Truco is the famous Brazilian bluffing card game for four players in two teams, played with a 40-card deck and three cards each. A face-up vira promotes the next rank to manilhas — cards that beat everything — and a hand of up to three tricks starts worth 1 point, raised by Truco calls to 3, 6, 9 or 12. The first team to 12 points wins the match.
Play now — it's freeTruco uses a 40-card deck: ranks 4, 5, 6, 7, Queen, Jack, King, Ace, 2 and 3 in all four suits (diamonds ♦, spades ♠, hearts ♥, clubs ♣). There are no 8s, 9s or 10s in the deck.
The four players sit in two partnerships, each player opposite their partner. Every player is dealt just three cards — those three cards are all you get for the whole hand.
After the deal, one card is turned face up: the vira. The rank directly above the vira becomes the manilha for this deal — if the vira is a King, all Aces are manilhas; if the vira is a 3, the next rank wraps around to 4.
Manilhas beat every other card in the game, and among themselves they are ordered by suit: diamond manilhas are weakest, then spades, then hearts, with club manilhas the strongest cards in the game.
Manilhas sit at the top; everything else ranks from strongest to weakest as follows:
| Rank | Card |
|---|---|
| 1 — strongest | Manilha (the rank above the vira), ordered ♣ > ♥ > ♠ > ♦ |
| 2 | 3 |
| 3 | 2 |
| 4 | Ace (A) |
| 5 | King (K) |
| 6 | Jack (J) |
| 7 | Queen (Q) |
| 8 — weakest | 7, then 6, then 5, then 4 |
A hand consists of up to three tricks. In each trick every player throws one card in turn, and there is no obligation to follow suit — you may play any card from your hand at any time, which is where the bluffing and counting of Truco come in.
The strongest card on the table wins the trick, and the trick winner leads the next one. If the two strongest cards tie, the trick has no winner and play continues with the next player in order.
A tie is possible in any trick. The Paulista rules decide the hand like this:
| What happened | Outcome |
|---|---|
| Same team wins tricks 1 and 2 | That team wins the hand immediately |
| Trick 1 won, trick 2 tied | The trick-1 winner takes the hand |
| Trick 1 tied | The trick-2 winner takes the hand |
| One trick each | The third trick decides |
| All three tricks tied | Nobody scores; cards are redealt |
Every hand starts worth 1 point. If you like your cards, call "Truco!" on your turn to raise the price. The next opposing player answers in one of three ways: accept, and the hand becomes worth 3; raise again, pushing the stakes to the next level; or run, handing your team the hand at its current pre-raise value.
| Call | Hand value |
|---|---|
| Start (no raise) | 1 |
| Truco | 3 |
| Seis | 6 |
| Nove | 9 |
| Doze | 12 |
12 is the ceiling: at doze nobody can raise further, so the choice is accept or run. Remember that running only pays the calling team the pre-raise value — running from a Truco call gives them just 1 point. And a Truco call can only be made on your own turn.
Hand scores accumulate on the board until a team reaches 12 points and wins the match. A fully tied hand scores nothing, and losing an expensive raised hand can swing the whole match.
Count the manilhas before you play: if the vira is a King, the four Aces rule the table — an Ace in your hand is suddenly huge.
Track the cards already played to narrow down which manilhas are still out there.
Don't raise Truco without a manilha; a confident opponent can accept and take 3 points off you in one hand.
Use raises as pressure: a mid-strength hand can make the opponents run and pay you without a fight.
After a 1:1 split the third trick decides everything — don't burn your best card early.
40 cards — ranks 4 through 7, Q, J, K, A, 2 and 3 in all four suits; there are no 8s, 9s or 10s.
Four players in two fixed partnerships, partners sitting opposite each other, with three cards dealt per player.
The rank directly above the face-up vira. Cards of that rank beat everything, ordered clubs > hearts > spades > diamonds.
Truco raises the hand from 1 point to 3; further raises take it to 6, 9 and a ceiling of 12.
The calling team wins the hand at its pre-raise value: running from "truco" means just 1 point, and the hand ends immediately.
If the same team wins the first two tricks the hand ends at once, and a tie in the second trick after winning the first also ends it.
12 points — the first team to reach it wins; a fully tied hand scores nothing.
Yes — you can play Truco online free at truco.yeeqia.com directly in your browser, no download or sign-up required to try a table.