To play skat card game, you must understand bidding, card tricks, and scoring, involving three players each round.
Have you ever wondered about the intricacies of a card game that combines strategy and a bit of luck? If so, then you’re in the right place. We’re about to jump into the world of Skat. This article will guide you through the essential elements on how to play skat card game.
Skat is a popular three-player German trick-taking game with complex rules, but it’s surprisingly engaging once you understand the basics. We will cover the most important parts, focusing on the essential steps you need to know to start playing this game. Get ready for some fun!
How to Play Skat Card Game
Okay, let’s dive into the exciting world of Skat! This isn’t just any card game; it’s a trick-taking game with lots of strategy and fun, often played in groups of three. It’s popular, especially in Germany, and once you understand the rules, you’ll see why. We’ll go step by step, so don’t worry if you’re a complete beginner.
The Skat Deck and Card Values
First, let’s talk about the cards. Skat uses a special 32-card deck. Forget the 2s, 3s, 4s, 5s, and 6s. We only use the 7s, 8s, 9s, 10s, Jacks (also called “Buben”), Queens (“Damen”), Kings (“Könige”), and Aces (“Asse”).
Here’s a list of the cards from lowest to highest value, and how many points they are worth:
- 7 – 0 points
- 8 – 0 points
- 9 – 0 points
- Jack – 2 points
- Queen – 3 points
- King – 4 points
- 10 – 10 points
- Ace – 11 points
Remember, these points are important for scoring at the end of each round, also for determining the bidding in the game. The card suits also play a key role and consist of:
- Clubs (Kreuz)
- Spades (Pik)
- Hearts (Herz)
- Diamonds (Karo)
These suits all rank the same against each other, so in terms of card value, they don’t really matter during play other than when they are the “trump suit”, and we’ll talk more about that later.
Dealing and the Skat
Skat is typically played with three people. In rare cases four people can play, and the fourth person sits out. After shuffling, one person deals the cards. The dealer gives out:
- 10 cards each to two players
- 10 cards to the dealer
- 2 cards face down on the table called the “Skat” or the “kitty”
The deal is usually done in rounds, giving 3 cards to each player, then 2 to each, then 3 again and the Skat gets 2. The order of the players around the table is important because it determines who bids first.
Bidding: Deciding Who Plays Alone
After the cards have been dealt, comes the most exciting part of Skat – the bidding. This part decides who gets to play “alone” against the other two players. The player who bids the highest is the “declarer” or “soloist”. Here’s how it works:
The Bidding Process
The player to the left of the dealer makes the first bid and then the next player. The bidding is not like in an auction in a sense that there are no increments in the bids. Players can bid one by one or may immediately call “pass”. Players continue bidding until someone calls “pass” or they bid at a high level. Then, the final two players bid until one calls “pass”. Players may only bid at the value they want to play and once they bid, they are out of the bidding sequence.
Bidding is based on the potential game value, derived from the amount of trumps held. It’s important to know how to count your potential game value. You start with the base value for each suit: Clubs = 12, Spades = 11, Hearts = 10, Diamonds = 9.
Now you need to add “matadors” or “with” or “without” if you hold jacks in your hand. Remember jacks are called “buben” in Skat. To understand matadors better, these are all possible scenarios that can occur in bidding:
- With 1: If you hold the Jack of Clubs, you are “with 1”.
- With 2: If you hold the Jack of Clubs and the Jack of Spades, you are “with 2”.
- With 3: If you hold the Jack of Clubs, the Jack of Spades and the Jack of Hearts you are “with 3”.
- With 4: If you hold all the Jack of Clubs, Jack of Spades, Jack of Hearts and Jack of Diamonds you are “with 4”.
- Without 1: If you don’t hold the Jack of Clubs, you are “without 1”.
- Without 2: If you don’t hold the Jack of Clubs and the Jack of Spades, you are “without 2”.
- Without 3: If you don’t hold the Jack of Clubs, the Jack of Spades and the Jack of Hearts you are “without 3”.
- Without 4: If you don’t hold any Jack, you are “without 4”.
Matadors determine how much value you have in your hand. For example: if you have Hearts as a trump suit and you are “with 2”, then the base value for your bid is 10, multiplied by 2, which equals 20.
So how is the bidding determined? Let’s say one player wants to bid with Spades as a trump suit and “with 1”, so his bid is 11 x 1 = 11 and one player may bid with Hearts as a trump suit, and “with 2” so his bid is 10 x 2 = 20. In this case, second player has the higher bid and gets to play the Skat game.
Players who call “pass” drop out of the bidding. In some rare cases all players can call “pass”. Then a hand is thrown and a new deal is needed.
The Declarer and the Skat
The person who wins the bid becomes the declarer and picks up the two cards from the Skat. The declarer now looks at their 12 cards (10 in hand and 2 from the Skat) and decides if they will play the game or not. At this point, the declarer will discard 2 cards and keep 10 in their hand. This must be done before they make their final announcement, about which game they will play.
Types of Games
Now it’s time to talk about the type of games that can be played. There are several game options in Skat, each with different rules and scoring:
Suit Game
A Suit game is a standard Skat game. The declarer chooses one of the four suits as the trump suit. The jacks are always trumps no matter what the selected suit. In this game, the highest card wins and the trump card wins over other cards. All suits rank the same but the trump suit ranks higher than other suits.
Grand Game
In a grand game, only Jacks are the trumps, and there are no suit trumps. This makes this game more difficult than a suit game. So, this means that only Jack of Clubs, Jack of Spades, Jack of Hearts and Jack of Diamonds are the trump suits. Other than that the game plays the same as suit game.
Null Game
Null game is a high-risk, high-reward game. In this game, there are no trumps, and the declarer needs to avoid winning any tricks. It’s the opposite of the other games. The declarer has to try and lose every single trick, otherwise they lose the game.
Once the declarer announces the game that they are going to play, they need to pick two cards from their hand and discard them face-down to the side. These cards do not get used in the game, but they will count towards end score.
These games have different multipliers. The base value of each suit game is:
- Clubs (Kreuz) has a value of 12
- Spades (Pik) has a value of 11
- Hearts (Herz) has a value of 10
- Diamonds (Karo) has a value of 9
Grand game has a value of 24, and Null game has a value of 23.
The Play
Now, the fun begins! After choosing a game and discarding two cards into the side, the declarer leads with the first card to start the round. Each player has to follow suit, if possible. For example, if the first card is a heart, other players must also play a heart card. If they don’t have any, they can discard any card that they have. When a trick is played, the highest card of the lead suit wins the trick, or the highest trump card wins a trick. The person who wins the trick leads the next round.
Trump Suit Explained
Trump suit is very important in Skat. As explained earlier, the suit chosen by the declarer when they play a suit game is the trump suit. The trump suit ranks higher than other suits. If there are no trump cards in a round, then the highest card of lead suit wins the round. But, If a trump card is played, then the highest trump card wins the round. Additionally, Jacks are always trumps, so if they are played in a round, the highest Jack wins the round.
Trick-Taking
Each trick is made up of a round, when each player plays one card from their hand. These tricks are important, as the declarer needs to accumulate a certain amount of points, in order to win the game.
Scoring
Scoring is a little tricky, so pay attention! After all the tricks are played, you need to count the card points. Each card has a certain number of points, which are explained in the “The Skat Deck and Card Values” section. These are:
- 7 – 0 points
- 8 – 0 points
- 9 – 0 points
- Jack – 2 points
- Queen – 3 points
- King – 4 points
- 10 – 10 points
- Ace – 11 points
If the declarer (the solo player) wins 61 points or more, they win the game. If they get 60 or less, the other two players win. However, the points alone do not determine the score. The base value of the game and the “matadors”, will determine how much the game is worth. This value is the point multiplier and if the solo player wins, they get the multiplied value. For example, if the game is based on hearts, and the declarer is “with 2”, then the multiplier is 10×2 = 20. So the winner will get 20 points if they win.
If the game is lost by declarer, the opponent gets double the points. So the opponents in the above example would get 40 points if the declarer loses.
There are also some other variations of scoring. “Schneider” is when the declarer gets 90 or more points, and it gets an additional multiplier of one. “Schwarz” is when the declarer gets all the tricks, and also gets an additional multiplier of one. So when declarer wins “Schneider”, the multiplier goes up by 1. The same goes when declarer wins “Schwarz”. If they win “Schneider” and “Schwarz” they get two points added to the value of the game. So in the example above with a heart game and “with 2”, the final score would be (10×2)+2=22.
In a null game, the declarer must lose all the tricks to win. The value of this game is always 23 and the score is doubled if the declarer loses.
Games can also be “overbid” by the declarer, in which case they lose the value of the bid. For example if the solo player bids “with 1” for a Heart game, and does not hold the Jack of Clubs, then he has “overbid” and he automatically loses the game, along with a penalty.
Scores are usually recorded using pen and paper. This is usually the way to track the progress of each player.
These are the most common rules that apply to Skat. There may be some variations that depend on the region that you play in.
That’s a lot to take in, but with some practice, you’ll get the hang of it. Skat is a game that rewards careful planning and quick thinking. Enjoy learning and playing!
How To Play Skat
Final Thoughts
Skat requires three players and a standard 32-card deck. The bidding phase determines the soloist, who then declares trump. Players then play tricks, trying to win with high cards and point accumulation.
The soloist tries to win at least 61 points. Opponents aim to prevent this. Points are awarded for card combinations and tricks won. Understanding these basic steps is key to how to play skat card game.
Practice, familiarize yourself with bidding and card ranking. Learning the combinations is essential. Knowing how points are calculated is also very important for succeeding.
