Schneider (cards)

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Schneider is a term used in many card games for a low card point score that results in boosting an opponent's game score. The threshold is usually half the total points needed for a win; below the threshold, the player or team is Schneider; above it they are 'out of Schneider'. Its natural extension is Schwarz, said of a player or team who loses the game without taking a single trick.

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Origin

The term Schneider ("tailor") is German and comes from the medieval guild of tailors. Tailoring was a trade often associated with financial difficulties. For example, the pejorative remark "a tailor doesn't weigh more than 30 lots", alluding to a tailor being underweight, was a common saying. People who were financially better off were thus "out of Schneider" i.e. "off the hook". In the 19th century, the term was also used by student fraternities. The drinking game "Lustig, meine Sieben", in which a pair of scissors was drawn on the table if one scored under 30 points, called the loser of the game a "tailor", who then had to drink twice the amount. In the wake of this the term was probably transferred to the then still relatively new game of Skat, which spread quickly, especially among Thuringian and Saxon students, and is now Germany's national game.

The colloquial proverb from Austria "To give someone a Schneider" means to defeat an opponent without their scoring. It may be applied to any sport or game, but the term is mainly used in the card game of Schnapsen or in curling.

Card games

In certain card games, mainly point-trick games from Central Europe, a player or partnership that achieves less than half the required card points from their tricks to win the hand, is described as Schneider. They usually lose double the normal game points. [1]

Skat

In the German national sport of Skat there are 120 card points in play and therefore a player needs at least 61 points to win the game. If the declarer scores 90 points or more (i. e. the defenders have 30 or fewer points), then the opponents are Schneider and the declarer is credited with a higher game score. Likewise, a declarer who fails to score at least 31 is Schneider and loses by a higher amount. An extension of Schneider is Schwarz. This is where all the tricks are won by one player or partnership and achieve an even higher game score. In order to achieve Schwarz, the opponent or opponents must not have won any tricks at all, even those which do not score any card points. [2]

In Hand games where the skat (the two cards in the talon or stock) is not picked up, the declarer may announce Schneider, or Schneider and Schwarz. In open games Schwarz is automatically assumed and the game value increases accordingly. The player loses the game at this value, however, if he does not achieved the announced goal. Should the player become Schneider or Schwarz in this situation, there is no additional penalty; i.e. you cannot Schneider yourself. [3]

Schafkopf

In the game of Schafkopf, if the soloist or declaring side score at least 91, they win Schneider and their opponents are said to 'be Schneider'. The defending side only needs to score 90, to win Schneider. That means that the soloist or declaring side must score at least 31 to be out of Schneider whilst the defenders only need to score 30 to do so. If a player or side wins no tricks by the end of the deal, they are Schwarz.

Schnapsen and 66

In Austria's national game, Schnapsen, which is played between 2 players, 130 points are available: 120 in cards and 10 for winning the last trick. A player thus requires 66 points to 'go out' and win. A player also needs at least 33 points to be 'out of Schneider'. As before, a player is Schwarz if he or she takes no tricks at all. One game point is scored for a simple win, 2 for a Schneider win and 3 for a Schwarz win. The same rules apply to the German variant of Schnapsen, known as Sixty-Six. [4] [5]

Bauernschnapsen

In Bauernschnapsen, a variant of Schnapsen for four players, the term Schneider is used in a different way. In this game the aim is to be first to score 24 game points over several deals. This feat is recorded with a Bummerl or blob for the losers. However, if a team wins 24-0, the losers are Schneider and receive 2 Bummerls. [6] A team that was winning 23-0, but then loses, receives a Retourschneider ("return schneider"), also called a Schuster ("cobbler"; probably a play on the fact that Schneider means "tailor") or Rücker ("returner"), which is worth 4 Bummerls.

Other card games

Other card games that use the terms Schneider or Schwarz include:

Darts

In German darts competitions, Schneider occurs if the game or leg is ended and the loser has not achieved enough points from which it is possible to end the game with 3 darts. In a double out this is 170 points, in a triple out or master out it is 180 points. The term was probably borrowed from Skat.

Matsch

In some games, particularly of Austrian or south German origin, the term Matsch ("mud"), formerly Mätsch or Martsch, [7] is used instead of Schneider, but often has the same meaning in card games. A player or team that has lost and typically scored fewer than ¼ of the points is said to be 'in the mud' (im Matsch, Matsch werden) or gematscht and usually has to pay double. To 'make a march' (einen Matsch machen) means to win all tricks. Examples include Einwerfen, German Tarok, Hundertspiel, Mariage, Skwitz and Réunion.

It can also mean a hand in which the loser wins no tricks at all, for example, in Bauerntarock, Dobbm, Droggn, Jaggln and games of the Swiss Jass family. [7]

Some English accounts mistranslate the term as 'match' but, in the sense of taking all tricks, march is more accurate.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Skat (card game)</span> German three-player card game

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jass</span> Card game

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Schafkopf</span> German trick-taking card game

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."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Doppelkopf</span> German card game

Doppelkopf, sometimes abbreviated to Doko, is a trick-taking card game for four players.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Schnapsen</span> Card game

Schnapsen, Schnapser or Schnapsa is a trick-taking card game of the bézique (ace–ten) family that is very popular in Bavaria and in the territories of the former Austro-Hungarian Empire and has become the national card game of Austria and Hungary. Schnapsen is both of the point-trick and trick-and-draw subtypes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Glossary of card game terms</span>

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Ramsch, formerly also called Mike in East Germany, is a card game based on the contract of the same name in the popular German card games, Skat and Schafkopf. However, thanks to its interesting mode of play it has since developed into an independent game in its own right which is only loosely based on Skat or Schafkopf. It should not be confused with the games of the Rams family – Ramsen and Ramscheln – that also go by the name Ramsch.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bauerntarock</span> Card game

Bauerntarock also called Brixentaler Bauerntarock or Brixental Tarock, is a point-trick card game played in the Brixental, Austria. It may have originated in the 19th century either as an adaptation of 54-card Tapp Tarock onto the cheaper and smaller 36-card German pack. Another possibility is that it was adapted from the 78-card Grosstarock or Taroc l'Hombre game as the ratio of trumps to non-trumps is almost the same. It uses the Skat Schedule found in popular regional games such as Jass and Schafkopf. It is closely related to Bavarian Tarock, German Tarok, Württemberg Tarock and especially Dobbm. Like Bavarian Tarock and Tapp, Brixental Bauerntarock and Dobbm do not belong to the true tarot games, but have adopted rules from Tapp Tarock. The most fundamental difference between these games and true tarot games is in the use of German or French decks instead of true Tarot playing cards.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Officers' Skat</span>

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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">German Schafkopf</span>

German Schafkopf is an old German, ace–ten card game that is still played regionally in variant form today. It is the forerunner of the popular modern games of Skat, Doppelkopf and Bavarian Schafkopf. It originated in Leipzig in the Electorate of Saxony. Today it is hardly ever played in its original form, but there are a number of important national and regional derivations.

Schieberamsch is an unofficial contract within the popular German card games, Skat and Schafkopf, but "also makes a good game in its own right." Schieberamsch is a variation of the unofficial Ramsch contract, in which the aim is to score as few points as possible, the difference being that, in Ramsch the skat is left untouched until the end, whereas in Schieberamsch it is passed from player to player with or without an exchange of cards.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bavarian Tarock</span> Card game

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dreierschnapsen</span> Austrian card game

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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mucken</span> Card game

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ace–ten game</span> Type of card game in which the aces and tens are of particularly high value

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Officers' Schafkopf</span> Two-player Bavarian card game

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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Baśka</span> Card game

Baśka is a fast-moving, Polish card game for four players played using traditional French-suited playing cards. It uses a shortened pack of just 16 cards and is similar to kop which is also played in Poland. Both are derived from German Schafkopf.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sjavs</span> Danish card game

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References

  1. Erhard Gorys: Das Buch der Spiele. Manfred Pawlak Verlagsgesellschaft, Herrsching o. J.; p. 11.
  2. Skat at pagat.com. Retrieved 19 May 2021.
  3. Internationale Skatordnung Punkt 5.2.5
  4. Schnapsen at pagat.com. Retrieved 19 May 2021.
  5. Sechsundsechzig (66) at pagat.com. Retrieved 19 May 2021.
  6. Bauernschnapsen at pagat.com. Retrieved 19 May 2021.
  7. 1 2 Herders Konversations-Lexikon, p. 1462.