Wizard

A trick-taking game for 3–6 players.

The deck

60 cards — a standard 52 plus 4 Wizards and 4 Jesters. A Wizard beats everything; a Jester loses to everything.

The goal

Win exactly the number of tricks you bid. Not more, not fewer.

Rounds

Round 1 deals one card each, round 2 deals two, and so on. The number of rounds is 60 divided by the number of players — 20 for three, 15 for four, 12 for five, 10 for six.

Trump

After the deal one card is turned face up to set trump. A Jester means no trump; a Wizard lets the dealer choose the suit. On the last hand the whole deck is dealt, so there is no card left to turn and no trump.

Bidding

Starting to the dealer's left, each player says out loud how many tricks they expect to win, so later bidders know what everyone before them said and the dealer bids last. The bids do not have to add up to the number of tricks available.

Scoring

Hit your bid exactly: 20 points, plus 10 per trick. Miss it: lose 10 for every trick you were out by, over or under.

Ties

If two players finish level they play a ten-card tie-breaker — just the tied players, with bids written down instead of spoken.

Variations

All off unless you turn them on when starting a game.

Game length

Full game — Deal the whole deck: 20 rounds at three players, 15 at four, 12 at five, 10 at six. Around an hour and a half at four.
15 rounds — Best at three or four players — five or more runs out of cards and gets shortened to fit.
10 rounds — Works at any table size, and is the full game at six players. A comfortable evening's length.
5 rounds — Any table size. Short enough for a first game or for teaching someone the bidding.

How bids are made

Spoken in turn — Standard Wizard. From the dealer's left, each player calls out loud, so later bidders hear what everyone before them said.
Hidden bid — Everyone records a bid privately, then all are revealed at once when the last one is in. No reading the table.
Delayed reveal — Bids stay secret through the whole hand and are only revealed when the round is scored. You play without knowing what anyone needs.

Hook (the Optional Canadian Rule)

When the dealer is outright ahead, their bid may not make the bids add up to the number of tricks — so someone has to be wrong. They can always bid zero, and the rule is off while the lead is tied.

If the game ends tied

Play a 10-card tie-breaker — The official rule. Tied players only.
Share the win — Call it a draw and stop.