Quodlibet appears to have been made popular by student fraternities at
several Universities in Austria. The game is played by 3 or 4 players,
each playing independently. As previously mentioned, the game usually
uses the German Suited or William Tell deck of cards. The William Tell
is a special version of the normal German suited deck of 32 cards. The cards in this deck are of the denominations 7, 8, 9, 10, Unter, Ober, King, Ace, with one card
of each of these denominations in each of the suits that comprise this deck. The four suits in this deck are Acorns, Leaves, Hearts and Bells. The Unter is also called the Under Knave or Sargent and the Ober is called the Over Knave or Officer. The numerical cards 7 to 10 are actually printed using the Roman numeral representation of that number on the face. What makes this deck unique is that the Ober and Unter cards have pictures of characters from Friedrich Schiller's well known drama Wilhelm Tell.
However, this game can also just as easily be played using the standard French suited deck, which can be created by taking a standard 52 card deck and removing all the cards lower than rank 7 from the deck, creating a deck consisting of 32 cards.
The game is played through a series of 12 deals which are played over the course of three rounds of four deals each. The object of Quodlibet and many of it's variations is to be the player, after all 12 deals have been completed to have the lowest score of penalty points. To determine the first dealer of the game, as well as seating positions, the four Aces are usually temporarily removed from the deck and turned face down and mixed. Each player then draws one of these four cards. The player receiving the Ace of is the first dealer and may take his choice of seats at the table. The players then seat themselves at the table in a counterclockwise direction from this player in the following order based on the Ace drawn by that player.
The selected dealer (sometimes called the King or Leader) begins the first deal of the first round. He thoroughly shuffles the deck and then begins dealing the cards in a counterclockwise direction around the table, starting with the player at his immediate right. In most deals he first deals each player a three card face-down packet, then another three card face-down packet and finally a two-card face-down packet such each player has eight total cards (which should result in the entire deck having been dealt out). The dealer then looks at his cards, and may then select any one of the four deal types (or game types) which are to be played during the first round. After the first deal, the player to that players immediate right then becomes the new dealer or King. After this next dealer deals the card in the same manner, he may then select one of the three remaining unplayed cards for that round. This continues for the four rounds until each player, in a clockwise direction, has dealt once in the round and each of the four required deal types during the round has been played exactly one time. Whichever player is currently the King is entitled to enforce any penalties committed by any players during the deal, and has complete authority during that deal, but may never invoke penalties that include modification to a player's score. The current designated King shuffles and deals the cards during his deal and keeps the score for that deal as well.
Round One Deals (Deal Types): The four deal types which are to be played during the first round of deals are the following:
- Plus or Positive: During this deal, each player attempts to win as many tricks as he can. The play of the hand is similar to most trick taking games in that the leader of each trick may play any card of his choice from his hand, and each subsequent player, in a counterclockwise direction around the table, also plays one card to the trick. If he has a card of the same suit as originally led to the trick he must play it. If he does not have such a card, he may play any card from his hand. The highest card of the suit originally led to the trick wins the trick. The winner of each trick plays the first card to the next trick.
- Minus or Negative: This deal is the opposite of the Plus deal. In this deal, the goal of each player is to win as few tricks as possible. As in most of the other game types, the leader may play any card of choice from his hand and each subsequent player (in a counterclockwise direction) plays one card to the trick. If he has a card of the same suit as originally led to the trick he must play it. If he has no such card, he may play any card from his hand. The highest card of the suit originally led to a trick wins it. The leader of each trick leads the first card to the next trick.
- Bad Neighbor: This deal is exactly the same as the "Minus" deal, with one key difference. The penalty points scored by each player for tricks won during the hand are attributed to the player to that player's immediate right.
- Ahmed and the Red Ruffian: In this deal, the players attempt to avoid winning the King of Hearts (The Red Ruffian) and the Jack of Diamonds (Ahmed). As in most of the other deal types in this game, the leader to each trick may play any card from his hand (however, on the first trick of the hand, the King of Hearts or Jack of Clubs may not be played unless that is a players only option in order to follow the originally led suit). Each subsequent player, in a counter-clockwise direction then plays one card from his hand to the trick. If he has a card of the same suit as originally played to the trick he must play it, otherwise he may play any card from his hand to the trick. The highest card of the suit originally led to the trick wins the trick, and leads the first card to the next trick.
After all eight tricks have been played and won, each player scores 10 penalty points for each trick below eight that he managed to win. If a player wins zero tricks during the hand, he scores 100 penalty points instead.
A player earns 10 penalty points for each trick he wins during this hand. If a player manages to win all 8 tricks, he earns 100 penalty points instead.
The player who captures the King of Hearts in a trick during this hand scores 50 penalty points and the player who captures the Jack of Clubs scores 30 penalty points. If a player captures both of these penalty cards (King of Hearts and Jack of Clubs) in the same trick, that player scores 100 points total, instead.
Once both the King of Hearts and Jack of Clubs have been won in a trick during this deal, the hand is immediately stopped as all point scoring cards for that hand have now been played and won.
Round Two Deals: After each of the deal types in the first round has been played once, the second round of deals begins. Similar to the first round, each player will deal exactly one time and may select any such deal from the list of round two deals which has not yet been played. The player who currently has the highest number of penalty points becomes the first King or Leader for the second round. This player is set as the dealer for the first hand and also selects the first deal type to be played during the second round. After each hand, the role of King (which also coincides with the role of the dealer on each hand) rotates in a counter-clockwise direction around the table. The deal types which each must be selected one time during the four deals comprising the second round are as follows:
- 1238: In this deal, called "1238", "Twelve thirty eight" or "First three, and last" players attempt to avoid winning any of the first three tricks or the last trick of the hand. The play of the hand is similar to most of the other deal types. The leader to each trick may play any card from his hand to start the trick. Each subsequent player (in a counterclockwise direction), then plays one card to the trick as well. If a player has a card of the same suit as originally led to the suit he must play it. If he has no such card, he may play any card from his hand to that trick. The player of the highest card of the same suit as originally led to the trick wins it and leads the first card to the next trick.
- No Reds: In this deal, players attempt to avoid winning any cards in tricks in the suit of Hearts. The rules of play of this deal type are similar to most other deal types in this game. The leader to each trick plays any card of choice from his hand to start the trick. Each subsequent player in a counterclockwise direction then plays one card from his hand to the trick. If he has a card of the suit originally led to the trick he must play it. If he has no such card he may play any card remaining in his hand. The player of the highest card of the suit originally led to the trick wins the trick and leads the first card to the next trick. On the first trick a player may not lead a card in the suit of Hearts or play a card to that trick in the suit of Hearts unless that player only has cards in the suit of Hearts.
- Ober/Unter or Queen/Jack: In this deal type, the players each attempt to avoid any Jacks or Queens in tricks. As in most other deal types in this game, the leader to each trick may play any card of choice from his hand to start the trick. Each other player, in a counterclockwise direction then plays one card to the trick from his hand. If a player has a card of the same suit as originally led to the trick he must play it. If he has no such cards, he may play any card from his hand to the trick. The highest card of the suit originally led to the trick wins the trick. The leader of each trick leads the first card to the next trick. On the first trick in this deal, the leader to the trick may not lead a Jack or Queen to that trick and any other player may not play a Jack or Queen to the trick unless that is the only legal play he might have to that trick.
- High/Low: In this deal, players earn penalty points for winning a trick as well as playing the lowest ranked card to the trick. The play of this deal is similar to most other deal types in the game. The leader to each trick may play any card of choice remaining in his hand. Each other player, in a counterclockwise direction then plays one card to that trick. If the player has a card of the same suit as originally led to that trick he must play it. If he has no such cards, he may play any card from his hand. The highest card of the suit originally led to that trick wins it and leads the first card to the next trick from the cards remaining in his hand.
Trivia: The 1238 deal is named for the
postal code for a section of the Austrian city of Mauer
which is one of the locations at which Quodlibet was
originally played.
postal code for a section of the Austrian city of Mauer
which is one of the locations at which Quodlibet was
originally played.
The winner of the first trick of this deal type earns 10 penalty points, the winner of the second trick during this deal type earns, 20 such points, the winner of the third trick earns 30 points and the winner of the last trick of this deal earns 100 penalty points.
For each card in the suit of Hearts won by a player, that player earns penalty points. For winning the 7, 8, 9, or 10 of Hearts a player earns 20 penalty points for each such card. For winning the Jack, Queen, King or Ace in the suit of Hearts, the players earns 10 penalty points. If a player takes a trick containing all Hearts, that player scores 100 penalty points (instead of any other penalty points for any Hearts won in that trick).
For each Queen a player captures in tricks during this deal, that player scores 30 penalty points and for each Jack a player captures in tricks during the deal, that player earns 20 penalty points. If a player captures both a Queen and a Jack in the same trick, that player scores 100 penalty points for those two cards instead of any penalty points he might have earned for these cards.
The winner of each trick earns 30 penalty points. In addition, the player who played the lowest ranked card (of any suit) to the trick scores 20 penalty points. If multiple players tie for the lowest card played to the trick, they each score the 20 penalty points. If a player wins the trick with the lowest ranked card, he scores 100 penalty points instead of the usual 30.
Round Three Deals: Once each deal type in this second round has been played exactly one time, the third and final round of deals begins. Similar to the first and second rounds, each player will deal exactly one time. However, in this round the current King or Leader must select the game to be played before picking up and viewing his hand. The player who currently has the highest number of penalty points becomes the first King or Leader for this third round. After each hand, the role of King (and dealer) rotates in a counter-clockwise direction around the table. However, during the third round, the Snacking round is always played as the last deal of the round (and game), and thus the first dealer during this round can opt for any of the other three deal types during the round, and each subsequent dealer can select one of the other unplayed deal types. The deal types which each must be selected one time during the four deals comprising the third round are as follows:
- Open: In this deal the players do not actually look at their own cards. Rather, they hold the cards in such a manner such that the backs are facing themselves and the face is towards the opponents, such that each player can see everyone else's cards but his own. The Leader plays the first card to the first trick, selecting a card randomly from his own hand. Each player in a counter-clockwise direction then also randomly selects any one card remaining in his hand and plays the card face-up to the trick. After each player has played exactly one card to the trick, the player who played the highest card of the suit originally led to the trick wins the trick.
- Hunt: In this deal, each player must lay his entire hand face-up on the table in front of himself, such that all players can see all the cards in the hand. The Leader leads the first card to the first trick. The leader to each trick leads any card of choice from his hand and each player in turn, in a counter-clockwise direction plays one card from his hand to the trick. If he has a card of the same suit as originally led to the trick he must play it. If he has no such card, he may play any card from his hand. The player of the highest card of the suit originally led to the trick wins each trick. The leader of each trick leads the first card to the next trick.
- Quadrature: This deal is a departure from most of the other types of deals in this game. In this deal, the players strive to deplete his hand of cards as quickly as possible. The Leader leads the first card to start play, and may lead any card from his hand. The player who has the next highest ranked card of that same suit must then play that card. The series of four cards can actually go round the corner, in other words, after the Ace, the series can continue with the seven of that same suit. After four cards are played (by whichever players have these requisite cards), this constitutes one trick and play to that trick immediately ends. The cards played to this trick are then set aside out of play. The player who played the fourth card in the series then plays the next card (any card remaining in his hand) to start the next series of cards. It may also occur that no player has the next highest card (it having already been played in a prior trick). In that case, the trick also ends (and the cards comprising that trick set aside) and the player who made the last play during the trick starts a new series by playing any card of choice from his hand.
- Snacking: This is always the last and final deal played in the round and the game. This deal shares many similarities to the game FanTan or Domino. The rules for that stand-alone game can be found at this link. In this deal, the King deals each player exactly four cards and then deals five individual packets of three face-down cards to the table and then one last single face-down card packet to the table. The object of this deal is to attempt to deplete the hand of cards as quickly as possible. The Leader has the first turn during this deal.
For each trick a player wins during this deal he scores 10 penalty points. If a player wins all 8 tricks he wins 100 penalty points instead.
Each player earns 10 penalty points for each trick he wins during this round. If a player wins all 8 tricks during this deal he wins 100 points instead.
As soon as any player manages to play his last card, he calls for a "Count" (also known as the "Census"). At this point, the game is temporarily suspended. Each player counts the cards remaining in his hand and scores 10 penalty points for each card remaining in hand. After this, play resumes, continuing as before, with the player who ran out of cards no longer participating in this deal. If the player who played his last card would normally be the next to play, this privilege rotates to the next player in counter-clockwise direction from that player. As play continues, a second player will eventually manage to play his last card and a further "Count" is declared by that player. Play again temporarily is suspended and the two remaining players each score 20 penalty points for each card remaining in the hand. After this the remaining two players resume as before, until the third player plays his last card, calling for a final "Count". In this final Count the last player still having cards in hand scores 30 penalty points for every card still remaining in his hand.
On his turn a player may make one legal play to the table if able. If a player has a legal play he must make such a play. During the course of the deal, a layout will be built in the middle of the table. On his turn a player may play any Unter (Jack) to start a new foundation if he has such a card.
However, if on a player's turn, there are already cards on the table, he may build in a descending sequence from the Jacks downwards to 7 and build upward from the Jacks to the Ace. Cards played in building up in this manner must be of the same suit as the previous card in that foundation pile. The cards are played in such a manner such that the entire sequence can be seen of each sequence and the corresponding next higher or lower card can be built to this layout. If a player is unable to play a card during his turn he must pick up one of the three card packets on the table and this to his hand, ending his turn. If all the three card packets have already been picked up, he must take the single card packet. If there are no more face-down card packets on the table, he simply skips his turn.
Scoring in this deal is very similar to the Quadrature deal. As soon as the first player manages to play his last card to the layout, he calls for a "Count". At this point, the game is temporarily suspended. Each player counts the cards remaining in his hand and scores 10 penalty points for each card remaining in the hand. After this, play resumes, continuing as before, with the player who ran out of cards no longer participating in the deal and the turn continuing with the next player in turn after the player who played his last card in hand. After play resumes, a second player will eventually manage to play his last card and a further "Count" is declared. Play again is temporarily suspended and the two remaining players each score 20 penalty points for each card remaining in the hand. After this the remaining two players resume as before (starting with the next player in turn after the last player to run out of cards), until the third player plays his last card, calling for a final "Count". In this final Count, the last player still having cards in hand scores 30 penalty points for each card still remaining in the hand.
After the last deal completes, the players examine the score sheet and the player with the lowest total score is declared the game winner. Each full game is called one Partie. The scoring is usually recorded on a sheet of paper, with 12 rows drawn to represent each deal. For each increment of 10 penalty points earned by a player, an "X" should be drawn on the score sheet corresponding with the player who earned these points. If a player scores 100 penalty points on any specific deal, he should record a "C" to represent this instead. The score for each deal is usually recorded for that deal by the current Leader or King.
Variations and Optional Rules
Trivia: The popular children's game Old Maid
(or Schwarze Dame in German) is actually
derived from one of the original deals included
in the game Quodlibet.
Other Deal Types: The rules for Quodlibet are far from standardized, and as such, there are a number of rule variants used. One common difference that may often be encountered is that certain deal types are swapped out for other types. The following are a few of the more commonly found deal types that might be substituted in playing this game:
(or Schwarze Dame in German) is actually
derived from one of the original deals included
in the game Quodlibet.
- CV 105: If the CV 105 deal is to be added to the game, it would usually be substituted for the High/Low deal. This deal is significantly different than most of the other deal types in this game and does not consist of a series of tricks but rather player playing cards to an ongoing accumulating pile of cards. In this deal type, the player to the immediate right of the current King plays the first card. He may play any card of choice from his hand. Each subsequent player, in a counter-clockwise direction than plays any one card from his own hand directly on top of the last card played. This continues for multiple rotations around the table until any player, on his turn and before playing a card to the pile, believes that the card total (see below) of all cards previously played to the pile is of a sum equal to or greater than 105. In this case he shouts "CV" and play immediately stops. The total sum of the cards in the pile are totaled and if the sum is indeed 105 or greater (based on the card values shown below), the player previous to the player who called CV must add 100 points to his ongoing game score. However, if the total count of the pile is less than 105, the player who called CV must add 100 points to his ongoing game score instead. The following chart shows the card point value of each card as might be played to this center pile:
- Bad Neighbor - Left: This deal is identical to the standard Bad Neighbor deal type as described above. However, in this deal the penalty points earned by a player during the hand are scored to the player immediately to a player's left (instead of to the right as in the standard Bad Neighbor deal).
| Card | Point Value |
|---|---|
| Ace | 11 |
| King | 4 |
| Queen (or Ober) | 3 |
| Jack (or Unter) | 2 |
| 10 | 10 |
| 9, 8, 7 | 0 |
Herzeln: Herzeln is another compendium card game which appears to be of Austrian origin. This game is usually played with the standard German pack, but a French suited pack can also easily be used by removing all cards lower than rank seven from a standard 52 card pack.
The standard game of Herzeln is designed to be played by four players, each playing independently. As mentioned previously, the game is usually played using the traditional German 32 card pack, but any stripped down version of the French suited deck can also be used. The ranking of the cards in this deck are as follows (from high to low): Ace, 10, King, Queen (Ober), Jack (Unter), 9, 8, 7. Determination of seating positions and first dealer can be performed in a variety of methods, with drawing for high cards a method commonly used. In this method, each player draws one card from the shuffled, face-down deck. The player drawing the highest card selects any seat at the table. The player who drew the next highest card then sits to that player's immediate right, continuing in this manner until each player is seated. The player drawing the highest card of all is set as the first dealer.
The dealer begins by thoroughly shuffling the pack and offering it to the player at his left to cut. After the cut, the dealer begins dealing the cards to the player, starting with the player to his immediate right and continuing in a counter-clockwise direction. He first deals each player a three card packet, then another three card packet and lastly a two card packet, such that each player has a hand consisting of eight total cards.
As in other compendium games, this game is played over a series of several deals, with the players attempting to have the highest (or at least lowest minus count) of points at the end of the game. A total of eight deals are played, with the role of dealer for each hand rotating in a counter-clockwise direction around the table. The following are the deal types which are to be played, each in order:
- No Hearts: In this deal, each player attempts to win as few cards in the suit of Hearts as possible. The player to the right of the dealer leads the first card to the first trick, selecting any card remaining in his hand to play to the trick. After the leader plays a card to the trick, each other player in a counter-clockwise direction also plays one card to the trick, continuing in this manner until each player has played exactly one card to the trick. If a player has in hand, a card of the same suit as originally played to the trick he must play it. If he does not have such a card, he may play any card from his hand. The highest card of the suit originally led to the trick wins the trick, with the cards in the trick set aside. The leader of each trick plays the first card to the next trick.
- Tricks: During this deal the players attempt to win as many tricks as possible. The player to the immediate right of the current dealer leads the first card to the first trick. The lead card to a trick may be any card from that player's hand. After the lead, each other player, in a counter-clockwise direction then also plays one card from the hand to the trick. If those players have a card of the suit originally led to the trick they must play. If the player has no such card, he may play any card from his hand. The highest card of the suit originally led to a trick wins that trick. The cards from the won trick should be set aside, out of play. The winner of each trick is entitled to play the first card to the next trick.
- No Tricks: During this deal, players attempt to win as few tricks as possible. The player to the right of the dealer leads to the first trick and each other player, in a counterclockwise direction from that player, plays one card to the trick. If a player has a card of the same suit as that led to the trick he must play it. If he has no cards of that suit he may play any card from his hand to the trick. The player of the highest card in the suit originally led to the trick wins that trick. The winner of each trick leads the first card to the next trick.
- No Obers: In this deal, players attempt to avoid winning any Obers (Queens) during the hand. The player to the immediate right of the dealer leads the first card to the first trick, and each other player, in a counter-clockwise direction then adds one card to the trick. If the player has a card of the suit originally led to the trick he must play that card. If he does not he may play any card from his hand. The player of the highest card of the suit originally led to the trick wins the trick. The winner of each trick leads the first card to the next trick. On the first turn, the leader may not lead with an Ober, and another player may not play an Ober to that first trick unless that is the only legal play they would have to that trick.
- King of Hearts: In this deal, players attempt to avoid capturing the King of Hearts in a trick. The player to the right of the dealer plays the first card to the first trick and may play any card of his choice. Each other player in a counter-clockwise direction must the play one card to the trick. If the player has a card of the suit originally led to the trick he must play such a card. If he does not have a card in that suit, he may play any card from his hand. The player of the highest card of the suit originally led to the trick wins the trick. The winner of each trick leads the first card to the next trick. The King of Hearts may not be played to the first trick of the hand, and another player may not play such a card to the hand unless that is the only legal play he might have.
- Last Trick: In this deal, players attempt to win the last (eighth) trick of the hand. The player to the immediate right of the dealer leads the first card to the first trick. Each other player than adds one card to the same trick in a counterclockwise direction. If the player has a card of the same suit as originally led to the trick he must play a card of that suit. If he does not, he may play any card from his hand to the trick. Each trick is won by the player of the highest card of the suit originally led to that trick. The winner of each trick leads the first card to the next trick.
- No Last Trick: This deal is essentially the opposite of the last deal type, in that during this deal players attempt to avoid winning the last trick of the hand. As in most other deal types played during a game of Herzeln, the player to the immediate right of the dealer plays the first card to start the first trick. The first card to a trick can be any card of that player's choosing remaining in his hand. Each other player then, in a counter-clockwise direction adds a card from his own hand to the trick. If he has a card of the suit originally led to the trick he must play it. If he has no such cards, he may play any card from his hand. The highest card of the suit originally led to the trick wins that trick. The winner of each trick leads the first card to the next trick, and may lead any card remaining in his hand.
- Domino (Unteranlegen): This deal is not a trick taking deal as are the other seven deals played during a game of Herzeln. In this deal, each player attempts to be rid of all cards in the hand as fast as possible. This version is somewhat different than the Domino deal that is played in other related games however.
After all eight tricks have been played and won, the players then calculate how many points earned during the hand. The following chart shows the number of points each card in the suit of Hearts subtracts to the score of the player capturing it:
|
 |
The scores for cards captured by each player is then added on a score sheet, accumulated for the player capturing those points.
Each player adds 10 punts to his current score for each trick he manages to win during this deal.
For each trick that a player wins during that round, he earns 10 negative points to his current score.
For each Ober (Queen) captured during this hand, a player earns 20 negative points to his current score.
Once the trick in which the King of Hearts has been played is complete, the hand ends, and the player who captured the King of hearts scores 40 negative points to his current score.
The player who manages to capture the last trick of the hand earns 40 positive points, added to his current ongoing score.
The player who wins the last trick of the hand is penalized -40 points for doing so.
After each player has been dealt eight cards, the player to the immediate right of the dealer has the first play and the turns continue in a counter-clockwise direction around the table. If the first player has any Unter (Jack), he may place it face-up to the center of the table. If he does not have such a card he must skip his turn, with the turn rotate to the next player in sequence. After an Unter (Jack) has been played, players then may play cards in a descending or ascending sequence from this Jack. The card played need not be of the same suit as the card it is played on in that sequence. When building upwards, once the Ace is reached, the sequence can continue with the seven (of any suit) and continues building up. Similarly, in the descending sequence, after the seven, players continue the descending sequence with an Ace and can continue building down from that card. Additional Unters are not played next to the original Unter and are simply played as they can be in the descending and ascending sequence. If a player has no legal play on his turn, he simply passes and the turn rotates to the next player. If a player has a legal play he must make that play. If a player runs out of cards, he drops from the hands and allows the additional players to continue until only one player remains who still has cards in hand.
The first player to drop from the hand (having played all his cards) scores no negative points for the hand. The second player to run out of cards during the hand earns 10 negative points, the third to deplete his hand earns 20 negative points and the last remaining player to still have cards earns 30 negative points.
After all eight deals are completed, the scores of each player is compared. Whichever player has the highest score (which is often the player with the fewest negative points) is declared the winner of the game.
Three Player Herzeln: A variant of Herzeln is also sometimes played by three. Although the standard four player variant is traditionally played with a German suited deck of cards, the three player variant is usually played with a reduced French deck, which leads many experts to hypothesize this variant was developed in a non Germanic country. As indicated by the name, this game is played by three players using a standard French suited deck in which all cards lower than the nine are removed, creating a 24 card deck for play. The ranking of the cards in this deck are as follows (from high to low): Ace, King, Queen, Jack, 10, 9.
The game is played exactly the same as the standard variant with the exception being that only three players participate. In the last deal of the hand (Domino) the first player to run out gains no negative points, the second 10 negative points and the last player still with cards in the hand earns 20 negative points.
Kein Stich: Kein Stich is another compendium style card game of Germanic origin. It is sometimes titled Herzeln, but is actually a somewhat different game than that described above. Other names by which this game is know by include Fritz, Lieschen, and Fünferspiel.
Similar to the other compendium style games, Kein Stich is played over the course of several deals (five), and the players attempt to obtain the highest score by the end of the game. As in most of the other German type compendium games describes on this page, the game is traditionally and usually played using the special German cards, however, a reduced French suited back can also be used. The ranking of the cards in this deck are as follows (from high to low): Ace, King, Ober (Queen), Unter (Jack), 10, 9, 8, 7. First dealer and seating positions at the table can be determined using a variety of methods, including draw for high cards.
Once the players are seated and the first dealer determined, he should thoroughly shuffle the deck and offer the deck to the player at his immediate left to cut. After the cut, the dealer begins dealing the cards in a counter-clockwise direction around the table, starting with the player at his right. He deals the cards one at a time and face down the table until the entire deck has been dealt out, which should leave each player with eight total cards. After each hand the deal rotates around the table in a counter-clockwise direction.
The game consists of a series of 5 deals which are played in specific order, starting with the Kein Stich deal (No Tricks) and finishing with the Legerunde (Domino) deal. The role of dealer rotates around the table in a counter-clockwise direction after each deal. The following are the five deals, and the other played, in a game of Kein Stich:
- Kein Stich (No Tricks): During the first deal, the players attempt to win as few tricks as possible. The player to the immediate right of the dealer leads the first card to the first trick and each other player, in a counter-clockwise direction around the table contributes one card from his own hand to the trick. If a player has at least one card of the suit led to the trick he must play that card to the trick. If he does not have such a card he may play any card of choice remaining in his hand. The highest card of the suit originally led to the trick wins the trick, and all cards from each trick are set aside. The winner of each trick leads the first card to the next trick.
- Kein Herz (No Hearts): During the second deal of a game of Kein Stich, players attempt to avoid capturing cards in the suit of Hearts during the hand. The player to the immediate right of the dealer leads the first card to the first trick and each subsequent player, in a counter-clockwise direction adds one card from his own hand to the trick. If a player has at least one card of the same suit as originally led to this trick he must play such a card. If he had no cards of that suit he may play any card from his hand. The trick is won by the highest card of the suit originally led to the trick. The winner of each trick leads the first card to the next trick. The leader may not lead a card in the suit of Hearts to the first trick and other players may not play a card in the suit of Hearts to the trick unless a player only has cards in the suit of Hearts (which is highly improbable).
- Kein Ober (No Obers or Queens): The goal of the third deal in a game of Kein Stich is to avoid winning tricks containing one or more Obers (Queens). The player to the immediate right of the dealer leads the first card to the first trick, and each subsequent player plays one card from his own hand to the same trick. If the player has a card of the same suit as originally led to that trick he must play it. If he has no such card he may play any card from his hand. The trick is won by the highest card of the suit originally led to that trick, and the winner of each trick leads any card remaining in his hand to start the next trick. On the first trick of the hand, a player may not lead a Ober (Queen), nor may any of the other players play an Ober to the trick unless an Ober is the only card that player has in his hand of the suit originally led to that trick.
- Kein Herz-König (No Max): During the fourth deal of the hand, the players attempt to avoid winning the King of Hearts in a trick (called Max). The player to the immediate right of the dealer plays the first card to the first trick. Each other player in a counter-clockwise rotation then plays one card from his own hand to the trick. If a player has at least one card of the suit originally led to the trick he must play such a card. If he does not have a card of that suit, he may play any card from his hand. The highest card of the suit originally led to the trick played to that trick wins it, and the winner of each trick leads the first card to the next trick. On the first trick of the hand, the leader may not play the King of Hearts to the trick, and no other player may play the King of Hearts to the first trick unless that card is the only card that player has of the suit originally led to the trick.
- Legerunde (Domino): The fifth and last deal of the hand is played much differently than the previous four deals of the hand. After the dealer has dealt out the cards, the player who has the Unter of Acorns (Jack of Clubs) has the first turn, playing this card to the table to start a foundation pile. The game then proceeds in turns in a counterclockwise direction from the player playing that first card. Each player on his turn may either play a Jack of a different suit to start a new foundation pile or may build up or down from other foundations already on the table with cards of the same suit as the other cards already found in that foundation. Each player may play one card on his turn. If he has no legal moves he simply passes and the turn rotates to the next player in a counterclockwise direction. This continues until the first player manages to legally play the last card from his hand. This first player to deplete his hand earns 100 positive points and drops from the hand. The game then continues until a second player manages to play his last card from the hand. This player then earns 50 positive points and drops from the hand. The last two players then continue until the third player manages to play the last card from his hand, which ends the hand. The third player to manage to deplete his hand earns 10 positive points. The last player still with cards earns no points on that deal.
Each trick won by a player during this deal causes the player to earn 5 negative points.
After all eight tricks have been played and won, the players examine the cards won in tricks during the hand and each card in the suit of Hearts captured in tricks during the hand forces that player to earn 5 negative points.
After all eight tricks have been played and won, the players examine the cards won in tricks. For each Ober (Queen) captured in tricks during the hand, the player earns 10 negative points.
Once the King of Hearts is captured in a trick, that hand ends and all the cards are gathered for the next deal. The player who captures the King of Hearts earns 40 negative points.
One optional rule that is sometimes included with Kein Stich is that of the March (Durchmarsch). If the March rule is used, if, on the first four deals of the game, a player manages to win every trick during any hand, he is said to have earned a March. Thus, regardless of any penalty cards he may have captured on the hand, he actually scores 50 positive points and each opponent scores 30 negative points.
King Louis: King Louis is the exact same game as Kein Stich with the following differences:
- The game consists of four deals instead of five, with the first deal (Kein Stich) not played.
- Because the first deal is not included, the number of positive points which can be won on the last deal is reduced. The first player to deplete his hands wins 80 positive points, the second player 30 positive points and the third player to deplete his hand wins 10 positive points.
Black Pig: Black Pig is also played very similarly to Kein Stich, with one difference. In this game, on the fourth deal of the hand, players attempt to avoid the Queen of Spades instead of the King of Hearts. The player who thus captures the Queen of Spades on this hand earns 40 negative points.
Extra Deals: As in other games of this type, additional deals are sometimes added to Kein Stich. One of the following is usually added after the fourth deal and before the Domino round:
- Kein zweitletzter Stich (No penultimate trick): In this deal, the players attempt to avoid capturing the second to last trick of the hand. The player to the immediate right of the dealer leads the first card to the first trick and each other player, in a counterclockwise direction adds one card from his own hand to the trick. If a player has a card of the same suit as originally led to the trick he must play that card. If he does not have such a card he may play any card remaining in his hand. The player of the highest card in the suit originally led to the trick wins the trick and leads the first card to the next trick.
- Kein erster, letzter Stich (No First, no last): Instead of the No Penultimate Trick deal, some players prefer to use the No First, No last deal instead. In this deal, players attempt to avoid winning the first trick of the hand or the last trick of the hand. The player to the immediate right of the dealer leads the first card to the first trick, which may be any card of choice from his hand. Each other player in a counterclockwise direction then plays one card from his own hand to the trick. If he has a card of the suit originally led to the trick he must play such a card. If he does not have a card of that suit, he may play any card from his hand. The player of the highest card to each trick wins that trick and leads the first card to the next trick.
Whichever player captures the penultimate trick of the hand earns 40 negative points.
The player who wins the first trick of that deal earns 20 negative points and the player who wins the last deal of the hand also earns 20 negative points.
Rosbiratschka: Rosbiratschka is another Compendium game of Germanic descent. As with most of the other games listed on this page, Rosbiratschka is traditionally played with the 32 German pack, however it can also be played with a reduced pack of French suited cards in which all cards lower than seven have been removed. The ranking of the cards in this pack are thus (from high to low): Sow (Ace), King, Ober (Queen), Unter (Jack), 10, 9, 8, 7. The game is designed to be played by four participants.
A game of Rosbiratschka (called a partie) is played over six individual deals which are played in a specific order. Determination of seating positions and first dealer can be performed using a variety of methods, with draw for high cards a common such method. Once the players are seated and the first dealer determined, this dealer thoroughly shuffles the cards and offers the pack to the player at his immediate left to cut. After the cut he then begins dealing the cards, one by one and face down in a counterclockwise direction starting with the player at his right. He continues dealing until each player has eight total cards (which should thus consist of the entire pack). The following are the six deal types that are played and the order in which they should be played:
- No Tricks: The first deal type in this game is No Tricks, in which each player attempts to avoid winning any tricks. The player to the dealer's immediate right leads the first card to the first trick (which may be any card from his hand). Each other player, in a counterclockwise direction then plays one card from his own hand to the trick. If he has a card of the same suit as originally led to the trick he must play that card. If he does not, he may play any card from his hand. The highest card of the suit originally led to the trick wins the trick, and that player leads the first card to the next trick.
- No Hearts: On the next deal type in this game, the players attempt to avoid winning cards in the suit of hearts. The player to the immediate right of the dealer leads the first card to the first trick. Each other player, in a counterclockwise direction, than adds one cards from his own hand to the trick. If that player has a card of the same suit as originally led to the trick he must play it. If he has no such card he may play any card from his hand to the trick. The player who played the highest card of the suit originally led to the trick wins the trick and leads the first card to the next trick.
- No Unters (Jacks): In this deal, the players attempt to avoid capturing Unters (Jacks) in tricks. The player to the immediate right of the dealer leads the first card to the first trick. Each other player then plays one card from his own hand to the trick. If he has a card of the suit originally led to the trick he must play it. If he has no such card, he may play any card from his hand. The highest card played to a trick of the suit originally led to that trick wins the trick, and the winner of each trick leads the first card to the next trick.
- No King of Hearts: In this deal, the players attempt to avoid winning the King of Hearts in a trick. The player to the immediate right of the dealer leads the first card to the first trick. Each other player in a counterclockwise direction then plays one card to the trick. If a player has a card of the same suit as originally led to the trick he must play it. If he has no such trick he may play any card from his hand to the trick. The player of the highest card of the suit originally led to a trick wins the trick and leads the first card to the next trick.
- Hundred: This deal is played significantly different than the other deals in this game. The dealer still distributes 8 cards to each player, with the player to the dealer's immediate right having the first play, and the player continuing in a counterclockwise direction around the table, all playing to a common play pile in the middle of the table. A running total is kept of the sum of the cards points played to the center pile, and this total should be verbalized by each player as he plays his cards. Thus, the turn rotates around the table with each player playing a card to the center and announcing the new total for the pile. Each card in the deck has a specific equivalent total as follows:
- Rosbiratschka: The last and final deal of a game of Rosbiratschka is played similarly to Domino or Unteransetzen. The players attempt to be the first player to deplete his hand of cards. On his turn a player may play an Unter (Jack) as a foundation or may play to these foundation cards in ascending of descending order from cards previously played to the table. In playing a card to a foundation, the card must be of the same suit and one rank higher or lower than the card played upon. The player to the immediate right of the dealer has the first turn and play rotates around the table in a counterclockwise direction. If a player is unable to make a legal play, he must pass his turn. If a player manages to play the last card from his hand, he simply drops from the hand. This continues until all but one player have depleted the hand of cards, after which all the other players shout "Rosbiratschka" and the hand ends. The last player still having cards in hand scores eight negative points.
After all eight tricks have been played and won the players determine scoring for the round. If one or two players managed to win no tricks, each other player earns 2 negative points for each trick won. However if all players won at least one trick during the hand, each player earns one negative point for each trick won during the hand. However, if one player manages to win every trick during the hand, called a Durchmarsch, that player wins 8 positive points.
If one or two players during the hand managed to capture no cards in the suit of Hearts, each card in the suit of Hearts earns the player capturing the card 2 negative points. If every player captured at least one card in the suit of Hearts, each player earns one negative point for each card in the suit of Hearts won during the hand. However, if one player managed to capture all the cards in the suit of Hearts, that player earns 8 positive points instead.
If one or two players managed to capture no Unters during the hand, each other player scores 2 negative points for each Unter captured in tricks during the hand. However, if every player captured one Unter, each Unter captured scores one negative point. If one player managed to capture all four Unters, that player earns 8 positive points.
Once the King of Hearts is captured in a trick, the hand immediately ends and the player who captured that card scores eight negative points.
| Card Played | Value added to running total |
|---|---|
| Ace | 11 |
| Ten | 10 |
| King | 4 |
| Ober (Queen) | 3 |
| Unter (Jack) | 2 |
| 9, 8, 7 | 0 Each |
After all deals have been played, the player with the highest total is declared the game winner.
Lorum: Lorum (also spelled Lórum) is a compendium game of Hungarian origin. Lorum is thought to be the direct ancestor of Barbu, which is the most well known member of compendium type games. Lorum is usually played using the 32 card German pack, although a stripped down French pack can also be used. The ranking of the cards used for this game are as follows (from high to low): Ace, King, Queen (Ober), Jack (Unter), 10, 9, 8, 7.
The game consists of eight game types with each to be played exactly four times. Thus, a full game will thusly consist of exactly 32 hands played. Determination of seating positions and first dealer can be determined using a number of methods, with the method of drawing for high cards often used. In that method, each player draws a card from the shuffled deck, with any players drawing cards of the same rank as another player redrawing, continuing to redraw until they each draw a card of a unique rank. The players would then seat themselves at the table in the order of cards drawn from highest to lowest. The player drawing the highest ranked card is set as the first dealer.
The same dealer deals each of the eight game types in the order shown. After that dealer has dealt each game type one time, the deal then passes to that players right to the next player who then deals each of the game types in the same order. This continues until each player has dealt each of the game types one time. The object of the game is to end the entire game with the lowest total overall score.
The dealer would thoroughly shuffle the cards and pass the shuffled deck to the player at his left to cut. After the cut he would then begin dealing the cards, two at a time, face down, starting with the player at his right and continuing in a counter-clockwise direction. He continues dealing in this way until each player has a total of eight cards. Play of the hand also rotates in a counter-clockwise direction.
The following are each of the game types that will be played, shown in the order they are to be dealt and played by each dealer.
- Stichlos (No Tricks): In this game type, which should be the first game type dealt by each dealer, players attempt to avoid winning any tricks. The leader of each trick may play any card to start the first trick. Each other player must then play a card of the same suit if they have one. If they do not have such a card they may play any card from the hand to the trick. The trick is won by the highest card of the suit led to that trick. The winner of each trick leads the first card to the next trick. Each trick won during a hand of this game type earns that player one point. If one player manages to win no tricks he is entitled to subtract eight points from his score. If two players manage to win no tricks, each of those players is entitled to subtract four points from his current ongoing score. If one player manages to win every trick during the hand, that player is entitled to subtract 24 points from his hand, and each other player must add eight points.
- Herzlos (No Hearts): In this game type, players attempt to win as few cards in the suit of Hearts as possible. The leader of each trick may play any card of choice from his hand to the trick. Each other player in turn must then play a card of that same suit to the trick if he has one. If he does not have such a card, he may play any card from his hand. The player of the highest card of the suit originally led to the trick wins it. The leader of each trick leads the first card to the next trick. A player may not lead or play a card in the suit of Hearts to the first trick of the hand unless he only has cards in the Heart suit in hand. Similarly, during the first trick of the hand, a player may not play a card in the suit of Hearts to a lead by another player unless the player only has cards in the suit of Hearts. For each card in the suit of Hearts a player wins during play of this game type, that player earns one point. If one player manages to win no cards in the suit of Hearts, that player is entitled to subtract eight points from his current score. If two players manage to capture no cards in the suit of Hearts during this hand, each of these players is entitled to subtract four points from his ongoing score. However, if one player manages to capture every card in the Hearts suit, that player is entitled to subtract 24 points from his score, and each opponent must add 8 points to his score.
- No Queens: During play of this game type, players attempt to avoid winning tricks which contain cards in the rank of Queen. Each Queen won has an associated point value if captured during the hand. The Queen of Hearts earns 4 points, the Queen of Spades earns 3 points, the Queen of Clubs 2 points and the Queen of Diamonds 1 point. The leader to each trick may play any card of his choice from his hand to start the trick. Each other player in turn then plays one card to the trick. If a player has any cards of the same suit as led to the trick, he must play such a card. If he has no cards of that suit, he may play any card in his hand to the trick. The highest card of the suit led to the trick wins it. The leader of each trick leads the first card to the next trick. The leader may not lead any Queen to the first trick and no other player may play a Queen to that first trick unless the only card he has in the suit led to the trick is the Queen of that suit.
- King of Hearts: In this game type, the players attempt to avoid winning the King of Hearts in a trick. The player who wins this card earns 4 points. The leader to the first trick may play any card of choice from his hand to start the trick. Each other player in turn then plays one card to the same trick. If a player has any cards of the suit originally led to the trick, he must play one such card. If he has no cards of that suit, he may play any card of choice from his hand. The trick is won by the player of the highest card of the suit originally led to the trick. The leader of each trick leads the first card to the next trick.
- Heart King Turned: This game type is similar to the regular King of Hearts game type with one major exception. In this variant, as the cards are dealt out face-down to each player they are left in a pile in the order as dealt and the players do no look at the cards dealt. The cards are then played in the reverse order as dealt, each player playing the top card of his face-down pile to the trick. Since the players do not see the cards they will play to each trick, there is obviously no rule that players must play a card of the same suit as originally led to the trick during this game type. The highest card played of the same suit as that originally played by the dealer wins the trick. The winner of each trick plays the first card to the next trick.
- Quartel (or Quads): This game type is significantly different than the previous five game types as played. In this game type, cards will be played to the table in groups of four consecutive cards or Quartels. Thus, the first player may elect to play any card from his hand. He may also play any cards that are one, two or three ranks higher than this first card played, in the same suit at the same time as playing this first card. If he does not have all such cards, any other players who might have the missing sequential cards from that suit may then play them. The sequence can continue past the Ace, in that the seven would be considered the next card after an Ace in sequence. If a full sequence of four cards cannot be played to make an exactly four card sequence (some of those cards having been played during previous plays), the players simply play as many cards as possible as would normally comprise the four card sequence. Whichever player manages to play the last card in the four card sequence then removes those cards, setting them aside and then begins the play to a new Quartel. The game continues in this manner until one player manages to play his last card. The hand immediately ends and each player still having cards in the hand scores one point for each card left in his hand.
- Suta (Train): This game type is also quite different than the other game types played during the game. In this game type, the leader selects any card from his hand to begin. The turns continue in a counter-clockwise direction around the table with each player playing a card from his own hand. Each card in the deck has a specific point value that is added to the increasing summation as cards are played. As each player in turn adds a card to the pile, he should loudly announce the current ongoing sum. The following shows the value of each card in the deck:
- Lorum: The last hand to be dealt by each player is the Lorum hand and is played similarly to the Domino hand played in many of the other compendium type games. In this game type, the player with the first turn selects any card in his hand to begin the first foundation pile. The turn then rotates in a counter-clockwise direction around the table, with each player playing as able. There are several legal plays a player can make on his turn. If he has a card of the same rank as the card originally played to start the foundation, but in a different suit, he may play that card, starting a new foundation. If the player has the next higher card in rank, and of the same suit, as the current top card of any foundation pile, he may play the card on top of that foundation pile. If the top card of the foundation pile is an Ace, a player with a seven of that suit may play this card on the top of the foundation pile. Each player may play a maximum of one card on each of his turns. If a player has at least one legal move, he must make that play. If a player is unable to play, he must pass. Each pass earns a player one point. The game continues until the first player manages to legally play his last card on his turn. The hand immediately ends, with each other player scoring one point for each card remaining in his hand.
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Once all 32 hands have been completed, making one complete game, the player with the lowest grand total is declared the overall game winner. The scoring in this game is often recorded using beans or tokens to represent the points earned during the game. In that case, each player would gain or lose tokens as the game continues based on the results of the hand. At the end of the entire game, the player with the fewest tokens is declared the overall game winner.
Differing Game Types: As in many other compendium type games, the specific game types which are played during the game will differ from game to game. The following are some of the alternative game types which might be encountered at some tables:
- First and Last Trick: During this game type, the goal is to avoid winning the first trick of the hand and the last trick. The player winning the first trick of that hand earns 4 points as does the player winning the last trick of that hand.
- Fifth Trick: In this game type, the players attempt to avoid winning the fifth trick of the hand. The player so winning the fifth trick earns eight points. Once the fifth trick has been played and won, that hand ends.
- Seventh Trick: During this game type, each player attempts to avoid winning the penultimate trick of the hand (seventh trick). The player who wins this trick earns 8 points. Once that seventh trick has been played and won, that hand immediately ends.
- Hairy Ape: This game type is played similarly to the King of Hearts game type. However, in this variant, each player may not see the cards comprising his hand. After the deal, each player thus holds the cards in such a way that the cards are faced away from him whereas he cannot see his own hand but the other players can see the cards of the hand. On his turn, each player randomly selects any card from his hand to play to the trick. The player who captures the King of Hearts in a trick scores 8 points.
- Red Kingless: This is played very similarly to the King of Hearts game type. However, in this variant, the points earned for the King of Hearts is directly dependent on which trick the card is captured. If the card is captured on the first trick it earns 16 points, on the second, third, fourth, fifth, sixth or seventh trick it scores 8 points, and on the last trick the card scores 32 points. The player holding the card may also opt to announce the King before the first trick is played. In this event, if the card is captured on the last trick of the hand, the player capturing the card scores 64 points.
Three Player Lorum: Although Lorum was originally designed as a four player recreation, a variant has also been developed for play by three. The game is played essentially the same as the standard game with the following differences:
- In order to ensure each player receives the same number of cards in each deal, the seven and eight of Diamonds is removed from the deck and set aside.
- With only three players, each game type would be played a total of three times, with a grand total of 24 hands comprising a full game.
- On the Lorum hand, the seven and eight which have been removed from the deck should be kept nearby, as they should immediately played onto the Diamond suit foundation once the opportunity rises. Playing of these cards does not consist of any particular player's play or turn, but should just be added to the foundation when able by any player.
Bauernfangen: Although only basically containing two specific game types, Bauernfangen is still considered a member of the Compendium family of games. Baurfangen is of Germanic origin and the name of the game means literally "chasing farmers" in the German language. This name comes from the fact that the Jacks, which are cards the players are either attempting to capture or avoid capturing, were called Bauer or Farmer in the German pack.
Bauernfangen is designed for play by four or five players each playing for himself and is traditionally played using a stripped down German deck but can also be played equally well with a standard French suited deck in which all cards lower than rank ten have been removed. The ranking of the cards in this deck is thus, from highest to lowest: Ace, King, Queen, Jack, 10.
Determination of the first dealer can performed in a variety of ways, with one common method to have the dealer begin dealing the cards from the shuffled deck around the table. The first player to receive any Jack has first choice of seats and becomes the first dealer. This dealing continues amongst the remaining unseated players until the next player receives a Jack who then has the next choice of seats at the table, continuing until all four Jacks have been dealt. With the five player game, the remaining player selects the last remaining seat at the table.
After the players are seated and the first dealer determined, that dealer thoroughly shuffles the deck and offers it to the player at his right to cut. After the cut, the dealer then begins dealing the cards around the table, one by one and face down, starting with the player at his right and continuing in a clockwise direction. He continues until the entire deck has been dealt out. In a four player game each player will have five cards and in a five player game each player will receive four cards.
The game is played over the course of eight deals, in two "legs" of four deals each. In the first leg, players attempt to avoid winning any Jack in tricks, while in the second leg, called the return leg, players attempt to win as many Jacks as possible in tricks. The following chart shows the value of the Jacks as won in tricks. This value will either be positive or negative respectively, based on whether the card is captured in the first four deals (first leg) or the second four deals (the return leg):
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Thus for the first leg, each player deals exactly once, with the deal rotating clockwise around the table after each hand. After exactly four hands are dealt in which players receive negative or penalty points for Jacks captured in tricks, a second four deals are dealt starting with the next dealer in rotation. During this second four deals players earn positive points for each Jack captured in tricks during the hand. During the first leg, players will thus have negative scores, and will attempt to earn points during the second leg to gain a positive score at the end of the eight deals.
The first card to the first trick is always led by the player to the dealer immediate left and each other player in a clockwise rotation around the table contributes one card to the trick. If a player has a card of the same suit as originally led to the trick he must play it. If he has no such card of the suit originally led to the trick he may play any card to the trick. The highest card of the suit originally led to the trick wins that trick. The winner of each trick leads the first card to the next trick during the hand. Once all four Jacks have been captured during a hand, the hand immediately ends and the cards are gathered up and redealt for the next dealer and hand.
After all eight hands have been dealt, the players then compare the cumulative scores and the player with the highest positive score is declared the winner. If two or more players tie for the highest score, they are said to tie for the winner of that game.
Hintersche: Hintersche is a game similar to many other type of compendium games and, also similar to those games, is of Germanic origin. Although the game is quite old, it is still played in some areas of Germany, particularly in the Black Forest region. Hintersche is also sometimes known as 4-Strich. Because the game uses 36 cards, it is often played with a Jass deck. It can also be played with a standard French suited deck in which all cards below rank 6 have been removed. The normal ranking of the cards in this deck are as follows, from high to low: Ace, King, Queen, Jack, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6. However, these ranking may be slightly changed based on the specific trump suit set for a hand. The trump suit actually consists of 10 cards, with all the normal cards in the suit part of that trump suit and the Jack in the same color but of the opposite suit also considered to be a member of that trump suit for the hand. That Jack is actually considered the second highest card of the trump suit, immediately after the Jack of the trump suit. This other card, is, for all practical purposes considered an actual member of the trump suit and can and should be played at any time in which a card of the trump suit would be played. Thus, the trump suit will contain 10 total cards, the suit of the same color but opposite suit as the selected trump suit will contain 8 cards and the two suits of a different color as the trump suit will have 9 cards each.
Determination of the first dealer is usually done by having each player draw a card from the shuffled deck, with the lowest player set as the first dealer. Players may also select seats at the table in order of cards drawn, from lowest to highest. If multiple players draw cards of the same denomination, those players should all discard that card and redraw until drawing a card which no other player has yet drawn.
Hintersche is designed to be played by four players, all playing independently. The game is played in two rounds, with each round consisting of four deals, for a total of eight deals making a game. A full session is considered a rubber and consists of four such games.
By tradition, scores in Hintersche is kept using chalk and slate. This slate is placed in the middle of the table and each corner of the slate is used to represent the score for the player sitting closest to that corner of the slate.
The dealer for each hand begins by thoroughly shuffling the deck and offering it to the player at his immediate left to cut. After the cut, the bottom card of the deck is exposed and placed in the middle of the table. The suit of this card is set as the trump suit for the hand. After the trump suit is thus determined, the dealer begins dealing the cards in a counterclockwise direction, starting with the player at his immediate right. He deals the cards in small face-down packets of three cards, with each player, during the deal receiving three such packets. However, the dealer's last packet will contain only two cards, as the exposed trump card on the table is considered the dealer's last card in his hand. After the cards have been dealt and all players have the opportunity to review the trump suit card, the dealer adds this card to his hand.
As indicated previously, each game is played in a series of two rounds of four deals each. During the first four deals (called vier-strich) players attempt to capture as few point scoring cards as possible, and during the second four deals (called butzen) players attempt to capture the most point scoring cards as possible in tricks.
The player to the immediate right of the dealer leads the first card to the first trick which may be any card of his choice. Each other player, in a counterclockwise direction then adds one card to the trick in turn. If a player has a card of the suit originally led to the trick he must play it. If he has no such card, he may play any card from his hand, including a card of the trump suit. Each trick is won by the highest card of the trump suit played to that trick if it contains any such cards. If the trick contains no cards of the trump suit, the trick is won by the highest card of the suit originally led to the trick. The winner of each trick leads the first card to the next trick during the hand.
After all tricks have been played and won each player then examines the cards he has won in tricks during the hand and a number of points are scored for each such point scoring card captured during the hand. The following chart shows the point value for each card in the deck as used for this game:
| Card | Card Point Value |
|---|---|
| Jack of trump Suit | 12 |
| Jack of same color as trump suit | 12 |
| Ace of any suit | 11 |
| King of any suit | 4 |
| Queen of any suit | 3 |
| Jack of opposite color as trump suit | 2 |
| 9, 8, 7, 6 | 0 |
During the first four deals of the game, whichever player scores the highest number of card points must add one diagonal line (called a strich) to his corner of the scoring slate. However, if one player alone manages to score 100 or more card points (called a march), he actually wins the hand and the player scores nothing, and each of his three opponents must add one diagonal line to their own corner of the slate. After the first four hands are dealt, the second four hands are then dealt in which players attempt to remove these diagonal lines on the slate. If one or more players manage, on the first four round, to earn no diagonal lines, he is said to have a clean slate and are considered early winners of the game and do not participate in the second round of the game.
Usually the first round of the game ends after four deals, however, if, at any time at the end of a hand, there are four or more marks on the slate, the first round ends and the second begins. During the second round of the game, players also attempt to earn the fewest card points during the hand. The player who manages to so earn the fewest card points during each of these rounds is entitled to erase one of the strich marks he earned during the first round of the game, using a damp sponge or chalk eraser. If there are three or more players remaining in the game, the player who earns the most card points during the hand must similarly add a diagonal line to his own corner of the slate. If a player manages to erase his last diagonal line during the hand, he drops from the game, considered one of the winners of the game. If a player manages to score 100 or more card points during this second round, that player is entitled to erase two marks from his corner of the slate and each opponent is required to add one mark. When there are only two players remaining in this second round of the game, the player earning the fewest card points is entitled to erase one line however the other player is not required to add a diagonal line to his section of the slate. Once all players but one have dropped the one remaining player is considered to have lost the game and then adds one diagonal line to the frame of the slate near his corner.
As described previously, a full session usually consists of four games making one rubber. The winner or winners are the player or players, who after a full rubber, have lost the fewest games during the session (having the fewest marks on the frame of the slate at the completion of the rubber).
Pesë Katësh: Pesë Katësh (translated in English as Five Floors) is a compendium type game played in the country of Albania. A shortened version of this game, called Peskac, which consists of only two rounds is described further below. Pesë Katësh: is played by four players using one standard 52 card deck. The ranking of the cards in the deck, from highest to lowest is: Ace, King, Queen, Jack, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2.
As in other, similar compendium type card games, Pesė Katėsh is played over a series of rounds or hands, in this case a total of 20. These 20 hands are comprised of playing each of the four hand types (called floors) a total of five times:
- Positive: During these hands, players strive to win as many tricks as possible. Each trick won during this hand earns that player a total of +2 points added to his current score.
- No Hearts: During these hands, players attempt to not win tricks that contain cards in the suit of hearts. Each card in the suit of hearts captured in tricks by a player requires that player to subtract two points from his accumulated, ongoing score.
- No Queens: In these rounds, each player attempts to avoid winning tricks that contain Queens. Each Queen captured during the hand requires that player to subtract four points from his current accumulated game score.
- No King of Spades: During this round, the players attempt to avoid winning the King of spades in a trick. The player who does capture this card must subtract sixteen points from his current ongoing score.
During each deal, each player receives 13 total cards. The player to the immediate left of the dealer leads the first card to the first trick, which can be any card of his choice from his hand. Each other player, in a clockwise rotation, must then play a card from their hand to that same trick. If they have a card of the suit originally played to the trick they must play it. If they do not have such a card, they may play any card remaining in their hand to the trick. Each trick is won by the highest card in the suit originally led to that trick. The leader of each trick leads the first card to the next trick.
After all 20 hands have been played, the accumulated scores are compared and the player with the highest total (or least negative hand, if every player has a negative score) is declared the game winner.
Peskac: Peskac is a rather shortened version of Pesë Katësh. It is played identically to Pesë Katësh with the only difference being that instead of four types of mini-games, only two types are played during the game, the Minuses game and the Sevens game.
- Minuses: The minues game combines all four of the game types as played in Pesë Katësh combined into one. Thus, during a Minuses hand, the following points are earned or lost at the end of the hand:
- Each trick won earns that player two positive points.
- Capturing any card of rank 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, Jack, King, or Ace in the suit of hearts forces that player to subtract two points per such card captured in tricks.
- Capturing the Queen of hearts causes the player capturing the card to subtract six points from his accumulated score.
- Capturing the Queen of diamonds, Queen of spades, or Queen of Clubs causes the player to be required to subtract four points from his ongoing score.
- Capturing the King of spades causes the player to be required to subtract sixteen points from his ongoing score.
- Sevens: A Sevens round is similar to the "Domino" round as played in many other compendium type games. During this round, each player thus attempts to be the first to deplete his hand of every card as fast as possible.
To begin this hand, the designated dealer first deals out the entire deck such that each player receives cards. The player who has the seven of diamonds in his hand has the first play, playing this card out near the center of the table. Thereafter, the turns continue in a clockwise direction around the table from that player with each player playing a card to the center layout if able. Thus, on his turn a player may then may play cards in a descending or ascending sequence from the seven played to the table. The card played must be of the same suit as the card it is played upon in that sequence. The cards can be built downward to the Ace, the lowest card in each suit and ascending up to King which is the highest card in that suit. In addition, if a player has a seven in his hand, he may play that on his turn, starting a new descending and ascending sequence in that new suit.
If a player has no legal play on his turn, he calls "pass", and must skip his turn. In addition, the previous player (player at his immediate right), is entitled to give that player any card of his choice from his hand, passing it to the player who was unable to play. The turn then moves to the next player in turn, in a clockwise rotation. Once a player runs out of cards for any reason, he drops from the game and play continues amongst the remaining players.
Once the first three players have depleted their hands, leaving only one player with cards remaining the hands end and scores are computed for the hand. The first player to have depleted his hand earns 32 points, the second player 16, the third player 8 and the last player with cards remaining earns 4 points.
Both game types are each played 5 times in order, with the deal rotating in a clockwise direction after each deal. After a total of 10 hands have been played, the scores are compared and the player with the highest positive score is declared the winner.
Pesë Katësh (3 Floor): Some players also play a variation of Pesë Katësh in which there are three game types featured (three floors). The specific game types may be different, but usually the Positive, No Hearts and No Queens game types are each played in sequence, with each game played a total of five times. After a total of fifteen hands have been played, the player with the highest positive score is declared the winner.
Bismarck Whist: Bismarck Whist (often just shortened to "Bismarck") is a compendium type game which is most popular in Scandinavia, but is also sometimes played in other areas as well. Bismarck is designed for play by three participants using one standard 52 card deck. The ranking of the cards is the same as in most other trick-taking type games (shown from highest to lowest); Ace, King, Queen, Jack, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2.
As in most other compendium type games, the game is played over the course of a number of hands in which the goal or rules for each hand is different. Each player deals a total of four times during each game, dealing each of the following four games, in order:
- First Deal: In the first deal, there is no trump suit set for the hand and each player attempts to win as many possible tricks as possible. On these deals the current dealer earns one point for each trick taken over eight total during the hand and each opponent scores one point for each trick taken in excess of four. Each player is dealt sixteen total cards and the remaining four cards are set aside and not used for the remainder of the hand.
- Second Deal: During the second deal, after the dealer has distributed sixteen cards to each player, he randomly exposes one of the four remaining cards from the deck and places it face-up on the table, to the side. The suit of this card determines the trump suit to be used for this hand. This card and the other three remaining in the deck have no other purpose during the remainder of the hand.
- Third Deal: On the third deal, the dealer is allowed to select the trump suit to be used for the hand. Thus, the dealer deals 16 total cards to each player, setting the remaining four cards aside, out of play. After the cards have been so distributed, the dealer then examines his hand and is allowed to announce one of the four suits to be used as the trump suit during the hand.
- Fourth Deal: During the fourth and final deal for each player, the players will instead attempt to win as few tricks as possible. As in the other deals, the dealer deals sixteen cards to each player, setting the remaining four aside and out of play. There is no trump suit used during this hand.
The player to the immediate left of the dealer leads the first card to the first trick, and other player then plays one card to the same trick. If the player has a card of the same trick as that led to the trick he must play it. If not, he may play any card remaining in his hand. The highest card of the suit originally led to each trick wins the trick and leads the first card to the next trick.
The player to the immediate left of the dealer leads the first card to the first trick and each other player in a clockwise direction plays a card from their hand. If a player has a card of the suit originally led to the trick, he must play such a card. However, if they do not have such a card, they may play any card from the hand, including a card from the trump suit. The trick is won by the player of the highest card of the trump suit played to the trick. If no cards of the trump suit have been played to the trick, it is won by the highest card played to the trick in the suit originally played to the trick. The winner of each trick plays the first card to the next trick.
Scoring on this deal is the same as the first deal, with the current dealer earning one point for each trick taken over eight during that hand and each opponent scoring one point for each trick taken in excess of four.
The first trick is led by the player to the immediate left of the dealer, with each other player, in a clockwise direction then contributing one card to the trick. If the player has a card of the suit originally led to the trick he must play it. However, if he does not have a card of that suit, he may play any card remaining in his hand to the trick, including a card from the trump suit. The trick is won by the player of the highest card from the trump suit played to the trick. If the trick contains no cards from the trump suit, the trick is instead won by the highest card of the suit originally played to it. The winner of each trick leads the first card to the next trick.
After all tricks have been played on that hand, the players determine their scores for the hand. The current dealer will earn one point for each trick taken over eight trick during the hand and each opponent will score one point for each trick taken more than four.
The player to the immediate left of the dealer leads the first card to the first trick which can be any card from his hand. Each other player in a clockwise rotation then also plays one card to the same trick. If a player has a card of the same suit as originally led to this trick, he must play it. If he does not have such a card, he may play any card from his hand. The trick is won by the player of the highest card of the suit originally led to the trick, and this player also plays the first card to the next trick.
After all tricks during the round have been played, scoring on the hand then occurs. The dealer starts with a score of six for the round, but must subtract one point from this total for each trick won during the hand. If he won six or more tricks during the hand, he simply scores 0 points for the round. Each opponent starts with a score of four for the hand, and must subtract one point from this total for each trick won during the hand. If the player wins four or more tricks, they will earn a score of zero for the hand.
After each player has thus dealt each game type in order (for a total of 12 total hands played) the scores are compared for each player and he with the highest total score is declared the overall game winner.