If your opponent calls Truco first, you can still answer with Envido, but once a Truco is accepted it’s too late.

Truco, Retruco and Vale cuatro

Calling Truco raises the hand from 1 point to 2. If your opponent accepts, only they can raise again, with Retruco for 3. Then only you can answer with Vale cuatro for 4. Saying No quiero ends the hand at once, and the caller scores what the hand was worth before the call: 1, 2 or 3 points. You can also fold with Me voy al mazo and give up the hand’s current value.

Here you make calls on your turn before playing a card, or when answering a call. The log under the table explains every bet and answer in English.

Options and scoring

• Game to 15 or 30: 30 is the classic game. The first 15 points are the malas and the next 15 the buenas, so 20 points reads as 5 buenas.
• Flor: off by default, the way most Argentine players play. With flor on, three cards of one suit are announced at the start of the hand and are worth 3 points, or 6 to the better flor if both players have one. There’s no envido in a flor hand, and contraflor is not included.

Strategy tips

• Count your envido before your first card. With 30 or more, bet on it. Below 25, think twice before accepting a raise.
• Listen to the envido. An opponent who declares 31 holds two high cards of one suit.
• Bluff now and then. The computer calls Truco on strong hands and sometimes on weak ones. A well-timed Truco can win a hand you’d lose on the cards.

FAQ

Is this Truco game free?

Yes, with no account and no download.

What does “quiero” mean in Truco?

Quiero means “I want it,” so it accepts a bet. No quiero declines it and hands the points to the player who made the call.

Are my stats saved?

Yes. Games won and played, your best winning streak and your envido record are saved in your browser, along with your options.

Like trick-taking card games? Try Euchre with a computer partner, or count fifteens and runs in Cribbage.