How to play Briscola: rules of the Italian card game
Rules in short: each player gets three cards, and the next card is turned up: its suit is the briscola, the trump suit. One player leads a card and the other plays any card: there is no need to follow suit. The higher card of the suit led wins the trick, unless a trump is played. The winner draws from the stock first and leads next. Aces count 11, threes 10, kings 4, knights 3 and jacks 2; everything else is worth nothing. There are 120 points in the pack, and 61 wins.
The deck The deal Playing a trick Drawing Scoring Example Variations Strategy FAQ
Quick answers
- Players
- Two (also three, four or more in other versions); Snug Table plays the two-player game.
- Cards
- 40: ace to 7, jack, knight and king in coins, cups, swords and clubs.
- Ranking
- Ace, three, king, knight, jack, 7, 6, 5, 4, 2.
- Points
- Ace 11, three 10, king 4, knight 3, jack 2: 120 in all.
- Follow suit?
- No. You may always play any card.
- Goal
- 61 points or more in a game; 60–60 is a draw. Matches are usually best of three or five.
The deck
Briscola uses the 40-card Italian deck. The four suits are denari (coins), coppe (cups), spade (swords) and bastoni (clubs or batons). Each suit has an ace, the numbers 2 to 7, and three court cards: the fante (jack), the cavallo (knight) and the re (king). You can also play with a standard pack with the eights, nines and tens taken out. Snug Table draws its own Italian cards, and you can switch to standard cards in Settings: coins become diamonds, cups hearts, swords spades and clubs clubs, and the knight shows as a queen.
Note the unusual order: the three is the second-highest card, just below the ace, and above the king.
The deal
The dealer gives three cards to each player, then turns up the next card and lays it face up beside the face-down stock (Snug Table tucks it under the stock, half showing). Its suit is the briscola for the whole game. The turned-up card itself stays there until the very end of the stock. The dealer’s opponent leads to the first trick. On Snug Table the deal passes to the other player after each game.
Playing a trick
The leader plays any card face up. The other player answers with any card from their hand. There is no obligation to follow suit or to trump. Then:
- If both cards are the same suit, the higher one wins.
- If the suits differ and one is a trump, the trump wins.
- If the suits differ and neither is a trump, the card that was led wins, however high the other one is.
The winner takes both cards face down and leads to the next trick.
Drawing
After each trick, while there are cards in the stock, the winner draws first, then the other player, so both have three cards again. When only one face-down card is left, the winner of that trick takes it and the loser takes the face-up trump. Everyone has seen which player took it. After that there is no more drawing, and the last three tricks are played out with the cards in hand.
Scoring
| Card | Points |
|---|---|
| Ace (asso) | 11 |
| Three (tre) | 10 |
| King (re) | 4 |
| Knight (cavallo) | 3 |
| Jack (fante) | 2 |
| 7, 6, 5, 4, 2 | 0 |
When all 40 cards have been played, each player adds up the cards in the tricks they won. The pack holds 120 points, so 61 or more wins the game. At 60 each, the game is a draw. Briscola is usually played as a match: best of three or best of five games. On Snug Table you can play a single game or either match; a drawn game counts for nobody.
The aces and threes are called carichi (“loaded” cards): together they are worth 84 of the 120 points. Cards worth nothing are lisci (“smooth”).
Example
Trumps are swords. Your opponent leads the three of cups, worth 10. You hold the ace of cups, the two of swords and the four of clubs.
The ace of cups wins (same suit, higher) and brings its own 11 points too: 21 points in one trick. The two of swords also wins, because it is a trump, but adds nothing. The four of clubs loses: a different suit and not a trump, so the three of cups stays on top.
Here the ace is the best answer: your opponent has already played, so nothing can take it from you. If your opponent had led the ace of cups instead, you could only win it with the trump.
Variations
- Turned-up ace or three: some players put an ace or three that shows as the trump card back into the deck and turn another card.
- 120 points: some play two deals, one dealt by each player, and add the points up.
- Briscola a 31: a quick game to 31 points, where a player claims to have reached 31 and wins if right, or loses if wrong.
- Briscola scoperta: everything is played face up, including the hands and the top card of the stock.
- Briscolone: five cards each and no trump suit, often with following suit required.
- Three, four or more players: with three, one card is taken out to leave 39; with four, two partnerships; Briscola chiamata is the five-player game where the bidder calls a card to find a secret partner. Not on Snug Table yet.
Strategy
- Lead lisci. A card worth nothing is the safest lead: if your opponent wins it, they get nothing. Leading an ace or a three invites a trump.
- Take the carichi. When your opponent leads an ace or a three, take it if you can: with a higher card of the same suit, or with a trump.
- Don’t waste trumps. A trump spent on a trick with no points is a trump you won’t have when the ace comes.
- Answer cheaply. When you can’t win the trick, throw a liscio, not a king or a knight.
- Strike second. When you play second, your opponent has already shown their card. That is the moment to add points of your own to a trick you are sure to win.
- Count. With only ten trumps and eight carichi in the pack, it pays to remember what has gone. When the stock is empty, every unseen card is in your opponent’s hand.
Briscola FAQ
Do I have to follow suit in Briscola?
No. In standard two-player Briscola you may always play any card. That is what makes it quick and tricky.
Why is the three higher than the king?
That is the traditional ranking of the game: ace, three, king, knight, jack, then 7 down to 2. The three is also worth 10 points.
Who gets the face-up trump card?
The player who loses the trick that empties the stock. The winner draws the last face-down card first.
What does “briscola” mean?
It is the name of the trump suit, and of the turned-up card that shows it. The game is named after it.
What happens at 60–60?
The game is a draw. On Snug Table a drawn game counts for nobody in a match.
Does the computer see my cards?
No. It decides only from what a player in its seat would know: its own hand, the face-up trump and every card played so far. When the stock is empty, every unseen card must be in your hand, which any careful player can work out too. Each deal is sealed before it starts, and you can verify the shuffle when the game ends.