45s with 2, 3, 5 or 6 players

Four players in two partnerships is the classic game, but 45s works with anywhere from two to six.

Cut-throat (everyone for themselves)

With two, three or five players, there are no partners. This is called cut-throat. The rules are the same as the four-player game, except:

• Each player keeps their own score.
• The bidder plays alone against everyone else. If the bidder is set, every other player still scores the tricks they took themselves.
• The over-100 rule applies to each player: at 100 or more, you only score when you win the bid.
• The first player to 120 at the end of a hand wins. If more than one player gets there in the same hand, the bidder wins if they're one of them; otherwise the highest score wins.

Cut-throat can be played with four or six too, if nobody wants partners.

Three players

The most common way to play when you're short. Because the other two players are each trying to stop the bidder and score for themselves, they'll often work together against a bidder who's close to winning.

Two players

Head-to-head 45s is quick and swingy. With only ten cards in hands, many top trumps are still in the deck, so bids are riskier to judge.

Five players

Usually played cut-throat. The deck runs short with five, so each player can discard at most four cards (see running out of cards).

Six players

Six works three ways:

• Three teams of two: partners sit directly across the table from each other.
• Two teams of three: teammates sit in every other seat, so play alternates between the teams, just like the four-player game.
• Cut-throat.

With six, each player can discard at most three cards, so everyone keeps at least two.

Running out of cards

After the deal and the kitty, there have to be enough cards left for everyone's draw. With a four-card kitty:

The limit is on how many new cards anyone draws, the bidder included.