Spades Strategy: The Four Aspects of Spades
by Joe Andrews

Spades is the most popular partnership card game in the United States. It is enjoyed by millions of players in many walks of life, including colleges, the military, the workplace, and of course, the Internet! Spades is very easy to learn, and quite difficult to master. This column explores four aspects of this Classic Card Game.

Hope

Hope describes the luck factor. No matter how good your partnership, the cards will occasionally decide the outcome. Just ask any pair who has been blitzed by three or four unstoppable Nils in the same Round - or worse yet, felt the sting of the opponents' successful Double Nil on the last hand of a tournament! Part of the appeal of Spades is that any team can win at any given time. However, multiple deals tend to even out, and superior players do prevail over the long run. After all, skill and technique will wear down weaker opponents. The only way to significantly reduce the luck of the deal is to play a 'duplicate' format similar to that used in Bridge Tournaments. Perhaps someday, "duplicate" Spades will be available.

Faith in the Spades arena describes the trust in your partnership. A smooth and harmonious relationship at the table is the key to success. If you have a steady and dependable partner, half of the battle is over. Nothing instills more confidence than knowing that your partner is there for you, and will not criticize you if you do make a mistake. Words of praise and encouragement go a long way. If you play frequently with the same partner, you will develop a rapport and understanding. Partnerships consisting of individuals who have never played before (e.g. 'pick-up partners') are at a significant disadvantage, especially in rated events or tournaments. Unrated rooms are perfect for practicing strategy and technique with a new partner. After you and your partner have played several games, rooms such 'Aces' and 'The Kitchen' are great areas for applying various conventions or sharpening bidding and defensive skills. The competition is usually good, and most of the players are congenial. Then you can move on to rated events.

Charity

Charity in Spades is a term for gift giving. Although the holiday season is over, any time is a good time to receive "freebies!" Successful partnerships exploit the errors of their opponents. As brutal as that may sound, there are many occasions in which games are won because a player 'butchered' a hand, failed to properly cover a Nil, over-bid, grabbed too many bags, or miss-defended a hand which could have been set. Many a lost game has been rescued in this fashion. Let's face it - you cannot count on having great cards every game. After all, Lady Luck is notoriously fickle. If the opponents are equally matched or stronger than you, your best chance is to play solidly, and avoid errors. However, if you are the superior team and the cards are unkind, then you must wait for those opportunities to pounce on the opponents' miscues.

Chicanery

Chicanery is another word for trickery or deception. Psychology and intuition are part of any game. Often the other 'C" word applies - cheating! I sincerely believe that most players are honest and do not resort to shady or underhanded tactics. After all, an accomplished player will achieve a certain level of excellence via the route of fair play. Unfortunately, there are those who choose the 'low' road. Some of their methods include the use of the telephone during a match, talk programs, playing with more than one computer at the same time, or using several 'nicks' and 'fixing' games to 'earn' a higher rating. Tournaments with prizes are often irresistible for those who want to find an easy way to victory. Cheating occurs in non-Tournament or non-rated Rooms as well. Some players have an enormous ego and desire to win. In addition to the above 'techniques,' the ever-trusty ZM and ICQ come into play. Strangely bid Nils with bad holdings and highly unusual maneuvers (such as leading low cards into a partner's void suit) often are dead giveaways. Cheating is also a problem at 'live' events. Body language, tonal inflections, the way cards are held or played, and intentional hesitations have been observed over the years. Thank God that most players are honest and will not resort to such tactics! There is nothing more thrilling than winning "the old fashioned" way!