Skat – Rules
Play Skat against the computer
1. Overview
Skat is Germany's best-known card game. Three players “bid” for the right to play alone against the other two. The winner of the bidding picks up the skat, chooses trumps and then needs at least 61 of the 120 card points.
| Players | 3 (with four, the dealer sits out each deal) |
| Duration | one game 3–5 minutes, a list of 36 games about 2–3 hours |
| Age | 12 and up |
| Difficulty | demanding – basic rules in an hour, bidding takes practice |
2. Goal
Win the game you announced as declarer (at least 61 card points, or no trick at all in null) – over many games, whoever has the most points on the score sheet wins.
3. What you need
- Skat deck with 32 cards: French suits (clubs ♣, spades ♠, hearts ♥, diamonds ♦) or German suits (acorns, leaves, hearts, bells).
- Per suit: ace, 10, king, queen, jack, 9, 8, 7. In the German deck, queen and jack are called Ober and Unter.
- Pen and score sheet. There are no jokers.
4. Setup
- Draw for the first dealer. After each game, the player to the left deals.
- Name the seats: To the dealer's left sits forehand, then middlehand, then rearhand. With three players, the dealer is rearhand.
- Shuffle and cut: The player to the right cuts, leaving at least 4 cards.
- Deal clockwise: 3 cards each – 2 face down in the middle (the skat) – 4 each – 3 each. Everyone has 10 cards.
- Bidding (section 6, step 1) decides the declarer.
- Skat and announcement: The declarer picks up the skat and puts two cards back face down (“discarding”) – or plays “hand” without the skat. Then they announce the game.
- Forehand leads to the first trick – no matter who the declarer is.
5. Card values
Card points (counted at the end):
| Card | Points |
|---|---|
| Ace | 11 |
| 10 | 10 |
| King | 4 |
| Queen | 3 |
| Jack | 2 |
| 9, 8, 7 | 0 |
The whole deck holds 120 card points.
Ranking (who beats whom?):
| Game type | Trumps (high → low) | Other suits |
|---|---|---|
| Suit game (diamonds, hearts, spades or clubs) | jack of clubs, jack of spades, jack of hearts, jack of diamonds, then ace, 10, king, queen, 9, 8, 7 of the trump suit – 11 trumps | ace, 10, king, queen, 9, 8, 7 |
| Grand | only the 4 jacks | ace, 10, king, queen, 9, 8, 7 |
| Null | no trumps | ace, king, queen, jack, 10, 9, 8, 7 (the 10 ranks below the jack) |
Important: in suit games and grand, all jacks are trumps, not part of their printed suit.
6. How to play
Step 1 – Bidding: who plays alone?
Bids use fixed numbers: 18, 20, 22, 23, 24, 27, 30, 33, 35, 36, 40, 44, 45, 46, 48, 50, 54, 55, 59, 60 …
- Middlehand asks forehand: “18?” – forehand answers “yes” (I'll hold) or “pass”.
- Middlehand keeps raising (20, 22 …) until one of them passes.
- Rearhand then asks the remaining player the same way, starting with the next higher value.
- The last player left is the declarer. Their game must be worth at least the last bid (section 8).
- If all three pass, the cards are redealt (house rule: Ramsch, section 10).
How high may you bid? Matadors + 1, times the base value of your intended trump suit (section 8). With the jacks of clubs and spades (“with 2”) and hearts as trumps: (2 + 1) × 10 = 30.
Step 2 – Pick up the skat, discard, announce
- The declarer picks up the two skat cards (now 12 cards) and puts any two cards back face down. These cards count for the declarer at the end.
- Then they announce: diamonds, hearts, spades, clubs, grand or null – plus hand, schneider, schwarz or ouvert if desired.
Step 3 – Play the tricks
Everyone plays one card in turn, clockwise. What you may do:
| Situation | What you must or may do |
|---|---|
| You lead | Play any card. |
| You hold the suit that was led | You must follow suit (trumps count as their own “suit”, jacks included). |
| You don't hold that suit | You may trump or discard any card. |
The trick goes to the highest trump. If no trump was played, the highest card of the suit led wins. The winner takes the three cards face down and leads to the next trick.
Step 4 – Count
After 10 tricks the declarer counts their card points (the skat belongs to them); the defenders count together.
7. Key terms
| Term | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Forehand / middlehand / rearhand | Seats to the dealer's left, in this order |
| Bidding | Deciding who plays alone |
| Skat | The two face-down cards in the middle |
| Discarding | Putting two cards back face down into the skat |
| Hand | Playing without picking up the skat (counts one level more) |
| Card points | Card values counted at the end (120 in total) |
| Matadors | Unbroken jacks from the top: “with 2” = clubs and spades jacks, “without 1” = jack of clubs missing |
| Following suit | Playing a card of the suit that was led |
| Smearing | Giving your partner a valuable card in a trick they will surely win |
| Schneider / schwarz | The losing side has 30 points or fewer / no trick |
| Overbid | The game value is lower than the bid – the game is lost |
8. End of the game & scoring
Won or lost?
| Game type | The declarer wins if … |
|---|---|
| Suit game, grand | they have at least 61 card points (60 : 60 is a loss) |
| Null | they take no trick at all |
Game value = base value × levels
| Game type | Base value |
|---|---|
| Diamonds | 9 |
| Hearts | 10 |
| Spades | 11 |
| Clubs | 12 |
| Grand | 24 |
| Level (added together) | Value |
|---|---|
| Matadors: with or without 1, 2, 3 … | 1 each |
| Game | 1 |
| Hand | 1 |
| Schneider | 1 |
| Schneider announced (hand only) | 1 |
| Schwarz | 1 |
| Schwarz announced (hand only) | 1 |
| Ouvert (hand only, with schwarz announced) | 1 |
Null games have fixed values: null 23 · null hand 35 · null ouvert 46 · null ouvert hand 59.
On the score sheet:
- Won: the declarer adds the game value.
- Lost: they subtract twice the game value.
- The defenders score nothing (for tournament scoring see section 10).
- Play an agreed number of games; the highest total wins.
9. Special cases
What if the game value is lower than the bid?
The game is overbid and lost – even with many points. The declarer loses twice the smallest multiple of the base value that reaches the bid. Example: bid 23, hearts “with 1” is only worth 2 × 10 = 20 → lost, scored −2 × 30 = −60.
What if everyone passes?
Under tournament rules the cards are redealt. Many groups play Ramsch instead (section 10).
Does the skat count for the declarer, even in hand games?
Yes. The two skat cards always belong to the declarer – in a hand game they are only looked at after play. Jacks in the skat also count towards the matadors.
May I follow suit with a jack?
No. If spades are led, the jack of spades is not a spade but a trump.
When are you no longer schneider?
With 31 card points a side is “out of schneider”.
What happens in null when the declarer takes a trick?
The game ends immediately and is lost.
What about mistakes?
Failing to follow suit when you could loses the game for your side. A misdeal or an exposed card: the same dealer deals again.
Can you play Skat with two?
Not under the normal rules – there are separate two-player versions (e.g. Officer's Skat).
10. Variants & house rules
The rules above are tournament rules (International Skat Order). These variants are often agreed beforehand:
| Variant | What changes |
|---|---|
| Kontra & Re | A defender says “kontra” before first leading or playing, the declarer may reply “re”. Each doubles the game value. |
| Ramsch | If everyone passes, each plays for themselves, only jacks are trumps. Whoever takes the most card points scores them as minus. |
| Push Ramsch | Like Ramsch, but each player may pick up the skat and pass two cards on. |
| Bock rounds | After certain events, everything counts double for one round. |
| Tournament scoring (Seeger-Fabian) | +50 for each own game won, −50 for each lost. If the declarer loses, each defender gets 40 (30 at a four-player table). |
| Robbers' Skat / Officer's Skat | Versions for two players. |
When playing against the computer on cardgames.zone you can choose “Tournament rules (ISkO)” and “With Ramsch”.
11. Example round
You can also follow this round in the picture series “A first round”.
Starting position. Player 3 deals. Player 1 is forehand, Player 2 middlehand, Player 3 rearhand. Player 1's 10 cards: jack of clubs, jack of spades, jack of diamonds, ace of clubs, 10 of clubs, king of clubs, 9 of clubs, ace of spades, 10 of hearts, 7 of diamonds. Three jacks and four clubs – that calls for a clubs game.
- Bidding. Player 2 (middlehand) asks Player 1: “18?” – “yes”. “20?” – “yes”. “22?” – “yes”. Player 2 passes. Player 3 (rearhand) would now have to bid 23 or more – he passes too. Player 1 is declarer at 22.
- Skat. Player 1 picks up the skat: queen of clubs and 7 of hearts. The queen of clubs is another trump.
- Discarding. Player 1 puts the 10 of hearts and the 7 of diamonds into the skat. Without the ace of hearts he would probably lose the 10 – in the skat it earns him 10 safe points.
- Announcement and calculation. Player 1 announces clubs. He holds the jacks of clubs and spades, the jack of hearts is missing → “with 2”. Game value: (2 + 1) × 12 = 36 – more than the bid of 22, so no risk of overbidding.
- Trick 1. As forehand Player 1 leads the jack of clubs. Players 2 and 3 must follow with trumps: 8 and 7 of clubs. Trick to Player 1 (2 points).
- Trick 2. Jack of spades from Player 1. Player 2 has to play his jack of hearts, Player 3 has no trumps left and discards the 8 of spades. Trick to Player 1 (6 points). All 3 of the defenders' trumps are gone.
- Trick 3. Player 1 cashes his ace of spades; both follow with spades (9 and 7). 17 points for Player 1.
- The rest. Player 1 plays out his trumps, the defenders can only discard. He loses only the last trick: his 7 of hearts against Player 2's ace of hearts.
- Scoring. Player 1 has 106 card points (10 of them in the skat), Players 2 and 3 have 14. Won, and schneider! Levels: with 2 + game + schneider = 4. Game value 4 × 12 = +48 on Player 1's score.
12. Common mistakes
- Following suit with a jack. In suit games and grand the jack of spades is a trump, not a spade.
- Mixing up bid and game value. Before bidding, calculate: (matadors + 1) × base value.
- Forgetting the skat. It counts for the declarer – for card points and for matadors.
- Thinking 60 points win. 60 : 60 is a loss for the declarer.
- Keeping a bare 10. A 10 without the ace of its suit is easily lost – better discard it.
- Not smearing as a defender. If your partner will surely win the trick, give them aces and tens.
Origin & history
Emerged around 1810–1820 in Altenburg (Thuringia) in the 'Brommesche Tarok-Gesellschaft' from Schafkopf, Tarock and L'Hombre. First Skat congress in 1886, German Skat Association founded in 1899; today the International Skat Rules (ISkO) apply. Added to Germany’s national inventory of intangible cultural heritage in 2016.