 | |
| Origin | Italy |
|---|---|
| Alternative names | l'Asino |
| Type | Trick taking |
| Family | Rams group |
| Players | 3–10 |
| Cards | 40 cards |
| Deck | Italian |
| Rank (high→low) | 1 3 R C F 7 6 5 4 |
| Play | Anti-clockwise |
| Chance | High |
| Related games | |
| Bête | |
Bestia is an Italian card game. It is a gambling game and is similar to Briscola and Tressette. The word bestia means beast.
The game of Bête was born in France around 1600. It is recorded as early as 1608 [1] , and the game is described in La maison academique : contenant les jeux du picquet, du hoc, du tric-trac, (…), divers jeux de cartes, qui se joüent en differentes fac̜ons, Paris, 1659 [2] : as ‘Le Jeu de l'Homme, autrement dit la Beste’. La maison academique was later reprinted (1665, 1668, 1674, 1697, 1702), then was continued by the Académie Universelle des Jeux (Paris 1718, and later editions). [3] The first description of the Italian game of Bestia comes from Raffaele Bisteghi in his Il giuoco pratico (Bologna, 1753). [4] The French and Italian game are analyzed and discussed by Girolamo Zorli. [5] Eighteenth-century Bestia was different from today's version described below. It was a catch game with an obligation to play or fold, from the family of today's Tressette, or rather of Trionfo/Snipe/Maraffone. The winner of a short auction played for the pot against the other players. Some foundations of the original game remain in today's Bestia: the shortened pack, the limited number of tricks in play (five), the obligation to play or fold, bidding for the number of tricks and not the value of the cards, the stakes or bêtes paid by a losing declarer that weren't received by the winning defenders but carried forward to the next hand's pot.
Bestia is played by 3 to 10 players. Deal and play are anticlockwise. The game consists of several hands and the aim is to take the most winnings from the pot and to prevent the others taking any tricks.
Bestia is played with a pack of 40 Spanish-suited Italian playing cards, for example of the Piacentine, Neapolitan or Sicilian pattern. The cards rank in descending order in each suit as follows: Ace, 3, Re (king), Cavallo (knight), Fante or Donna (jack), 7, 6, 5, 4, 2.
At the start of the hand, a pot of an agreed stake is created which will be divided among the trick winners. The pot must always be paid by the dealer on his turn and must be divisible into 3 shares. Once the dealer has anted the stake to the pot, each player is dealt 3 cards.
First dealer is usually chosen by lot; the player drawing the highest card going first. Thereafter the deal rotates to the right. The dealer shuffles the pack and has it cut by the player to the left, before turning the top card for trump. The dealer then gives 3 cards to each player in a single packet, beginning with first hand on the right.
The purpose of the auction is to determine how many players will participate in the current hand. Bidding It follows the deal, is opened by first hand and proceeds anticlockwise. Each player may "pass", laying their cards down, or knock, thus committing to play the hand and take at least one trick. Once the bidding is over, the dealer invites those who passed to discard their hands and receive 3 more cards. If they accept, they must play and commit to making at least one trick. This exchange has various regional names such as: "andare a cicca" ("picking up the dregs"), "andare a dottore" ("going to the doctor's"), "fare un dottore" ("doing a doctor"), "prendere il buco" ("taking a lucky dip"), "prendere il bambino" ("taking the baby"), "andare a spizzico" ("getting a takeaway"). If there are insufficient cards left to replenish all those who passed, the dealer collects the trump upcard together with all the face down cards on the table, except the discards of those receiving new cards. The dealer then shuffles them, has the cut and deals them out. Presumably players who pass and refuse new cards, drop out of the current hand.
First hand leads to the first trick and each player, in turn, plays one card to the trick. A trick consists of one card played by each player in turn, and in each deal there are 3 tricks. Players must follow suit as in the game of Tresette. Lacking a card of the led suit, a player must play a trump if able. The trick is taken by the player who played the highest trump, or the highest card of the led suit if no trumps were played. The trick winner leads to the next trick.
At the end of the hand, the pot is divided among the players on the basis of their tricks, therefore one third per trick taken. If a player fails to make at least one trick, he loses ("goes bête") and doubles the pot. It may be pre-agreed, that if no players are bête, the next hand will be a force in which everyone must play.
The above 3 maxims are excellent tactics and many circles make them rules, punished with the payment of the pot if broken.
Tarabish, also known by its slang term bish, is a Canadian trick-taking card game of complex rules derived from belote, a game of the Jass family. The name is pronounced "tar-bish", despite the spelling. It is played primarily by the people of Cape Breton, Nova Scotia, in Canada, where, according to one source, it was brought in 1901 by a Lebanese immigrant George Shebib. On the other hand, following comprehensive research Kennedy (1996) states that opinions as to its origin vary and that no "definitive roots may ever be determined."
Bourré is a trick-taking gambling card game primarily played in the Acadiana region of Louisiana in the United States of America. It is also played in the Greek island of Psara, with the name Boureki. The game's closest relatives are probably Spades and Euchre; like many regional games, Bourré sports many variant rules for both play and betting considerations.
Pedro is an American trick-taking card game of the All Fours family based on Auction Pitch. Its most popular variant is known as Cinch, Double Pedro or High Five which was developed in Denver, Colorado around 1885 and soon regarded as the most important American member of the All Fours family. Although it went out of fashion with the rise of Auction Bridge, it is still widely played on the western coast of the United States and in its southern states, being the dominant game in some locations in Louisiana. Forms of the game have been reported from Nicaragua, the Azores, Niobe NY, Italy and Finland. The game is primarily played by four players in fixed partnerships, but can also be played by 2–6 individual players.
Pitch is the American name of the English trick-taking game of Blind All Fours which, in turn, is derived from classic All Fours. Historically, Pitch started as "Blind All Fours", a very simple All Fours variant that is still played in England as a pub game. The modern game involving a bidding phase and setting back a party's score if the bid is not reached came up in the middle of the 19th century and is more precisely known as Auction Pitch or Setback.
Cinch, also known as Double Pedro or High Five, is an American trick-taking card game of the All Fours family derived from Auction Pitch via Pedro. Developed in Denver, Colorado in the 1880s, it was soon regarded as the most important member of the All Fours family in the USA, but went out of fashion with the rise of Auction Bridge. The game is primarily played by 4 players in fixed partnerships, but can also be played by 2–6 individual players.
3-5-8, also known as sergeant major for its popularity among members of the Royal Air Force, is a trick-taking card game for 3 players, using a standard 52 card deck. 3-5-8 may be played as a gambling game, and there are many variations with names like "8-5-3" and "9-5-2" played throughout the world.
The following is a glossary of terms used in card games. Besides the terms listed here, there are thousands of common and uncommon slang terms. Terms in this glossary should not be game-specific, but apply to a wide range of card games played with non-proprietary packs. It should not include terms solely related to casino or banking games. For glossaries that relate primarily to one game or family of similar games, see Game-specific glossaries.
Tippen, also known as Dreiblatt, Dreikart, Drei Karten, Dreekort, Kleinpréférence or Labet, is an historical German 3-card, plain-trick game which was popular as a gambling game for three or more players. The Danish version of the game was known as Trekort and more elaborate Swedish variants include Knack and Köpknack. It appears to be related to the English game of Three-Card Loo. It was banned as a gambling game in some places.
Préférence, frequently spelt Preference, is a Central and Eastern European 10-card plain-trick game with bidding, played by three players with a 32-card Piquet deck, and probably originating in early 19th century Austria, becoming the second most popular game in Vienna by 1980. It also took off in Russia where it was played by the higher echelons of society, the regional variant known as Preferans being still very popular in that country, while other variants are played from Lithuania to Greece.
Triomphe, once known as French ruff, is a card game dating from the late 15th century. It most likely originated in France or Spain and later spread to the rest of Europe. When the game arrived in Italy, it shared a similar name with the pre-existing game and deck known as trionfi; probably resulting in the latter becoming renamed as Tarocchi (tarot). While trionfi has a fifth suit that acts as permanent trumps, triomphe randomly selects one of the existing four suits as trumps. Another common feature of this game is the robbing of the stock. Triomphe became so popular that during the 16th century the earlier game of trionfi was gradually renamed tarocchi, tarot, or tarock. This game is the origin of the English word "trump" and is the ancestor of many trick-taking games like Euchre and Whist. The earliest known description of Triomphe was of a point-trick game, perhaps one of the earliest of its type; later, the name was applied to a plain-trick game.
Mistigri, historically Pamphile, is an old, French, trick-taking card game for three or four players that has elements reminiscent of poker. It is a member of the Rams family of games and, although it is a gambling game, often played for small stakes, it is also suitable as a party game or as a family game with children from the age of 12 upwards.
Bester Bube, also Fiefkort mit 'n besten Buren, is an historical German card game for 3–6 players played with a Piquet pack. It is one of the Rams group of card games characterised by allowing players to drop out of the current game if they think they will be unable to win any tricks or a minimum number of tricks. It may be an ancestor of Five-Card Loo.
Mouche, also known as Lanterlu, is an old, French, trick-taking card game for two to six players which has elements, such as bluffing, reminiscent of the much later game of poker. It is a member of the Rams family of games and, although it is a gambling game, often played for small stakes, it is also suitable as a party game or as a family game with children from the age of 12 upwards. It is named after the mouche, a term that variously refers to its winning hand, the basic stake and the penalty for failing to take any tricks. Although also called Bête, it should not be confused with the older game of that name from which it came and which, in turn, was a derivative of Triomphe.
Spitzeln is an historical German card game for three players and a variant of German Solo.
Bête, la Bête, Beste or la Beste, originally known as Homme or l'Homme, was an old, French, trick-taking card game, usually for three to five players. It was a derivative of Triomphe created by introducing the concept of bidding. Its earlier name gives away its descent from the 16th-century Spanish game of Ombre. It is the "earliest recorded multi-player version of Triomphe".
Norseman's knock or Norrlandsknack is a classic Swedish card game for 3 to 5 players, known since the mid-1800s. It is traditionally played for money. The game is about winning as many tricks as possible and above all not being completely left without a trick.
Kauflabet or Kauf-Labet is an historical German trick-taking card game for three to five players that was popular within women's circles.
Homme d'Auvergne is an historical French card game for two to five players dating to the 17th century. It is a derivative of Triomphe and ancestral to la Bête with which it gradually became almost identical over time. It was a source of inspiration for other games, such as Écarté.
Quarante de Roi or Quarante de Rois is an historical French, point-trick, card game for four players in partnerships of two. The name comes from its highest scoring combination of four Kings which is worth 40 points.
Zwikken is a Dutch gambling game of the trick-and-trump type using playing cards and designed for three to six players. It is "an old soldiers' game", still popular among the military today.
