Fancy A Game Of #Tarot, Anyone?

On Monday, James Wells shared his Tarot Circle games with us. It made me wonder about the actual card game of Tarot.

Did you know that the game of Tarot is still played? There is an entire group of games for the 78 card deck. Many people refer to them as Tarock games. Tarot or jeu de tarot is a game similar to other trump-style games where you take tricks.

The game known as French Tarot is one of the most popular card games in France. You can find the official rules at the Federation Francaise de Tarot. A most useful site...if you happen to read French.

Unlike some games where you have wild cards, in French Tarot, only the Fool is unusual. It is called the Excuse and can be played on any trick. It can't take the trick but it can "excuse" the player from following suit.

This wikipedia site has rules etc if you are interested in playing. I also found the American Tarot Game Association which should not be confused with the American Tarot Association. They offer a FAQ as well as the rules in English. Apparently the Hoyle Card Games by Sierra offers a computer version of Tarot.

Have you ever played Tarot this way? Would you be interested in learning the game to play with others? What do you think?

Comments

[Eoin Keith Boyle]

There are a number of different tarot games, from many different regions of Europe. The most comprehensive reference is Dummett & McLeod's "A History of Games Played with the Tarot Pack," while a good (and free) beginner's overview is at http://www.tarocchino.com

There are newer games using tarot decks being developed as well. Many use role-playing as a basis, but there are also board games that use tarot as a resolution system.

[Stella]

Eioin, thank you! This is great information to have.

[Douglass A. White]

Yes, Tarot originated as a game and gradually evolved into an oracle. Even as an oracle it has so many ways to play with it that it is still a game -- but one that can take you deep into the hidden secrets of your life. (edited to remove commercial link) You will learn about ancient games from Ancient Egypt down to Roman times and how they evolved into card games and became the Tarot and Tarock that we know today.

[Jim Wickson]

I'm one of the few American Tarot players. French Tarot I discovered about 10 years ago and I usually play online. There are probably more software for the French Tarot game than any other game of its type. I've known about Italian Tarocchi or Scarto since I was a teen from reading about it in a book in a public library and wanted to know more about Tarot games since then as it seemed pretty well designed.