Ulti
Encyclopedia
Ulti or Ultimó, is Hungary
's national trick-taking
card game
for three players. Though virtually unknown outside its home borders, Ulti is well worth exploring, as it offers some unusual and intriguing features.
and Tapp Tarock played in Central Europe and in the former Austro-Hungarian empire, though the game as a whole must have grown naturally out of the Czech Mariaš
, first mentioned in Hungary in 1787 and first described in 1883, as suggested by its alternative title Talonmariaš, described as "ultimáriás" by G. J. Potter in 1930. All games ultimately deriving from the old French game Marriage.
Below listed are the basic bids or games which can be called.
All bids have a form of two distinct bids - a single value bid where the trump (if there is one) is either acorns, bells or leaves, and a double value bid where the trump, again, if applicable, is hearts. In the latter case the suffix "of Hearts" is attached to the bid. A player can call the double value bid if it's higher than the pending bid, i.e. top a Betli with an Ulti of Hearts. The suit of Hearts itself bears no other distinction in the game, however, by naming the trump during bidding the player gives away information and thus takes a slight risk.
In no-trump games such as Betli or Plain Durchmars the double value form of the bid is merely an identical, second stage which helps the auction keep going for higher bids.
Betli and Durchmars also have an additional form called Open. When playing an Open bid all players put their cards down on the table and show it to the others right after the first trick. Professional players usually end the game after "opening", as they inspect the hands and conclude whether the calling player will win or lose the game. Open bids are worth quadruple the base value of Betli and Plain Durchmars, and double in Trump Durchmars.
Bids can be freely combined as long as they make sense. In this case the value of a combined bid is the sum of the individual components' values. It is important to note, though, that at the conclusion of the game the constituent bets are evaluated and scored independently. A 40-100 Durchmars Ulti therefore nets 4+6+6=14 points if all undertakings succeed and 4-6+4=2 points if the Durchmars happens to fail. Doubling is done component by component as well, meaning that if a defender doubles Durchmars in the above example and succeeds, the net result of the round is 4-12+4=-4 points.
Ulti is a unique bid in the sense that it carries an additional 4 points penalty if lost (8 for Ulti of Hearts). Doubling, however, doesn't affect the penalty, so a doubled and lost Ulti of Acorns costs 8+4 points for the bidder (16+4 or 32+4 if redoubled or surdoubled).
Certain bids are worth an extra 1 (for single value) or 2 (for double value) points besides the standard value of the bid. These bids are actually combined with a Simple and therefore the soloist attempts to complete an extra objective in these cases: to score more than the defending team. However, since the constituent bets are handled independently, failing to complete the extra objective does not cause the soloist to lose the bet, but his winnings will be reduced by the value of the appropriate game of Simple. The Simple component, like any component in any bid can be doubled separately.
Usually a player who bids a single value (non-Hearts) Simple forfeits the game doubled if no higher bid is made by anyone including himself unless he attempts to silently complete any of the applicable objectives. This is done to prevent opponents from completing silent bids and to speed up the game playing more valuable bids.
In the auction a bid is ranked above another bid if its total value is either higher than the other bid's, or is equal but made up of less components. An Ulti (4+1 points) thus can be declared over a 40-100 (4 points) and a Betli (5 points) can be declared over an Ulti. The following list recites all possible bids in ascending order of value and precedence.
The name Rebetli and Betli of Hearts are both commonly used, however, the latter suggests a trump suit despite Betli being a no-trump bet. The misleading suffix merely points to the fact that the bet is double value and it's use is advised against.
Thereafter, each player may pass or else pick up the talon and bid. Passing does not of itself prevent the calling player from bidding again. The calling player may pick up the talon again if the other two players pass. A player who takes the talon must make a higher bid than the previous one, then lay any two cards face down on the table to re-form the talon. This continues until all players pass, after which the calling player announces the trump, if the game is not "plain" or "of Hearts" and the other two players become the defending team. All doubling takes place after the end of bidding and before the end of the first trick.
Note that it is very uncommon for a doubling to go higher than redouble, and therefore certain high level doubles such as "Fedák Sári" and "Wheeled Bicycle" have names spontaneously invented by the players which later became famous. The doubling can go higher than 128, but in this case doubles don't have fixed names, and in the very rare case the doubling goes this high, players use any imaginary name which first comes to their minds as the name for the double.
In a trump game, any player having a marriage to declare must do so upon playing to the first trick, or the marriage cannot be claimed later. All marriages called by the defending team count towards their collective score. In a hundred game, the calling player may declare only the marriage whose value he stated when bidding.
In an Ulti game, the calling player may not lead or play the trump Seven before the last trick, unless forced by the rules of play.
In Hungary, the game is usually played with real bets, but because the smallest value coin is 5 forints
, the game is played with a unit of 10 forints per point. In this case, points are not kept on paper, instead, money is paid after each game.
When the winning conditions are fulfilled, the defending team loses the value of the silent bid, double if the trump is Hearts. When the losing conditions are fulfilled, the calling player loses double the value of the silent bid, quadruple if the trump is Hearts.
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
's national trick-taking
Trick-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...
card game
Card game
A card game is any game using playing cards as the primary device with which the game is played, be they traditional or game-specific. Countless card games exist, including families of related games...
for three players. Though virtually unknown outside its home borders, Ulti is well worth exploring, as it offers some unusual and intriguing features.
History
Its name derives from the winning of the last trick with the lowest trump, a feature derived from several games like TrappolaTrappola
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...
and Tapp Tarock played in Central Europe and in the former Austro-Hungarian empire, though the game as a whole must have grown naturally out of the Czech Mariaš
Sechsundsechzig
Sixty-six or Schnapsen is a fast 5- or 6-card point-trick game of the marriage type for 2–4 players, played with 20 or 24 cards. First recorded in 1718 under the name Mariagen-Spiel, it is the national card game of Austria and also popular in Germany and Hungary.Closely related games for various...
, first mentioned in Hungary in 1787 and first described in 1883, as suggested by its alternative title Talonmariaš, described as "ultimáriás" by G. J. Potter in 1930. All games ultimately deriving from the old French game Marriage.
Different sets of rules
It is important to note that the rules of the game are not universal, and typically every group of players will have their own set of rules that they agree upon. When people play together for the first time, it often takes considerable amount of time until they can agree on rule set they play. Some rules can significantly alter the strategy. See http://m-berek.hu/jatek/ultien.pdf for a set of rules different from what is described below.Preliminaries
Three players use a 32-card pack basically ranking A 10 K O U 9 8 7. The first dealer is chosen by any agreed means and thereafter, the turn to deal and play passes to the right. Dealer deals a batch of five cards to each player, seven to the first player on his right, and then another batch of five cards is dealt to each of the players.Object and contracts
In each deal the highest bidder becomes the soloist and plays alone against the other two with a view to fulfilling whatever contract he bid. In trump games, Aces and Tens captured in tricks count 10 points each, and winning the last trick counts 10 more, making a possible total of 90. In addition, the declaration of a marriage (King and Over of the same suit), scores 20, or 40 in trumps, bringing the maximum possible total to 190. In no-trump contracts card-points and marriages do not count, and cards rank A K O U 10 9 8 7.Below listed are the basic bids or games which can be called.
Bids
| Type of bid | Winning conditions | Losing conditions | Value if won | Value if lost | Trump game | Rank of tens | Extra bid of Simple |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Simple | The calling player ends the game with a score higher than the defending team. | The calling player ends the game with a score lower than the defending team. | 1 | 1 | Yes | High | - |
| 40-100 | The calling player has a marriage in trumps and scores at least 60 additional points from tricks. Note that no players may declare any further marriages in this game. | The calling player fails to score at least 60 points from tricks. | 4 | 4 | Yes | High | No |
| Four Aces | The calling player wins all tricks where Aces are played. | The calling player loses at least one Ace to the defending team. | 4 | 4 | Yes | High | Yes |
| Ulti | The calling player wins the last trick with the Seven of trumps. | The calling player is forced to play the Seven of trumps before the last trick or loses the last trick to a higher trump. | 4 | 4+4 | Yes | High | Yes |
| Betli | The calling player loses all tricks. | The calling player wins at least 1 trick. | 5 | 5 | No | Low | No |
| Plain Durchmars | The calling player wins all tricks. | The calling player loses at least 1 trick. | 6 | 6 | No | Low | No |
| Trump Durchmars | The calling player wins all tricks. | The calling player loses at least 1 trick. | 6 | 6 | Yes | High | No |
| 20-100 | The calling player has a marriage in a non-trump suit and scores at least 80 additional points from tricks. Note that no players may declare any further marriages in this game. | The calling player fails to score at least 80 points from tricks. | 8 | 8 | Yes | High | No |
All bids have a form of two distinct bids - a single value bid where the trump (if there is one) is either acorns, bells or leaves, and a double value bid where the trump, again, if applicable, is hearts. In the latter case the suffix "of Hearts" is attached to the bid. A player can call the double value bid if it's higher than the pending bid, i.e. top a Betli with an Ulti of Hearts. The suit of Hearts itself bears no other distinction in the game, however, by naming the trump during bidding the player gives away information and thus takes a slight risk.
In no-trump games such as Betli or Plain Durchmars the double value form of the bid is merely an identical, second stage which helps the auction keep going for higher bids.
Betli and Durchmars also have an additional form called Open. When playing an Open bid all players put their cards down on the table and show it to the others right after the first trick. Professional players usually end the game after "opening", as they inspect the hands and conclude whether the calling player will win or lose the game. Open bids are worth quadruple the base value of Betli and Plain Durchmars, and double in Trump Durchmars.
Bids can be freely combined as long as they make sense. In this case the value of a combined bid is the sum of the individual components' values. It is important to note, though, that at the conclusion of the game the constituent bets are evaluated and scored independently. A 40-100 Durchmars Ulti therefore nets 4+6+6=14 points if all undertakings succeed and 4-6+4=2 points if the Durchmars happens to fail. Doubling is done component by component as well, meaning that if a defender doubles Durchmars in the above example and succeeds, the net result of the round is 4-12+4=-4 points.
Ulti is a unique bid in the sense that it carries an additional 4 points penalty if lost (8 for Ulti of Hearts). Doubling, however, doesn't affect the penalty, so a doubled and lost Ulti of Acorns costs 8+4 points for the bidder (16+4 or 32+4 if redoubled or surdoubled).
Certain bids are worth an extra 1 (for single value) or 2 (for double value) points besides the standard value of the bid. These bids are actually combined with a Simple and therefore the soloist attempts to complete an extra objective in these cases: to score more than the defending team. However, since the constituent bets are handled independently, failing to complete the extra objective does not cause the soloist to lose the bet, but his winnings will be reduced by the value of the appropriate game of Simple. The Simple component, like any component in any bid can be doubled separately.
Usually a player who bids a single value (non-Hearts) Simple forfeits the game doubled if no higher bid is made by anyone including himself unless he attempts to silently complete any of the applicable objectives. This is done to prevent opponents from completing silent bids and to speed up the game playing more valuable bids.
In the auction a bid is ranked above another bid if its total value is either higher than the other bid's, or is equal but made up of less components. An Ulti (4+1 points) thus can be declared over a 40-100 (4 points) and a Betli (5 points) can be declared over an Ulti. The following list recites all possible bids in ascending order of value and precedence.
| Total value | Components | Bet | Silent 100 | Silent ulti | Silent Durchmars | Trump color |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | Simple | 2 | 2 | 3 | Acorns/Bells/Leaves |
| 2 | 2 | Simple of Hearts | 4 | 4 | 6 | Hearts |
| 4 | 4 | 40-100 | - | 2 | 3 | Acorns/Bells/Leaves |
| 5 | 4+1 | Four Aces | 2 | 2 | 3 | Acorns/Bells/Leaves |
| 5 | 4+1 | Ulti | 2 | - | 3 | Acorns/Bells/Leaves |
| 5 | 5 | Betli | - | - | - | - |
| 6 | 6 | Trump Durchmars | - | 2 | - | Acorns/Bells/Leaves |
| 6 | 6 | Plain Durchmars | - | - | - | - |
| 8 | 4+4 | 40-100 Four Aces | - | 2 | 3 | Acorns/Bells/Leaves |
| 8 | 4+4 | 40-100 Ulti | - | - | 3 | Acorns/Bells/Leaves |
| 8 | 8 | 40-100 of Hearts | - | 4 | 6 | Hearts |
| 8 | 8 | 20-100 | - | 2 | 3 | Acorns/Bells/Leaves |
| 9 | 4+4+1 | Ulti Four Aces | 2 | - | 3 | Acorns/Bells/Leaves |
| 10 | 8+2 | Four Aces of Hearts | 4 | 4 | 6 | Hearts |
| 10 | 8+2 | Ulti of Hearts | 4 | - | 6 | Hearts |
| 10 | 4+6 | 40-100 Durchmars | - | 2 | - | Acorns/Bells/Leaves |
| 10 | 4+6 | Ulti Durchmars | - | - | - | Acorns/Bells/Leaves |
| 10 | 10 | Rebetli / Betli of Hearts | - | - | - | - |
| 12 | 4+4+4 | 40-100 Ulti Four Aces | - | - | 3 | Acorns/Bells/Leaves |
| 12 | 8+4 | 20-100 Four Aces | - | 2 | 3 | Acorns/Bells/Leaves |
| 12 | 8+4 | 20-100 Ulti | - | - | 3 | Acorns/Bells/Leaves |
| 12 | 12 | Plain Redurchmars | - | - | - | - |
| 12 | 12 | Durchmars of Hearts | - | 4 | - | Hearts |
| 12 | 12 | Open Durchmars | - | 2 | - | Acorns/Bells/Leaves |
| 14 | 4+4+6 | 40-100 Ulti Durchmars | - | - | - | Acorns/Bells/Leaves |
| 14 | 8+6 | 20-100 Durchmars | - | 2 | - | Acorns/Bells/Leaves |
| 16 | 8+4+4 | 20-100 Ulti Four Aces | - | - | 3 | Acorns/Bells/Leaves |
| 16 | 8+8 | 40-100 Four Aces of Hearts | - | 4 | 6 | Hearts |
| 16 | 8+8 | 40-100 Ulti of Hearts | - | - | 6 | Hearts |
| 16 | 4+12 | 40-100 Open Durchmars | - | 2 | - | Acorns/Bells/Leaves |
| 16 | 4+12 | Ulti Open Durchmars | - | - | - | Acorns/Bells/Leaves |
| 16 | 16 | 20-100 of Hearts | - | 4 | 6 | Hearts |
| 18 | 8+8+2 | Ulti Four Aces of Hearts | 4 | - | 6 | Hearts |
| 18 | 8+4+6 | 20-100 Ulti Durchmars | - | - | - | Acorns/Bells/Leaves |
| 20 | 4+4+12 | 40-100 Ulti Open Durchmars | - | - | - | Acorns/Bells/Leaves |
| 20 | 8+12 | 40-100 Durchmars of Hearts | - | 4 | - | Hearts |
| 20 | 8+12 | Ulti Durchmars of Hearts | - | - | - | Hearts |
| 20 | 8+12 | 20-100 Open Durchmars | - | 2 | - | Acorns/Bells/Leaves |
| 20 | 20 | Open Betli | - | - | - | - |
| 24 | 8+8+8 | 40-100 Ulti Four Aces of Hearts | - | - | 6 | Hearts |
| 24 | 8+4+12 | 20-100 Ulti Open Durchmars | - | - | - | Acorns/Bells/Leaves |
| 24 | 16+8 | 20-100 Four Aces of Hearts | - | 4 | 6 | Hearts |
| 24 | 16+8 | 20-100 Ulti of Hearts | - | - | 6 | Hearts |
| 24 | 24 | Open Durchmars of Hearts | - | - | - | Hearts |
| 24 | 24 | Plain Open Durchmars | - | - | - | - |
| 28 | 8+8+12 | 40-100 Ulti Durchmars of Hearts | - | - | - | Hearts |
| 28 | 16+12 | 20-100 Durchmars of Hearts | - | 4 | - | Hearts |
| 32 | 16+8+8 | 20-100 Ulti Four Aces of Hearts | - | - | 6 | Hearts |
| 32 | 8+24 | 40-100 Open Durchmars of Hearts | - | 4 | - | Hearts |
| 32 | 8+24 | Ulti Open Durchmars of Hearts | - | - | - | Hearts |
| 36 | 16+8+12 | 20-100 Ulti Durchmars of Hearts | - | - | - | Hearts |
| 40 | 8+8+24 | 40-100 Ulti Open Durchmars of Hearts | - | - | - | Hearts |
| 40 | 16+24 | 20-100 Open Durchmars of Hearts | - | 4 | - | Hearts |
| 48 | 16+8+24 | 20-100 Ulti Open Durchmars of Hearts | - | - | - | Hearts |
The name Rebetli and Betli of Hearts are both commonly used, however, the latter suggests a trump suit despite Betli being a no-trump bet. The misleading suffix merely points to the fact that the bet is double value and it's use is advised against.
Auction
The auction is conducted in an unusual way which is virtually unique to Ulti. The player on the right of the dealer gets two extra cards. He is obliged to select two cards from his hand, place it face down on the table without showing and announce a bid.Thereafter, each player may pass or else pick up the talon and bid. Passing does not of itself prevent the calling player from bidding again. The calling player may pick up the talon again if the other two players pass. A player who takes the talon must make a higher bid than the previous one, then lay any two cards face down on the table to re-form the talon. This continues until all players pass, after which the calling player announces the trump, if the game is not "plain" or "of Hearts" and the other two players become the defending team. All doubling takes place after the end of bidding and before the end of the first trick.
Doubling
Doubling takes place at the beginning of the game, after the bidding is over. Only the team opposed to the team which doubled the last time can call a double, which may go on infinitely. If no doubling has taken place yet, only the defending team can initiate it. Below are the list of the most common doubles.| Double | Calling team | Multiplier |
|---|---|---|
| Double | Defenders | ×2 |
| Redouble | Soloist | ×4 |
| Surdouble | Defenders | ×8 |
| Morddouble | Soloist | ×16 |
| Hirschdouble | Defenders | ×32 |
| Fedák Sári | Soloist | ×64 |
| Wheeled Bicycle | Defenders | ×128 |
Note that it is very uncommon for a doubling to go higher than redouble, and therefore certain high level doubles such as "Fedák Sári" and "Wheeled Bicycle" have names spontaneously invented by the players which later became famous. The doubling can go higher than 128, but in this case doubles don't have fixed names, and in the very rare case the doubling goes this high, players use any imaginary name which first comes to their minds as the name for the double.
Play
The calling player leads to the first trick, and the winner of each trick leads to the next. Suit must be followed if possible, otherwise trump must be played, and if neither is possible any card may be played. The player who plays the highest card (any trump is higher than any card of any other suit) wins the trick and leads the next trick.In a trump game, any player having a marriage to declare must do so upon playing to the first trick, or the marriage cannot be claimed later. All marriages called by the defending team count towards their collective score. In a hundred game, the calling player may declare only the marriage whose value he stated when bidding.
In an Ulti game, the calling player may not lead or play the trump Seven before the last trick, unless forced by the rules of play.
Scoring
For winning, the calling player receives the stated amount from each opponent; for losing, he pays it to each opponent, therefore when the calling player wins, each member of the defending team loses one unit of points, but when losing, the calling player loses two units of his points. If written scores are kept, it is sufficient to add or subtract the value from the calling player's points alone.In Hungary, the game is usually played with real bets, but because the smallest value coin is 5 forints
Hungarian forint
The forint is the currency of Hungary. It is divided into 100 fillér, although fillér coins are no longer in circulation. The introduction of the forint on 1 August 1946 was a crucial step of the post-WWII stabilization of the Hungarian economy, and the currency remained relatively stable until...
, the game is played with a unit of 10 forints per point. In this case, points are not kept on paper, instead, money is paid after each game.
Silent Bids
| Silent bid | Applied in bids of | Winning conditions | Losing conditions | Single value |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Silent 100 | Simple, Ulti, Four Aces | The calling player end the game with a score of at least 100. | The defending team ends the game with a score of at least 100. | 2 |
| Silent Four Aces | Simple, 40-100, Ulti, 20-100 | The calling player wins all tricks in which Aces are played. | The defending team wins all tricks in which Aces are played. | 2 |
| Silent Ulti | Simple, 40-100, Four Aces, 20-100 | The calling player wins the last trick with the Seven of trumps. | The defending team wins the last trick where the calling player plays the Seven of trumps. | 2 |
| Silent Durch | Simple, 40-100, Ulti, 20-100 | The calling player wins all tricks. | The defending team wins all tricks. | 3, 4 if Simple |
When the winning conditions are fulfilled, the defending team loses the value of the silent bid, double if the trump is Hearts. When the losing conditions are fulfilled, the calling player loses double the value of the silent bid, quadruple if the trump is Hearts.