Learn tarot in a few minutes
This page gathers everything you need to play a game of Gothic Tarot: the number of cards for each player count, the rules specific to the gothic variant, the value of every card and the points required depending on the Bouts. Keep it handy during your first games on the Android mobile app.
1. Variations by Player Count (3, 4, 5 Players)
- 3 Players: 24 tarot cards dealt, 6 in the dog. Each player plays for themselves against the other two.
- 4 Players: 18 cards dealt per player, 6 in the dog. Classic solo play against the defense.
- 5 Players (Gothic Specificity): The taker calls a king of a specific suit. The player holding this king becomes their secret partner for the round.
2. Gothic Variant Specific Rules
- Called Suit Rule: The suit of the called king cannot be played on the first trick, unless the player leading holds and directly plays that king.
- Excuse on the last trick: If the Excuse is played on the last trick, it goes to the side that wins that trick. Exception: during a slam, the Excuse played on the last trick by the side making the slam wins that trick.
3. Card Values (Trick Scoring)
At the end of the round, cards are paired up (one high card + one low card) for scoring:
| Card Type | Point Value |
|---|---|
| The Petit (1 of trumps), 21 of trumps, and Excuse (The 3 Bouts) | 4.5 points each |
| A King | 4.5 points |
| A Queen | 3.5 points |
| A Knight | 2.5 points |
| A Jack | 1.5 points |
| Low / Ordinary cards | 0.5 points |
4. Contracts and Required Bouts
The taker must reach a specific point threshold depending on the Bouts (1, 21, Excuse) captured:
- With 3 Bouts: 36 points minimum required.
- With 2 Bouts: 41 points minimum required.
- With 1 Bout: 51 points minimum required.
- With 0 Bouts: 56 points minimum required.
5. How a round unfolds
- Deal: the cards are dealt and a few are set aside to form the dog.
- Bidding: each player says whether they want to take; the highest bid decides the taker.
- The dog: depending on the contract, the taker adds the dog to their hand and then discards the same number of cards.
- Card play: you must follow the suit led; if you cannot, you must trump, and overtrump whenever possible.
- Scoring: at the end of the round, the taker's tricks are counted and compared with the threshold set by their number of Bouts.
6. Winnings table
The table below shows the winnings for each stake.
| Stake | Winnings |
|---|---|
| 200 chips | 300 chips |
| 500 chips | 700 chips |
| 1,000 chips | 1,500 chips |
| 2,000 chips | 3,000 chips |