Thunee is a popular trick-taking card game played with a 24-card deck, usually by four players in fixed partnerships. Partners sit opposite each other, and play moves counterclockwise.
Teams score points based on the cards in the tricks they've won. Points can also be gained or lost through calls made before and during the game. The team that loses the last trick must give 10 points to the team that wins it. The deck has a total of 304 points.
| Card | Points |
|---|---|
| Jack | 30 points |
| Nine | 20 points |
| Ace | 11 points |
| Ten | 10 points |
| King | 3 points |
| Queen | 2 points |
If it turns out that neither of the opponents of the trump-making team has any trumps at all, the deal is called off. No one scores any points, the cards are collected, shuffled, and dealt again by the same dealer. This rule always applies, even if someone called 'Thunee'.
After the last cards are dealt, any player can call 'Thunee', which means they commit to choosing the trump suit and winning all six tricks. This overrides any previous calls. A player can’t call Thunee if they hold all six cards of the same suit; they must have at least one card that's not a trump.
If the player who called Thunee wins all six tricks, they succeed. However, if their partner accidentally plays a higher card than them in a trick and ends up winning it instead—this is known as a Partner Catch. When a Partner Catch happens in Thunee, it means the caller’s team loses the Thunee, and they lose additional balls (penalty points) because the teamwork wasn't properly coordinated.
A player can call 'Royals' after the last two cards have been dealt. It's similar to Thunee, but the card rankings are flipped—the Queen is the highest, followed by King, Ten, Ace, Nine, and Jack as the lowest. Just like in Thunee, the caller leads the first trick, the suit of the first card played becomes trumps, and they must win all six tricks to win. The scoring is the same as in Thunee.
However, during Royals, if the caller’s partner wins a trick by playing a higher card than the caller’s card—again, a Partner Catch—the team loses the Royals. Because Royals is a high-stakes call, a Partner Catch here results in losing even more balls than in a normal game, adding a significant penalty for poor coordination.
You can only call a Jodhi right after your team wins its first or third trick. When your team wins these tricks, either player can call one or even two Jodhis if they have them. At the end of the game, any Jodhis called are paid in card points by the opponents to the team that called them. The counting team will add the points for Jodhis called by their team and subtract those called by the trump-making team.
Calling 'Double' means the caller's team will win all six tricks, with the caller winning the last trick. This is called right before the caller plays a card for the last trick.
When a member of the counting team calls 'Backside Double' against a team that has already called 10 or more to make trumps, it's like a challenge. It means the caller’s team believes they will win all six tricks, with the caller taking the last one. This call is made just before the last card is played.
This call can only be made by a team that has already called a Jodhi. It’s a claim that the opponents' final card points, after adjusting for Jodhis and the last trick, will be less than zero. The amount called to make trumps doesn’t count in this calculation. For a Khanuck call to work, the opponents must have won at least one trick, and the Khanuck caller must win the last trick. This call is made just before playing to the last trick.
When the counting team calls 'Backside Khanuck' against a team that has called to make trumps, it means they think the opponents' final points, after adjusting for Jodhis and the last trick, will be less than zero. This doesn’t take the amount called to make trumps into account. For a 'Backside Khanuck' to be successful, the opponents must have won at least one trick, and the caller must win the last trick. This call is also made right before playing the last trick.
Once the game is over, if there hasn't been a call of Thunee, Double, or Khanuck, the opponents of the trump-maker add up the points of all the cards in their tricks. This team, known as the counting team, needs 105 points to win. The team that loses the last trick must give 10 extra points to the team that won it. If someone called to make trumps, the amount of that call must be paid to the counting team before counting the cards, and all called Jodhis must also be paid for.
| Situation | Trump Makers Win | Counting Team Wins |
|---|---|---|
| No call to make trumps | 1 ball | 1 ball |
| 10 or more called to make trumps | 1 ball | 2 balls |
| Call | Call Succeeds | Call Fails | Partner Catch |
|---|---|---|---|
| Thunee | 4 balls | 4 balls | 8 balls |
| Royals | 4 balls | 4 balls | 8 balls |
| Double | 2 balls | 4 balls | 4 balls |
| Backside Double | 4 balls | 4 balls | 4 balls |
| Khanuck | 3 balls | 4 balls | 4 balls |
| Backside Khanuck | 6 balls | 4 balls | 4 balls |
If "Deal change" is ticked, the same player will deal again if the dealer’s team loses the round. If the dealer’s team wins, then the player to the right will take over the dealing. This rule stands no matter what the teams’ scores are.
If "Two to Clear" is ticked and the game reaches 11-11 in a 12-point game or 12-12 in a 13-point game, a team needs to be at least two points ahead of their opponents to win the game.