What is shooting the moon in Hearts?

Hearts spends the whole game teaching you to avoid points - then offers a spectacular reward for grabbing every single one of them.

Quick answer: Shooting the moon means capturing every penalty card in a single hand - all 13 hearts plus the Queen of Spades, 26 points in total. Instead of taking those points, you score zero and each opponent is charged 26. It is the most dramatic single swing in the game.

The all-or-nothing rule

If one player captures all 13 hearts and the Queen of Spades in the same hand, they have shot the moon. The 26 points they would have scored are handed to their opponents instead: each of the other three players gets 26 added to their total, and the shooter gets zero. In a game to 100, one successful moon is often the whole ballgame.

Why almost doesn't count

The catch is brutal: there is no prize for nearly making it. Capture 25 of the 26 points and you simply score 25 - one stray heart taken by an opponent turns a triumph into a catastrophe. That single-heart defense is exactly how opponents stop a moon, which is why every player watches for the warning signs of a shooter hoarding tricks.

Moon hands look strange

A moon-worthy hand is the opposite of a normal good hand: long, high hearts, top cards in the other suits, and the control to win tricks on demand. Deciding whether your cards qualify is its own art - covered in should you try to shoot the moon - and it changes what you pass, as the passing guide explains.

Try for the moon

Related questions

Should you try to shoot the moon?

Rarely, and only when the hand truly qualifies: long and high in hearts, top cards in the other suits, and no low stragglers you can't control. A failed attempt usually means taking most of the 26 points yourself, so the price of being wrong is enormous.

How is Hearts scored?

Each heart you capture costs 1 point and the Queen of Spades costs 13, so every hand distributes exactly 26 points. Scores accumulate hand after hand, and when a player reaches 100 the game ends with the lowest total winning. Shooting the moon - capturing all 26 - gives you zero and your opponents 26 each.

What is the goal of Hearts?

The goal of Hearts is to finish with the lowest score. You avoid capturing hearts, worth 1 point each, and the Queen of Spades, worth 13. When any player reaches 100 points the game ends and the lowest total wins. The one twist: capture all 26 points in a hand and you 'shoot the moon,' giving 26 to everyone else instead.