Briscola rules
Briscola is one of the most played card games in Italy: it is played with Neapolitan cards, one against one or four players in pairs, and whoever takes the most points wins. Here are the rules as played on FantaCarte.
At a glance
| Cards | 40 Neapolitan cards |
| Players | 2, or 4 in pairs |
| Cards in hand | 3, you draw after every trick |
| Must follow suit | no |
| Total points | 120 |
| To win the round | at least 61 points |
| To win the game | 2 rounds |
The cards and the briscola
Briscola is played with a deck of 40 Neapolitan cards in four suits: coins, cups, swords and clubs. Each player gets 3 cards, dealt one at a time. Then a card is turned face up: its suit is the briscola, the trump suit and the strongest suit of the round. The turned card stays face up under the deck and is the last one drawn.
The trick: who wins it
The leader plays any card; the others answer, one at a time, with any card. You do not have to follow suit.
- If at least one trump was played, the highest trump wins.
- If there are no trumps, the highest card of the suit led wins.
- A card of another suit that is not a trump never wins.
Whoever wins the trick sets the cards aside, draws first from the deck and leads the next trick. When the deck is used up the last 3 cards are played without drawing.
Card order
In every suit, from strongest to weakest: ace, 3, king, knight, jack, 7, 6, 5, 4, 2. The three beats the king even though its number is lower.
Card points
| Card | Points |
|---|---|
| Ace | 11 |
| Three | 10 |
| King | 4 |
| Knight | 3 |
| Jack | 2 |
| 7, 6, 5, 4, 2 | 0 |
The whole deck is worth 120 points. Aces and threes are called carichi (high cards): they are the cards not to let your opponent take. Cards with no points are called lisce.
Who wins
When the cards run out, everyone counts the points of the cards they captured. Whoever has at least 61 points wins the round; 60 to 60 is a draw and counts for nobody. On FantaCarte the game goes to the first to win 2 rounds.
Briscola in pairs
With four players you play in pairs: your partner sits opposite you and turns go clockwise. The rules are the same; the points of the cards captured by the two partners are added up, and the pair with at least 61 points wins the round.
Never played?
Read how to play Briscola, the simple guide for beginners, and try the guided game on FantaCarte: it shows you the first tricks one at a time. Then there are the scoring, the tips, Briscola in pairs and the glossary.