StarGames

How to play

A player can join a game opened by another player or start their own game and wait for other players to come and participate. If you wish to join a game, click on the “Play” button in that player’s box. If you wish to open a game of your own, click on the button “New Game”. A small window will appear in which you can set both the desired skill level of your opponents and your stakes. Moreover, you can decide what players you want to allow to participate (anyone, friends or only players you invite) and whether players make their calls openly or in secret. You will see your ‘table’ appear as a small box next to the other players’ boxes. Now all you have to do is wait for another player to come to your table and join your game by clicking “Play”.

Rules

Jass is played with 36 cards in 4 suits. Each card in the suit has a different value. In the following rules, the terms for the Swiss deck are used. If another deck is used, the following terms apply:

	Swiss	German	French
Suits	Acorns	Acorns	Clubs
	Flowers	Leaves	Spades
	Shields	Hearts	Hearts
	Bells	Bells	Diamonds
Value	6 - 10	6 - 10	6 - 10
	Under	Under	Jack
	Ober	Ober	Queen
	King	King	King
	Ace	Ace	Ace

Order of play

The first player lays a card. The other players then take it in turns to lay a card and make tricks (the order of play is anti-clockwise). The player who takes the trick lays the next card for the round to continue. The suits of the cards play a role in what cards may be laid and in what order. If you hold a card of a suit that matches the suit of the card on the table, you must lay it. Should you have no matching suit, any card may be laid. However, a trump can be laid at any time to win a trick. A card from the trump suit must be followed by another trump if possible, with the exception of the trump Under. Should you have no trumps other than the trump Under, you can play any card.

Rules for Differenzler

Four players play without teams over four rounds. At the beginning of every round, each player receives 9 cards. The last card of the dealer is laid face up and this determines the trump suit. The players must then predict how many points they will win in tricks over the round.
The estimate may be either open (known to all) or secret depending on what mode of the game was chosen at the start. Following the round, the difference between the estimated and actual points for each player is calculated. The difference in points is counted as ‘negative points’. The player with the lowest negative point total after 4 rounds wins. Should it be level, an extra round is played.

Rules for Schieber

Four players play in two teams, whereby the players sitting opposite each other form the teams. Once the cards have been dealt, the player after the dealer (the ‘first hand’) may choose the trump suit. Alternatively, the player may pass on this choice to his/her team partner (Schieben). Before the player plays his/her first card, each player may announce "Weis". The highest Weis is rewarded with extra points.

Weis: The following card combinations can be announced:

• 3 same-suit and consecutive cards: 20 points
• 4 same-suit and consecutive cards: 50 points
• 5 same-suit and consecutive cards: 100 points
• 4 10s, 4 Obers, 4 Kings, 4 Aces: 100 points
• 4 9s: 150 points
• 4 Unders: 200 points

If more than one same-value sequence is announced (4 like cards are always higher than sequences), the sequence containing the highest card wins. Should the highest card be the same, the trump suit decides. If this fails to result in a winner, the player who will next be the ‘first hand’ wins.

The cards for the highest Weis are shown after the first trick.

Stöck: If you hold the Ober and King of the trump suit at the beginning of the round, you receive 20 bonus points once the round is over.

Trick: After the round, the points in the tricks are totalled up and awarded to the corresponding teams. Should one team have no tricks (not only 0 points), the other team receives 100 extra points.

Obenabe/Unenufe:
Instead of selecting a suit as trump, the first hand can call Obenabe or Unenufe. In these games there are no trumps. Additionally in Unenufe games the trick strength of the cards is reversed, meaning that the 6 is the highest card in each suit. As a result, a player may lay four 6s instead of Aces. As there are no trump cards, the points for trump Under and trump 9 are missing. To balance this out, 8s are valued as eight points (meaning the total is 157).

Expensive rounds:

• In rounds where Shields or Bells is the trump suit, all points (Weis, Stöck, Trick) are doubled.
• For Obenabe the points are tripled
• For Unenufe the points are quadrupled

End of the game

The game lasts as long as it takes for one of the teams to reach the set point total. This can occur during a round, whereby the team that has just taken the trick can end the game (announcing “Enough, thanks”). The tricks of this team are then counted and, if the total really has been reached, the game is won. If, however, the total hasn't been reached, the game is immediately lost.

If a round ends without either team calling “Enough, thanks”, the points of the team that took the last trick are always counted first.

Stöck-Weis-Trick:
A special rule is required when both teams reach the total needed with the first trick. First of all, any Stöcks are counted. If this brings a team above the point total, this team wins. If not, the Weis cards are counted, then the points from the first trick.

Undertrumping:
In contrast to Differenzler, a very strict undertrumping rule applies. When a non-trump suit card is played and is then beaten by a trump, no player may then add a lower value trump. The only exception is when the following player(s) has/have only trumps - a trump is then allowed.

Point

The value of the cards is as follows:

Card	Value
10	10
Under	2
Ober	3
King	4
Ace	11

The trick strength of the cards ascends as follows: 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, Under, Ober, King, Ace.

A suit is normally chosen as the trump suit (depending on the variant of the game – see above). Within the trump suit, the Under is the highest and is worth 20 points. The 9 is the next highest – worth 14 points. The remaining trumps (from Ace down) keep the same order and value.

The last trick of a round is worth an extra 5 points. This results in a total of 157 points (3 x 10+2+3+4+11, 10+3+4+11+14+20, 5).