French Tarot

78 cards, 21 trumps and the Excuse. Bid to play alone against Zip, Buffer and Skip, or team up to stop the taker. 4 deals, then the standings.

Table rules: no Petit au bout, no handfuls (poignées) and no slam (chelem). Everything else is the real game.

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French Tarot

France's favourite trick game for four: 18 cards each and 6 in the dog. Bid to play alone against Zip, Buffer and Skip, win enough card points for your oudlers, and lead the standings after 4 deals. No Petit au bout, handfuls or slam here.

78 cards
4 deals

How to play

Bid. Small ×1, Guard ×2, Guard without the dog ×4, Guard against the dog ×6, or pass. With Small or Guard, the taker takes the dog and sets 6 cards aside: no kings, no trumps.
Follow and trump. Follow suit. Void? You must trump, higher than the best trump played if you can. With neither, play anything.
The Excuse. Play it any time instead of following. It never wins: its owner keeps it and gives half a point in exchange, except on the last trick.
Oudlers and score. The 1, the 21 and the Excuse set the target: 56, 51, 41 or 36 of 91 points. Each defender pays (25 + the gap) × the bid.

Quick tips

Count oudlers before you bid. Your oudlers set your target. With two of them and a good number of trumps, Petite or Garde becomes reasonable. With none, you need a very strong hand.
Trumps are your engine. As taker, more trumps means more control. Many players look for around six trumps or more, plus at least one oudler, before they bid.

5 more tips in the French Tarot guide →