How to Play Banakil
Description
The Hand variant where the trump is settled by the deal rather than won in the bidding — so the hand you are given decides what you can promise.
Objective
Take the tricks your side committed to, under a trump named by a different route than in the base game.
Setup
A standard 52-card deck, four players in two fixed partnerships. Thirteen cards each.
Rules
Banakil differs from Hand in how the trump gets settled — the naming right is determined during the deal rather than won outright in open bidding.
Once trump is fixed, play runs as a standard partnership trick game.
Follow suit if you can; otherwise trump or discard. Highest trump takes the trick, or the highest card of the suit led.
Winning
The bidding partnership scores its contract if the tricks are there, and loses the value if they are not.
Defenders score the tricks they take. Play to an agreed target.