🎯 Overview
Tanni is a 4-player trick-taking card game played in fixed teams of two. Partners sit across from each other at the table. The goal is to win tricks containing valuable cards and accumulate match points across multiple rounds.
Teams: Player 1 & Player 3 (Team A) vs. Player 2 & Player 4 (Team B). Partners sit opposite each other.
🃏 The Deck (30 Cards)
Tanni uses a custom 30-card deck with 4 suits (♠ ♥ ♦ ♣):
| Card | Points | Strength |
|---|
| Jack (J) | 3 | ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ (Highest) |
| Nine (9) | 2 | ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ |
| Ace (A) | 1 | ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ |
| Ten (10) | 1 | ⭐⭐⭐⭐ |
| King (K) | 0.25 | ⭐⭐⭐ |
| Queen (Q) | 0.25 | ⭐⭐ |
| Eight (8) | 0 | ⭐ |
| Seven (7) × 2 random suits | 0 | — (Lowest) |
| Total | 30 points | |
Key Insight: The Jack is BOTH the highest-strength card AND the most valuable (3 points). Holding Jacks is a huge advantage!
🔄 Round Flow
Each round follows this sequence:
- First Deal: 4 cards to each player (16 of 30 cards dealt)
- Bidding Phase: Players bid or pass (see Bidding below)
- Second Deal: 3 more cards to each player + 2 kitty cards to bid winner's team
- Trump Selection: Bid winner picks 1 card as hidden trump (removed from hand)
- Trick Play: 7 tricks played (bid winner leads first)
- Scoring: Compare bid team's points against their bid
💰 Bidding
Bidding determines who controls the round — the bid winner chooses trump and leads first.
- Range: Minimum 15, maximum 30 (increments of 0.5 or 1)
- Start: Player to dealer's left bids first
- Rule: The player to dealer's left can NEVER pass — they must always bid
- Winning: Bidding continues until all other players pass. Last bidder wins.
- Maximum: If anyone bids 30, bidding ends immediately — they win the bid
Strategy Tip: Bid aggressively when you hold multiple Jacks or strong suits. A low bid (15-16) is safe but earns fewer match points on success.
⚡ Tanni (Special Bid)
Tanni is the game's signature move — an instant maximum bid with extreme stakes:
- Tanni = instant bid of 30 (skips all other bidding)
- No second deal — play with just 4 cards (4 tricks total)
- No trump — no hidden card, no trump suit at all
- Tricks decided purely by card strength within the led suit
- Match points are DOUBLED (30 × 2 = 60 points at stake)
Warning: Tanni is extremely risky. With only 4 cards and no trump safety net, one bad hand by your partner can cost you 60 match points.
🎭 Hidden Trump
Trump is Tanni's most unique mechanic — it stays hidden until someone forces it open.
Selection
- After the second deal, the bid winner selects ONE card from their hand
- This card is removed from their hand and placed face-down (hidden from all)
- The suit of this card becomes the trump suit
Opening Trump
- Trump "opens" when any player cannot follow the lead suit
- When opened: the hidden trump card returns to the bid winner's hand
- If it's the bid winner's turn when trump opens, they must play the trump card
- Once open, trump suit beats all non-trump cards (highest trump wins)
If Trump Never Opens
- The hidden trump card's point value is awarded to the bid team at round end
- This is a safe strategy — the bid winner "banks" those points
👑 King-Queen Pair Declarations
Holding both a King and Queen of the same suit is a K-Q pair. Declaring it adjusts the bid target:
| Who Declares | Pair Type | Effect on Bid |
|---|
| Bid Team | Non-trump K-Q | Bid −2 |
| Bid Team | Trump-suit K-Q | Bid −4 |
| Opponent Team | Non-trump K-Q | Bid +2 |
| Opponent Team | Trump-suit K-Q | Bid +4 |
When to declare: A team can declare K-Q pairs only after winning their first trick in the round.
🂠 Trick Play
- The bid winner leads the first trick
- Players must follow suit if they can
- If you cannot follow suit, you may play any card (this opens trump if not already open)
- The trick is won by the highest trump card played, or if no trump, the highest card of the led suit
- The trick winner leads the next trick
- 7 tricks total in a normal round (4 in a Tanni round)
📊 Scoring
Trick Points (within a round)
- Each trick's card points go to the team that won it
- Kitty card points → bid team (always)
- Unplayed trump card points → bid team (if trump never opened)
- Total trick points always = 30
Match Points (across rounds)
- After K-Q adjustments, compare bid team's trick points to adjusted bid
- If bid team meets or exceeds bid: Bid team earns match points = bid amount
- If bid team falls short: Opponent team earns match points = bid amount
- Tanni rounds: Match points are doubled (bid × 2)
Example: You bid 18. Your team collects 19 trick points. After K-Q adjustments (opponent declared one pair, bid becomes 20), you fall short — opponents get 20 match points!
🧠 Strategy Tips
Bidding
- Count your Jacks — each is worth 3 points AND wins tricks
- Long suits are valuable — you control what others must follow
- Don't overbid on the first 4 cards — the second deal changes everything
Trump Selection
- Pick a trump from your longest suit
- A high-point card as trump "banks" those points safely
- If you have J of a suit, making that suit trump is devastating
Trick Play
- Lead with your strongest suit to pull opponents' cards
- Watch what your partner plays — they're communicating
- Save your Jacks for tricks with high-point cards
🏆 Winning the Game
The game continues across multiple rounds. The first team to reach the target match point score wins the game. Default target is typically set by the game (e.g., 100 or 200 match points).