Welcome to 6-Player Napoleon!

I’m really excited to tell you about this awesome card game that can be played by 6 people. Let’s dive right in!

The main objective of the game is to be the first player to score enough points to win. But before we get into the details, we should determine what score will end the game. It’s up to you and your friends to decide!

Let’s Get Started

To begin, we need to choose a dealer. You can use any method you like to decide who this lucky person will be. Once the dealer is chosen, they will shuffle the deck of cards and deal each player 8 cards, going in a clockwise direction. The remaining 4 cards will be placed face down in the center of the table. These 4 cards are known as the “blind.” Every time a new deal starts, the dealer position moves to the left.

Card Ranking and Scoring

Now, let’s talk about the ranking of the cards and how they score. The order of ranking is as follows: Ace (the highest), King, Queen, Jack, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, and 2 (the lowest).

The suits also have their own rankings. Spades are the highest, followed by Hearts, Diamonds, and Clubs. Remember, these rankings will come into play during bidding, which I’ll explain in just a moment.

Let’s talk about some special cards in this game. There are a few cards that can beat the trump cards, but still belong to their own suit. The ace of spades is the highest card and beats all the others. The second-highest card is the Jack of the trump suit, and the third highest is the jack of the same color as the trump suit.

Now, I’ll give you an example. Let’s say that hearts are the trump suit. In that case, the ranking for hearts is Jack, Ace, King, Queen, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, and 2. Diamonds also follow the same ranking. The other two suits have their own ranking.

Now, let’s talk about scoring. Some cards are used for scoring, and players want to win these cards in tricks. These scoring cards include the Aces, Kings, Queens, Jacks, and 10s of each suit.

BIDDING

When it’s time to play, we all get a chance to join in. Starting with the player to the left of the dealer, we take turns bidding. The goal is to bid higher than the person before you, or if you don’t want to bid, you can pass. Once you pass, you’re out of the bidding for that round.

A bid is a number between 11 and 20, along with a suit. The lowest bid is 11 clubs, and the highest is 20 spades. To bid higher, you can either increase the number or pick a higher-ranking suit. The number represents how many scoring cards you think you can win, and the suit becomes the trump suit.

If no one bids and everyone passes, we start over and the dealer reshuffles and deals the cards again.

Once five players in a row have passed, the one player who didn’t pass becomes the Napoleon. Now it’s their turn to choose a partner.

Hey there! So here’s the deal: in the game of Napoleon, the players have a secret partner. The catch is, nobody knows who that partner is until the game starts. It’s like a secret alliance waiting to be revealed!

Once the Napoleon has figured out who their partner is, they get to take control. They can take a peek at the blind (that’s a set of cards face down on the table) and choose any four cards to get rid of. If those cards happen to be worth points, the opposing team gets those points. But if they’re not worth anything, the Napoleon can just toss them aside.

But here’s where it gets interesting: the Napoleon has the option to play by themselves if they want to. They can do this by either using a card they already have or by finding their card in the blind. Imagine going solo in the game and taking all the glory!

THE GAME IN ACTION

When we play a game of Napoleon, the first trick is a little different from the rest. In this trick, we ignore all trumps and special ranked cards, using only the traditional ranking system. If you can, you must follow suit, but if you can’t, you can play any card you want. The winner of the first trick is the person who plays the highest card of the suit that was led. They get to collect all the score cards and then lead the next trick.

For the rest of the tricks, we start playing with trumps and special ranked cards. But we also have an extra rule called the rule of twos. This rule says that if all the cards played to a trick have the same rank, the 2 of that suit becomes the 4th highest ranked card. Even with this rule, the other players still have to follow suit if they can, but if they can’t, they can play any card they want.

When it comes to winning a trick in a card game, there are certain rules that determine who takes the prize. First, the ace of spades is the most powerful card, followed by the jack of the trump suit. If there are no trump cards, then the highest-ranking card of the suit led takes the trick. Once a player wins a trick, they collect the cards and discard any extras. They also have the honor of leading the next trick.

SCORING

Once the round is over, it’s time to tally up the scores. The way scoring works can vary, but here are a few common options. If Napoleon’s team is victorious, Napoleon scores 3 points (or 2 in some versions), while their teammate scores 1 point (or 2). On the other hand, if Napoleon’s team is defeated, Napoleon loses 3 points (or 2) and their teammate loses 1 point (or 2). The other players each score 1 point.

END OF GAME

The game continues until a player reaches a predetermined score. That player is crowned the winner!