MVP Bridge
by
Steve Estvanik
An MVP Software Production
MVP Bridge is shareware. You are free to evaluate this software for 30 days,
after which you must either register with MVP Software or delete the software
from your system. Thanks for evaluating MVP Bridge and for supporting
shareware. Your honesty pays.
To order MVP Bridge Deluxe, call 800-968-9684 toll-free 24 hours a day.
Please have your Master Card or Visa ready when you call. Or fill out the
order form at the end of this manual and fax it to: 616-245-3204. Make
sure your credit card number and expiration date are legible. Or if you
prefer mail the order form and your check to: MVP Software, 1035 Dallas SE,
Grand Rapids, MI 49507-1407.
For overseas orders or technical support call 616-245-8376.
Now you can get all MVP products FREE from MVP's home BBS, Ryan's Bar. Call
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|___|___| MEMBER
MVP Software is a member of the Association of Shareware Professionals (ASP).
ASP wants to make sure that the shareware principle works for you. If you are
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INSTALLATION
============
To install MVP Bridge, place the diskette into the A drive and type A:, or
into the B drive and type B:. When the A> or B> prompt appears on the screen,
type INSTALL. Follow the directions to install the software.
To begin the game type BR1.
Note to Windows users
---------------------
MVP Bridge will run as a DOS application, spawned under Windows, but there will
be no sound. This is due to a conflict for IRQ vectors which are currently
in use by Windows drivers. The best solution is not to run from Windows,
but if you do try, you may need to disable the Windows sound drivers before
running MVP Bridge.
INTRODUCTION
============
This game is not a tutorial on Bridge, but can be used by beginners to learn
the game. The following sections give a good general introduction to the
rules of the game, and the basic techniques of bidding and play. There are
many excellent books available in stores and libraries, covering all phases
of the game.
If you're an intermediate or advanced player, you can go right to PLAYING
THE GAME (or, skip this entirely, and jump right into the game.)
BRIDGE BASICS
=============
Brief summary of the rules
--------------------------
Bridge is played by 4 players. All cards are dealt so each player has 13
cards that are kept hidden from other players. In the program, you are
always considered to be SOUTH. Your partner plays NORTH, and your opponents
are EAST and WEST. A hand of bridge is divided into 2 parts: bidding and
play. During bidding you try to describe your hand to your partner and make
a claim to the number of tricks you can take. During play you try to
make the contract that you bid.
Evaluation of the hand
=======================
To decide how strong your hand is, we assign points to certain cards. These
are called high card points or 'hcp'. We rate an Ace (A) at 4 points, a
King (K) at 3, a Queen (Q) at 2, and a Jack (J) at 1. In order to count,
though, a King must be accompanied by at least one other card in the same
suit. We show this as 'Kx', and describe it as a King doubleton.
Similarly, to count for hcp, the Queen must have 2 other cards, and the Jack
needs 3 other cards.
Some examples:
Kx 3 pts
AK 7 pts
AQ 4 points (Q doesnt count)
AQx 6 points
KJXX 4 points
KJx 3 points (J doesnt count)
In addition, we can add points for distribution.
1 pt for 5th card in a suit
1 pt for 6th in a suit
2 pts for 7th, 8th, etc
When raising trump suit partner has proposed, you can add more points:
3 pts for void
2 pts for singleton
1 pt for doubleton
Your total hand value is figured as follows:
Hand value = high card pts + dist pts + trump
For opening bids, you usually consider only hcp. For deciding whether your
partnership has enough points for game, you can use total points as follows:
Pts required for game:
3NT or major suit 26
minor suit 29
small slam 33
grand slam 37
Bidding Primer
---------------
Bidding starts with the dealer and proceeds clockwise around the table .
The suits are arranged in the following order: CLUBS, DIAMONDS, HEARTS,
SPADES. Thus 1 S can be bid over 1 H, but over 1S, you must bid 2 H.
Bidding a suit usually says that you wish to use that suit as trump.
Bidding normally starts at the lowest level possible, but there are also
times when the bidder jumps the bidding (For example, an opening bid of 2H
or 3H shows a very different hand from 1H.)
Playing in a suit contract makes that suit the 'trump' suit. During play,
you must follow the suit played. But, if you lack any cards in the suit
played (this is called a 'void'), you may play a trump, and win the trick.
You want to play in trump if you and your partner have at least 8 of the
cards in a suit. You may also play without trump (NOTRUMP or NT).
Bidding continues until everyone has had a chance to bid and there are 3
passes in a row. The person who firrst bid the suit of the final bid
becomes 'declarer'. The person to the left of declarer is the leader for
the first trick. The declarer's partner is dummy -- their cards are turned
over for everyone to see, after the opening lead.
Your goal in Rubber Bridge is to win 2 games to make a rubber. A game is
100 points made by bidding. This can be the result of one or more hands.
Scores vary by suit. CLUBS & DIAMONDS are the minor suits, and are worth
only 20 points each. HEARTS & SPADES are the major suits, and are worth 30
points each. Thus a contract of 4 H would give you 120 points, which is a
game, but a contract of 4 D gives you only 80 points. No trump is a special
case: the first NT level is worth 40 points, and successive levels are worth
30 each. Thus 2 NT is worth 70 points, and 3NT is 100, a game. If your
contract does not give you a game, it remains as a partial score until
one side makes game. If a contract is set, the defenders gain points.
The following sections offer some simple advice for bidding. For more
details, you should consult a Bridge bidding book.
Opening Bids
------------
You have
HCP Distribution of hand Bid:
--------- ------------------------------------ -----------------
13-20 5+ card suit 1 of the suit
16-18 flat (no singleton or void) 1 NT
21-22 flat (no singleton or void) 2 NT
13+ flat, but good 4 card major 1 of a major
13+ no previous bid possible 1 of better minor
4-10 no voids, 7 card suit 3 of the long suit
In actual practice, the tendency is not to bid 4 card majors, unless the
suit is strong (eg, AKJx) and there is no alternative. This allows partner to assume that the opener has 5 in the major and to support with only 3. If
the suit is good, a 4-3 fit is acceptable.
Responses to partner's opening bid
----------------------------------
Partner bid one of a suit
--------------------------
You have
HCP Distribution of hand Bid:
--------- ------------------------------------ -----------------
< 6 Pass
6-9 support for partner's suit* 2 of partner's suit
10-12 support for partner's suit* jump in partner's suit
13-15 strong trump support in a major 4 level
13-15 no major suit at 1 level 2 NT
16-18 no major suit at 1 level 3 NT
6-18 4 card suit suit at 1 level
18+ 5 card suit Jump shift **
10+ 5 card suit suit at 1 or 2 level
6-9 flat hand, no 1 level bid 1 NT
* Support is 3 cards of a major or 4 of a minor
** Jump shift: a bid that skips a level of bidding. Eg, 1H -- 2S
is a jump shift because you could have bid 1S.
Partner bid 1NT
---------------
You have
HCP Distribution of hand Bid:
--------- ------------------------------------ -----------------
8-9 Balanced 2 NT
10-14 Balanced 3 NT
< 8 5 or 6 card suit 2 of the suit
< 8 Pass
10+ 5 of a major, 5 or 6 of a minor 3 of the suit (forcing)
7+ 6 card major 4 of the major
10+ no 5 card major 3 NT
Note: Most players use the Stayman convention which allows a much better
description of your hand, and usually keeps the stronger hand concealed
while revealing the weaker hand as dummy.
Opener's rebids
---------------
This next bid lets opener more completely describe her hand.
Opener started with 1NT
-----------------------
Partner Bid Opener's hand Bid
----------- ---------------------- -----------
2 NT 17-18 3 NT
3 of major 3+ cards in partner's suit 4 of partner's suit
3 of major 2 cards in partner's suit 3 NT
Opener started with a suit bid
------------------------------
Partner Bid Opener's hand Bid
----------- ---------------------- -----------
New suit: 1 level 12-15, no support for partner 1 NT
6 cards in original suit rebid original suit
second suit of at least 4 show new suit
12-15, 4 card support raise of partner
15-17, 6+ card suit jump in original suit
16-18, 3+ support jump raise of partner
19-20, 4 card support 4 of partner's major
19-20 2 NT
New suit: 2 level 15-18 2 NT (forcing)
12-15, usually 6 card suit rebid original
< 16 show second suit
< 16, support for parter single raise
17+ reverse*
17+ jump rebid of opener's
17+ 6 card suit jump to game in opener's
17+ 3+ support for partner jump raise in responder's
18+, second suit jump shift (forcing)
19-20 3 NT
* A reverse is the bidding of 2 suits in opposite order from that expected.
i.e., usually you would bid Spades, then Hearts, to keep the bidding at a low
level. If you bid Hearts first, then show Spades, this is a 'reverse' and
shows a stronger hand. (Since partner must bid hearts at the next level in
order to show a preference).
Bidding continues, with opener and responder describing their hands. If
there is no competition, you should look for a game contract with about 25+
points between the 2 hands.
This completes the overview of bidding. Once someone opens, the opponents
can still compete by making overcalls in new suits. Competitive bidding is
beyond the scope of this brief introduction.
CONVENTIONS
-----------
A convention is a bid that carries additional information, and does not
promise anything in the suit actually bid. Eg, in the Stayman convention, a
2C bid over 1NT says nothing about responder's club suit, but does promise
at least 4 cards in at least one of the majors. Conventions are used to
describe your hand more accurately. Any conventions in use must be known by
all players -- you may not have secret arrangements with your partner.
The following are brief descriptions of the conventions available:
TAKEOUT
-------
A takeout double shows at least an opening bid, with support (at least 3
cards) for each of the unbid suits. It may also be made with a hand TOO
strong for an overcall (18+ points).
STAYMAN
-------
A 2 club response to 1 NT is artificial and asks partner to bid a 4 card
major, otherwise reply 2 D. Subsequent bids can invite or bid game
directly.
BLACKWOOD
---------
4 NT asks partner to show Aces: 5C response indicates 0 or 4, 5D shows 1
ace, etc. 5 NT asks for Kings. Any other bid is a shutoff.
GERBER
------
4 C asks partner to show Aces: 4D response indicates 0 or 4, 5H shows 1
ace, etc.
WEAK2
-----
Shows 5-12 hcp and reasonably good 6 card suit. A 2C bid is reserved for
any strong hand, so 3C can be made with only 6 cards.
A 2NT response asks partner to describe her hand.
3 of original suit shows minimum weak 2
3NT shows suit headed by AKQ or AKJ
3 of new suit shows a feature (A, K or Q), and 8-12 hcp
Note: Weak 2's automatically cancel Strong 2's
STRONG2
-------
This is the standard form of bidding a strong hand. It's a natural bid,
showing strength and a good suit.
Note: Strong 2's automatically cancel Weak 2's
PLAY
====
The person who first bid the suit that becomes the final bid becomes the
declarer. To make a contract, you must take 6 tricks, plus the number you
bid. Thus a 3 H contract requires you to take 9 of the 13 tricks. The
person to the declarer's left is the leader.
The leader selects a card and places it so that everyone can see it. At this
point, the partner of the declarer lays down his cards for everyone to see.
Partner is now the 'dummy' and his cards are played by the declarer. In the
program, when North is declarer, you get to play as declarer, and your
original hand becomes the dummy.
Play proceeds in a clockwise fashion. You must follow suit. If you are
void (have none of that suit), you can play any card. In a trump contract,
the highest trump played on the trick wins. The winner of the trick leads
to the following trick.
SCORING
=======
Rubber scoring
--------------
A rubber is played until one side has scored 2 games. Each game requires
100 pts below the line. If a side has won a game, they are then
'vulnerable'. (This increases the penalties if they are later set in a
contract).
If a slam is bid and made, additional bonuses are awarded as follows.
Not Vulnerable Vulnerable
Small slam (12 tricks) 500 750
Grand slam (13 tricks) 1000 1500
You must win 2 games to end rubber. Additional bonus points are then
scored: 700 additional points if your opponents won no games, otherwise 500.
Undertrick Penalties
--------------------
For each trick by which the declarer fails to make the contract, opponents
score the following points (above the line):
Not Vulnerable
Undoubled Doubled Redoubled
First undertrick 50 100 200
For each additional 50 200 400
Vulnerable
Undoubled Doubled Redoubled
First undertrick 100 200 400
For each additional 100 300 600
If declarer makes a doubled contract, he receives an extra 50 points, "for
the insult".
Glossary & Abbreviations
========================
Trick - one complete play of 4 cards.
Trump - the suit of the contract. highest trump played on a trick always wins.
NT - No trump.
HCP - high card points (A = 4, K = 3, Q= 2, J = 1).
TCP - total card points (HCP plus distribution).
Void - no cards in a suit.
Singleton - one card in a suit.
Stiff - a singleton.
Honor - ten, Jack, Queen, King or Ace.
Doubleton - 2 cards in a suit.
Tripleton - 3 cards in a suit.
Major suit - hearts or spades.
Minor suit - clubs or diamonds.
Declarer - the person who first bids the suit of the final contract.
Dummy - declarer's partner. After the opening lead, dummy's cards are
revealed, and played by declarer.
PLAYING THE GAME
================
Main menu
---------
ABOUT: Program credits
OPTIONS: Select conventions
Toggle verbose mode
Select card back
KIBITZ: Show hands of other players
PLAY: Play the game
QUIT
Press F1 at any point for help.
OPTIONS
=======
Systems
--------
Bidding system is GOREN:
Goren: 16 to 18 HCP for opening NT
Usually opens 5 card majors, but occ'ly opens 4 card majors.
Bids longer minor suit with balanced hand, and poor 4 card major.
Standard conventions:
TAKEOUT
STAYMAN
BLACKWOOD
STRONG2
Set Conventions
---------------
For each side, toggle the conventions you wish them to play.
Right click on a convention title to get a short description.
Verbose
-------
Toggles on & off. This adds additional messages to describe conventions
being used. It's a good way to learn unfamiliar conventions, but does slow
down the game a little.
CardBacks
---------
Choose which card back to show
Kibitz
------
Choose which hands to reveal. Note that this destroys basic elements of the
game, so should only be used for tutorial or practise. When kibitz mode is
on, you have an option to ask why a particular bid is made. A status screen
pops up to show what that player knows about the hand thus far, based on the
bidding. Usually this includes their estimates of the number of points held
by each other player, and their estimates of those players' distributions.
A minimum and maximum value is given in each case. As the bidding
progresses, these numbers may change. (E.g., if North preempts in Hearts,
and East holds 2 hearts, he knows that West and South can each hold a
maximum of 4 hearts.)
Play
----
To play a hand, you first bid by clicking on the appropriate bid box when
it's your turn. After 3 passes, the bid is final, and the person to the
left of the declarer leads. (To escape back to the main menu press ESC.)
Each round, or trick, is started by the hand that won the last trick. (The
first leader is the left hand opponent of the declarer.) You must follow
suit if you can. If you're void, you can play a trump or discard any other
suit. Click on the card you want to play, when prompted by the program.
The current tricks taken by each side are displayed on the top 2 lines of
the play area. Press 'R' to review the status of the hand.
Escaping early from a hand:
If you make a mistake, or otherwise make a bad bid, press ESC when it's your
turn to bid. If you then ask to replay, the bidding will start from the
beginning. If at the start of a hand, you click on the QUIT button, the
session ends and you return to the main menu.
During play, you can click on SKIP at any time, and the remainder of the hand
will not be counted. You can then choose to play the next hand in the series,
or quit back to the main menu.
Ordering Information
MVP Bridge Deluxe is available from the following authorized distributors:
In the United States:
--------------------
MVP Software
1035 Dallas SE
Grand Rapids, MI 49507-1407
phone: 800-968-9684 24-hour order line only
(616) 245-8376 information, technical support, or orders.
fax: (616) 245-3204
order price: $29.95 plus $3.00 shipping in the US, $4.00 shipping to
Canada, $5.00 shipping everywhere else. Michigan residents please add
appropriate sales tax.
In Australia:
------------
Budgetware
9 Albermarle St
Newtown NSW 2042
phone: (02) 519-4233 Fax: (02) 516-4236
order price: $A45.00 (includes shipping)
In the United Kingdom:
---------------------
Testware Ltd
46 The Avenue
Harrogate, N Yorks HG1 4QD
phone: (0423) 886 415 Fax: (0423) 889 728
order price: 30 pounds (includes shipping)
In Denmark and all of Scandanavia:
---------------------------------
Pro-Soft
Benloese Skel 4 G
DK 4100 Ringsted
phone: 53 61 90 42
fax: 53 61 93 91
order price: 210,00 kr. + VAT 25% + s/h 25,00
In Japan:
--------
P. & A. Company Ltd
302 Bellwins, 1367-23
Nakagami, Akishima
Tokyo 196
phone: 425-46-9141
fax: 425-46-9142
BBS: 425-46-9143
please call for current price
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