German Whist
Encyclopedia
German Whist is a variation on classic whist
for two players. The game is most likely of British
origin.
ranked A (high)
K
Q
J
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 (low) in each suit
.
is chosen by cutting the deck, and the turn to deal alternates after each hand. Each player is dealt 13 cards, dealt one at a time. The twenty-seventh card is placed face-up on the face-down talon
. The suit of this face-up card is the trump suit for the entire hand.
and the other player must follow suit if he can.
If both cards are the same suit then the higher card wins. If they are of different suits the first player wins unless the second player played a trump, in which case the trump wins.
The winner of the trick takes the face-up card and adds it to his hand, the loser then takes the face-down card below it without showing it to his opponent. The next card in the talon is then turned over and the winner plays first in the next trick. Each player stays with 13 cards in his hand until the talon is exhausted. After this another 13 tricks are played without replenishment until the cards in both players hands are exhausted.
Whist
Whist is a classic English trick-taking card game which was played widely in the 18th and 19th centuries. It derives from the 16th century game of Trump or Ruff, via Ruff and Honours...
for two players. The game is most likely of British
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
origin.
Players and Cards
German Whist is a two player game using a standard deck of 52 cardsPlaying card
A playing card is a piece of specially prepared heavy paper, thin cardboard, plastic-coated paper, cotton-paper blend, or thin plastic, marked with distinguishing motifs and used as one of a set for playing card games...
ranked A (high)
Ace
An ace is a playing card. In the standard French deck, an ace has a single suit symbol located in the middle of the card, sometimes large and decorated, especially in the case of the Ace of Spades...
K
King (playing card)
The king is a playing card with a picture of a king on it. The usual rank of a king is as if it were a 13; that is, above the queen. In some games, the king is the highest-ranked card; in others, the ace is higher...
Q
Queen (playing card)
The Queen is a playing card with a picture of a queen on it. The usual rank of a queen is as if it were 12 ....
J
Jack (playing card)
A Jack, also Knave, is a playing card with a picture of a man on it. The usual rank of a jack, within its suit, is as if it were an 11 ....
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 (low) in each suit
Suit (cards)
In playing cards, a suit is one of several categories into which the cards of a deck are divided. Most often, each card bears one of several symbols showing to which suit it belongs; the suit may alternatively or in addition be indicated by the color printed on the card...
.
The Deal
The initial dealerCroupier
A croupier or dealer is someone appointed at a gambling table to assist in the conduct of the game, especially in the distribution of bets and payouts. Croupiers are typically employed by casinos.-Origin of the word:...
is chosen by cutting the deck, and the turn to deal alternates after each hand. Each player is dealt 13 cards, dealt one at a time. The twenty-seventh card is placed face-up on the face-down talon
Talon
A talon is a sharp claw of an animal, especially a bird of prey, such as the eagle, hawk, falcon, owl, or buzzard. It may also refer to:Places:* Talon, Nièvre, a commune in the Nièvre département in France...
. The suit of this face-up card is the trump suit for the entire hand.
The Play
The non-dealer chooses any card to play for the first trickTrick-taking game
A trick-taking game is a card game or tile-based game in which play centers on a series of finite rounds or units of play, called tricks. 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, Napoleon, Rowboat, and...
and the other player must follow suit if he can.
If both cards are the same suit then the higher card wins. If they are of different suits the first player wins unless the second player played a trump, in which case the trump wins.
The winner of the trick takes the face-up card and adds it to his hand, the loser then takes the face-down card below it without showing it to his opponent. The next card in the talon is then turned over and the winner plays first in the next trick. Each player stays with 13 cards in his hand until the talon is exhausted. After this another 13 tricks are played without replenishment until the cards in both players hands are exhausted.
Scoring
There are at least two variants on scoring. The winner is the player who wins the most tricks in:- the whole game (26 tricks)
- after the talon is exhausted (13 tricks)