Piquet Rules: The Classic French Card Game

Piquet is a classic, skillful two-player card game that has been popular since the 16th century. Despite its age, the game has changed very little over the centuries, making it a timeless favorite. This article provides a comprehensive guide to the official rules of Piquet.

Game Overview

Piquet originated in France and is played with a 32-card deck, which omits the 2s through 6s in each suit. The cards rank in ascending order as follows: 7, 8, 9, 10, J, Q, K, A (high).

Objective

The objective of Piquet is to score more points than your opponent over the course of a partie (a set of 6 deals), while also striving to score over 100 points during the partie to "get over the Rubicon."

Setup

A game consists of a set of 6 deals called a partie, with the deal alternating between the players. Players cut for the highest card, and the winner can choose who deals first, although it's generally better to be the non-dealer on the critical sixth hand. The dealer shuffles the deck thoroughly and deals 12 cards to each player, leaving 8 cards as a talon. Cards may be dealt in threes or in twos, but whichever the dealer chooses must be used for their remaining deals in the partie. The talon is placed face down in the middle. The non-dealer is known as elder hand, the dealer as younger hand.

A player dealt a hand with no court cards at all — no Jack, Queen or King — may announce carte blanche and score 10 points. It must be announced as soon as it is noticed, and is proved by dealing the cards rapidly face up on the table after the opponent has discarded but before discarding yourself.

How to Play

1. Exchange: The non-dealer initiates the exchange by discarding at least one and at most five cards face down. They then pick up the same number of cards from the top of the talon. The dealer then does the same, discarding at least one card and at most the number of cards not taken by the non-dealer (usually 3), and taking an equal number of cards from the talon. If a player exchanges fewer than the maximum allowed, they must announce this before picking up cards. Each player keeps their discards by them, and may refer to them during play to remind themselves what they discarded.

2. Declarations: Elder hand declares first, announcing their best combination in each of the three scoring categories: point, sequence, and set. Only the player with the best combination in each category scores for that category. After each announcement, younger hand says "good," meaning elder's combination is better and can be scored, "not good" if younger holds a better one, or "equal" — in which case elder gives more detail and younger replies again, and if the two are precisely equal neither player scores.

   Ties are broken by fixed rules. Points of equal length are compared by adding the face values of the cards, court cards counting 10 and the ace 11. Sequences of equal length are compared by their highest card, so A-K-Q beats K-Q-J. Any quatorze beats any trio, and between two quatorzes or two trios the higher-ranked cards win. Whoever wins a category also scores every other combination they hold in that same category — the player with the best sequence scores all their sequences, and the opponent scores none.

   Declaring is not compulsory. Deliberately staying silent, known as sinking a declaration, can be worth it to conceal your hand or when you are certain to be beaten. But once a declaration has been made it cannot be revised upwards.

   • Point: The player who points the most cards in one suit scores the number of cards in the suit.
   • Sequence: The longest run of consecutive cards in one suit scores as follows: tierce (3 cards) scores 3; quart (4 cards) scores 4; quint (5 cards) scores 15; sixième (6 cards) scores 16; septième (7 cards) scores 17; huitième (8 cards) scores 18.
   • Set: A set of four Aces, Kings, Queens, Jacks, or Tens scores 14, while a set of three of the same ranks scores 3. Note that sets of 9s, 8s, or 7s do not count.

3. Play of the Cards: After elder hand has declared, they lead a card, and younger hand then announces and scores for combinations in categories where they said "not good" or where elder made no declaration. Either player may then ask to see any combination that was scored for, or that scored nothing because of equality — rarely necessary in practice, since you can usually deduce the cards.

   There are no trumps. You must follow the suit led if you can; otherwise you may play anything, and the trick goes to the highest card of the suit led. Points accumulate trick by trick: leading to a trick scores 1 point, and winning a trick led by your opponent also scores 1. The winner of the last trick scores 1 extra. Whoever takes the majority of the twelve tricks scores 10 points for "cards" — with a six-six split, nobody scores — and a player who takes all twelve tricks makes a capot, worth 40 points instead of 10.

4. Repique and Pique: A player who reaches 30 points in declarations alone before their opponent has scored anything for declarations gains a repique, worth 60 extra points. For deciding whether that 30 was reached first, points are counted in a strict order: carte blanche, point, sequences, quatorzes and trios, then points made in play. That order has real consequences — if elder scores 30 for sequences and sets but younger holds the better point, elder gets no repique, because the point counts before sequences.

   A player who reaches 30 points in declarations and play before the opponent scores anything gains a pique, worth 30 extra points. Since it depends on points made while playing, only elder hand can achieve it.

Scoring and End of Game

During the play of the hand, players announce their running total for the hand every time they score points. At the end of the hand, the final totals are written down and added to the scores so far for the partie. The winner is the player who has a higher score at the end of the partie. If the scores are equal after 6 deals, two more hands are played. If they are still equal, the partie is a draw.

At the end of the partie, if the loser has scored at least 100 points, the loser pays the winner the difference between the players' scores plus 100. If the loser has not scored as many as 100 points, the loser pays the winner the sum of the players' scores plus 100. If another partie is to be played, the scores are started from zero again.

Common Variants

The rules above are those published by Cavendish in 1882. An older form of the game, still sometimes played, used a 36-card pack with a 12-card talon, allowed elder hand to change seven cards, and ended as soon as one player reached 100 points rather than after a fixed six deals.

A Bit of History

Piquet is a very old game. It was already well established by 1650 with rules close to the modern ones, and it was mentioned by Rabelais as early as 1535, although whether that was the same game is unclear. It has kept its reputation ever since as one of the best and most skilful card games for two players.

Where to Get the Game

Start your Piquet journey with a 32-card deck available on Amazon.

Beginner Mistakes to Avoid

1. Discarding carelessly. The exchange is the heart of the game: five cards out of twelve is nearly half your hand. Keep what can build a long point or a sequence rather than scattered court cards.
2. Ignoring the repique order. Sacrificing the point to protect your sequences can cost a 60-point repique, because the point is counted before sequences for that purpose.
3. Declaring on reflex. Announcing a trio of tens against an opponent who evidently holds a trio of aces scores nothing and hands them free information about your hand.
4. Treating the play as a formality. Beginners focus on declarations, but the 10 points for cards — and the 40 for a capot — are won at the table, not in the announcements.

FAQ

1. Can I play Piquet with a standard 52-card deck? No, Piquet requires a 32-card deck that omits the 2s through 6s in each suit.
2. Can I choose not to declare a point or sequence? Yes, but if your opponent scores 30 in declarations before you score anything, you will miss out on the opportunity to earn a repique.
3. Can I revise my declaration if my opponent says "not good" or "equal"? No. Once elder hand has declared, the declaration cannot be replaced by a higher one, and a better combination held back cannot be scored later either.
4. Can I ask to see my opponent's cards at any time during the game? No. After elder hand has led to the first trick, you may ask to see a combination that was scored for, or one that scored nothing because the two were equal — nothing else.
5. What happens if the scores are tied after six deals? Two more hands are played. If the scores are still level after those, the partie is a draw.
6. Why does the Rubicon matter so much? A loser who scored at least 100 points pays only the difference between the scores plus 100. A loser who fell short of 100 pays the sum of both scores plus 100 — so on 99 against 120 the payment is 319, while on 101 against 120 it is only 119.
7. Do sets of low cards count? No. Only Aces, Kings, Queens, Jacks and Tens form trios (3 points) and quatorzes (14 points); three 9s or four 8s are worth nothing.

Similar games

• burraco card game
• spanish deck mus
• 52-card deck cassino
• 32-card deck coinche
• german skat card game