Marjolet

Marjolet (French pronunciation: ​[maʁʒɔlɛ]) is a French 6-card trick-and-draw game for two players using a 32-card piquet pack. It is of the King–Queen type, related to Bezique and Pinochle.

Rules

Point-values of cards
Rank A 10 K Q J 9 8 7
Value 10 –
score meld
100 4 aces
80 4 tens
60 4 kings
40 4 queens
40 K+Q in trumps
20 K+Q in other suit
40 J+Q in trumps
20 trump J + other Q

Each player receives 6 cards in batches of 2 or 3. The next card is turned face-up to determine the trump suit and put crosswise under the stock. If it happens to be a seven, the dealer scores 10 points.[1][2]

Eldest hand leads to the first trick. While the stock contains cards, players can play any card they want. Once the stock is depleted they must follow suit, if possible, and win the trick, if possible. A player who cannot follow suit after the stock is depleted must trump if possible. While the stock lasts, the winner of a trick, followed by the other player, takes a card from the stock before leading to the next trick.[1][2]

Upon winning a trick and before drawing a card, a player may also score 10 points for trading in the seven of trumps for the turn-up card, and may declare one or more melds. Cards used for melding are displayed openly on the table but can still be used as hand cards and can be used for further melds. The only restriction is that one may not meld exactly the same set of cards more than once. Apart from royal marriages, there are also the marjolet marriages involving the marjolet (jack of trumps) and any queen.[1][2]

The player who draws the last card from the stock, which is always the turn-up card or the trump seven, scores 10 points. At that point melding is over. Both players take up their melded cards and hold them normally. The winner of the last trick scores 10 points. There is an additional bonus of 40 points for scoring the last 6 tricks.[1][2]

To the various bonus points accrued so far, the card-points in tricks won are added. The objective is to score 500 points over several games.[1][2]

Variations

History and etymology

The term Marjolet is one of contempt, popularly said of a little young man who makes of himself a gentleman, or one who makes of himself an expert on anything.[4]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 Parlett, David (2008), The Penguin Book of Card Games (3rd ed.), Penguin Books, ISBN 978-0-14-103787-5.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 Parlett, David (2004), The A–Z of card games (2nd ed.), Oxford University Press, ISBN 978-0-19-860870-7.
  3. ↑
  4. ↑ Académie française Le dictionnaire de l'Académie françoise, sixieme édicion tomo II, pg 170 - Paris (1835)
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