Bauernheinrich
| Origin | Schleswig-Holstein, Germany |
|---|---|
| Type | Shedding |
| Players | 3 |
| Cards | 32 |
| Deck | "Skat" deck |
| Play | Clockwise |
| Card rank (highest first) |
♣J ♠J ♥J ♦J TA TK TQ T10-7 A K Q 10-7 (led suit) |
Bauernheinrich ("Farmer Henry") is a card game for four players that is played in the region of Anglia in the north German state of Schleswig-Holstein. Its origin is unknown. It is played with a normal Skat pack. The winner is the one to 'go out' first. An unusual feature of this game is that each player has his own trump suit and so can trump others with that suit.
Description
The cards rank in the following ascending order: 7, 8, 9, 10, Queen (Dame), King (König), Ace (Ass). The Jacks (Bauern or Buben) have a special role as permanent trumps and rank above all the other cards. The ranking of the Jacks in ascending order is: Diamonds (Karo), Hearts (Herz), Spades (Pik) and Clubs (Kreuz). Thus the Jack of Diamonds can trump all other cards except the other Jacks. The Jack of Hearts can trump all other cards except the Jacks of Spades and Clubs, the Jack of Spades trumps everything apart from the Jack of Clubs; the latter is the highest card in the game. If a German-suited pack is used the Obers play the role of Queens and the Unters the role of Jacks. The ranking of suits in ascending order is then: Bells, Hearts, Leaves and Acorns.
Preparation
The cards are shuffled and dealt to all four players in anti-clockwise order in packets of 3, 2 and 3 respectively, so that everyone ends up with a hand of eight cards. They are kept concealed from the other players. Next, trumps are determined. The player with the Ace of Clubs announces Clubs as his trump suit e.g. with the words "I have Clubs!" ("Hier ist Kreuz!"). In clockwise order the other players have Spades, Hearts and Diamonds as their trump suits, regardless of the cards which they actually hold.
Playing
Bauernheinrich is a shedding game; the aim is to be the first to get rid of one's cards. The player with the Ace of Clubs starts by playing a card of his choice on the table. Play is clockwise. The next player has the following options:
- To play a higher card of the same suit ("follow suit");
- To lead the trick with a trump (in this case a Spade or a Jack) – if a Spade was played, the trump played to it must be higher;
- Pick up the still incomplete trick, i.e. in this case the single card.
If the trick is taken, it is now the next player's turn to play out a card. If a second card is played, it is again the turn of the next player (whose trump suit is Hearts) to play to the trick. The previously played card must always be followed or trumped. If the player picks up, he must always take the whole trick i.e. up to three cards. If a player cannot follow suit or trump, he must pick up.
The maximum number of cards dealt per trick is equal to the number of people in play. This means that when the fourth card is dealt, the player who dealt the fourth card takes those four cards (the trick) out of play and it is his turn to deal a new card. If one player has no more cards, they have won. The others continue to play and, from then on, a new trick is led after the third card of the previous one. Finally, the last two players play for two cards per trick. N.B. If a trick is started with four players and during the trick a player places his last card and goes out, the trick is still played to the end with four cards. Only the next trick does the number of cards played to three cards. The same applies when the next player goes out.
The game is played to the end; until the last two players have finished in third and fourth place. The cards have no point value, and the remaining cards are not counted towards the last player. So there are no tournaments in which an overall winner is determined from a large number of games.