OBJECT OF 500: The object of 500 is to be the first team to score 500 or more points to win the game
NUMBER OF PLAYERS: 4 players
MATERIALS: A 40-card Italian suited deck, a way to keep score, and a flat surface.
TYPE OF GAME: Trick-Taking Card Game
AUDIENCE: Adult
OVERVIEW OF 500
500 (also known as Cinquecento) is a Trick-Taking card game for 4 players.
The goal of the game is for your team to score 500 or more points before your opponents.
The game is played over a series of rounds. During these rounds, players will win tricks and declare certain card combinations in order to score points.
The game is played with partners. Your teammates will sit across from you in the game.
SETUP FOR 500
The first dealer is chosen randomly and passes to the right for each new deal. The deck is shuffled and the player to the dealer’s left will cut the deck.
The dealer will then deal a hand of 5 cards to each player and place the remaining deck centrally for the stockpile.
Card Ranking and Values
The ranking for this game is Ace (high), 3, Re, Cavallo, Fante, 7, 6, 5, 4, 2 (low). Or for a modified deck of 52-cards, A, 3, K, Q, J, 7,6, 5, 4, 2 (low).
There are also values associated with some cards for scoring. Aces are worth 11 points, 3s 10 points, Res 4 points, Cavallos 3 points, and Fantes are worth 2 points. All other cards have no value.
There are also values associated with declaring Mariannas.
Mariannas are declared when a player holds both the Re and Cavallo of the same suit. They are worth points dependent on the order in which they are declared. The first declared is worth 40 points and sets the trump suit, the others declared after are worth only 20 and do not change the trump suit.
Mariannas can be declared at any time, even during a trick, and if it is the first declared it immediately sets the trump suit for the current and all future tricks.
GAMEPLAY
The game starts with the player to the right of the dealer. The player may lead any card to the first trick. Players are not required to follow suit or to try and win any tricks. the game does not start with a trump suit either, but one may be established later in during play.
The highest trump played wins the trick. If no trumps are played or established, then the trick is won by the highest card of the suit led. The winner of the trick collects the card into their score pile and starting with them all players draw back up to five cards in hand. The winner also leads the next trick.
After the last card is drawn from the stockpile you can no longer declare Mariannas.
After the last card is drawn from the stock the remaining tricks are played out, after the last trick is played the round ends.
SCORING
After the last trick is won, players will tally their scores. Scores are kept cumulatively over several rounds and consist of the values earned from cards won and declarations made during the game.
END OF GAME
The game ends when a team scores 500 or more points. If both teams score this within the same round the team with the higher score wins.
If you love 500 try out Euchre, another fantastic trick-taking game!
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Is there bidding in Five hundred?
In this game, players do not bid, but this game is frequently confused with another game titled 500. It’s known as the card game of Australia for its popularity there. In that game, there is one round of bidding where players will bid either a number of tricks, misère, or open misère. If you are interested in learning more about this game check here.
What is the number of tricks needed to win?
In 500 the number of tricks does not matter as much as the points for each trick won. The cards won in a trick will each have a point value associated with them and during scoring, you will tally these values to find your total score for the round.
What is the ranking of the cards if using a deck of 52-cards?
If you are using a standard United States playing card company deck of 52-cards, you will first remove the 10s, 9s, and 8s from the deck. This leaves you with 40 cards, as standard for the 500 game rules. The ranking is Ace, 3, King, Queen, Jack, 7, 6, 5, 4, and 2. Not your standard Ace, King, Queen, etc. like in most western card games.
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