Combine luck, strategy and weddings to reach 66 before your opponent!

66 is played with a 24-card deck, using only the nines through aces.

• For added fun, you can use a German-face deck as pictured above, but an ordinary pack of cards will work just as well.
• The game is played with two players.
• A nearly identical Austrian variant played without the nines (Schnapsen), using only 20 cards.

Setup

• At the start of the game, each player is dealt six cards (five if playing without nines).
• An additional card is uncovered an placed under the deck perpendicularly. This is the trump suit.
• The game begins by the first player putting down a card.

Gameplay

The aim of 66 is to make tricks and weddings to accumulate 66 points before your opponent.

Making tricks

To make a trick, the opponent must play a higher card of the same suit or a trump card.

• You are not required to follow suit or to make a trick
  • You have the option to play a card of the wrong suit or trump.
• The player who makes the trick plays the next card.
• After each trick, each player draws another card (until the deck runs out). Once the deck runs out, you must follow suit and must make the trick if possible.

Scoring of Tricks

Weddings

Weddings consist of a queen and king of the same suit.

• You can make only announe a wedding if it’s your turn to begin the trick, and you have to play one of the two cards after announcing it.

Weddings are worth the following points:

• 40 points for a wedding in trump
• 20 points for each non-trump wedding

If you want to be fancy, you can say “mariage” with a French accent instead of “wedding”

Closing the deck

You can pressure your opponent by closing the deck (on your turn).

• As soon as the deck is closed or runs out, players are required to make a trick or follow suit if possible. If the deck was closed, the closing player must win (by reaching 66)!
• If they don’t, the opponent wins two match points.

Once the deck has been closed, the defending player does not get points for any tricks or weddings they may make from that time until the end of the round.

Stealing the trump

• If you have the lowest trump card, you can exchange or the trump under the deck when it’s your turn.
• This can be very beneficial if that’s a good card (eventually, that card will be drawn othewise).

End of Game

• If you think you have reached 66 points, just say “66” or “enough!” when it’s your turn to end the round. But watch out– if you don’t actually have 66 your opponent will get extra points!
  • Even if both players actually have 66, the first one to call it wins.
• Otherwise the game ends when the deck runs out.

Scoring

• Seven match points wins!