[ Schafkopf ]

Schafkopf is the Bavarian cards game. Though the basic rules (ranking of cards, scoring) are a consensus, many details greatly differ from region to region and negotiating the exact table rules always precedes starting to play.

Despite pretty diffrent habits in the USA, Schafkopf is usually played with four players. If you are three, you play Skat, if you are five, you take turns: One deals, the other four play...

The Deck

Schafkopf players never play with a full deck. A Schafkopf deck contains 32 cards; the 2-6 of all four suits are removed. Fourteen cards are designated as a fixed trump suit. The trump suit contains the four queens, the four jacks, and the remaining hearts. The other 18 cards, six clubs, and spades and diamonds, are known as the "fail" suits.

The trump cards are ranked from highest to lowest as follows:
QC, QS, QH, QD, JC, JS, JH, JD, AH, 10H, KH, 9H, 8H, 7H
where C, S, H, and D mean clubs, spades, hearts, and diamonds, respectively (but you figured that out). The queens and jacks, the picture trumps, are called "Haxen".

The six cards in each fail suit are ranked like the six lowest hearts:
A, 10, K, 9, 8, 7
This rank ordering is used in some other card games of German origin as well.

The aces, tens, and face cards have point values associated with them.
A=11, 10=10, K=4, Q=3, and J=2
Thus there is a total of 120 points in the deck.

The Goal

The object of the game is to capture tricks containing 61 points or more, i.e. the majority of the points in the deck, during the play of each hand. After dealing a new hand, players establish roles that are essentially offensive or defensive. One player challenges the others, declaring intent to take tricks worth 61 points or more, usually together with a partner. The slight disadvantage involved with making the game is that the defensive party can win with 60 points already.

Dealing and determining the player

The 32 cards are dealt in two piles of four so that each player receives eight cards altogether. Starting with the player at the dealer's left and circling the table clockwise, each player has the opportunity to challenge the others and announce that he would like to make the game. Normally, that player would go for a partner then, but in any case a player who feels particularly skillful, lucky, or reckless may also opt to play alone (Solo or Wenz) and challenge all the other players. Such games always have precedence, even if announced by somebody who sits behind somebody who announced a partner game. In any case, the person who fianally makes the game is called "Spieler".

If no one desires to make the game, the last player to say whether he wants to play or not (which always is the dealer of that particular round) may decide whether to play Ramsch (least) or to create a Stock and pass the card on to have a new round dealt.

Identifying a Partner

The partner is selected by calling an ace. The Spieler calls the ace of one of the three fail suits, whose holder becomes the partner. To do that, the Spieler must have at least one card of the fail suit he wants to call; if he does not have any fail card without the ace of the same color (you say he is "gesperrt"), he must not announce a partner game at all.

During game, the partner must save the called ace until the called suit is first led, when the ace must be played. The fact that only one player knows his partner for sure at the beginning of the game is one the thrills of Schafkopf. However, you often find out who plays with whom even long before the called ace has been exposed (see tactics).

The player at the dealer's left (who had the first opportunity to announce) leads the first card, and play continues clockwise. The winner of each trick leads the first card of the next trick. Once a card is lead, subsequent players must follow suit if possible. (Remember that trump cards are a suit in themselves, and so must be followed when lead!) If a player does not have a card of the suit which has been lead, he has two options: He may "fail off", that is, play a card from one of the fail suits, or he may play a trump card. The choice is a matter of tactics and strategy, of course.

Each trick is taken by the person who plays the highest ranking card. That person then leads the first card of the next trick. After all tricks have been played, the offensive (Spieler and/or partner) and defensive teams count the points in the tricks they have taken to determine the winner(s) of the hand. Then the cumulative score is adjusted (i.e. coins are exchanged), and players analyse each other's skill while the next dealer shuffles and deals another hand.

Keeping Score

If the losers take tricks worth 30 to 59 points for the defensive respectively 31 to 60 points for the offensive party, each of these players loses one cumulative point. If the losers take tricks worth 29 respectively 30 points or less (called "schneider"), but take at least one trick, they lose two cumulative points each. Failing to take a single trick (calles "schwarz") costs three points each. The winners gain the points offered by the losers.

Since points won are deducted from the scores of the losers and added to the scores of the winners, scoring is a a zero-sum exercise. The losers "pay" points to the winners, and the sum of all scores should always be zero. Thus some players' scores are likely to be negative numbers.

Even if especially Americans often regard this unpolite, Schafkopf is a game for money. So "Points" in this context always stand for coins. Still, the paying is more or less symbolic and even after a long night of games wins or losses exceeding 10 or 20 Marks are rare. Usually, a "point" is 10 Pfenning, in some rounds 5, in some others 20.

Always and playing for money, and optionally when writing points, you also pay for "Laufende" (consecutives). Laufende mean a consecutive row of the highest trumps in the hands of the one party. Minimum are three consecutive trumps, and each pays one point or coin. So if, for example, the Spieler has QC, QH and QD and the partner QS, JC and JS the losers have to pay additional six points or coins. If the offensive party did not have the QH, there woudn't be no Laufende in that game because there was no consecutive row of at least the highest three trumps.

Apart from the normal partner games, Schafkopf allows games of one player with strong cards alone against the three others. The classic alone game is the Solo (plural: Soli). The ranking of the Haxen remains exactly the same (QC, QS, QH, QD, JC, JS, JH, JD), but the player may choose a color which becomes the non-picture trumps for that game (of course he my leave it hearts as well). So, if you have the four queens and four spades, you have excellent chances to win a spades Solo as you have only trumps on the hand.

The person who plays the Solo is the Spieler and needs 61 points to win. Soli are expensive games: If the Spieler wins, he gets five cumulative points or coins from each of the other players; if he loses, he pays five to each. So winning or losing a Solo makes a difference of 30 points/coins for the Spieler! Because this is very much, in few rounds a Solo is just two points per person. Anyway, the schneider, schwarz and Laufende rules still apply. So, if the Spieler wins our above example schneider, he gets:
5 (game) + 1 (schneider) + 4 (Laufende) = 10 points/coins from each opponent

Wenz

The second common alone game is the Wenz. Here, the Jacks are the only trumps! They rank under the Kings as normal fail cards, and the hearts become a fourth fail color. Due to the low number or trumps, besides some jacks you need a lot of aces or many high cards of one color to win a Wenz. So, an excellent Wenz hand would be: JC, JS, JD, AC, 10C, QC, AH, 10H.

The scoring is the same as for Soli. Logically, only Jacks count for Laufende and - this is special - they begin at two consecutives already. Therefore, if the Spieler in the above example wins schwarz, he gets:
5 (game) + 2 (schwarz) + 2 (Laufende) = 9 points/coins from each opponent

If no one wants to make the game, the hand may be played as Ramsch (least). Ramsch is a cut-throat game in which the goal is reversed. There are no partners. Each player tries to take as few points as possible rather than the majority of the points. The player who had to take the most points pays one cumulative point to each of the others, respectively two points to each player who succeeded in getting not a single trick ("Jungfrau"). This game punishes everybody who did not make the game despite having good cards, but also those who could not call an ace because he did not have a free fail (were "gesperrt"). Therefore, Ramsch still allows the possibility of taking every trick ("Durchmarsch") and winning with 120 points.

Instead of playing Ramsch when no one makes the game, the last player may elect to deal again and play the next hand with a Stock. For that, each player puts one coin on the table; this fund is called the Stock. If the party involving the Spieler wins the game, it also wins the Stock. If the Spieler played alone, he gets the whole stock, if he played with a partner he shares it with him. If the party with the Spieler loses, it has to double the Stock, using the same key as described for getting it. The doubled Stock can then be won in next game, or it might be doubled again if the offensive party loses another time.

This exercise in machismo results when someone announces a game and another player does not overrule this by playing alone, but still thinks he has good chances to win the game the Spieler just announced. He shouts "Conta" (or "Stoss", "Schuss", "Spritze"....) and knocks against his cards. If the Spieler still is convinced of winning, he reacts with "Re". Each of those exclamations doubles the value of the game. This can escalate quite high:
Contra 2x; Re 4x; Supra 8x; Resupra 16x; Bock 32x; Hirsch 64x.

Schafkopf can be a game of considerable subtlety. Fortunately there are some helpful rules of thumb to guide one's decisions. Naturally none of these guidelines is absolute. There are occasions when one must abandon conventional wisdom. These tactics probably cover 80% of one's decisions, however.

• Offensive players lead trump; defensive players lead fail.

  This fundamental principle is truly appreciated only after trying the opposite approach. Leading a trick is an opportunity to exert control over the other players. They must follow suit when possible, which limits their choice of cards, or they must decide whether to try to wrest control away from the leader. Leading trump means one is trying to control the power cards. Leading fail means one is conserving trump or trying to harass the offense by forcing the Spieler (and partner) to decide whether the trick merits a high trump card.

  When calling an ace to choose a partner, it is usually wise for a defender to lead the called suit when possible. You know the Spieler has at least that one fail card, and you know the Spieler cannot possibly take the trick. If you have two or more cards of the called suit, lead the highest scoring card. This may be your best opportunity to get those points home for your team.

  The application of this guideline signals which players are on the offensive and defensive sides. Until the called suit is lead and the called ace is exposed, the identity of the Spieler's partner is not known to anyone but the partner. When a player other than the Spieler leads trump, however, it is a sign that the player holds the designated card and is playing along with the Spieler.

  It is possible to break this rule with brilliant skill. More often, however, one incurs the wrath of one's teammates by straying from this principle.

   

• Pay attention.

  In particular, try to count the number of trump that have been played. The game tends to revolve around the fourteen trump cards. If you know there are many, one, or none left to be played, you can choose your play accordingly. Watch who plays trump, and when, for clues about who is the Spieler's partner.

• Position is power.

  Your position with respect to the first (or next) lead will affect your play. When you are at the dealer's left, with the first chance to pick, you do not have the luxury of knowing how many other players might pass or pick. You're "under the gun". On the other hand, you also have the chance to set the pace of the game with your initial lead. At the end (as the dealer) you may be able to pick with a weaker hand than usual. The other players have all indicated some degree of weakness by passing. But beware players who are gesperrt and the Mauer who passes despite a strong hand!

  As Spieler or partner, you want to be at the lead or on the end. At the lead you can dictate the choices of the defense. On the end you can survey a trick before making a decision.

  As a defender, you want to keep the offense in the middle. Then you can force the Spieler to make a difficult decision, knowing that your hostile teammates await their turns to validate or overturn the picker's choice of card.

• Sacrifice points before power.

  Regardless of which side you play on, you will usually obtain a greater return by taking a trick with a high-ranking card later than by hording your points. When forced to play trump, for example, and you have only a queen and the ace of diamonds, but you know you cannot take the trick, it may be better to sacrife the ace. The queen may take a trick with more points later or win the lead at a crucial moment. You may wish to bend this rule when you know you would be giving away the game-winning points.

• Tactics when playing least

  "Ramsch" annoys some players so much that they refuse to play them at all. This has led to other variations that eliminate their necessity. Others find the sudden shift of tactics to be stimulating.

  In least, it is often tempting to dump one's aces and tens on a trick that is already won by an unfortunate rival. This can make later tricks much cheaper, however. It is often prudent to ration one's "Schmierage" (aces and tens) by doling out the points to players who appear to be getting by too easily. It can be disastrous to have a lone ("nackert") ace or ten of a suit, however. Then it's wise to dump those counters whenever one has an opportunity. A Ramsch is often won by the player who spends a high-ranking trump card to buy a relatively cheap trick.

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