Polignac (card game)

Polignac
A trick-taking avoidance game.
The Polignac
OriginFrench
Alternative namesFour Jacks
FamilyTrick-taking
Players3–6
Cards32
DeckFrench
PlayClockwise
Playing time20 min.
ChanceEasy
Related games
Hearts
Aim: avoid capturing Jacks, especially the J (Polignac)

Polignac (a.k.a. Jeux des Valets) is a French 18th century trick-taking card game ancestral to Hearts and Black Maria.[1] It is played by 3-6 players with a 32-card deck. It is sometimes played as a party game with the 52-card pack; however, it is better as a serious game for four, playing all against all. Other names for this game include Quatre Valets and Stay Away.[2] Knaves is a variant and it is also similar to the Austrian and German games, Slobberhannes, Eichelobern and Grasobern.[3]

  1. ^ Oxford Dictionary of Card Games, David Parlett, p. 218 - Oxford University Press ISBN 0-19-869173-4
  2. ^ The New complete Hoyle: the authoritative guide to the official rules of all, p. 288, Albert Hodges Morehead, Edmond Hoyle - 1991 ISBN 0-385-24962-4
  3. ^ The Oxford guide to card games, David Sidney Parlett, p. 304 ISBN 0-19-214165-1