French tarot rules
French tarot is played by 3, 4 or 5 players with 78 cards. In each deal, one player, the taker, commits to reaching a minimum number of points against the others, the defence. Points are scored after each deal, and the player with the most points at the end of the game wins. These are the rules of the French Tarot Federation (FFT).
What cards are in a tarot deck?
A tarot deck has 78 cards: 4 suits (spades, hearts, diamonds, clubs) of 14 cards each (ace to 10, then jack, knight, queen, king), 21 trumps numbered 1 to 21, and the Excuse.
Three cards are oudlers: the 1 of trumps (the Petit), the 21 of trumps and the Excuse. How many oudlers the taker wins sets how many points they need.
How many points is each tarot card worth?
| Card | Value |
|---|---|
| Oudler (Petit, 21, Excuse) | 4.5 |
| King | 4.5 |
| Queen | 3.5 |
| Knight | 2.5 |
| Jack | 1.5 |
| Any other card (trump or low card) | 0.5 |
The 78 cards add up to 91 points. The defence therefore has 91 minus the taker's points.
How do you deal in tarot?
The dealer hands out the cards in packets of 3 and, one card at a time during the deal, places the cards of the dog (the chien) in the middle of the table.
| Players | Cards each | Dog |
|---|---|---|
| 3 | 24 | 6 |
| 4 | 18 | 6 |
| 5 | 15 | 3 |
A player whose only trump is the Petit (a bare Petit) says so and the deal is cancelled: the cards are dealt again.
What are the contracts in tarot?
Each player speaks once, in turn: they pass or bid a contract higher than the previous one. The highest bidder becomes the taker. If everyone passes, the cards are dealt again.
| Contract (lowest to highest) | The dog | Multiplier |
|---|---|---|
| Prise (small) | The taker takes it, then discards as many cards | ×1 |
| Garde | The taker takes it, then discards as many cards | ×2 |
| Garde sans | Set aside unseen, counted for the taker | ×4 |
| Garde contre | Set aside unseen, counted for the defence | ×6 |
What can you discard in tarot?
In a prise or a garde, the taker shows the dog to everyone, adds it to their hand, then discards the same number of cards face down. Those cards count for the taker at the end of the deal.
- No king and no oudler in the discard.
- No trump, unless the taker has no other choice; discarded trumps are then shown to the table.
How do you play tarot with 5 players?
With 5 players, the taker calls a king before seeing the dog. The player holding that king becomes their partner without saying so: everyone finds out when the king is played. A taker holding all 4 kings calls a queen. The taker may call a king they hold themselves: they then play alone against 4.
Do you always have to trump and play higher trumps in tarot?
- You must follow the suit led.
- If you have none of that suit, you must play a trump.
- Whenever you play a trump (to cut, or because trumps were led), you must play higher than the trumps already in the trick, if you can.
- With neither the suit led nor a trump, you may play any card.
- The trick goes to the highest trump, or else to the highest card of the suit led.
How does the Excuse work in tarot?
The Excuse can be played at any time, instead of any card, and never wins the trick. It stays with its side: if the opponents win the trick, its owner takes it back and gives them a 0.5-point card instead. Played in the last trick, it goes to the side that wins that trick, except in a slam.
How many points does the taker need in tarot?
The points the taker (with their partner at 5) needs depend on the number of oudlers in their tricks and discard:
| Taker's oudlers | Points needed |
|---|---|
| 0 | 56 |
| 1 | 51 |
| 2 | 41 |
| 3 | 36 |
The contract is made when the taker reaches that total or more. The margin is the difference between their points and that total.
How do you score a deal in tarot?
You compute one value, which each defender pays to the taker's side when the contract is made, or receives from it when it fails:
- base = (25 + margin) × the contract's multiplier;
- petit au bout: 10 × multiplier, to the side that won the last trick with the Petit;
- handful: 20, 30 or 40, not multiplied, to the side that wins the deal;
- slam: +400 announced and made, +200 made without announcement, −200 announced and failed, not multiplied.
A margin with a half point (at 3 and 5 players) rounds up to the next whole point: 40.5 for 41 counts as down by 1. Example with 4 players: a garde with 2 oudlers and 49 points gives a margin of +8, a base of (25 + 8) × 2 = 66, so +198 for the taker and −66 for each defender.
How are tarot points split between players?
Each defender scores −M (M being the deal's value, negative when the contract fails). The taker's side receives the sum, so every deal adds up to 0:
| Players | Taker | Partner | Each defender |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | +2M | — | −M |
| 4 | +3M | — | −M |
| 5, king held by another player | +2M | +M | −M |
| 5, taker called their own king | +4M | — | −M |
How many trumps make a handful in tarot?
A handful (poignée) is declared and shown just before playing your first card. It is worth 20 (single), 30 (double) or 40 (triple) points, which go to the side that wins the deal, even if the other side showed it.
| Players | Single | Double | Triple |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | 13 trumps | 15 trumps | 18 trumps |
| 4 | 10 trumps | 13 trumps | 15 trumps |
| 5 | 8 trumps | 10 trumps | 13 trumps |
What are petit au bout and slam in tarot?
Petit au bout: the side that wins the last trick with the Petit earns 10 points times the contract's multiplier, whether it is the attack or the defence.
A slam (chelem) means winning every trick. Announced and made, it is worth 400 points; made without announcement, 200; announced and failed, it costs 200. In a slam where the Excuse is played in the last trick, petit au bout counts if the Petit wins the second-to-last trick.
How does the Scorizy score sheet count tarot?
For each deal you enter the taker, the contract, the partner at 5, the number of oudlers and the taker's points, then any announcement: petit au bout, handful, slam. You don't enter the defence's points: they are 91 minus the taker's. The sheet applies the rules above and keeps every player's total.