How to Play

A Czech and Slovak partnership trick-and-draw game in which only matching ranks win tricks, 7s are wild, and only Aces and Tens score points.

Sedma (Czech and Slovak for 'seven') is a partnership trick-and-draw game in which suits do not matter and only matching ranks do. A trick is won by the last player to put down a card of the same rank as the card that led, and the four 7s are wild: each 7 played counts as the rank of the led card, prolonging the trick. After every trick, all four players refill their hands to four cards from the stock, so strategy hinges on saving 7s and matching ranks for the tens and aces that actually score.

Players

Standard game is 4 players in two fixed partnerships, sitting so that partners face each other across the table. Two-player and three-player variants exist (see Common Variations).

Card Deck

• 32-card German-suited or French-suited pack: 7, 8, 9, 10, Jack, Queen, King, Ace in each of the four suits.A♠K♠Q♠J♠
• Suits have no trumping power; only matching ranks decide tricks.
• All four 7s are wild; a 7 counts as whatever rank led the trick when played: .7♠
• Only Aces and Tens carry point value: each Ace and each Ten is worth 10 points, for 80 points in the deck plus 10 for the last trick.A♠10♠

Objective

Capture tricks containing the 10-point cards (Aces and Tens) and try to take the last trick for a 10-point bonus. A partnership that captures at least 50 of the 90 available points wins the deal.

Setup and Deal

1. Choose dealer by drawing cards; lowest card deals first. The deal then passes left after each hand.
2. Shuffle the 32-card pack. The player to the dealer's right cuts.
3. Deal four cards face down to each player, typically in two packets of two. Place the remaining 16 cards face down in the centre as the stock.
4. The player to the dealer's left leads the first trick. Thereafter the winner of each trick leads the next.

Gameplay

1. Step 1 (lead): The leader plays any card face up to the centre. Suits are irrelevant; only the rank matters.
2. Step 2 (follow): In clockwise order, each other player plays any card from hand. A card equal in rank to the lead, or a 7 of any suit, is a 'matching' card; anything else is a discard that cannot win the trick.
3. Step 3 (sevens are wild): A 7 matches whatever was led. When the led card itself is a 7, other 7s still count as matching (same rank); non-7 cards then count as matches only if they share rank (which the lead cannot have), so everything besides another 7 becomes a discard.
4. Step 4 (winning the trick): After all four players have played, the trick is won by the player who most recently placed a matching card (either the same rank as the lead or a 7). If no one matched, the leader wins the trick by default.
5. Step 5 (draw): The trick winner collects the four played cards face down. Starting with the trick winner and continuing clockwise, each player draws one card from the stock to restore their hand to four. If the stock is short, deal what remains round-robin until exhausted; thereafter play the last few tricks from hand only.
6. Step 6 (lead again): The trick winner leads the next trick. Play continues until all hands and the stock are empty.

Scoring

• Each captured Ace: 10 points.A♠
• Each captured Ten: 10 points.10♠
• Winning the very last trick: 10 bonus points.
• Total points per deal: 90.
• A deal is won by whichever partnership scores 50 or more points. 'Bald' (kilo) is capturing all 80 card points and scores double; capturing every trick ('naked') scores triple.
• Keep a running total over several deals, or play first-to-an-agreed-target (commonly 4 game points, with a deal win scoring 1, bald 2, naked 3).

Winning

A partnership wins the deal by capturing at least 50 points across all tricks. A session is won by the first partnership to reach the agreed game-point target (typically 4). If a deal ends 45-45 the deal is void and redealt by the same dealer.

Common Variations

• Mariáš-Sedma: A rare hybrid where a Queen-King marriage announced on the lead adds 20 or 40 points; rarely seen outside Slovakia.
• Sedma for three: Each player plays individually; deal is 4 cards to each from a 24-card pack (deuces through 6 removed and no sevens kept separate). Scoring identical.
• Two-player Sedma: Deal 4 each, stock holds 24. One-on-one play; first player to 50 points wins.
• Prší: A popular Czech shedding game sometimes called 'child's Sedma' but played by entirely different rules.

Tips and Strategy

• The four 7s are the most valuable cards in your hand. Keep at least one back to steal a trick rich in Aces and Tens, especially the last trick.
• If your partner leads an Ace or Ten, match it with a 7 only when no better matching card is available; a same-rank card keeps your 7 for a later high-value trick.
• When opponents lead a low card (King, Queen, Jack, 8 or 9), let it go unless you can confirm your partner has already dropped an Ace or Ten in that trick.
• Count captured Aces and Tens as they appear. Once 8 of them have been won, no further point cards can appear, so 7s saved from then on aim only at the last-trick bonus.

Glossary

• Bald (kilo): Capturing all 80 card points; scored double.
• Naked: Capturing every trick in the deal; scored triple.
• Matching card: A card that either has the same rank as the lead or is a 7.
• Stock: The face-down pile drawn from after each trick.
• Last-trick bonus: 10 extra points for winning the final trick of the deal.