The Penguin Book of Card Games: Everything You Need to Know to Play Over 250 Games (81 page)

popular around the town of Jurbarkas on the river Niemen,

between Kaunas and the western border. Albinas Borisevicius of

Vilnius taught it to John McLeod at a 1991 meeting of the

International Playing-Card Society, and the fol owing description is

based on the Pagat website composite subsequently prepared by

McLeod and Anthony Smith.

Preliminaries Four players sit crosswise in partnerships and play to

the left. Two slightly dif erent types of game are played and both

are scored negatively – that is, by marking penalties against the

losers or by cancel ing penalties previously marked against the

winners. One game is scored by means of circles, cal ed ‘rams’

(avinas), which can be cancel ed. The other is scored in ‘pips’,

which are writ en down as a running total. Pips cannot be

cancel ed, and a match ends when one side has accumulated 12

pips.

Cards The 32 cards, consisting of ATKQJ987 in each suit, rank and

count as fol ows:

in trumps

Q †7 Q Q Q J J J J A T K 9 8

card-points 3

0 3 3

3 2 2 2 2 11 10 4 0 0 0

plain suits

A T K 9 8 7

Deal The dealer deals eight cards each in batches of four. He

exposes each opponent’s fourth and eighth cards. He also examines

the fourth and eighth of his own and his partner’s cards, but only

exposes any of these that are Sevens. The game takes dif erent

forms according to whether or not any Sevens have been exposed.

Either way, the aim of the declaring side is normal y to take at least

61 of the 120 card-points available.

If any of the exposed cards is a Seven, the suit of the last Seven

exposed becomes the trump suit for that deal. Its holder

automatical y becomes the declarer, and leads to the first trick. This

is a Sevens game, and is scored in rams.

is a Sevens game, and is scored in rams.

If no Seven is exposed (which happens about three deals in ten),

the player at dealer’s left either passes or chooses a suit as trump

and, without saying what suit it is, states how many trumps he

holds (including Queens and Jacks). The other players in turn then

either pass or quote a greater number of cards held in a suit of their

choice. If al pass, the deal is annul ed and passes on to the next in

turn. Otherwise the player stating the greatest number of trumps

becomes the declarer and leads to the first trick. This is a No Sevens

game and is scored in pips.

Players need not choose the suit of which they hold most cards,

but if it later transpires that declarer held fewer trumps than he

claimed, his side loses the whole game.

Doubling (sevens game only) Before leading to the first trick,

declarer or his partner may knock on the table to signify that they

undertake to win every trick, thereby doubling the value of the

game. If so, either opponent may knock again, thereby bet ing they

don’t, and doubling the value again.

Play (sevens game) Declarer leads. Players must fol ow suit if

possible, otherwise may play any card. The trick is taken by the

highest card of the suit led, or by the highest trump if any are

played, and the winner of each trick leads to the next. Normal y al

eight tricks are played and the declarers win if they take at least 61

card-points in tricks. In a doubled game, however, the declarers lose

as soon as they lose a trick, and the rest are not played.

Play (no sevens) Declarer leads to the first trick, and must lead a

trump. If it is a Queen or Jack, the player at his left must ask what

the trump suit is, and be truthful y told.

The winner of the first trick must lead a trump to the second. If

he has none, he may lead any card, and may (but need not) lead it

face down. If he does, he may indicate to his partner by a facial

face down. If he does, he may indicate to his partner by a facial

expression whether or not it is a high counter. The others then

fol ow as if a trump had been led, the led card is exposed, and the

highest trump played wins the trick.

In al other tricks any card may be led, and players must fol ow

suit if possible. Play ceases when either member of the declaring

side claims his side to have reached at least 61.

Score (sevens game) If the declarers win, the opponents record

against themselves as many rams as there were Sevens exposed in

the deal (1 to 4); if not, declarers record twice that number against

themselves (2-4-6-8). These scores are doubled if they bid al eight

tricks, and doubled again if the opponents redoubled.

In subsequent deals, a ram is primarily scored by crossing out a ram

of the opposing side. If they have none, then it is recorded by

drawing a circle against the losing side. At any given time,

therefore, not more than one side wil have uncancel ed rams

against them.

Score (no sevens) If the declarers win, the opponents

count 1 pip against themselves if they took from 31 to 59 card-

points, 2 pips if they took 30 or fewer, or 3 pips if they took none

at al (even if they took one or more worthless tricks). If the

declarers lose, they count respectively 2 (for 31-60), 4 or 6 pips

against themselves.

Ending The match ends when either side has at least 12 pips

marked against them. Normal y, the winning side is the one that

has no uncancel ed rams marked against it. If neither side has any

rams, the one with the fewer pips wins. However, if one side has

no pips at al , then the rams are ignored and the side with 12 or

more loses disgraceful y, being designated ‘Cats’ until the next

match. In this event it is traditional to play no more that day, and to

break open new cards for the next game.

In the il ustration, East-West have won because they have no rams

against, but North-South would have won if they had had no pips