Welcome to the World of Parcellus!

Hey there! I’m here to introduce you to an amazing card game called Parcellus. Created by Matthew Shields in 2008, this game is all about strategy and making smart decisions. The goal is to win as many cards and tricks as possible, so let’s dive in and learn how to play!

The Cards and the Deal

In Parcellus, we use a special deck called a 24-card Euchre deck. It includes cards ranging from 9 (low) to Ace (high). At the beginning of the game, each player is dealt 6 cards, and there’s also a separate dummy hand with 6 cards.

Oh, and don’t forget, the deal passes to the left after each round. Keep that in mind!

The Play

The Pass

Alright, here’s where the fun begins! Before we start playing, each player gets to take a look at their cards and choose three of them to pass to the player on their left. These cards are passed face down, so it’s a bit of a mystery what you’ll be getting in return. But hey, that’s part of the excitement!

Oh, one more thing: the direction of the pass alternates with each round. So make sure you keep track of that as well!

Begin Play

Alright, here’s the deal. I’m going to turn over the top card of the dummy hand, and that’s going to kickstart the trick. Now, it’s your turn. If you have a card that’s higher in rank and of the same color as the card that’s been turned up, play it! For example, if the card is a 10 of Hearts, you can play a Jack of Hearts or Diamonds on top of it. But hey, if you don’t have a card that fits the bill or you just don’t want to play it, you can pass.

The play continues with the next player to the left, and the trick keeps on building up. But here’s the twist: once the trick reaches an Ace, you can play a same colored 9 on top of it.

Now, when you pass, don’t worry, you can still jump back into the trick later on with a card. But here’s the catch: when all three of us have passed, that signals the end of the trick. And guess what? The person who played the very last card on the trick gets to win it! They get to turn up the next card from the dummy hand, and then it’s the player to their left who gets their turn.

Hey, let’s make sure we keep track of the tricks to know who’s winning by the end of the round.

Once you run out of cards, you’re finished for this round.

Ending the Round

When everyone is out of cards, that means the round is done. Now it’s time to count up the score.

Scoring

You get one point for each card you grab. But, guess what? The Jack of Hearts is extra special. It’s worth three points all by itself. And if you’re the one who snags the most tricks, you get an awesome bonus of six points. If there’s a tie for most tricks, don’t worry. The six points will be divided equally.

Winning

The game ends once a player reaches 30 points. So, the first player to hit that magic number is crowned the winner.

The game ends once a player reaches 30 points. So, the first player to hit that magic number is crowned the winner.