3 Players Tarot Game Rules

The 3 player Tarot game is a card game where a player called the Taker plays alone against the opponents, who constitute the Defense. The Taker is declared the winner if they fulfill their bid. To do this, they try to reach a certain number of points by winning tricks.

Contents of the Game

78. card distributed as follows:

• 56 cards of 4 different colors.
  – In descending order: King, Queen, Jack, Knight, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2 and Ace.

• 21 Trump or Tarot cards, numbered from 1 to 21.
  – The “1” Trump card is called a Small.
  – Trump cards allow you to cut when you do not have a card in the requested color.

• 1 Excuse card.
  – It exempts the player from cutting and discarding if they do not have a card in the requested color.

• The Small, the trump card 21 and the Excuse constitute the Ends.

Setup

Choose a dealer

• The cards are spread out on the table, face down.
• Each player will take one.
• The player with the lowest card becomes the dealer.
• In case of a tie, take into account the color of the cards.
  
• The color of the cards is classified as follows in descending order: spades, hearts, diamonds then clubs.
• The player in front of the dealer shuffles the cards, while the player to their left cuts them.

A deal

• The dealer deals the cards, 4 by 4, in counter-clockwise order.
• Attention! Each time the dealer goes around the players to deal the cards, one is set aside to form the Dog. 
• The Dog cannot be formed with the first and last card of the deal.
• In the end, the players end up with 24 cards each and the Dog will consist of 6 cards.
• If a player has only one trump and it turns out to be the Small, the deal is canceled and the cards are redealt.
  

Bids

• Everyone reads their cards.
• The player to the right of the dealer begins.
• They have the choice between:

– Passing:
The turn passes to the player to their right.
Attention! If all players pass, the cards are shuffled and redealt by the next dealer.
– Take:
If they believe that their cards allow them to beat their opponents, then they choose a bid to fulfill.
Depending on the chosen bid, they can announce “I’m taking”, “I’m guarding with the dog”, “I’m guarding without the dog” or “I’m guarding against the dog”.
If their opponents in turn want to take, they must outbid them.
Attention! A player is only allowed to speak once.

Bids

• The act of exchanging one’s cards for the Dog is called “Discarding“.
• It is forbidden to discard a King or one of the Ends
• If one of the trumps is discarded, it must be shown to the opponents.
• Once discarded, cards cannot be changed.
  

Course of a Game

• Once the player is ready, they announce it.
• The game proceeds counter-clockwise.
• The lead is the first card placed by the taker.

The lead is an ordinary card.

• The rest of the players must follow with a card of the same suit.
• The player who placed the highest card wins the trick.
• If a player cannot call, they must ruff with a trump.
• They are the one who wins the trick.
• If the next player also cannot call, they must overcut (lay a higher card) or follow (lay a lower card).
• If a player can neither follow nor overcut, they discard a card. No matter the value of the card played, it does not win the trick.
  

The lead is the excuse

• The second card placed will determine the color of the trick.

The lead is a trump

• The next player must follow or overcut.
• If they have no Trump cards, they discard.
  

The excuse

• The excuse does not win a trick.
• If the excuse is part of the trick won by a player, it is returned to its owner and replaced by another card:
  – It is added to its owner’s previous tricks and replaced by a card from the trick.
  – If the owner has not yet made any tricks, the excuse is highlighted on the table. A replacement card will be given to the winning party as soon as the opportunity arises.

End of the Game

• The two parties (taker and defenders) count their respective points.

Counting points

Points per trick

• Cards are always counted 2 by 2.
• Ends and figures (King, Queen, Knight and Jack) are always associated with a low card.
• 1 End + 1 low card = 5 points
• 1 King + 1 low card = 5 points
• 1 Queen + 1 low card = 4 points
• 1 Knight + 1 low card = 3 points
• 1 Jack + 1 low card = 2 points
• 2 Low cards = 1 point
• 2 Trump cards = 1 point
  

The points to be made according to the bid

• Depending on the ends they has, the taker must achieve a certain number of points to win their bid:

3 ends = 36 points
2 ends = 41 points
1 end = 51 points
0 end = 56 points

• From these points, the points accumulated thanks to the ends are subtracted.
  A = Points according to bid – Points according to tricks
  

Points per bid

• A bid is worth 25 points.
  B = A + 25

• Depending on the chosen bid, this number can then be accompanied by a coefficient (1, 2, 4 or 6)
  C = B x coefficient

• Finally, the bonuses will be added to the results obtained.
  

Bonuses

• These are additional points earned at the end of the round.
• They remain unchanged regardless of the bid chosen.
  

Handles

• A player has a handle when they hold a certain number of Trump cards.
• Attention! The Excuse is counted as a Trump card.

The small as an end

• The small is an end when it is in the last trick.
• The winning team earns a bonus of 10 points, multiplied according to the chosen bid.
  

The overall total