Welcome to Mattazza!
In Mattazza, it’s all about strategy and avoiding elimination. The goal of this trick-taking game is to score points without getting the highest or lowest amount.
Just like other trick-taking games, Mattazza has its own set of rules. However, there’s a twist – you’ll be penalized for taking certain cards and winning the last trick. If your penalties add up to a certain amount, you’ll be out of the game. The last two players standing will be the winners!
Getting Started
First things first, let’s determine the dealer. The first dealer is chosen randomly, and then it rotates to the right at the beginning of each new round.
If you’re playing with a modified 52-card deck, you’ll need to remove the 8s, 9s, and 10s. This leaves you with a deck consisting of aces, kings, queens, jacks, 7s, 6s, 5s, 4s, 3s, and 2s. A total of 40 cards.
Once the cards are ready, the dealer will shuffle them and give each player a hand in a counterclockwise direction. Each player will have a hand of 10 cards, and when everyone has their hand, the game can start.
Now, let’s talk about the rankings and values of the cards in the game. The highest-ranking card is the 3, followed by the 2, Ace, King, Queen, Jack, 7, 6, 5, and finally the 4, which is the lowest. In this game, there are no special trump cards to worry about.
Some cards in the deck come with penalty points. Aces are worth 3 penalty points, and the 3s, 2s, Kings, Queens, and Jacks are all worth 1 penalty point each.
In total, there are 35 penalty points in the round, and the last trick in the game is worth an additional 3 points.
Now that you know the basic rules, you’re ready to start playing Mattazza. Good luck!
The gameplay in Mattazza is really simple. It’s just about leading and following tricks. The game starts with the player to the right of the dealer and goes clockwise.
The first player leads the trick, and everyone else has to follow suit if they can. If they can’t, they can play any card they want.
The player who plays the highest card of the same suit as the lead wins the trick and gets to lead the next one.
SCORING
Once all the tricks have been played, players add up the penalty scores from the cards they won. The goal is to score at least one trick without getting the most points. If you score more or less than the other players, you earn game points.
If you don’t win any tricks, you get one game point. The players who did win tricks don’t earn anything.
If everyone has at least one trick, the player or players with the highest score each earn a game point.
Once a player reaches 5 game points, they are out of the game.
GAME OVER
The game ends when only two players are left standing. These remaining players are declared the winners.
I’m Amber (They/Them), a writer and gaming enthusiast from Austin. I consider myself a gaming prodigy and have a deep affection for dogs, plants, and D&D.
I’m Amber (They/Them), a writer and gaming enthusiast from Austin. I consider myself a gaming prodigy and have a deep affection for dogs, plants, and D&D.