| "An entertaining card game for thirsty players" [1] | |
  In a Schlauch the trump Unter and Unter of the next suit are the top trumps | |
| Origin | Germany |
|---|---|
| Alternative names | Bier-Schlauch, Bierschlauch |
| Type | Point-trick |
| Players | 3 |
| Cards | 32 |
| Deck | German |
| Rank (high→low) | depends on contract |
| Related games | |
| German Tarok • Réunion | |
Schlauch is an extinct Bavarian point-trick card game that was popular in the mid-19th century as a drinking game, hence it was also known as Bier-Schlauch.
The game is recorded as early as 1839 in a "Humorous Lecture about the Game of Schlauch" given in Munich and recounted in a local newspaper. [2] In Erlangen in the 1850s it had "long since been superseded" by Rumpel, Tarock and Skat. [3] However around the same time it was still thriving further south in Lower Bavaria because Schlauch tournaments known as "Schlauch-Rennen" (literally "Schlauch Races") were being held alongside those for Grasober and Tarok. [4] In 1883 it was the subject of a treatise by Mangold Jups who called it "Bier-Schlauch. An Entertaining Card Game for the Benefit of Thirsty Card Players." [5] The game may be related to German Tarok and/or Réunion.
Schlauch was a three-hand, bidding and trick-taking game played with 32 German-suited cards in which the aim was to win the auction and achieve one's selected contract. [6]
The basic contracts were: [6]
However, there were two versions of the game. In Little Schlauch, there was a higher possible bid for each of the above. In Great Schlauch or Heidelberg Schlauch, there were double contracts in which the aim changed halfway through the deal.
The following rules for Little Schlauch are based on Pierer (1862), except where cited otherwise. [6]
Three players use a 32-card, Bavarian or Franconian pattern pack. Players draw a card from the pack and the one with the highest card deals first. The dealer shuffles, offers it to the right for cutting and then places the bottom card of the pack on the table face up. The dealer then deals 10 cards each in 3 packets (3-4-3). However, the dealer's last packet comprises 4 cards which, together with the turnup is a hand of 12 cards. The dealer then discards 2, showing any ace or any card of the turnup suit to the others first. [5]
Once the dealer has laid away the 2 cards of the skat, there is an auction. Beginning with forehand to the left, players pass or announce a contract. The contracts in Little Schlauch are:
A Schlauch bid in the preference suit of Hearts overcalls a Schlauch bid in any other suit. If all pass, a force game of Schlauch in the turnup suit may be played in which the one with the most card points wins. [5] Card points are as follows: trump Unters 12, Ace 11, Ten 10, King 4, Ober 3, remaining Unters 2 each, rest 0. In a Grandioso, all the Unters are worth 7. The last trick always scores 10. [6] Alternatively the dealer incurs a penalty mark and redeals. [7]
The contract determines who leads to the first trick. Players must follow suit if possible; otherwise may play any card. [6] The trick is won by the highest trump or by the highest card of the led suit if no trumps are played. The trick winner leads to the next trick.
A win for the declarer earns 150 points for Grandioso, Bettel and a Suit Schlauch, 300 for a Grandissimo or Heart Schlauch. The defenders chalk up 2 or 4 marks (lines on a slate) as penalties. A loss by the declarer incurs 4 or 8 marks respectively, while the defenders score 100 or 200 points each. After each round of three hands, players compare scores and, for every 100 points a player has in excess of another the latter incurs 1 penalty stroke and whoever has the fewest points also incurs a penalty stroke. Players score or are paid in proportion to the number of strokes they score. [6]
Euchre or eucre is a trick-taking card game commonly played in Australia, Canada, Great Britain, New Zealand, and the Midwestern United States. It is played with a deck of 24, 28, or 32 standard playing cards. There are normally four players, two on each team, although there are variations for two to nine players.
Skat, historically Scat, is a three-player trick-taking card game of the ace–ten family, devised around 1810 in Altenburg in the Duchy of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg. It is the national game of Germany and, along with Doppelkopf, it is the most popular card game in Germany and Silesia and one of the most popular in the rest of Poland. A variant of 19th-century Skat was once popular in the US. John McLeod considers it one of the best and most interesting card games for three players, and Kelbet described it as "the king of German card games." The German Skat Association assess that it is played by around 25 million Germans – more than play football.
Schafkopf, also called Bavarian Schafkopf, is a popular German trick-taking card game of the ace–ten family for four players that evolved, towards the end of the 19th century, from German Schafkopf. It is still very popular in Bavaria, where it is their national card game played by around two million people, but it also played elsewhere in Germany and in Austria. It is an official cultural asset and important part of the Old Bavarian and Franconian way of life. Schafkopf is a mentally demanding pastime that is considered "the supreme discipline of Bavarian card games" and "the mother of all trump games."
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.
Réunion, Reunion or Vereinigungsspiel is an historical German point-trick game for three players which, despite its French name, appears to have originated in the central Rhineland and lowland areas to the east. It is a 10-card game of the ace–ten family and uses a 32-card French-suited piquet pack or 32-card Skat pack. Players who cannot follow suit must trump. Otherwise the game can be described as a simplified version of Skat, but is also reminiscent of Euchre with its two permanent top trumps, the Right and Left Bowers.
Officers' Skat (Offiziersskat), is a trick-taking card game for two players which is based on the rules of Skat. It may be played with a German or French pack of 32 cards which, from the outset of the game, are laid out in rows both face down and face up. As in Skat, tricks are taken and card points counted to determine the winner of a round; game points are then awarded to decide the winner of a game. There are several local variations of the game, which differ mainly in the number of cards revealed or hidden and the calculation of points.
The card game of Bauernschnapsen is an expanded form of the popular Austrian card game of Schnapsen, played by four players. This variant of Schnapsen is played throughout the whole of Austria.
Bavarian Tarock or, often, just Tarock, is a card game that was once popular in Bavaria and also played in parts of Austria as well as Berlin. The name is a clue to its origin in the historical German game of [Gross-]Tarock, a game using traditional Tarot cards. At some point in the mid- to late-18th century, attempts were made to emulate Taroc using a standard 36-card German-suited pack, resulting in the formerly popular, south German game of German Tarok. During the last century, the variant played with a pot (Haferl) and often known as Bavarian Tarock or Haferltarock, evolved into "quite a fine game" that, however, has less in common with its Tarock progenitor. German Tarok also generated the very similar game of Tapp, played in Württemberg, and both are related to Bauerntarock, Dobbm and the American games of Frog and Six-Bid Solo. Bavarian Tarock should not be confused with Königrufen, also known as Austrian Tarock or just Tarock.
Tapp is a trick-taking, card game for 3 or 4 players using 36 French-suited cards that is played in the south German region of Swabia, especially in the former Kingdom of Württemberg. It is the French-suited offshoot of German Tarok; its German-suited form being called Württemberg Tarock in that region. Tapp is one of a family of similar games that include Bavarian Tarock, the Austrian games of Bauerntarock and Dobbm, and the American games of Frog and Six-Bid Solo. Although probably first played in the early nineteenth century, the game of Tapp is still a local pastime in its native Württemberg, albeit in a greatly elaborated form.
Dreierschnapsen, Talonschnapsen or Staperlschnapsen is a three-hand variant of the popular Austrian card game, Bauernschnapsen. The rules are very similar to those for Bauernschnapsen except that, instead of two teams of two players, one player bids to become the soloist against the other two who form a temporary alliance. Another difference is that the game makes use of a talon with which the soloist may exchange cards to improve his hand, hence its alternative name of Talonschnapsen. The game is usually played with William Tell cards.
Brandeln is an historical card game for three or four players; in which the winning bidder plays alone against the rest. It is one of the earliest games to use the terms Bettel – a contract to lose every trick – and Mord - a contract to win every trick. One of several card games mastered by Mozart, Brandeln is still current in Austria and Germany today. It has been described as having a "civilized, refined and ingenious character" and "one of the most pleasant card games".
Binokel is a card game for two to eight players that originated in Switzerland as Binocle, but spread to the German state of Württemberg, where it is typically played with a Württemberg pattern pack. It is still popular in Württemberg, where it is usually played in groups of three or four as a family game rather than in the pubs. In three-hand games, each player competes for himself, while in four-hand games, known as Cross Binokel (Kreuzbinokel), two teams are formed with partners sitting opposite one another. The game was introduced to America by German immigrants in the first half of the 20th century, where it developed into the similar game of pinochle. Binocle was still played in Switzerland in 1994. In south Germany, the game is sometimes called by its Swabian name, Benoggl.
Grasobern, Grasoberl, Grasoberln, Graseberla, Grünobern, Lauboberl or Laubobern is a card game that was once commonly played in Old Bavaria, especially in the old counties of Bad Aibling and Rosenheim, and is still popular in eastern Bavaria, especially in Upper Palatinate. The game has relatively simple rules and thus a rather relaxing and leisurely character without the mental demands of Schafkopf or psychological stress of Watten, two other traditional Bavarian card games. The name is taken from the game's penalty card, the Ober of Leaves. The suit of Leaves is known in German variously as Laub, Gras ("grass") or Grün ("green").
Wallachen is an Old Bavarian card game, which used to be very popular in eastern Bavaria. Although, by 2012, it had become a rarer sight at pub tables, there have been more recent moves to revive it. Wallachen is a relatively simple three-hander that is easy to learn. As a result, like Grasobern, it has a relatively relaxed character without the mental demands of Schafkopf or the psychological stress of Watten. It is a member of the Préférence family of card games.
Bolachen is a traditional card game for 3 players that is played in parts of southern Upper Bavaria, especially in the Rupertiwinkel area of the Berchtesgaden Land, where there is a cultural influence from Salzburg, and the state of Salzburg itself. It is a Bavarian variant of the more complex, old Austrian game of Préférence. Like its Bavarian cousin, Wallachen, Bolachen is threatened by extinction.
Blattla is a Bavarian card game for four players, who usually form two teams of two for each deal. It is a simplified version of Schafkopf and Bierkopf and is thus a point-trick game. Unlike those two games, in Blattla the Obers and Unters are not permanent trumps. In order to learn the rules of Schafkopf, it can be an advantage to first become familiar with Blattla. The game is traditionally played with Bavarian pattern cards.
Rumpel is a card game, that is native to the Danube region from Regensburg to Linz, but is played especially in the region of Hauzenberg in the German county of Passau in Bavaria. Mala describes a version with 8 or 12 contracts from a menu of 29 called Großer Rumpel. It is a descendant of the old Austrian student's game of Quodlibet.
Officers' Schafkopf is a German point-trick card game for two players which is based on the rules of Schafkopf. The game is a good way to learn the trumps and suits for normal Schafkopf and to understand what cards one is allowed to play. It is similar in concept to Officers' Skat.
German Tarok, sometimes known as Sansprendre or simply Tarok, is an historical ace–ten card game for three players that emerged in the 18th century and is the progenitor of a family of games still played today in Europe and North America. It became very popular in Bavaria and Swabia during the 19th century before being largely superseded by Schafkopf, but has survived in the local forms of Bavarian Tarock and Tapp. During the mid-19th century, it became the most popular card game among Munich's middle classes and was also played in the late 19th and early 20th centuries by notable Bavarian author Ludwig Thoma, frequently appearing in his novels and journal articles. It was superseded after the First World War by other forms such as Bavarian Tarock.
Call-ace whist or Danish whist is a card game for four players playing in variable partnerships. It is the most popular form of Whist in Denmark, where it is often just called "Whist". It has a well developed bidding system and has imported from the traditional Danish game of Skærvindsel the feature of determining the partnerships by 'calling an ace'. John McLeod records that there is also a version of Danish whist in which there are fixed partnerships.
