Preface

 

 

Human nature is such that there exist in the world a multitude of neglected facts. Discarded, forgotten, or perhaps misunderstood, they gather in little read volumes, undiscovered manuscripts, or shady corners of academics’ minds. Quite often they are overlooked in favour of more prosaic or simply appealing ideas, and so it is with tarot. The facts of their origin and purpose are scattered throughout the world in dusty texts, obscure internet sites and historic sources. All these facts have been neglected in favour of another story – of a repository of ancient occult knowledge, and of divining the mysteries of the future.

 

The truth that all these neglected facts tell us, is that this intriguing pack of cards was created for playing games. To modern eyes, the odd designs seem mysterious, their reference obscured by layers of history and changing cultures. Perhaps it is not too hard to imagine how people have managed to read fantastical ideas into them, though it is hard to forgive those who created the myths. Their writings are riddled with shoddy work, smart rhetoric, sly misrepresentation, and wilful deceit.

 

This short book is aimed squarely at those who enjoy playing cards and are curious to learn about this wonderful family of games, ignored by the English speaking world in favour of the occult tarot. It may surprise you to learn that tarot games have been hugely popular in Europe and are still played across the continent. Many of the card games more familiar to us have tarot as an ancestor – it is tarot cards that gave us trumps in card games and even the word ‘trump’. So far, the only published collections of tarot games in English have been academic in nature – and in price.

 

I have tried to collect most of the games still being played, along with a couple that seem to have died out and present them here in an accessible format and language, so that even a beginner can step straight in and start playing very quickly. In doing so, I have committed what many card players will consider cardinal sins and standardised some of the terminology and methods of play employed in different countries, sometimes picking and choosing from optional rules and variations, making it easier for you to move from one game to another. This will mean that the games, as presented here, will not be 100% as they are played in their native countries. Some may say that these games are not really authentic because of it. However, the changes are not too great and I considered them a small price to achieve this book’s goal, which is to provide an introductory text for English speaking players to learn games with tarot cards. Perhaps the important thing to note is that the changes in no way are ‘dumbing’ down the games, just popularising them.

 

After a brief look at the cards’ history and notoriety, you’ll find a beginners’ guide to card games and terms - if you come across a term in any of the rules that you don’t recognize, you should find it listed and explained here. I have also tried to list the games with respect to their difficulty and type, beginning with games that serve as excellent introductions, as well as being worth-while in their own right. If you are new to tarot games, then I do recommend playing them in the order presented - as you progress through the book, the games can become very complex.

 

For very detailed accounts of card games, along with their native terminology and histories, then I can recommend John McLeod’s web site www.pagat.com which is an amazing resource for card games of all kinds - and has been a source for some of the games presented here. For anyone interested in detailed histories of the games and how they have developed over the centuries, then they should look for Michael Dummett’s ‘The Game of Tarot’ published by Duckworth in 1980. This hard to find text has been of central importance to writing this text and was my own introduction to tarot as a game. As this project took shape I obtained a copy of the two volume work ‘A History of the Games Played with the Tarot Pack’ by Michael Dummett and John McLeod. This is a costly title but includes a larger selection of games, both past and present, and played a large part in the expansion of this text from its original form. You should also visit www.trionfi.com which is a site dedicated to the history of tarot and one you could lose yourself in for many happy hours.

 

The cards used to play these games were once quite difficult to obtain but, thanks to the internet, they are now more widely available. You can find a selection of suppliers listed in the appendix.

 

Whatever your gaming interest, be it in deep strategy, in gambling, or simply in good social entertainment, you will find a game here to fit your needs – you may even turn your back on the humble 52 card pack altogether.