If you grew up on the Canadian prairies, odds are you already know Kaiser. For everyone else, it is the trick-taking game that Saskatchewan adopted as its unofficial national pastime – a four-player partnership game built around sharp bidding, the dreaded 3 of spades, and the prized 5 of hearts. This guide covers the full rules, the Saskatchewan kitty variation, scoring, and the strategy habits that separate a bold bidder from a reckless one.
What Is Kaiser?
Kaiser is a point-trick game for four players in two partnerships, traditionally played with a modified 32-card deck. Its home base is Saskatchewan, with strong followings in Alberta and Manitoba, and it is often credited to Ukrainian-Canadian and veterans’ communities who spread it through prairie kitchens, Legion halls, and curling rinks across the twentieth century. The game takes its name from the top bid, the “kaiser bid” of 12 no-trump, which is as bold as things get at a Kaiser table.
If you are comfortable with Euchre, Whist, or Hearts, the trick-taking mechanics will feel familiar. What makes Kaiser different is the scoring: most tricks are worth a single point, but two specific cards swing a hand dramatically, and the team that lands the contract must actually meet its bid or it gets set.
What You Need to Play
Players and Partnerships
Kaiser is designed for exactly four players, seated so partners face each other across the table. Partnerships are fixed for the whole game, and communication between partners is limited to the bids and cards played – no table talk, no signals.
The Deck
Start with a standard 52-card pack and strip out every 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6. You should have 32 cards left: 7 through Ace in each suit. Then make two substitutions:
- Remove the 7 of spades and slot in the 3 of spades.
- Remove the 7 of hearts and slot in the 5 of hearts.
Within each suit, cards rank from high to low: A, K, Q, J, 10, 9, 8, and then the 7 (or, in spades and hearts, the 3 and 5 respectively, which rank lowest).
Scoring Cards
Two cards do most of the damage:
- 5 of hearts: worth +5 points to whichever team captures it in a trick.
- 3 of spades: worth −3 points to whichever team captures it.
Every trick is also worth +1 point. So a full hand has eight trick points available, +5 from the 5 of hearts and −3 from the 3 of spades – a net of 10 points to be distributed, with one side risking a negative swing every round.
Dealing and Bidding
The Deal
Choose a first dealer at random. The dealer shuffles, the player to the right cuts, and then all 32 cards are dealt out one at a time, clockwise, so each player ends up with exactly eight. The deal rotates left after every hand.
The Bidding Round
Starting to the dealer’s left and moving clockwise, each player gets one chance to bid or pass. A bid has two parts: a number of tricks and a trump suit (or “no trump”).
- Legal bids start at 7 and climb to 12.
- At the same number, no-trump outranks a suited bid. So 7 no-trump beats 7 hearts, and 8 hearts beats 7 no-trump.
- Each new bid must outrank the previous one.
- The dealer has a privilege: they can take the contract by matching the highest bid rather than exceeding it.
- If the first three players pass, the dealer is forced to bid at least the minimum – passing out the hand is not allowed.
The top bid of 12 no-trump is the titular “kaiser” – a promise to win every trick without a trump suit. It is rare, risky, and extremely satisfying when it comes off.
What the Bid Means
The winning bidder’s team contracts to score at least that many points, counting both tricks and the 5 of hearts (minus the 3 of spades if they catch it). The bidder’s partnership also picks the trump suit for the hand unless the contract was no-trump.
Playing the Hand
Leading and Following Suit
The player who won the bid leads to the first trick. Play moves clockwise. You must follow the led suit if you can; if you cannot, you may play any card, including a trump. The highest trump in a trick wins it. If no trump is played, the highest card of the led suit wins. The winner of each trick leads to the next.
Hunting the 5 and Dodging the 3
Every hand is really two games at once: winning tricks, and steering the 5 of hearts and 3 of spades to the right team. A strong declarer will often try to use a low trump to capture the 5 of hearts or dump the 3 of spades onto their opponents’ trick pile. Defenders do the opposite – they try to force the 3 of spades into the bidding team’s hand.
Scoring a Hand
At the end of each hand, both teams total their points:
- +1 for every trick taken.
- +5 if you won the 5 of hearts.
- −3 if you were stuck with the 3 of spades.
Then:
- If the bidding team made their contract (points taken ≥ bid), they add their points to their running total.
- If they failed, they are “set”: the amount of the bid is subtracted from their score – not the points they took.
- The defending team scores whatever points they took, positive or negative.
The 47-Point Rule
Once a team reaches 47 points, they can no longer score points as defenders – they can only score by winning their own contract. They can still lose points, however, if they get stuck with the 3 of spades or wind up with a negative total. This keeps the endgame from being decided by lucky defensive hands and forces the leading team to earn the last few points honestly.
Winning the Game
The first team to reach a cumulative score of 52 or more points wins. Games routinely take several hands and swing back and forth, especially when a failed 10 or 11 bid drops a leader back down by ten or eleven points in a single round.
The Saskatchewan Variation with a Kitty
The most common version played in Saskatchewan uses a slightly larger 34-card pack. Keep the standard 32-card Kaiser deck and add back the 7 of spades and 7 of hearts, so you have both the 7 and the special low card in those two suits.
Deal eight cards to each player as usual, but set aside two cards face down as a kitty. After the auction, the winning bidder picks up the kitty privately and discards any two cards face down – with one important restriction: they may never discard the 5 of hearts or the 3 of spades. The cards in the discard pile count for neither team.
The kitty gives declarers a reliable way to shed a weak suit or get rid of the 3 of spades before play starts, which is why the prairie version generally rewards slightly more aggressive bidding than the base rules.
Other Common House Rules
- Low no-trump: a no-trump bid where card ranks are reversed within each suit – the 7 becomes highest and the Ace becomes lowest. Announced during the bid.
- Forced-bid penalty: some groups penalise a dealer who is forced to bid the minimum and then fails.
- No-trump bonus: a few tables award bonus points for successful no-trump contracts, though this is not standard.
If you are joining an unfamiliar table, ask before the first deal whether they use a kitty, low no-trump, and the 47-point cap. These are the three rules most likely to vary between families and clubs.
Strategy Tips for New Kaiser Players
Bid Your Hand, Not Your Hope
The most common beginner mistake is overbidding an average hand because the auction has been quiet. A safe opening bid usually needs a long trump suit (four or five cards), at least two likely trick winners outside trumps, and a clear plan for either catching the 5 of hearts or avoiding the 3 of spades. If you cannot imagine where your bid-sized pile of points is coming from, pass.
Think About the 3 of Spades Early
If you hold the 3 of spades, your priority is usually getting rid of it quickly – ideally by leading spades while you still have higher cards to cover with, or by sloughing it off on a trick your partner is winning. If you do not hold it, watch the spade suit carefully and try to force it out of hiding when you have the lead.
Count the Trump Suit
Eight trumps are in play at most. Once you have tracked how many have been led, you can work out roughly how many remain in opponents’ hands. Pulling the last outstanding trumps with two or three quick rounds often sets up an easy run of side-suit winners for declarer.
Communicate Through Your Play
Partners cannot talk, but they can signal with the cards they play. Leading a suit your partner is known to be void in, or ducking a trick to let your partner win with a higher card, are both standard ways to coordinate without speaking. A partner who plays a surprisingly high card to a trick they lost is usually trying to tell you something – pay attention.
Respect the 47-Point Line
Once either side crosses 47, the dynamic changes completely. The leading team has to bid and make contracts to finish the game, and they will start bidding hands they would otherwise pass. Defenders should focus on setting those contracts rather than trying to score points, because they cannot score as defenders anyway.
Where Kaiser Is Played Today
Kaiser remains a fixture at Saskatchewan community tournaments, seniors’ games, and fundraisers, with the Saskatchewan Senior Fitness 55+ Provincial Games including it as a regular event. Online, a handful of free clients and apps simulate the prairie ruleset with the 34-card deck and kitty, which is a useful way to practise bidding without committing your Saturday night to a live table. For Canadians moving away from the prairies, it is one of those games that instantly finds kindred spirits – mention it at the right kitchen table and a deck usually appears within minutes.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many players does Kaiser need?
Kaiser is a four-player partnership game, with two fixed teams of two sitting across from each other. Three-handed and five-handed variants exist informally but are not standard; most groups wait for a fourth rather than improvise.
Why are the 3 of spades and 5 of hearts in the deck?
They replace the 7 of spades and 7 of hearts to give the game its swing cards. The 3 of spades costs whichever team captures it 3 points, and the 5 of hearts rewards its captor with 5 points. Without them, Kaiser would be a much tamer trick-taking game.
Can I play Kaiser with a standard 52-card deck?
Not as-is. You need to remove every 2, 4, and 6, and both jokers, then swap the 7 of spades for a 3 of spades and the 7 of hearts for a 5 of hearts. For the Saskatchewan kitty version, leave the 7s of spades and hearts in, giving you 34 cards.
What is the highest possible bid in Kaiser?
The highest bid is 12 no-trump – the “kaiser” itself – a promise to win all eight tricks without a trump suit while also netting the 5 of hearts and avoiding the 3 of spades. It is rare and high-risk, and the name of the game effectively refers to it.
How long does a game of Kaiser take?
A full game to 52 points usually takes 30 to 60 minutes, depending on how aggressively the table bids and how many hands get set. Tournament rounds are often capped by time or hand count rather than played to a fixed score.