How to Play

Bohemian Schneider is a two-player trick-taking game with a 32-card deck and a 20-card talon. Each player holds 6 cards, draws after each trick, and must beat the led suit with a higher card of that suit to win; honours (A, K, Q, J, 10) score, with Schneider and Schwarz bonuses for lopsided wins.

Bohemian Schneider (Czech: Česká schnajdr) is a quick two-player trick-taking game from Bohemia, played with a 32-card German-suited Skat pack or an equivalent stripped French deck. Each player is dealt only 6 cards in two packets of three; the rest of the pack becomes a face-down talon (stock) from which players refill after each trick. There is no trump suit, and surprisingly for a trick-taker, no requirement to follow suit: the non-dealer leads any card and the dealer may play any card in response, winning only by playing a higher card of the same suit as the led card. Only the five high 'honour' ranks count (Ace/Deutsche-Daus, King, Queen/Ober, Jack/Unter, and Ten), giving each suit 5 honours and the whole deck exactly 20 honours. Whoever captures the most honours at the end of the deal wins the hand, with escalating Schneider and Schwarz bonuses for lopsided wins.

Players

Exactly 2 players, face to face. The first dealer is chosen by any agreed method (cutting for lowest card is traditional); deal rotates each hand.

Card Deck

A 32-card German-suited Bohemian/Skat pack (suits Acorns/Eicheln, Leaves/Grün, Hearts/Herz, Bells/Schellen; courts are Deutsche-Daus, King, Ober, Unter with 10-9-8-7 as pips) or equivalently a French 32-card deck (Ace, King, Queen, Jack, 10, 9, 8, 7 in each of ♣♦♥♠). Ranking within each suit high to low: Ace (Daus), King, Queen (Ober), Jack (Unter), 10, 9, 8, 7. There is no trump suit.

Objective

Capture more honour cards (Aces, Kings, Queens, Jacks, Tens) than your opponent over the course of the deal. There are 20 honours in total; 11+ wins the simple hand, 16+ wins a Schneider (double), and all 20 wins a Schwarz (triple).

Setup and Deal

1. Shuffle the 32-card deck thoroughly. The non-dealer may cut.
2. Deal 3 cards to the non-dealer, then 3 to the dealer, face down; then another 3 to each so both players hold 6 cards.
3. Place the remaining 20 cards face-down as the talon (stock) between the two players.
4. The non-dealer leads to the first trick.

Gameplay

1. On each trick the non-leader in turn leads any card face up. There is no obligation to lead a particular suit.
2. The opponent plays any card in response. There is no requirement to follow suit.
3. Winning the trick: The trick is won only by playing a higher card of the same suit as the led card. If the responder cannot or does not beat the lead on suit, the leader wins the trick regardless of what else is played (because no trump exists to overtake an off-suit).
4. The winner of a trick places it face-down in their own personal pile; captured honours will count at the end of the deal.
5. Refill from talon: The trick winner draws the top card of the talon first, then the loser draws the next card. Both players are back to 6 cards. Play continues.
6. Play repeats until the talon is empty and both players have played out their final six-card hands (the last 6 tricks are played with no more drawing).
7. Winner of each trick leads the next trick.

Scoring

1. Each player counts honours captured across all tricks: Ace, King, Queen (Ober), Jack (Unter), 10. There are 4 of each = 20 honours total (all 7, 8, and 9 cards are worthless and do not score).A♠K♠Q♠J♠
2. Simple hand (11 to 15 honours) = 1 game point to the winner.
3. Schneider (16 to 19 honours) = 2 game points to the winner (opponent is 'schneidered').
4. Schwarz (all 20 honours) = 3 game points to the winner (opponent is 'schwarz', took zero honours).
5. A tied 10-10 split is a draw; no game point is scored and the deal is replayed by the same dealer.

Winning

• Hand winner: Whoever holds 11 or more honours at the end of the deal.
• Match winner: A session is usually played to an agreed number of game points (commonly 7 or 10). The first to reach the target wins the match.
• Tied hand: A 10-10 split is redealt; no game point is awarded.
• Misdeal: A misdealt hand (wrong number of cards, or an exposed card) is void and redealt by the same dealer.

Common Variations

• 24-card variant: Remove the 7s and 8s to create a 24-card deck (16 honours total). Thresholds become 9+ for a simple win, 13+ for Schneider, 16 for Schwarz; games are very quick.
• French-suited Schneider: Substitute a French 32-card deck; the rules are identical and honours are A/K/Q/J/10.
• Follow-suit variant: Some Bohemian tables require the responder to follow suit if able; this makes the game noticeably tighter and closer to early Ombre.
• Trump variant: Turn up the 21st talon card and use its suit as trump; any trump played wins over any off-suit. This makes the game closer to Sixty-Six.
• Cumulative-honours scoring: Instead of thresholds, score the actual honour differential (e.g., 14 vs 6 = 8 points); games run to 50 points.

Tips and Strategy

• Lead low unbeatable cards when you have them. An 8 of ♦ led into a position where you know the ♦ Ace is already captured is a free trick-win.
• Because there is no must-follow rule, the opponent can always throw an off-suit loser to avoid giving you an honour; so leading non-honours when you cannot guarantee an honour capture is often a waste.
• Count the talon. After each drawn card, the stock shrinks; watch what each player has refilled and you can rebuild their likely remaining hand.
• Save a high card (Ace or King) to lead in the final six tricks once the talon is empty. Without the ability to dump unwanted cards for fresh ones, those last tricks decide schneider and schwarz.
• Be cautious about leading Aces early. If you lead an Ace of a suit and the opponent is void in that suit, they simply discard a non-honour 9 or 8, you win the Ace back, but you have no better trick to play next. Leading the King or Queen first can flush their Ace out in response.
• With no trumps, there is no 'ruff'; the only way to force your opponent into a losing position is to predict their hand and lead into suits they have exhausted.

Glossary

• Talon: The face-down stock of 20 cards between the two players; trick winner draws from it first.
• Honour: Any of the five scoring ranks: Ace/Daus, King, Queen/Ober, Jack/Unter, 10. Non-honours (7, 8, 9) are worthless.A♠K♠Q♠J♠
• Deutsche-Daus: The Bohemian deck's 'Two' card that serves as an Ace equivalent; also called Sau in Bavarian.A♠2♠
• Ober / Unter: German-suited Bohemian court cards equivalent to Queen and Jack in a French deck.Q♠J♠
• Schneider: A heavy loss for the opponent (they took only 0-4 honours). 2 game points.
• Schwarz: A shutout. Opponent took no honours at all. 3 game points.
• Follow-suit (absent): In this game, you are not required to follow the suit led; this is the game's signature mechanic.
• Trump (absent): No suit outranks another in standard Bohemian Schneider.