23.3 Game-Tree Search in Bridge 519
for various possible card plays by the opponents. Thus, rather than being a single
linear sequence of moves, the plan is more like a tree structure (see Section 23.3).
The plan is normally a combination of various stratagems for trying to win tricks.
There are a number of well-known stratagems, which have names like ruffing, cross-
ruffing, finessing, cashing out, discovery plays, and so forth (Section 23.4 gives an
example). The ability of a bridge player depends partly on how skillfully he or she
can plan and execute these stratagems. This is especially true for the declarer, who
is responsible for playing both his or her cards and the dummy’s cards.
23.3 Game-Tree Search in Bridge
Game-tree search is a technique