Official Baloot Rules Used on ElBlot

Which Baloot rules does ElBlot use?

These are the official match rules for ElBlot. They combine Baloot’s stable core with a provisional Saudi organized-play baseline. They do not claim that every family, club, city or Gulf table uses every detailed ruling in the same way.

Where strong sources disagree, ElBlot selects one named rule for the match and records the alternative as a variant. The selected profile is fixed before a Sakka begins, so the rules do not change in the middle of play.

The table, deck and objective

Teams start at zero. If only one team reaches 152 or more after a deal, that team wins. If both do, the higher total wins. If both are equal at or above 152, another deal is played. A successful Gahwa result overrides the numeric total and awards the Sakka immediately.

The three card orders every player must know

A trump 9 beats a trump Ace. A non-trump 10 beats a King. A-K-Q is a project sequence, while A-10-K is not.

Dealing and the two buying rounds

1. The pack is prepared and the player to the dealer’s left receives the cut.
2. The dealer distributes three cards to each player, starting on the right.
3. The dealer distributes two more cards to each player.
4. The next card is placed face up as the upcard. Every player now holds five private cards.
5. The first buying round offers Bas, Hukum with the upcard suit, Sun, and a lawful Ashkal when its conditions exist.
6. After all three non-dealers say Bas in the first round, the dealer chooses a lawful purchase or opens the second round.
7. In the second round, non-dealers may say Wala or buy Sun, Hukum in a suit other than the upcard suit, or a lawful Ashkal when its conditions exist. After three Wala responses, the dealer chooses a lawful purchase or All Pass.
8. After purchase, the upcard recipient receives the face-up card plus two hidden cards. Everyone else receives three. All four hands must contain eight cards.

There are at most two buying rounds. The dealer closes each round and is not offered Bas or Wala. All Pass ends the deal without score and moves the deal to the player on the dealer’s right. There is no third round, including when the upcard is an Ace.

Buying contains additional priority, pull, Ace and locking rules. They are explained with examples in Sun vs Hukum.

Playing the eight tricks

The player to the dealer’s right leads the first trick. Each player contributes one card in table order. The trick winner collects the four cards and leads next.

Sun

A player must follow the led suit when possible. A player who does not hold that suit may discard any card. The highest card of the led suit wins; another suit cannot win.

Hukum

Following the led suit still comes first. If a player is void, the Hukum cutting and overtrumping rules may require a trump—especially when an opponent is winning. A trump beats every non-trump. If trump is led and an opponent is winning, a higher trump must be played when available.

Partner-winning exceptions, Ekka and Open or Closed lead mode make advanced Hukum play more detailed than a simple “always cut” rule. See the full legal-play comparison.

Projects and Baloot

Projects are combinations in the original eight-card hand. Regular sequences must use consecutive cards of one suit, and the same physical card cannot support two regular projects.

Regular-project priority is Four Hundred, One Hundred, Fifty, then Sira. Only the priority-winning team scores its lawful regular projects. Baloot is separate and may score for either team. Declaration, comparison and reveal timing are explained in Projects and Baloot.

Counting the deal and winning the Sakka

Collected cards are first counted as raw points. The last trick adds 10 raw points. The raw total is then converted to a 16-point Hukum card pool or 26-point Sun card pool before eligible projects are added.

• If the buyer succeeds in a normal deal, each team keeps its own converted card points and the entitled team adds its projects.
• If the buyer fails, the buyer receives zero and the nonbuyer receives the full contract pool plus eligible add-ons.
• Double, Three and Four change the effective buyer and the available card pool.
• Kaboot occurs when one team physically collects all eight tricks.
• Gahwa awards the whole Sakka to the team winning that deal.

The arithmetic, rounding rules, ties and worked examples are in the Baloot scoring guide.

Special calls and results

Fair play and rule challenges

General table conversation and signals are not lawful during active play. Recognized game calls and project information are permitted within their rules.

ElBlot uses a “Free play, permanent audit” model. A physically representable action can remain visible even when it may be unlawful. A player can then raise a Qid/TK claim, choose the exact reason, and identify the relevant trick, seat, card, bid or declaration. A successful ruling may lead to Takweesh, correction, a score award, or continuation. Impossible system actions such as duplicated card identity are rejected structurally.

Different problems have different outcomes; not every mistake causes the same penalty or a redeal. See Takweesh and Fair Play.

Rules that can differ between Baloot tables

ElBlot records a chosen answer instead of blending disagreements into a vague compromise. Common differences include:

• whether dealer-right or the buyer leads the first trick;
• whether a third buying round exists with an Ace upcard;
• Ashkal eligibility and Ace restrictions;
• complete Ekka and partner-winning cutting rules;
• whether Boushat is enabled;
• sequence-versus-quartet project priority;
• project multipliers after Three and Four;
• whether doubled Kaboot stays 25/44 or becomes 50/88; and
• availability of Reverse Kaboot and Sawa.

Sources and methodology

The rulebook gives priority to public Saudi organized-play sources, then uses detailed reconstructions where official material is silent. Conflicts remain visible as variants.

1. Saudi Mind Sports Federation for governing-body context.
2. General Regulations for Baloot, the primary public Saudi tournament baseline.
3. Archived Saudi federation tournament gameplay page.
4. Saudi championship gameplay reporting for trick-play support.
5. Detailed Baloot reconstruction, used only where it does not conflict with explicit Saudi rulings.

Rule guide reviewed: 24 July 2026.