Doppelkopf rules

1. What do you need to play?

  • 48 cards: A Doppelkopf game consists of two simple decks of cards with the cards nine to ace (no sevens and eights).

    • Each suit (clubs, spades, hearts, diamonds) appears twice.

  • Point values ​​of the cards:

    • Ace = 11 points

    • Ten = 10 points

    • King = 4 points

    • Queen = 3 points

    • Jack = 2 points

    • Nine = 0 points

2. Goal of the game

A team must at least 121 points Collect tricks to win. The first player to reach 121 or more points wins the game.

3. Who plays with whom?

  • Play exactly 4 people. Everyone sits in a fixed position: forehand, metacarpal, hindquarters, giver (the last one gets the cards).

  • The partnerships (teams) can be recognized as follows:

    • You prefer a Queen of Clubs belongs to the re-team.

    • If two players have the Queen of Clubs, they are together in the Re-Team.

    • The other two players are then in Counter-Team.

For example: If Player A and Player C each have a Queen of Clubs, they are the Re team. Players B and D then form the Contra team.

4. Which cards are the strongest? (Trump rule)

Trump means: These cards beat all others (except higher trump cards).

The trump order (from strong to weak):

  1. Queen of Clubs (highest trump)

  2. Queen of Spades

  3. Queen of Hearts

  4. Queen of Diamonds

  5. Jack of Clubs

  6. Jack of Spades

  7. Jack of Hearts

  8. Jack of Diamonds

  9. Ace of Diamonds

  10. Ten of Diamonds

  11. Karo King

  12. Nine of Diamonds

→ All ladies and boys are trump, aside from that all diamonds cards.

Mnemonic: Queens, jacks and all diamonds are trumps.

Non-trump suits (remaining cards): There counts: Ace > Ten > King > Nine

5. How does a game round work?

  1. Everyone gets 12 cards: Clockwise three cards, then two sets of four cards.

  2. The player to the left of the dealer (forehand) begins and places the first card on the table.

  3. The others follow in turn.

Important:

  • If you are the played suit, you must follow it (also play a card of this color).

  • If you change the color don't have, can you play any card (also trump).

  • Whoever plays the highest card (trump > suit), wins the trick and takes the four cards.

6. Announcements during the game

Before the first play, you can announce the following:

  • "Contra!" (if you are on the Contra team)

  • "Re!" (if you are on the re-team)

  • Later you can also say:

    • "Not 90!" (Opponents do not reach 90 points)

    • "Not 60!", "Not 30!", "Black!" (Opponents do not take a trick)

Attention: You get Extrapunkteif your call is correct. If it's wrong, you lose points.

For example: Player A calls after the first trick: "Re! No 90!" → If the opposing team has less than 90 points, there are extra points.

7. Special cases and solo games

  • Wedding: A player has both queens of clubs → He doesn't automatically play in the re-team, but instead looks for a partner. Whoever wins the first trick from him is his partner.

  • Pear: A player has only 3 or fewer trump cardsThen he can call out "poverty" and offer his cards to another player. The new player can then exchange cards.

  • Solo: A player plays alone against the other three.

    • He predicts which cards are trump.

    • Example: "Jacks Solo" → Only the jacks are trumps.

8. How is counting done?

  • Whoever has 121 points or more wins.

  • Point distribution:

    • Game won = +1 point

    • "Re" or "Kontra" correct = +1 point

    • "No 90", "No 60" etc. correct = +1 point per announcement

    • If opponents have made a wrong announcement = +1 point additionally

Example calculation: The Re team says: "Re! No 90!" – and wins with 132 points. → Points: 1 (win) + 1 (Re) + 1 (no 90 achieved) + 1 (double failed) = 4 points

9. When does the game end?

  • If you have agreed beforehand: after 12 rounds, 20 points or a certain time.

  • Everyone writes down their points on a piece of paper. There are also apps for this.

10. Helpful tips for beginners

  • Counting trump cards: This way you know how many are left in the game.

  • Don't play high cards too earlyif you don't have to.

  • Play solo onlyif you have strong cards.

  • Make announcements carefully – otherwise you will lose a lot of points!

11. Special rules (house rules – optional)

  • Piggy: Whoever has both Jacks of Clubs or Queens of Spades can make a special bid.

  • Compulsory solo: Everyone has to play a solo in a round.

  • Tapping: You can double your bet before the game.

  • Fox caught: If the Ace of Diamonds is trumped by the opponent, the catcher gets an extra point.