Oh Hell (also called Oh Heck, Up and Down the River, and Bust) Score Sheet

How to score

• Also called Oh Heck, Up and Down the River, or Bust.
• Each hand, everyone bids how many tricks they will take, then you play. You score only from your bid and the tricks you took.
• Down and up: 10 cards (8 for 6 players, 7 for 7) down to 1 and back up. The dealer bids last and cannot make the bids add up to the cards. 1 point per trick, +10 for an exact bid.
• Up only: 1 card up to the most. Bids may add up to the cards. An exact bid scores 10 + the bid; a miss scores 0.

How to play

• Table rules: pick the hand sizes, the most cards, the dealer rule, and the scoring before the first hand.

Questions

Can the bids equal the tricks? Not in Down and up. The dealer has to bid a different number. Up only allows it. Table rules has a switch.

What does a zero bid score? Made exactly, it scores 10 in both Down and up and Up only. Table rules can make it 5, or 5 plus the cards dealt. A missed zero scores like any missed bid.

How is this different from Estimation or Back Alley? They are close cousins with different scoring, and they are not built in. Use Paper Score for them.

Set Up in Doodle Score

Oh Hell (also called Oh Heck, Up and Down the River, and Bust) has a dedicated scorecard in Doodle Score — everything is pre-configured including score tracking, validation, and special rules.

Download the app, tap New Scorecard, and choose Oh Hell (also called Oh Heck, Up and Down the River, and Bust).

Game Identity

• Name: Oh Hell (also called Oh Heck, Up and Down the River, and Bust)
• Player Count: 3 to 7 players
• Teams: No teams. Everyone plays for themselves.
• Theme: Traditional trick-taking card game with one 52-card pack.

Scoring Mechanics

• Scoring Variant: Accumulative. Every hand adds to each player's total.
• Target Score: No fixed target. The game ends when the last hand is played. Highest total wins.
• Unit of Scoring: Points from each player's bid and the tricks they took.
• Lower vs. Higher: Higher total wins.

Rules & Validation

How a hand works

• Deal the hand. When cards are left over, turn up the next one for trump. When every card is dealt, the hand is played with no trump.
• Starting left of the dealer, each player bids how many tricks they will take. The dealer bids last.
• Play the hand, then enter how many tricks each player took.
• The deal moves one seat to the left each hand.

Presets the scorecard calculates

• Down and up (default, from Pagat):
  • Start with 10 cards for 3 to 5 players, 8 for 6 players, or 7 for 7 players. Go down one card each hand to 1, then back up to the start without repeating the 1-card hand. Four players play 19 hands. Seven players play 13.
  • The dealer can't make the bids add up to the number of cards.
  • Score 1 point per trick, plus 10 for an exact bid. A made zero bid scores 10.
• Up only (from Bicycle):
  • Start with 1 card and go up one card each hand. The most cards is 15 for 3 players, 13 for 4, and 10 for 5 (Bicycle). Bicycle doesn't cover 6 or 7 players, so the scorecard uses 52 ÷ players: 8 for 6 players and 7 for 7.
  • Bids may add up to the number of cards. The scorecard shows whether the bids are under, over, or even.
  • An exact bid scores 10 + the bid. A miss scores 0. A made zero bid scores 10.
• Up and down:
  • Start with 1 card and go up one card each hand to 10 for 3 to 5 players, 8 for 6 players, or 7 for 7 players, then back down to 1 without repeating the top hand. Four players play 19 hands. Seven players play 13.
  • The dealer can't make the bids add up to the number of cards.
  • Score 1 point per trick, plus 10 for an exact bid. A made zero bid scores 10.
• Table rules: choose these before the first hand:
  • Hand sizes: down and up, up only, or up and down (1 up to the most and back to 1, without repeating the most).
  • The most cards in a hand. It times the players can't be more than 52.
  • Whether the dealer can't make the bids match.
  • Scoring: 1 per trick plus 10 for an exact bid, or 10 + bid if exact and 0 otherwise.
  • A made zero bid: same as any exact bid, 5, or 5 plus the cards dealt that hand.

Validation Rules

• Each bid is 0 up to the number of cards in the hand.
• The dealer rule (hook): when it is on, the dealer's bid can't make the total of all bids equal the cards dealt, so at least one player must miss. The scorecard strikes through that number and won't lock the bids until the dealer picks another. Other players can bid anything.
• The tricks taken must add up to the cards dealt before the hand can be scored.
• Settings and the player count lock once the first hand is scored.

Special Actions / Bonuses

• Exact bid: +10 (Down and up, Up and down), or 10 + bid (Up only).
• Trump: a label only. It is never scored.

Win Conditions

• Condition: The game ends after the last hand. Highest total wins.
• Tie-Breaker: Tied players share the win.