What Is Blackout?
Blackout is a popular variant of Oh Hell with one extra twist: every player must bid zero at least once during the game. Winning even a single trick when you’ve bid zero is called blacking out — and it scores you nothing. The forced zero-bid requirement adds a layer of tension and forces every player into a vulnerable position at some point.
What You Need
- One standard deck of 52 playing cards
- Three to seven players
- Score pad — track each player’s zero-bid status separately
How the Rounds Work
Identical to Oh Hell: start with one card each, add one card per round up to the maximum hand size, then decrease back to one. Flip the top undealt card to determine trump each round.
Bidding
- Starting left of the dealer, each player bids the exact number of tricks they will win.
- The dealer cannot bid a number that makes total bids equal available tricks.
- Zero bid requirement: Every player must bid zero on at least one round during the full game. Once used, mark it on the score sheet.
How to Play
Standard trick-taking: follow suit if able, play any card if not, highest trump or highest led-suit card wins. Play all tricks in the hand.
Scoring
- Made exact bid: 10 points + bid. Bid 2, make 2 = 12 pts.
- Wrong by any amount: 0 points.
- Blacking out (bid 0, took a trick): 0 points.
Winning
Highest total score after all rounds wins.
Tips
- Take your mandatory zero bid in a round with just one or two cards — it is far easier to guarantee zero tricks with a small hand.
- Watch for other players whose zero bid is still pending — they will be desperate to avoid taking tricks in some future round. Use this to your advantage.
- In small-hand rounds, a single high trump or Ace almost guarantees you win a trick — avoid these cards if bidding zero.