Quick summary
A trick-taking game with 78 cards (4 suits + 21 trumps + the Excuse/Fool). Each deal, a taker plays alone (or with a partner at 5 players) against the defense: they announce a contract and must gather enough card points in their tricks, depending on how many oudlers (the 1 of trumps called the “Petit”, the 21, and the Excuse) they hold at the end. The app computes the score — you only enter the contract, oudlers and points.
Setup
- 78 cards; deal by threes, with a chien (kitty) in the middle: 6 cards (3 or 4 players) or 3 cards (5 players).
- Each player may pass or bid higher (weakest to strongest): Petite, Garde, Garde sans (without the kitty), Garde contre (against the kitty).
- Petite/Garde: the taker reveals the chien, adds it to their hand and discards as many cards. Garde sans: the chien stays hidden but counts for the taker. Garde contre: it goes to the defense.
- At 5 players, the taker calls a king: whoever holds it becomes their partner (calling a king from your own hand means playing alone).
How a turn works
- Follow the suit led; otherwise trump, overtrumping if you can; otherwise discard.
- On trumps, you must play higher if possible.
- The Excuse never wins a trick but stays with its side (swap it for a low card).
- The Petit is a precious oudler: losing or saving it on the last trick changes the score (“petit au bout”).
End of game
Points the attack must reach, by oudlers held:
| Oudlers | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Target | 56 | 51 | 41 | 36 |
Scoring (the app does it): (25 + margin) × contract multiplier (Petite ×1, Garde ×2, Garde sans ×4, Garde contre ×6), ± petit au bout (10 × multiplier), ± handfuls (20/30/40, to the winning side of the deal), ± slam (+400 announced & made, +200 made unannounced, −200 announced & failed). At 4 players the taker banks 3× that score, each defender pays it once — the deltas always sum to zero. Play as many deals as you like; highest total wins.
⚖️ Who wins what (contract made, score S)
The sum is always zero: whatever the attack wins, the defense pays.
FAQ
How do half-points work? Cards are counted in pairs (one court card + one low card). The margin to the target is rounded up, in favor of the winning side: 41.5 against a 41 target is made by 1.
Whose handful is it anyway? It goes to the winner of the deal, no matter who showed it (official FFT rule — check your house habits!).
The Excuse on the last trick? It is lost (handed to the other side) — except during a slam, where it even wins the trick.
The taker calls a king they hold? Allowed: they play alone against four, and bank 4× the score.
Variants
- House chien rules: some groups reveal the chien differently — agree before playing.
- Free deal: if everyone passes, redeal (some play a growing “pot” for the next deal).