Each player is dealt 3×4, i.e. 12 cards. The owners of the two queens of clubs, which is the highest trump card, play together as partners, although they only find each other during the course of the game. To find the partner, one of the two plays their next highest trump card, which the other takes with their queen of clubs.
If the playing player does not have a queen of clubs, it is best to play an ace. If he has neither, he plays a "long suit" of which he has several cards and hopes that his partner can take the trick.
If a player has both queens of clubs, he can choose his partner. He indicates this by saying before the first round: "I'll take the first foreign trick". This means that his partner is the first player whose card he overtricks. Alternatively, he can also decide to play a silent solo game.
The total value of all cards is 240 points. One party therefore needs more than 120 points to win. If a player believes that he can score at least 121 points on his own, he can play without a partner (solo game). To do this, he should have the highest possible trump cards and both queens of clubs. The solo player can announce in advance that he is playing alone and then choose the suit that is advantageous to him as the trump suit. The trump cards are now all cards of the chosen suit, as well as queens and jacks.
If the solo player opts for a silent solo, the other players will only realise after a few tricks that he is playing without a partner. To do this, he should hold both queens of clubs and keep them for as long as possible. If he only has one of them, he must announce his solo play as soon as the other queen of clubs is played.
Tips: A "blank ace" is an ace of a colour of which you have no other cards. This should be played as quickly as possible to beat the holder of the other ace. If the other player plays first, you must play your high-value card.
If you realise that your partner has a lot of trump cards, you should play as many trump cards as possible to deprive your opponent of trump cards.
