Play Durak, Russia's favourite card game: throw-in or transfer rules, a career against bots and online 2-player matches.
📖 Read the Durak (Fool Card Game) rules
About the game
Durak (Russian Дурак, meaning "fool") is the most popular card game in Russia and the former Soviet countries, and the goal is not to win but to avoid being the last one left, the durak. A 36-card deck from six to ace is shuffled, everyone gets six cards and the face-up card at the bottom of the stock sets the trump suit. The attacker plays a card and the defender must beat it with a higher card of the same suit or with any trump. The other players may throw in cards of ranks already on the table to raise the pressure, but a bout holds at most six attacking cards and never more unbeaten cards than the defender holds. If the defender beats everything, the cards go to the discard pile, called bita, and the defender attacks next; if not, the defender takes every card on the table and loses the turn. After each bout hands are refilled to six, attacker first. Once the stock is empty, players who run out of cards are safe and the last player still holding cards is the durak. Two rule sets are included: classic Throw-in (подкидной дурак, podkidnoy) and Transfer (переводной дурак, perevodnoy). With transfer rules the defender, before any card is beaten, can add a card of the same rank and pass the whole attack on to the next player. In Career mode you face bots at two, three or four player tables; they keep their trumps, beat with the cheapest card, pile on when you are weak and remember which cards are gone in the endgame. Finish without being the durak and the next level starts at once; if you end up the fool you can retry the same level by watching an ad. Online you can play durak with a friend using a room code or against a random opponent from anywhere in the world; the room creator shuffles the deck and your rival's hand is never visible.
How to play
- Pick the number of players (2, 3 or 4) and the rules in the menu: Throw-in (podkidnoy) or Transfer (perevodnoy).
- When attacking, drag a card to the table or tap it; you may add more cards of ranks already on the table.
- When defending, drop a higher card of the same suit or a trump on the attacking card. If you can't, press TAKE.
- With transfer rules, before any card is beaten, play a card of the same rank to pass the attack on to the next player.
- When everything is beaten press BITA. After the stock runs out, empty your hand to be safe; the last player with cards is the durak.
Controls
Touch/mouse: drag a card to the table or tap it; if a card can beat several cards, tap it and then the glowing target. TAKE and BITA / DONE buttons sit below your hand. MENU at top left returns to the main menu and EXIT leaves an online room. Keyboard: ←/→ move through your hand, Enter/Space play the card, ↑/↓ pick a target, T takes, B calls bita, Backspace clears the selection, P pauses.
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FAQ
What is the difference between Throw-in and Transfer durak?
In Throw-in (podkidnoy) durak the defender either beats the cards or takes them. In Transfer (perevodnoy) durak the defender may, before any card is beaten, add a card of the same rank and pass the attack to the next player, who must hold at least as many cards as are on the table.
Can I play durak online with a friend?
Yes. Choose Online, then Play with a friend and Create room, and send the five-character code or invite link. Find a world opponent matches you with someone who wants a game right now. The rule set the room creator picked in the menu is used.
Who becomes the durak, and can it be a draw?
After the stock is empty, a player who runs out of cards is safe and leaves the game. The last player still holding cards is the durak. If the last two players run out in the same bout, nobody is the durak and the game is a draw.