Questions and answers

How do I start a game?

In the lobby tap "Start Public Match" (or a group's own button) and choose the number of players, the rules and how long the match runs. Every seat you do not fill is taken by a BOT, so you are never short of a player.

Take your seat on the table page and press Start. Friends can join by tapping a BOT's name badge before or during the match.

What is a match admin and how do I become one?

The match admin is the person who created the table. They start the match, change its settings (the ⚙ in the top bar), end it early, and can put a BOT in the seat of a player who is away or disconnected.

You become one by creating a table. If the admin leaves their seat, the role passes to the next player in the order they joined.

How do I take a seat, and can I change seats?

Tap a BOT's name badge: the seat becomes yours. You can do this before the match starts or while it runs.

To move, leave your seat with the exit icon in the top bar (a BOT takes it back) and tap another BOT's badge.

What do the marks on a name badge mean (turn, dealer, away, disconnected)?

• The badge blinks (or a ring circles it, if you chose that in your preferences) while it is that player's turn.
• A card-deck chip beside the badge marks the dealer, and a chequered flag the player who opens the game.
• A crown marks the table's admin.
• 🤖 means a BOT is playing that seat.
• An amber disc with Zz on the badge's corner: that player is connected but has not touched their screen for a few minutes.
• A grey disc with an unplugged plug: that player's connection is gone.
• 👁 means you can see that seat's cards (when watching).

What do the bidding rules mean?

The Rules page (the Rules icon in the lobby) explains bidding, trumps, card points and scoring, including the Kerala conventions some tables use.

At the table, tap the 💡 beside a bid to have the BOT explain what it means.

What does the 💡 do, and what does it cost?

The 💡 asks a BOT for help: what a bid means, why a BOT bid or played something, what you might bid, or which card to play — with its reasoning.

Answers are paid for with tokens. The table's creator can switch BOT help off for that table.

What is the Fold button?

After a trick is won it stays on the table for a few seconds so everyone can see it. The trick's winner has a Fold button and everyone else a Clear button; either clears the trick from your own screen. Once every player has pressed one, the next trick starts straight away — otherwise it starts when the seconds run out. BOTs never hold it up.

The BOTs play too fast for me. Can they slow down?

Yes. "BOTs wait at least" sets the fewest seconds each BOT bid or card waits while a person is at the table, up to 99. The person who opens a table sets it on the create screen, and can change it any time from the table's ⚙ settings; a group's admin can make it the default for the group's new tables. Leave it blank for the usual speed.

Why is the table waiting between games?

When a game ends, the result stays on screen so nobody misses the score. The next game starts when every player has pressed Next game, or when the table's countdown runs out. The table's creator chooses how long that countdown is — or "at once", which starts the next game straight after the result. A player who has dropped is not waited for.

I lost my connection. What happens to my seat?

Your seat stays yours. The app reconnects by itself as soon as it can, and the others only see a grey plug on your badge if you are gone for more than about a minute.

If you cannot get back, the match admin can put a BOT in your seat so the others can go on; you can take it back later by tapping that BOT's badge.

A player at my table has gone away. What can we do?

Play waits for them. Their badge shows an amber Zz (screen untouched for a few minutes) or a grey plug (connection gone).

The match admin — the person who created the table — sees a 🤖 button on that badge. It puts a BOT in the seat after a confirmation; the player can take the seat back any time by tapping the BOT's badge.

Can I watch a game, and can I see the players' cards?

Open a running table from the lobby with Watch. The name button in the top bar picks whose chair you watch from.

A player's cards show unless that player keeps them private; then "Request to view cards" asks them, and they allow or decline at the table. 👁 on a badge means you can see that seat's cards.

How do I play on a phone?

Hold the phone either way: upright, the table is tall with your cards along the bottom; sideways, it is wide. The full-screen button in the top bar gives the most room; on an iPhone, "Add to Home Screen" in Safari gives a full-screen app.

The top bar hides itself during play; pull the small tab at the top-left corner to bring it back.

Do you have Kerala style bidding?

Yes. When you create a table you choose International or Kerala rules, and a group can set a default for its tables. At a Kerala table the bid keyboard offers only the bids that rule set speaks.

The Rules page (the Rules icon in the lobby) explains both sets.

What are tokens?

Tokens pay for BOT seats and for BOT help (the 💡). The number beside the chip icon in the lobby is your balance.

Tokens are free: new players start with some, and more are added from time to time. They cannot be bought or sold. BOT seats are paid for by the person who opens the table; players who join pay nothing.

How do I get more tokens?

Tokens are added to your balance from time to time, and the site admin also grants tokens to active players.

If you run out, play at tables with other people instead of BOTs — a table with no BOT seats costs nothing.

How good are the BOTs?

They bid and play by the group's conventions. They are solid partners and opponents, not unbeatable — and you can ask any of them why they did something with the 💡.

Can the BOTs see other players' cards?

No. A BOT sees exactly what a person in that seat sees: its own hand, the bids, and the cards played so far. It reasons about the rest the way an experienced player does — from the bidding and from who could not follow suit.

Do the BOTs learn from the games they are playing?

No. A BOT plays the way it was trained; it does not change during a game. If you think a BOT played badly in a particular game, send feedback with the feedback button on the game or replay page.

Public versus private groups

Everyone is in the Public group: its tables are open to all and anyone can watch them.

A private group is yours: you choose who is in it and only members see its tables and chat. It can be invite-only or let people ask to join.

How do I create a group and invite friends?

In the lobby tap "Create Private Group", give it a name and choose who may join. On the group's Members tab you add people by the email address they registered with, or share the invite link.

How do I join a group that needs approval?

Groups you could join are listed at the bottom of the lobby. Tap Join: depending on the group's setting you are in at once, or your request waits for one of its admins to approve it.

What can a group admin do?

Rename the group, change who may join, add and remove members, make other members admins, approve requests, and see each member's email address. A group always keeps at least one admin.

What are the chat rules and what is the checker?

Be the friend you would want at the table. Every message goes through an automatic check for insults, abuse and hate (in English, Malayalam, Tamil and Hindi); a refused message is not shown to anyone.

Repeated refusals pause your chat for a day.

Why was my message refused?

The automatic check thought it was an insult, abuse or hate speech. It errs on the side of letting friendly banter through, but strong language is refused whoever it is aimed at.

How do I report a chat message?

Tap the ⚑ Report link beside someone else's message and confirm. The message is hidden straight away and the moderators decide whether it stays hidden.

A player reported by multiple people in a week has their chat paused.

How do I delete my own message?

Tap Delete beside your own message and confirm. It disappears from the chat for everyone.

Does the chat ever get cleared?

A chat window shows the last 8 hours, so you see what is going on now rather than days of old talk.

How do I send feedback, and what happens next?

Use the Feedback icon in the lobby, or the 💬 at a table (the table details go with it). Write what is wrong or what you would like.

A moderator reads it first. It is then put on the feedback board for everyone to vote on, answered from these questions, or declined with a reason — you see which on your own feedback.

How do voting and the feedback board work?

Each player has one vote per item; the most wanted ideas rise to the top of the board. Sending feedback counts as your vote for it.

When the admin picks an item up it moves to "Picked up for development" with an expected date, and later to the archive once done.

How do I change my name or password?

Tap your profile icon in the lobby: your display name, password and preferences (card faces, hiding your cards from viewers) are all there.

How do I delete my account?

At the bottom of your profile page. Your account, groups memberships and chat messages go; finished match logs stay with your name replaced. You cannot delete while you hold a seat at an unfinished table.

What information does the site keep about me?

Your email address, display name and password (stored scrambled), your groups and tables, match logs, chat, tokens, and when and from what kind of device you log in. Nothing is sold and nothing is used for advertising profiles.

The Privacy page (link at the foot of the sign-in page) has the full list.

What is the break reminder?

After two hours of play without a break the site suggests one; 30 minutes away from the tables counts as a break (the admin sets both numbers). It only reminds: nothing is interrupted and nobody is signed out. The small clock beside your tokens shows your own playing time in the last 24 hours; only you can see it.

What does "Sign in with Google" do?

It signs you in with your Google account instead of a password. If an account with that email address already exists here, it is linked; if not, one is created for you.

You can keep using your password as well — both open the same account.

Why are there ads, and what if I use an ad blocker?

A few small ads pay for the server. They sit beside the lobby and the table, never over the cards.

With an ad blocker on, a short reminder may appear; the site stays playable.

Which devices and browsers work?

Any up-to-date browser: Chrome, Edge, Safari or Firefox on Windows, Mac, iPad, iPhone or Android. Nothing to install.

On a phone, hold it upright or sideways; see "How do I play on a phone?".

Where are the match logs and replays?

The Match log icon in the lobby lists your finished matches. Each one opens as a log with every bid and card, and a replay you can step through on the board. The "How to replay a match?" tour (the How to icon in the lobby) shows every control.

How do I share a win?

The Share icon in the lobby, or the share button at the table after a match, makes a card with the result that you can send to friends or post anywhere.