PasurKeep this by the table
How to play Pasur
Pasur is a Persian card game about capturing cards from a shared table. A standard 52-card deck, a little arithmetic, and a few special cards are all you need to get started.
1. Set up the hand
Use a standard deck without jokers. Deal four cards to each player and four cards face up to the table. Players take turns playing one card. After everyone has used their four-card hand, deal another four cards to each player from the remaining deck; the cards already on the table stay there.
The app supports two, three, or four individual players. Four-player partnership Pasur is also played around physical tables, but it is a different format from the app’s individual online scoring. Agree on your format and house rules before playing with a deck.
2. Capture with a number card
Aces count as one. For a card from ace through ten, choose table cards whose values together with your played card add up to eleven. You collect those table cards and the card you played.
- Play a 7 to take a 4: 7 + 4 = 11.
- Play a 7 to take two 2s: 7 + 2 + 2 = 11.
- Play an ace to take the 10 of diamonds: 1 + 10 = 11.
You may choose which card to play from your hand. If that chosen card has a legal capture, you must make a capture with it. If several combinations work, choose one legal combination. If it cannot capture, leave the played card face up on the table.
The three cards in the Pasur logo celebrate a valuable haul. They are not a capture equation: 10 + 2 + 1 does not equal eleven.
3. Know the face cards
- Jack: collects eligible number cards, aces, and other jacks from the table. It leaves queens and kings. A jack capture does not earn a Sur.
- Queen: captures a queen. It does not join a sum-of-eleven combination.
- King: captures a king. It does not join a sum-of-eleven combination.
Once the final cards have been played, remaining table cards go to the last player who made a capture. Then count the cards in each player’s captured pile.
4. Count the points
| Card or achievement | Points | Who scores? |
|---|---|---|
| Most clubs | 7 | The player who wins the clubs award, subject to the tie rules below. |
| 10 of diamonds | 3 | The player who captures this card. |
| 2 of clubs | 2 | The player who captures this card; it also counts toward the clubs total. |
| Each ace | 1 | One point per captured ace. |
| Each jack | 1 | One point per captured jack. |
| Each valid Sur | 5 | An eligible capture that clears the table. See the exceptions below. |
There are normally 20 points available before Surs: seven for clubs, three for the diamond ten, two for the club two, four for the aces, and four for the jacks. Individual club cards have no separate point value.
In the app’s three-player format, a tie between two players for most clubs gives the seven-point clubs award to the player with the fewest clubs. For example, a 5–5–3 split awards it to the player with three clubs. In the four-player format, a tie for most clubs gives no one that award, leaving 13 base points before Surs.
The app uses a target of 62 points. For a physical game with different local conventions, agree on scoring and the winning condition before you start.
5. Understand Sur and local variations
A Sur is a capture that clears all cards from the table. In Pasur Online – Play & Score it earns five points when eligible. No Sur is awarded for a jack capture, during the final deal, or to a player whose recorded total is already 50 or more.
The app records eligible Surs independently for each player. Some traditional tables cancel opposing Surs instead. This is one reason to check your house rules rather than assume every Pasur table scores the same way.
For more detail and worked examples, explore the Pasur guides. For a broader account of traditional play and local variations, see Pagat’s Pasur rules.
Give the next hand a try.
Play online, practice against bots, or track the score at a real table.