In France this is simply Jeu de Tarot,
which just means The Game of Tarot. There may just be the one
game in France now but this book is full of games of tarot and so
I’ve chosen an archaic French spelling to distinguish it. The basic
game is for four players but there are variants for three, five, and
six players (the later will have its own chapter). This is possibly
the most widely played tarot game and I have known players as far
afield as Spain to Ukraine. This alone makes it worth adding to your
gaming repertoire but it is also a very good game in its own right
and I particularly recommend the five player version as one of the
best and most fun games I have ever played.
In France there is a nationwide
Tarot Federation that oversees ‘official’ rules – but really,
those are just the rules official to it and the tournaments organised
for its members. In fact there is a great deal of ‘unofficial’
variation in how this is played and as according to Bunbury is
no more according to a Federation than it is to Hoyle, the rules
given here are the ones found most – fun according to Bunbury.
Everyone plays for themselves,
save for the five player version in which a Declarer calls for a
partner. The goal for the Declarer is to win the number of card
points required, which is dictated by the number of Honours they win
in their tricks – everyone else’s job is to prevent that.
Pack: A tarot pack of 78 cards is used consisting of four regular suits of 14 cards, a suit of 21 trumps, and The Fool.
Card Points:
| Honours | 5 points |
| Kings | 5 points |
| Queens | 4 points |
| Cavaliers | 3 points |
| Valets | 2 points |
| All Others | 1 point |
Ranking: Rational ranking is used...
Pip cards rank in suit from high to low:
King, Queen, Cavalier, Valet, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, Ace
Trumps rank by their number, 21 high, 1 low.
Empty Cards: These are cards that have values of 1 point or less.
Honours: The Juggler, The World, and The Fool are called The Honours. They are always among the highest scoring cards.
A game consists of as many hands as there are players
Deal:
First Dealer is chosen at random or by consent with the role moving
to the player on the left after each hand.
- Four Players: Dealer hands out eighteen cards to each player in packets of three, dealing six cards (neither the first six, nor the last) face down to the stock.
- Three Players: Dealer hands out twenty-four cards to each player in packets of four, dealing six cards (neither the first six, nor the last) face down to the stock.
- Five Players: Dealer hands out fifteen cards in packets of five, dealing three cards (neither the first three, nor the last) face down to the stock.
If a player has
no trumps save for The Juggler, then they may either call for the
hand to be re-dealt (by the same Dealer) or declare that they have
“Brass Balls”. In such a case, the hand is played out
normally but The Juggler behaves in the same way as The Fool and
accordingly cannot be lost.
Auction:
In turn, moving to the left and starting with Eldest (Dealer’s
left), players may bid for the role of Declarer, playing for
themselves against the others who will be the Defenders. From low to
high the bids are...
- I’ll Play: If won, Declarer reveals the cards of the stock for all to see, then takes them into his/her hand. Declarer must then discard as many cards as there were in the stock, which may not include Kings, Honours, or Trumps. If there is no alternative however, then trumps may be discarded but must be shown to the other players first. The discard will count toward Declarers tricks at the end unless no tricks have been won.
- Solo: If won, this is played as I’ll Play, save for higher stakes.
- Solo with the stock: If won, then the stock goes unseen to Declarer’s tricks. However, if Declarer fails to win any tricks, then the stock is lost to the Defenders.
- Solo against the stock: If won, then the stock goes unseen toward the Defender’s tricks.
- If all players pass, then the hand is thrown in and re-dealt by the same Dealer.
- Rally a King: If a five player game is being played, then Declarer must now call for a partner. This is done by calling for a king not held and whichever player holds it will be Declarer’s partner – though they cannot announce that until the end (their identity should become clear enough from their game play).
Declarations:
Before play commences, players have the opportunity to declare for
bonus points.
- Abundance: If players have enough trumps in their hand, then they may declare them for bonus points by laying them face up for the other players to see. There is no obligation to declare an Abundance and a player who does so need not declare all they can – just the minimum of score. However, they can only score for what they declare.
Small Middling Grand
- The Sparrow: When announced, the player contracts to win the last trick with The Juggler, scoring 20 points against the other side (Declarer scores against each of the Defenders, the Defenders each score against Declarer). However, if announced and failed, a 20 point penalty is due instead.
- Slam: When announced, the player contracts to win every trick for 400 points scored against the other side. If failed, then a 400 point penalty is due instead.
Bonuses:
Players may win bonuses for unannounced achievements (The Sparrow and
a Slam) but they score fewer points.
- The Sparrow: Won unannounced in the Declarations round, this will only score 10 points.
- Slam: Won Unannounced in the Declarations round, this will score 200 points.
Play:
Declarer leads to the first trick by placing a card face up on the
table. Each player in turn, moving to the left, must play a card from
their hand of the suit led – this is called following suit. If they
do not have any cards of the suit led, it is called being void in
that suit and they must play a trump card instead – however, if
trumps have already been played to the trick, then if they can, they
must play a higher trump than any already played. If they cannot
follow suit or play a trump, then they may then play any other card,
though it will not win. Whoever plays the highest trump to the trick
wins it, or if trumps are not played, then whoever played the highest
card of the suit led wins it. The winner takes the cards and places
them face down in their trick pile to be counted at the end.
The player that
wins the trick then leads to the next one and play continues until
the hand has been played out.
If The Fool is
held, then it may be played at any time instead of a card that the
rules might otherwise require and although it will not win, it is
seldom lost. When played, The Fool is returned to to its player who
then places it face up beside them until the end of the hand when
they must pay the player who won the trick with a card from their
trick pile (obviously, they will choose an empty card if they can).
However, if they have taken no tricks, then they must surrender The
Fool instead.
Scores:
Scoring in tarot games is notoriously odd and up until now, I have
simplified it for you. However, this is a game so widely played, that
in this instance, it would be a disservice to you not to use the
recognised method.
Card points are
counted in pairs of cards, subtracting 1 point for every pair. There
are therefore 91 points in the pack. The number of points that
Declarer needs to win the hand depends upon how many Honours are in
his/her trick pile.
No Honours 56 card points needed to win One Honour 51 card points needed to win Two Honours 41 card points needed to win Three Honours 36 card points needed to win
As The World
and The Fool cannot be lost, winning or protecting The Juggler is a
priority in this game.
Once the winner
is determined then points can be calculated. First, 25 points are
scored for winning the hand, then add to this the difference between
the number of card points needed to win against the number of points
Declarer actually took, then add points for winning The Sparrow.
Multiply this result according to the bid being played:
| I'll Play | x1 |
| Solo | x2 |
| Solo Without the Stock | x4 |
| Solo Against the Stock | x6 |
Finally, points
for a Slam can be added. If Declarer won, then the result is won
against each of the Defenders, if lost however, it must be paid to
each of them.
Scores
between Partners: If the five player game is played
then winnings and losses are both divided between them 2:1. So, if
Declarer’s side wins, then one defender will pay Partner their
share, while the other two Defenders pay Declarer. Conversely, if
Declarer’s side loses, then Partner will pay one of the Defenders,
while Declarer will pay the other two.
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