Do you have to follow suit in Spades?
Following suit is the single most important rule to internalize in Spades. It governs what you can and cannot legally do on every trick.
The must-follow rule
Whoever leads a trick sets its suit, and each player after them must play that suit if able. Have a heart when a heart is led? You must play a heart, even a card you would rather keep. This obligation applies to spades too: if a spade is led, you must follow with a spade when you have one.
When you are void in a suit
Being 'void' means holding no cards of the led suit. Only then do your options open up. You can trump the trick by playing a spade, or you can discard a card from a different suit and forfeit any chance at that trick. Choosing between the two is a constant tactical decision.
Why it matters strategically
Following suit is what allows spades to get broken and what lets you count where cards have gone. Watching who fails to follow a suit tells you who is void and where the trumps may fall. Practice reading the table at Partnership Spades.
The fastest way to make this stick is to deal a hand and try it.
Keep reading - related questions
Who wins a trick in Spades?
If any spades were played on the trick, the highest spade wins it. If no spades were played, the highest card of the suit that was led wins, and cards from other off-suits count for nothing. Rank runs from ace high down to two low, and only the led suit and spades can ever take a trick.
Can you lead spades first in Spades?
No, you cannot lead a spade at the start of a hand or before spades are 'broken.' Spades become legal to lead once someone has already played one on an earlier trick because they could not follow the suit that was led. The only exception is when a player holds nothing but spades and has no other suit to play.
Why are spades the trump suit?
In this game the spade suit is the fixed trump suit, meaning any spade outranks any card of hearts, diamonds, or clubs. Unlike games where trump changes each hand, spades are trump every single deal, which is where the game gets its name. A low spade will beat even the ace of another suit whenever it is legally played.