Ronda: the online card game, 1 vs 1 or 2 vs 2

Ronda belongs to the big family of fishing games — capturing games such as Scopa or Escoba: on your turn you play one card and take whatever it can capture in the middle. What makes Ronda special is the constant duel with the player before you: playing the same value as the card they just left on the table scores points, and the back-and-forth can be worth 10 points in one go.

It is played with the 40-card Spanish deck: four suits (oros, copas, espadas, bastos — coins, cups, swords and clubs) and ten values, 1 to 7, then Sota (10), Cabal (11) and Rey (12). There are no 8s or 9s, so in a run the 7 is followed straight by the 10. Everything about the deck: the Ronda cards.

1. Dealing: with 4 players, everyone gets 4 cards, then 3, then 3; with 2 players, five deals of 4 cards. The table starts empty.
2. Capturing: your card takes the card of the same value on the table and the whole unbroken run above it (your 5 takes 5-6-7-10, but not the 12 if the 11 is missing). Capturing is compulsory.
3. B'wahed, B'khemsa, B'3echra: playing the same value as the card the previous player just left on the table scores 1 (B'wahed); if the next player then lays the third, 5 (B'khemsa); the fourth, 10 (B'3echra). Only the last player in the chain scores.
4. Missa: clearing the table when you capture scores 1 point.
5. Declarations: after each deal you may declare a Ronda (a pair, 1 point), a Double Ronda (2 points) or a Tringa (three of a kind, 5 points). The best declaration takes them all.
6. End of the round: each side counts its cards; every card above 20 is worth 1 point.
7. Winning: the first side to 33 points wins, even in the middle of a round.

Every point is explained, with example hands, in the complete Ronda rules. For the maths, see how Ronda scoring works.

Ronda is played in the Atlas Carta app, with the same account as Touti, Rummy and Belote. Here is what it offers.

Around a real table, a game of Ronda needs a full deck, the right number of players and someone to keep score — not to mention the debates about whose house rules apply. On Atlas Carta you start a game in moments, head to head or with a partner: the app deals, applies the same rules for everyone and keeps the score all the way to 33. All that is left for you is the best part of the game: remembering what has gone, picking the right card at the right time and hitting straight back at your opponent.

• Four games, one app: Touti, Ronda, Rummy (Rami) and Belote, with one account.
• Clear, verified rules: what you read here is exactly what the app’s game engine does.
• Real 2 vs 2 with a partner, on top of the duel.
• Friends and tournaments, on iOS and Android.

Chain points do not add up: only the last player in the chain scores 1, 5 or 10. Details, worked examples and a free score sheet: Ronda scoring and calculator.

• Ronda rules: the complete step-by-step guide, with an annotated deal.
• Scoring and calculator: the scoring table, worked examples and an online score sheet.
• Strategy: 15 tips to stop giving away points and win more often.
• Glossary: Missa, Tringa, B'wahed, Khlassou… and all their spellings.
• The cards: values, runs and face cards of the 40-card deck.
• Variants and history: other ways to play and related games.
• Ronda quiz: 12 questions to check you have mastered the rules.