How to Play Hokm

What is Hokm?

Hokm (حکم) is the national card game of Iran, played at family gatherings, in cafés and dormitories, and wherever Persian speakers meet abroad. Its name means "command" or "decree", and it is the Persian word for the trump suit: the whole game turns on the suit one player, the Hakem (حاکم, "the ruler"), commands to be trumps.

Four players form two teams of two, partners sitting opposite each other, and play with an ordinary 52-card deck. There is no bidding and no card points: tricks are all that count. The first team to take seven tricks wins the hand, and the first team to 7 points wins the game.

The Hakem names trumps after seeing only five cards, which is the charm of the game: a brave choice on a short look can win a hand, and a bad one can be punished with a kot, all seven tricks to the other side.

Hokm rules at a glance

Players

4, in two teams of two; partners sit opposite

Deck

52 cards, aces high: A, K, Q, J, 10 down to 2

The Hakem

The first Hakem is the first player dealt an ace face up

Deal

5 cards each (the Hakem first), then 4 and 4: 13 each

Trumps

The Hakem names the trump suit (the hokm) after seeing only their first 5 cards

Direction

Anticlockwise: dealing and play pass to the right

Lead

The Hakem leads the first trick; the winner of each trick leads the next

Play

Follow suit if you can; if not, play any card. No duty to trump

Hand

The first team to 7 tricks wins the hand; the rest is not played

Points

Hand won: 1; kot (7-0): 2; kot against the Hakem's team: 3

Game

First team to 7 points (or play a short game to 3 or 5)

How to play Hokm, step by step

1. 1

   Sit in teams

   Four players form two teams of two. Partners sit opposite each other, so the turn always passes from one team to the other. Tricks are counted per team.

2. 2

   Find the first Hakem

   One player deals cards face up, one at a time and anticlockwise round the table, until someone receives an ace. That player is the Hakem for the first hand. (At a real table the next ace often picks the Hakem's partner; online the seats are fixed.)

3. 3

   Deal five cards

   The cards are shuffled and dealt anticlockwise, starting with the Hakem: five cards each. Then the deal stops.

4. 4

   Name trumps

   The Hakem looks at their five cards, and only those, and names one suit as trumps: the hokm. A good Hakem picks the suit they hold most of, ideally with high cards in it.

5. 5

   Finish the deal

   The rest of the pack is dealt in two rounds of four, so everyone ends up with 13 cards.

6. 6

   Play the tricks

   The Hakem leads the first trick with any card. Play goes anticlockwise, to the right. Everyone must follow the suit led if they can. A player who can't may play any card: a trump to win the trick, or a discard. Nobody is forced to trump.

7. 7

   Win the trick

   If any trumps were played, the highest trump wins the trick; otherwise the highest card of the suit led. The winner leads the next trick.

8. 8

   Seven tricks

   The moment a team has seven tricks, the hand is over and the remaining cards are not played: with 13 tricks in a hand, the other team can no longer catch up.

9. 9

   Score and pass the Hakem

   The winning team scores 1 point, 2 for a kot (seven tricks to none) or 3 for a kot against the Hakem's team. If the Hakem's team won, the same Hakem stays; if not, the player to the Hakem's right becomes the new Hakem.

Scoring: hands, kot and Hakem kot

Hokm has no card points: a hand is won by the first team to take seven of the thirteen tricks, and the result is counted in points.

A plain win, seven tricks with the other team taking at least one, is worth 1 point. Taking the first seven tricks with the other team taking none is a <strong>kot</strong> (کت) and is worth 2 points. If the team that is swept is the Hakem's own team, it is a <strong>Hakem kot</strong> (حاکم‌کت): the Hakem named trumps and still didn't take a single trick, and that costs 3 points.

7 tricks to 1-6

1 point to the winners

Kot (7-0)

2 points, when the Hakem's team sweeps

Hakem kot (0-7)

3 points to the other team, when the Hakem's team takes no trick

Who is Hakem next?

The Hakem keeps the job for as long as their team keeps winning hands. As soon as the Hakem's team loses a hand, the role passes to the next player in turn: the player on the old Hakem's right, since play goes anticlockwise. As this player is always on the other team, the Hakem passes between the teams with each lost hand.

Some families pass the Hakem round the table after every hand. We play the common rule above, which pagat.com also gives.

Why anticlockwise?

In Iran, as in much of the Middle East and South Asia, cards are dealt and played to the right, anticlockwise. On bs.fyi the player after you sits on your right, your partner opposite, and the player before you on your left, in every language.

The game and the short game

A game of Hokm is usually played to 7 points: the first team to reach 7 wins. That takes anywhere from four hands (with kots) to thirteen. When time is short, play to 3 or 5 points instead; the rules are the same.

Hokm words

Hokm (حکم)

The trump suit, named by the Hakem

Hakem (حاکم)

The player who names trumps and leads first

Kot (کت)

Seven tricks to none

Hakem kot (حاکم‌کت)

A kot against the Hakem's team

Boridan (بریدن)

Cutting: trumping a suit you are out of

Hokm keshidan (حکم کشیدن)

Drawing trumps: leading trumps to pull the opponents' trumps

Yar (یار)

Your partner

The suits in Persian

♠ Spades

Pik (پیک)

♥ Hearts

Del (دل)

♣ Clubs

Geshniz (گشنیز), also Khaj (خاج)

♦ Diamonds

Khesht (خشت)

Hokm strategy tips

• •Name your longest suit. With five cards to judge from, length matters most: three cards of a suit make it a fine trump suit, more so with the ace or king among them. Two high cards and nothing else are weaker than three small trumps.
• •Draw trumps when you hold many. With five or more trumps, lead them early to pull the opponents' trumps. Then your long side suit can't be cut, and every card of it becomes a winner.
• •Lead your aces, but watch for voids. An ace of a side suit wins a trick, unless an opponent is already out of that suit and still holds trumps. Remember who failed to follow suit.
• •Don't trump your partner's winner. When your partner's card is sure to win the trick, throw your smallest card instead. Save your trumps for the tricks the other team would take.
• •Second hand low, third hand high. Playing second, keep your high card back: your partner plays after you. Playing third, put up your best card to force out the last player's.
• •Make a void. Throw the cards of your shortest side suit early. Once you are out of it, you can trump it.
• •Count to seven. Only seven tricks matter. When your team has six, every trick is the match point; when the other team has six, it is your last chance.

Hokm questions