Tapp-Tarock

Tapp-Tarock
	A trick-taking game of the European Tarot card game family.
Origin	Austria
Type	Trick-taking
Players	3
Skills required	Tactics, Strategy
Cards	54
Deck	Industrie und Glück
Play	Counter-clockwise
Card rank (highest first)	Trumps: Sküs, 21-1; ♣♠ K Q C J 10 9 8 7; ♥♦ K Q C J 1 2 3 4 [1]
Playing time	20 min.
Random chance	Moderate
Related games
	Cego, Königrufen

Last updated February 26, 2019

Tapp-Tarock (Viennese Tappen) is a three-player tarot card game which uses the 54-card Industrie und Glück deck. This is an introductory game for more complex tarock games like Cego or Königrufen. During the interwar period, it was the preferred card game of Viennese coffee houses. Even today Tapp-Tarock is played sporadically. The exact date when it appeared is not possible to identify, but it is likely to have been developed in Austria in the early 19th century. ^[2] The oldest version was narrated in 1821.^[3]

Industrie und Glück is a pattern of French suited playing cards used to play tarock. The name originates from an inscription found on the second trump card. This deck was developed during the nineteenth century in the Austro-Hungarian Empire. The earliest known examples were made in Vienna in 1815. After the collapse of the empire in World War I, it remained the most widely used tarot deck in Central Europe and can be found throughout the former parts of the empire. Though not designed for cartomancy, these cards were used in Argentine fortune telling decks in the mid-20th century.

Cego or Baden Tarock, also called Ceco, is a tarot card game played mainly in Baden, the Black Forest, the adjacent Baar lowland and around Lake Constance in Switzerland and Austria. The game is similar to Königrufen and Tapp-Tarock. It is distinguished by a large skat, or talon, called "the Blind".

Königrufen or Königsrufen is a four-player, trick-taking card game of the tarot family, played in Austria and Southern Tyrol. As with other regional tarot card games, it is usually called Tarock by its players. It is the only variant of Tarock that is played over most of Austria and, in 2001, was the most popular card game in Austria after Schnapsen and Rommé. By 2015, it had become "the favourite card game of Austrians". It has been described as the most interesting tarot game for four players, the 'Game of Kings', a game that requires intelligence and, with 22 trumps in play, as good 'training for the brain'.

Troggu is a member of the tarot family of card games. Synonyms for the games name are: Trogga, Tappu and Tappä. It is played in the area of Visp, Switzerland, in Upper Wallis, especially in St. Niklaus and Grächen. After Troccas, it is the second most played tarot card game in Switzerland.

The Stubaital is an alpine valley in Tyrol, Austria. It is the central valley of the Stubai Alps. The river Ruetz flows through the valley.

Bauerntarock also called Brixentaler Bauerntarock, is a point-trick card game played in the Brixental, Austria. It may have originated in the 19th century as an adaptation of the 54-card Tapp Tarock game onto the cheaper and smaller 36-card German deck. Another possibility is that it was adapted from the 78-card Tarok-Ombre 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, 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.

History

Tapp-Tarock is probably the oldest tarock variant in which four basic features of tarock are found together:

the shortening of the 78-card tarot deck to the current 54 cards
the conversion from Italian suits to French suits
the conversion of The Fool or Sküs (Excuse) to simply being the 22nd and highest trump
the introduction of the bonus of winning the final trick with trump 1 (Pagat Ultimo)

Playing cards have been in Italy since the late 14th century. As Latin suited cards, they use swords (spade), cups (coppe), coins (denari), and clubs (bastoni). All Italian suited decks have three face cards per suit: the fante (Knave), cavallo (Knight), and re (King), unless it is a tarocchi deck in which case a donna or regina (Queen) is inserted between the cavallo and re. Italian suited cards normally only refer to cards originating from northeastern Italy around the former Republic of Venice as the rest of Italy uses Spanish suits, French suits or German suits. Until the late 19th century, Italy was composed of many smaller independent states or under foreign occupation which led to the development of various regional patterns. Italian suited cards are largely confined to northern Italy, parts of Switzerland, Dalmatia and southern Montenegro. Popular games include Scopa, Briscola, Tressette, Bestia, and Sette e mezzo.

French playing cards are cards that use the French suits of trèfles, carreaux, cœurs, and piques. Each suit contains three face cards; the valet, the dame, and the roi (king). Aside from these aspects, decks can include a wide variety of regional and national patterns which often have different deck sizes. In comparison to Spanish, Italian, German, and Swiss playing cards, French cards are the most widespread due to the geopolitical, commercial, and cultural influence of France and the United Kingdom in the past two centuries. Other reasons for their popularity were the simplicity of the suit insignia, which simplifies mass production, and the popularity of whist and contract bridge.

The Fool or The Jester is one of the 78 cards in a Tarot deck. In occult tarot, it is one of the 22 Major Arcana, sometimes numbered as 0 or XXII. However, in decks designed for playing traditional Tarot card games, it is typically unnumbered, as it is not one of the 21 trump cards and instead serves a unique purpose by itself.

The conversion of the Sküs was completed, according to the tarot expert Michael Dummett, in Austria. ^[4] In Troggu, the older Swiss tarot game, the Fool can function as the highest trump or as the excuse. The introduction of the Pagat Ultimo, according to card game historian John McLeod, is believed to have come from Trappola, which was widely played in Austria.

Michael Dummett British academic and philosopher

Sir Michael Anthony Eardley Dummett, FBA was an English academic described as "among the most significant British philosophers of the last century and a leading campaigner for racial tolerance and equality." He was, until 1992, Wykeham Professor of Logic at the University of Oxford. He wrote on the history of analytic philosophy, notably as an interpreter of Frege, and made original contributions particularly in the philosophies of mathematics, logic, language and metaphysics. He was known for his work on truth and meaning and their implications to debates between realism and anti-realism, a term he helped to popularize. He devised the Quota Borda system of proportional voting, based on the Borda count. In mathematical logic, he developed an intermediate logic, already studied by Kurt Gödel: the Gödel–Dummett logic.

Trappola is an early 16th-century Venetian trick-taking card game which spread to most parts of Central Europe and survived, in various forms and under various names like Trapulka, Bulka and Hundertspiel until perhaps the middle of the 20th century. It was played with a special pack of Italian-suited cards and last reported to have been manufactured in Prague in 1944. Piatnik has reprinted their old Trappola deck for collectors.

Cards

The game is played with the 54-card French suited Industrie und Glück deck. It includes 22 trumps numbered in Roman numerals with the exception of the highest, the Sküs. The second highest trump, the XXI, is known as the Mond while the lowest trump, I, is called the Pagat. The Sküs, Mond, and Pagat are together known as the Trull and are worth 5 points each. Other trumps are worth only 1 point.

The trull is a trio of three special trump cards used in Tarock games in Austria and other countries that have a much higher card value than the other trumps. The individual cards are known as trull cards (Trullstücke). The word trull is derived from the French tous les trois which means "all three".

The 32 plain suit cards consist of four courts: king, queen, knight and jack, along with four pip cards. The cards rank as follows:

In black suits: king, queen, knight and jack 10, 9, 8 and 7
In red suits: king, queen, knight and jack, 1, 2, 3 and 4.

Kings are worth 5 points, queens 4, knights 3, jacks 2, and the pips 1. Like score counting in other tarot games, 2 points are subtracted from each trick taken. There are 70 card points in a round so to win at least 36 points are needed. Other than card points there are bonus points as described below.

Rules

Preliminary round

In the preliminary round, the seating arrangement is determined by lot. Similarly, the first dealer is determined by lot. It is then played in turn. The first player to the dealer's right starts the next round.

Dealing

The dealer first sets out six cards face down on the table (the talon) and then assigns each player 16 cards (usually counterclockwise in sets of four cards).

Bidding

The right of the dealer players now opens up the auction to play. Each player must beat the bid or pass, anyone that passes can't bid again. The player that bids "solo" ends the auction. The winner of the auction is the "declarer" and plays alone against the other two players (the "defenders"). The bidding increments are as follows:

Three cards: The declarer exposes the talon and takes either the first or last three cards from the talon. The declarer then discards three cards from her hand and places it onto her trick pile, these three count as her first trick. Kings or the Trull can't be discarded, other trumps can't be discarded unless there is no other option. All discarded cards must be shown to the defenders. The remaining cards from the talon are added to the defenders' trick pile. If the declarer wins the game (36 points or more), she will be awarded bonus three points from each defender, but if she loses, she will have to give each defender three points.
Bottom 3: Like above but the declarer only takes bottom three cards from the talon without exposing the rest. The bonus is worth four points.
Top 3: Identical to the above but with the top three cards. Statistically, the odds are the same as "Bottom 3". The bonus is worth five points.
Solo: The entire talon is awarded to the defenders' trick pile. The bonus is eight points.

Contracts

The declarer can also announce a contract before play begins. Contracts pose greater risk because the defenders gain prior information but awards more bonus points if the declarer succeeds. Failure to fulfil a contract can be disastrous and can leave the declarer with negative points. The contracts that can be made:

Pagat Ultimo: Declarer wins the last trick with Trump I. 8 bonus points from each defender with a contract, only 4 points if it was unannounced. Failure to fulfill the contract means the declarer will pay each defender 8 points.
Valat: Like the "slam" in French tarot, the declarer wins all the tricks. With a contract, this multiplies the bid by eight times (e.g., the Solo bid's 8 points multiplied by 8 for 64 bonus points from each defender). However, failure to fulfill means the same number of points will be paid to each defender. An unannounced valat will only multiply the bid by four times.

French tarot trick-taking card game for four players using the traditional 78-card tarot deck

The French game of tarot, also jeu de tarot, is a trick-taking strategy tarot card game played by three to five players using a traditional 78-card tarot deck. The game is the second most popular card game in France and is also known in French-speaking Canada.

Game Play

Play is counterclockwise starting with the declarer. Each player must follow suit. If void of that suit, a trump must be played. If void of that suit and trumps, any card can be played but won't win the trick.

Variations

There are many variations of Tapp-Tarock with the most common being Illustrated Tarock and Point Tarock which add more complex rules in bidding and contracts.

Related Research Articles

A trick-taking game is a card or tile-based game in which play of a hand centers on a series of finite rounds or units of play, called tricks, which are each evaluated to determine a winner or taker of that trick. The object of such games then may be closely tied to the number of tricks taken, as in plain-trick games such as Whist, Contract bridge, Spades, Napoleon, Euchre, Rowboat, Clubs and Spoil Five, or to the value of the cards contained in taken tricks, as in point-trick games such as Pinochle, the Tarot family, Mariage, Rook, All Fours, Manille, Briscola, and most evasion games like Hearts. The domino game Texas 42 is an example of a trick-taking game that is not a card game. Trick-and-draw games are trick-taking games in which the players can fill up their hands after each trick. In most variants, players are free to play any card into a trick in the first phase of the game, but must follow suit as soon as the stock is depleted. Trick-avoidance games like Reversis or Polignac are those in which the aim is to is avoid taking some or all tricks.

Tarocchini are point trick-taking tarot card games originating from the 17th century. They are the diminutive form of tarocchi, referring to the reduction of the Bolognese pack from 78 to 62 cards, which probably occurred in the early 16th century.

Tarot card games class of card games played with a tarot card deck

Tarot games, occasionally called tarock games, are card games played with tarot decks, also known as Tarock decks. The basic rules first appeared in the manuscript of Martiano da Tortona, written before 1425. The games, known as "tarot", "tarock", "tarocco" and other spellings, are known in many variations, mostly cultural and regional.

Scarto is a three player trick-taking tarot card game from Piedmont, Italy. It is a simple tarot game which can serve as an introduction to more complex tarot games. The name comes from the discarded cards that were exchanged with the stock, which is also the origin of the name for the Skat card game.

Triomphe 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 (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.

Bavarian Tarock, Haferltarock or, often, just Tarock, is a card game which is played in Bavaria and several regions of Austria as well as variants in Berlin. Despite the name, it is not a true Tarock game because it is not played with a Tarock pack. In fact, it is played with a 36-card German deck and is more related to Sechsundsechzig. That said, several elements of the genuine Tarock games have been incorporated, as in the game of Bavarian Schafkopf. Very similar card games include Tapp, played in Württemberg, and Brixentaler Bauerntarock. It should not be confused with Königrufen, also known as Austrian Tarock or just Tarock.

Tapp or Württemberg Tarock is a card game that bears some similarity to Bavarian Tarock and even to the very well known game of Skat and is played with a French deck of 36 cards. The game of Tapp is only really a local pastime played in the German state of Württemberg. It is not related to the tarot card game of Tapp Tarock.

Dobbm or Tappen is a card game played in the Stubaital valley in Austria which, like Brixental Bauerntarock, Bavarian Tarock and Württemberg Tarock, is not a true Tarock game. The ranking and point value of the cards in Dobbm is identical with those of the other variants mentioned. In Dobbm as well, one player always plays as a soloist against all the others. It most strongly resembles the Brixental variant: Dobbm is also played by four players, each player is dealt eight cards, four cards go to the talon and Hearts are the permanent trump suit. Although not one of the true tarot games, it has adopted rules from Tapp Tarock. The fundamental difference between these games and true tarot games is in the use of German or French decks instead of true Tarot playing cards.

Strohmandeln, also called Strohmanntarock, Strawman Tarock or Straw Man Tarock, is a two-hand card game from the Austrian branch of the Tarock family. It takes its name from the three-packet talon of four cards, the Strohmänner ("strawmen"), each player has at the start of the game.

Zwanzigerrufen or Zwanz'gerrufen is the leading trick-taking card game of the Tarock family in many regions of eastern Austria. Its rules are simpler than the game of Königrufen which is more widely played in the whole of Austria. As is common in Tarock games, the cards have various point values – the primary goal in an individual game is to win the majority of points.

Illustrated Tarock or Illustrated Dreiertarock is a card game for three players from the Austrian branch of the Tarock family. It was thought by Mayr and Sedlaczek to be extinct but, in 2009, when the two Tarock authors were guests on an ORF radio programme, players from Vienna called in who confirmed they still played the game. It is sometimes called Point Tarock which, however, is a different game, albeit a close cousin. Although it has "a reputation for being a little more convoluted than the others", Furr, who calls it Point Tarock, maintains that this is not so. However, he recommends that players become familiar with Tapp Tarock before attempting this game.

Point Tarock, also known as Illustrated Tapp, is a three-player tarot card game, played mainly in Austria, which uses the 54-card Industrie und Glück deck. Furr describes it as being "identical to Tapp but for the addition of a special announcement, allowing a Declarer to capitalize on a very good hand... spicing up the game considerably." Point Tarock is sometimes confused with its close cousin, Illustrated Tarock.

Droggn is an extinct card game from the Austrian branch of the Tarock family for three players that was played in the Stubai valley in Tyrol, Austria until the 1980s. Droggn is originally local dialect for "to play Tarock", but it has become the proper name of this specific Tarock variant. An unusual feature of the game compared with other Tarock games is the use of a 66-card deck and the fact there is no record in the literature of a 66-card game and no current manufacturers of a such a deck.

Dreiertarock is a 3-handed card game of the Austrian Tarock family. Although less popular than it once was, it is still played in Austria, especially in Carinthia, and, in 2013, it was one of five variants of Tarock game competed for in the International Piatnik Tarock Tournament in Vienna.

Großtarock or Grosstarock was a form of three-handed card game of the Tarock family which originated in Germany around 1760 and spread to the Netherlands and Scandinavia. It only survives today as a variant in Denmark where it is called Tarok, but is also referred to as Danish Tarock.

References

↑ Dummett, Michael (1980). The Game of tarot. Duckworths. p. 440r. ISBN 0 7156 1014 7.
↑ Gerald K. Folkvord, Die große Humboldt-enzyklopädie der Kartenspiele, ISBN 3-899940-58-X, 2005
↑ Wolfgang Mayr, Robert Sedlaczek: Das Große Tarockbuch Archived 2014-01-05 at the Wayback Machine ., Zsolnay Verlag, Wien 2001, ISBN 3-85223-462-X, S. 105–110
↑ Michael Dummett: The Game of Tarot, London 1980

External links

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[1] Dummett, Michael (1980). The Game of tarot. Duckworths. p. 440r. ISBN 0 7156 1014 7.

[folkvord-2] Gerald K. Folkvord, Die große Humboldt-enzyklopädie der Kartenspiele, ISBN 3-899940-58-X, 2005

[sedlaczek-3] Wolfgang Mayr, Robert Sedlaczek: Das Große Tarockbuch Archived 2014-01-05 at the Wayback Machine ., Zsolnay Verlag, Wien 2001, ISBN 3-85223-462-X, S. 105–110

[4] Michael Dummett: The Game of Tarot, London 1980

v t e Tarot
Tarot games	Bauerntarock Cego French tarot Hungarian Tarock Königrufen Minchiate Neunzehnerrufen Scarto Strohmandeln Tapp-Tarock Tarocchini Troccas Troggu Zwanzigerrufen
Occult tarot	Antoine Court de Gébelin Etteilla Éliphas Levi Arthur Edward Waite Manly P. Hall Paul Foster Case
Major Arcana Trump cards	The Fool I The Magician II The High Priestess III The Empress IV The Emperor V The Hierophant VI The Lovers VII The Chariot VIII (XI) Justice IX The Hermit X Wheel of Fortune XI (VIII) Strength XII The Hanged Man XIII Death XIV Temperance XV The Devil XVI The Tower XVII The Star XVIII The Moon XIX The Sun XX Judgement XXI The World
Minor Arcana Suit cards	Coins / Pentacles / Diamonds Ace Two Three Four Five Seven Six Eight Nine Ten Page Knight Queen King Wands / Staves / Rods / Clubs Ace Two Three Four Five Seven Six Eight Nine Ten Page Knight Queen King Cups / Goblets / Hearts Ace Two Three Four Five Six Seven Eight Nine Ten Page Knight Queen King Swords / Spades Ace Two Three Four Five Six Seven Eight Nine Ten Page Knight Queen King Knight
Decks (French suits)	Cego Industrie und Glück Tarot Nouveau Tiertarock
Decks (Latin suits)	Bolognese Marseilles Minchiate Piemontese Rider-Waite Siciliano Swiss 1JJ Thoth Visconti-Sforza
Related articles	Cartomancy Hermetic Qabalah Mantegna Tarocchi Playing card Trick-taking game Triomphe Trionfo Trionfi Triumphs Trull
Category WikiProject Card Games WikiProject Occult