PocketDurak-Thrown Up Durak is played with 36 cards: the A, K, Q, J, 10, 9, 8, 7 and 6 from a standard 4-suit 52-card deck are used. At the start, each player is dealt six cards, which are played in a series of bouts of attack and defence. After the players have received all their cards, reveal the top card of the deck. Place it on the middle of the table, place the deck on top of the revealed card, covering it half way. This card represents the trump suit and is now at the bottom of the deck. Cards in this suit hold a higher value then the Aces of the other suits. Within the trump suit card hierarchy is maintained. When a player's hand is reduced to fewer than six cards it is replenished from the talon of undealt cards. After the talon is exhausted, there is no more replenishment and the aim is to get rid of all the cards from your hand. The last player left holding cards is the loser. This player is the Durak (durak) and is ridiculed by the other player.

1.2. Attack

Attacker reveals a card from his hand by placing it on the table so opponent can see. After the first card has been defended attacker may add cards to the table as long as they are of the same face value as other cards in play. Maximum cards to be defended must be as many as have been originally dealt to each player (6) or until the defender runs out of cards, whichever is less.

1.3. Defend

Defender must respond to the revealed card by beating it with a card of the same suit of higher value or a card of the trump suit. If the defender has no appropriate card he must pick up the card and add it to his hand, thereby losing his turn to attack. If the defender picks up the first attacking card, the turn is over. Defender must beat all revealed cards. Otherwise he must pick up all cards in play including ones that have been beaten. Maximum cards to be defended must be as many as have been originally dealt to each player (6) or until the defender runs out of cards, whichever is less. A successful turn ends when the defender beats all attacking cards. All cards that have been revealed during this turn are removed from the game.

1.4. End of turn

When a defender has successfully beaten all the attacking cards, all the cards that have been in play are removed from the game. Every player must take his turn to refresh his hand by taking as many cards from deck as needed to bring his hand to a total of as many as have been originally dealt to each player (6). Attacker refreshes his hand first. Defender refreshes his hand last. If the deck has been exhausted, players who are left empty handed withdraw from the game. They are lucky, for they will not have a chance to lose.

2. Transfer Durak.

The rules of the Transfer Durak differ from the Thrown Up Durak in one essential addition, changing the structure of the game as well as its strategy: a player who has to cover a card has the right to lay a card of the same value as the card(s) of the current move and, thus, transfer the move to the following player. If the next player, in his turn, has a card of the same value, he can also transfer the move further. A player may, but is not obliged to transfer a move.A transfer is only possible when a player has not started to defend and cover cards. If at least one card has been covered in the move, other cards cannot be transferred. If the next player has less cards in his hand then the number of the cards transferred to him, a tranfer is impossible and, therefore, the player has to cover of take the cards in spite of his ability to transfer them.

3. Bulk Durak

The Bulk Durak game differs from the Thrown Up or Transfer Durak in the point that a card deck is dealt once - players get 18 cards each. A player with the least trump card has the right to lead the game. Then the game is played by the rules of the Thrown Up and Transfer Durak.

4. Japanese Durak

The Japanese Durak rules differ from the rules of the Thrown Up and Transfer Durak in the only point: diamonds are always a trump suit, and spades are only covered by spades.