Rödskägg and it's close relative Fem Opp (see below) is considered one of the most skillfully played card games played in Sweden. The name of the game, Rödskägg, translates to Redbeard in English.
The game is played using one standard 52 card deck, The ranking of the cards in this deck follow the normally expected ranking which is (shown from highest to lowest): Ace, King, Queen, Jack, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2. The game is normally played by 3 to 7 players, each playing independently. Each player starts the game with a score of 12 points, and attempts, through skillful play, to reduce this point total to exactly 0.
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| If a player finds that he has been dealt a hand with no card higher than a ten he may request to be dealt replacement cards by the dealer. |
Once the dealer has thus been determined and the players seated, the dealer should thoroughly shuffle the deck and then he himself cuts the deck. After the cut, the dealer then begins distributing the cards around the table starting with the player at his immediate left and continuing in a clockwise direction. The cards are dealt face-down in packets of three cards each, and this continues until each player has a total of six cards.
After the deal, if any player finds in that his hand contains no card higher than a 10, he may request replacement cards, which are dealt from the deck until he receives a card higher than a 10 or is otherwise satisfied with his hand. He must then discard a number of cards from his hand, out of play, to reduce his hand back to six total cards.
The players then examine their hands and a round of declarations occurs, starting with the player at the immediate left of the dealer and continuing in a clockwise direction around the table. Each player thus has one opportunity to announce the exact number of tricks he expects to win during the hand. This bid can be anywhere from 0 tricks to 5 tricks. If a player thinks they can win every trick during the hand, they would instead announce "Rödskägg" (or "Redbeard" to which the name of the game translates to). Each player's announcement should be recorded on the score sheet for later recall during the scoring period at the end of the hand. The player who declares the highest number of tricks they expect to win is considered the Declarer for the hand. If the highest declaration is tied by two or more players, the first such player to bid that bid is considered the Declarer.
The Declarer for the hand has the opportunity to lead the first card to the first trick. Each other player then plays a card to that same trick in a clockwise direction around the table. The leader to a trick can play any card of choice from the hand to start the trick. Each other player must play a card to that same trick of the suit originally led to that trick if they so have such a card.
Once each player has played to the trick, in turn, it is determined who has won that trick. The highest card of the suit originally played to the trick wins that trick. The cards from the trick should be set aside, face-down and out of play. The winner of each trick leads the first card to the next trick.
Once the first four tricks have been played (with two tricks still remaining to be played), the Declarer for this hand is required to ask every player if they want to "Play On" or "Fold". Players who have already won at least one trick on the hand may not elect to "Fold". If a player is eligible to and so elects to fold, that player immediately drops from the hand, discarding his remaining cards to the side, face-down and out of play. There is no penalty for folding and that player will still earn any points scored from previous tricks scored on the hand so far. If the player elects to "Play On", each trick won thereafter allows that player to subtract two points from his ongoing score. However, if that player fails to win any tricks during the hand, he must add six points to his current ongoing score. The Declarer may never, himself, elect to "Fold", but must always "Play On". If the Declarer forgets to ask this question, and no other player reminds the declarer of this obligation, play simply continues with all players participating and these last two tricks having the normal value of -1 point.
Each player then is entitled to subtract a number of points from his current ongoing score based on the number of tricks won during the hand. If the Declarer does not win the exact number of tricks bid (either winning more or fewer tricks than bid), he must add five points to his current ongoing score. However, that player is also allowed to subtract from his score one point for each trick the player did manage to win during the hand.
If any players announced "Redbeard" as the bid and managed to win every trick during the hand, that player is immediately declared the game winner (regardless of his previous score). However, for any player that made a declaration of "Redbeard" and loses one or more tricks during the hand, that player is the loser (called a Redbeard) and must drop from the game.
After scores have been calculated at the end of the hand, if any player finds his total score is exactly 0, he is immediately declared the winner. He announces this by stating "Thank you for the help". If multiple players have such a score, if one of those players was the Declarer on the last hand, that player is considered the winner. If none of the players that have a score of exactly 0 were the dealer, these players must play an additional hand or duel amongst themselves. There is no bidding during this round, and the player which takes the most tricks during that hand is the winner. The players draw for high cards to determine who leads the first card to the first trick during that duel.
When a player is within one point of reaching zero or at zero, during the course of play, this player must announce that fact to the other participants in the game.
As noted, in order to be declared the winner, a player must bring their score to exactly 0. If a player's score drops below 0 (negative score), he must continue to play, and attempt to earn positive points (through the penalties as described above, for not winning the correct number of tricks) in order to manipulate his score to get it to exactly 0.
