Bidding and Beginning Play

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2 arot Basics The tarot family of games revolve around pointtrick taking: Each player plays one card during a trick, with the high card taking it. At the end of the hand, players tally points for the cards they ve taken. This simple principle is the core to a varied and nuanced series of games, involving shifting alliances and challenges. Since the tarot deck is used by many cultures, there are many terms: These rules will primarily use English terminology, with foreign words given parenthetically. Some of these terms have been added for clarity or standardized across games for sake of brevity and consistency, when they follow the same rules (for instance, the Excuse is called the Gstieß in the tarock subgroup, but functions identically).

3 The Deck Tarot decks consist of 78 cards, broken into 5 suits: The first four suits of wands, cups, swords and coins, are equivalent to the standard playing card suits, with the exception that there are four face cards. They are ranked (highest to lowest): King (Roy), Queen (Reyne), Knight (Cavalier), Page (Valet), 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1. The larger, fifth suit is the trump suit (or the Greater Mysteries/Major Arcana when used in cartomancy), and numbered 1-21 (lowest to highest), with no face cards. The Fool (le Mat) is treated as a Trump, though often has special rules and is typically played as the Excuse. The Honors (Bouts or Oulders) are the Fool (le Mat), the Magician/1 of trumps (le Basteleur), and the World/21 of trumps (le Monde). They affect the Target (see below) and may have special rules.

4 Dealing The Dealer is typically chosen at random, and the player to the Dealer s right deals the next trick. Tarot cards are typically dealt in Packets, which both speeds up dealing larger decks, and decreases randomization. Note: Typically, cards are not heavily shuffled. This imbalance can actually be desirable, as it leads to one player to having a favorable hand, and thereby being in a bidding position. (Games with larger Packets or without teams should have more shuffling, as too little randomization is still extremely unbalancing.) Bidding and Beginning Play Most tarot games next feature a bidding element, which is done after the deal and before play begins. There are several cases in which a hand may be cancelled, including if no one is willing to bid. If this is the case, no points are scored and the game continues with the next Dealer (as if a hand had been played). The player to the right of the Dealer leads the first trick.

5 Playing Tricks The goal in the tarot family of games is to score points by taking tricks. One player leads the trick by playing a card from their hand first, which sets the suit. After the first trick, the winner of the previous trick leads. If the first play is the Excuse, the suit is instead led by the second player. You may lead with Trumps. Play proceeds counter-clockwise: Each other player must follow suit (play a card from their hand, in the same suit) if they can. If a player can t follow suit, they must play a card from the trump suit. If a player plays a trump, and trumps have been played this trick, there is the additional limitation that the player must play a higher trump than those already played, if able. If you can neither follow suit nor play trump, you can play any remaining card. In any circumstance, you may play the Excuse instead of playing a normal card (this is an exception). You and your team will (outside rare circumstances) lose the trick, but keep the Excuse: Whoever played

6 the Excuse adds it to their trick pile, and gives the winning player an Empty card in its stead (see Winning the Trick and Scoring, below). If you have no Empty cards, your first empty card will go to whoever won the trick you used the Excuse in. Note: The Excuse is typically played to prevent the loss of a valuable card that you would otherwise be forced to play due to needing to follow suit, etc. Taking a Trick Whoever wins the trick adds the cards played in the trick to their trick pile (set to the side, face-down). If no trumps were played, the highest card in the led suit takes the trick. If trumps were played, the highest trump takes the trick. The Last Trick There are a few special cases on the last trick: If the Excuse is played on the last trick, the Excuse is taken by the trick s winner (it does not return to the player who played it). If one team has won every trick except the last, and leads with the Excuse, it will win the trick.

7 Scoring Once all tricks have been taken, each player tallies up their cards: Honors (the 1 and 21 of trumps, and the Fool): 4.5 points each Kings: 4.5 points each Queens: 3.5 points each Knights: 2.5 points each Pages: 1.5 points each Empty cards (all other cards not listed above):.5 points each The points in a player s trick pile will typically determine whether they have won or lost, and will result in them gaining or losing game points. Note: There are numerous methods to add up points. The way we recommend is to add up the whole numbers of cards other than Empty cards, then add half the total number of cards. Example: A player has 22 total cards, including a King and two Queens. This would be 4 + 3*2 + 22/2 = 21.

8 Targets The player with the most points from tricks may not be the winner, because in many tarot games, your Target score (the score you need to match or exceed to win the hand) varies based on the number of Honors you have taken. Standard Targets are as follows: 0 Honors: 56 points 1 Honor: 51 points 2 Honors: 41 points 3 Honors: 36 points Note: Honors are very likely to be taken by the player who originally had them, so your Target number tends to be predictable. Ending the Game Each round consists of a number of hands equal to the numbers of players (so each player deals once a round). The number of rounds is typically agreed upon at the beginning of the game.

9 ommon Rules These are rules that appear across multiple variants. Contra Players may call contra or re-contra, doubling a previous bid each time, without increasing difficulty. Irrational Suits The pip cards (1-10) of round suits (coins and cups) are reversed, with 1 as the highest pip and 10 as the lowest (face cards follow normal order). Note: While this is a convention for a number of games, it doesn t actually make a functional difference, if you want to ignore this and use consistent numbering. Italian Ranking Similar to Irrational Suits above, the Italian convention is that the 20 of trumps is the highest trump and the third Honor. As with Irrational Suits, this makes no functional difference.

10 Tarock Scoring A variant scoring method, that the Tarock subgroup of games uses instead of standard scoring. Once all tricks have been taken, each player tallies up their cards: Honors: 5 Kings: 5 Queens: 4 Knights: 3 Pages: 2 Empty: 1 Then, subtract 2 points per 3 cards. Some games will result in incomplete sets. In this case, subtract 1 point from a set of 1 or 2. Additionally, games scored with the Tarock system will have a Target specified on a per-game basis. The Stock Some games include a Stock of cards which aren t in any player s hand, which will act differently depending on the game and bid. (Fr. Chien, lit. dog, also sometimes referred to as the Kitty or Talon). When one player adds the Stock to their hand, they will discard an equal number of cards (so everyone s hand will be empty after the last trick): These can t be Kings or trumps (including the Excuse).

11 ore Games The games presented here are good beginning games, along with French Tarot, itself, which is the basis for the entire Tarot family of games. More games and rules variants may be downloaded at threepointcomics.com/downloads/marseille/

12 aronetti (one of two variants, also referred to as Tarot for Two) 2-player Basic This variant is a strong introduction to the principles of French Tarot, without any of the alliances or bidding used in more advanced games. Dealing The Dealer places 3 cards face-down, alongside each other, in front of the other player, then themselves, then repeats this, resulting in 6 cards in front of each player. They repeat this, placing the second set of 12 on top of the first, then repeat it a third time with the cards face-up. This will result in each player having 18 cards in front of themselves in 6 piles of 3, with the top of each pile revealed. The remainder of the cards are dealt in

13 alternating Packets of 3 into 2 player hands of 21 cards. Baronetti does not use a Stock. Bidding, Announcing Bonuses Baronetti does not feature bidding or announced bonuses. Play Baronetti uses all standard rules, with the following addition: The top card from any of a player s 6 piles are all considered part of the player s hand, so may be played (and like normal they must be played, if they are the only legal move). After a trick is taken, both players reveal any face-down cards in the piles in front of them. Scoring the Game Players calculate their hand score as normal, against their Target score. The winner gets 25 game points, plus 1 for each point they exceeded their Target score by. If either player takes the 1 of trumps in the last trick, they gain 10 points from the Petit Au Bout bonus. Instead of scoring, Baronetti can simply be played by tracking wins.

14 rench Tarot (also referred to as Tarot, Tarocchi, or Jeu de Tarot) 4-player standard (3 to 6-player variants listed below) Intermediate French Tarot (naturally) features all of the family s aspects, including bidding, alliances, and notoriously complex scoring. Dealing The player opposite the Dealer shuffles the deck, the player to the Dealer s left cuts, then the Dealer in Packets of 3, evenly distributed between all players. During dealing, 6 cards, other than the first or last 3 in the deck, are put aside in the Stock. If a player is dealt the 1 of trumps and no other trumps nor the Excuse, they may declare this to cancel the hand.

15 Bidding After looking at their hands, players may bid. Each bid has special rules, with increasing difficulty and an increasing multiplier on hand s impact on the total game score. Each player can pass or increase the bid. The high bidder becomes the Taker (sometimes known as the Declarer), and effectively a team of one, playing against the Defenders (the other players as a team). If everyone passes, the hand is canceled. In all cases, the win is based on whether or not the Taker reaches their Target, while the other players form a team for the hand, playing against the Taker. Note: Bidding is not bidding accrued points, but potential points. The Taker will tend to either win or lose in extremes.

16 Bids, in increasing order: Small (Petite, also referred to as Take (Prise)) The Taker reveals the Stock, then adds it to their hand. The Taker then discards 6 cards to their trick pile. They may not discard Kings, trumps, or the Excuse. (If they must discard some of those, they may only discard regular trumps.) Guard (Garde) Identical to Small, except a higher bid and higher multiplier on scores. Guard without (the Stock) (Garde sans (le chien)) The Stock cards go immediately into the Taker s trick pile without being revealed. Guard against (the Stock) (Garde contre (le chien)) The Stock cards go immediately into the Defenders trick pile without being revealed. Announcing Bonuses There are several cases in which players may declare bonuses, after bidding is over and before the first Hand is played.

17 Abundance (Poignée, lit. Handful) A player declares they have a certain number of trumps, then clearly reveals them. The player can reveal fewer trumps than they have (for instance, declare a Single Abundance, despite having a Double Abundance). The Excuse can be counted towards this, but only if the player has no unrevealed trumps. The points associated with the bonus will go towards whichever team wins. 10 Trumps (Single): 20 points 13 Trumps (Double): 30 points 15 Trumps (Triple): 40 points Announced Slam (Chelem annoncé) A team may announce their intent to take all tricks. If they do so, they will gain 400 points. If they fail, their opponents get 200 points. Play French Tarot uses all of the standard rules for playing, and the Defenders may opt to combine their trick pile in most cases (as it has no functional difference).

18 Scoring Scoring game points follows standard rules for points and Target score, and is based primarily on the Taker s trick pile (remember that the Stock may be added to, or subtracted from, their hand points, depending on their bet): The absolute score is 25, plus the difference in points between the Taker s Target score and their actual score (how much they surpassed or missed the Target score by). This number is positive if the Taker won, negative if the Taker lost. If either team took the 1 of trumps in the last play, the Petit Au Bout bonus is either added to the Taker (if they took it) or removed from the Taker s score (if the Defenders took it). This total is then multiplied by the original bid: *1 if Small *2 if Guard *4 if Guard Without *6 if Guard Against

19 Example: The Taker took all three Honors (so needed 36 points) and got 40 hand points, so scores 25 for winning plus 4 points for the difference. The Defenders got the Petit Au Bout bonus, so 10 points are subtracted from the total. This is multiplied by the Taker s bid of Guard (2). So, the result is ( )*2=46. Each Defender loses 46 game points and the Taker gains 138 game points (46*3). Points for bonuses are added after this multiplier. If a team took every trick without announcing such an intent, they have achieved a (regular) Slam (Chelem non Annoncé). Single Abundance: +/-20 points Double Abundance: +/-30 points Triple Abundance: +/-40 points Slam: +/-200 Points Announced Slam (success) +/-400 points Announced Slam (failure) -/+200 points This final score is then taken by each winning player from the losing players (in a standard game, the game points the Taker loses or gains is effectively three times each of the Defenders ).

20 Note: While technically unnecessary, it s good practice to calculate the Defenders hand score to double-check your math (the total will always be 91 points). Furthermore, French Tarot scores are a zero-sum game, meaning the final scores will always total zero. 3-player French Tarot Since there are only two Defenders, the Taker s job is easier and hands feature lower stakes. The 3-player variant is modified from standard 4-player French Tarot as follows: Each player is dealt 24 cards in Packets of 4 (the Stock remains 6). Abundance is increased to 13, 15, 18, respectively. Half-point scores are rounded to increase the difference from the Taker s Target score: If the score is.5 below the Target, it becomes 1 below; if the score is 2.5 above the Target, it becomes 3 above.

21 5-player French Tarot The 5-player variant of Tarot adds a new bluffing element, as one player s role is unknown for much of the game. The 5-player variant is modified from standard 4-player French Tarot as follows: Each player is dealt 15 cards (leaving only 3 for the Stock) Before the Stock s cards are revealed (or would have been revealed), the Taker chooses and announces a King (or, if they have all of the Kings, a Queen). If a player has the card in question, they become the Taker s partner on a team of 2 (and will share in the risk and reward), which is not revealed until the card in question has been played. If the card is in the Stock, the Taker has no partner and plays against the other four players. The Taker pays or receives twice the points, while their partner pays/receives at the same rate as the other team. If there is no partner, the Taker pays or receives four times the points. This ensures that the game is zero-sum.

22 6-player French Tarot The 6-player variant functions similarly to 3-player, except scored in doubles. The 6-player variant is modified from standard 4-player French Tarot as follows: Players are in fixed partnerships, opposite each other. Bids continue until there have been five passes in a row, instead of until each player has had one chance to bid (though the hand is still cancelled if no one bids in the first round). Partnerships may bid with the Contra rules. The Stock is split evenly between partners (i.e. each takes and discards 3). carto 3-player Basic Scarto is notably simpler than French Tarot in that it doesn t feature the complex bidding, though does introduce unusual suits without some of the more complex

23 gaming rules. Since there is no bidding, the structure is free-for-all, rather than Taker(s) vs. Defenders. Dealing The Dealer deals in Packets of 5 cards, and takes the last 3 himself, then discards 3. (Similar to the Stock,) the Kings and trumps may not be discarded, though the Excuse may be discarded if the Dealer has no other trumps. Bidding, Announcing Bonuses Scarto does not feature bidding or announced bonuses. Play Scarto uses all of the standard rules for playing, except that it uses Irrational Suits and Italian Ranking. Scoring Scarto uses Tarock Scoring. In a departure from the typical Target, each player gains or loses game points for each hand point they ve respectively scored above or below 26.

24 correspond as follows: Wands: Clubs Cups: Hearts ppendix 1 Standard Poker/ Bridge Games with a Tarot Deck Given that the tarot deck and modern playing card deck share a common ancestor, it s easy to adapt one for the other. Removing the trumps, Fool, and Knights will produce a standard 52-card deck. Suits Swords: Spades Coins: Diamonds The Fool and a trump of your choice can stand in for the Jokers. 5-Suited Decks The tarot deck can also be used for playing with a modified 5-suit version of the standard Poker/Bridge deck. Several of these have been produced in the last century-plus, with the fifth suit of such elements as Eagles, Royals, or Stars.

25 One example of Poker rankings is as follows. Flash refers to a hand with all five suits. Five of a kind Straight flush Flash four of a kind Flash full house Flash straight Four of a kind Flush Full house Flash three of a kind Flash two pair Straight Flash (no pair) Flash with a pair Three of a kind Two pair Pair (High card) ppendix 2 Divination The Marseille Tarot that this deck is based on precedes modern divination, so doesn t use the more thoroughly-illustrated and codified meanings, such as the Rider- Waite deck from the 20th century, therefore, while you can find standardized meanings, these are far less agreed-upon than the fully illustrated decks. Pip cards are not always used, but when they are, they tend more towards open interpretation, due to their less literal design.

26 Sources Most material presented here is adapted from commonly available documents, though the arguably definitive source of material on tarot games is Dummet, Michael and John McLeod. A History of Games Played with the Tarot Pack. E. Mellen Press, The rules for 6-player French Tarot are based on those found in Furr, Jerry Neill. Tarocchi: Introducing Card Games for Tarot Electronically published. Publishing Information This booklet, the Marseille Sophistiqué box/design, and all illustrations in the Marseille Sophistiqué deck or associated with it, (including the Happy Squirrel card) are copyright 2014 Three Point Comics/TPC Games. All rights reserved. Material from this booklet may only be reproduced for personal, non-commercial use (and may not be distributed for charge or other consideration), and only if preserving copyright.

27 Material from this booklet, box, and deck may only be reproduced without consent of the owner of these materials for review purposes. First printing: September Printed in China. Funded through Kickstarter (thank you!). ISBN PLACE HOLDER threepointcomics.com Additional game rules can be downloaded at threepointcomics.com/downloads/marseille/

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