BEFORE YOUR FIRST GAME
How to play Bisca
Players and cards
Bisca is a game for two players, one against one.
The deck has only 40 cards: the 8s, 9s and 10s are removed from a standard deck.
The cards in each suit rank from highest to lowest as follows:
Ace
Bisca
King
Jack
Queen
6
5
4
3
2
In Bisca, the aim is to win cards worth points. The cards are worth:
- Ace → 11 points
- Seven (Bisca) → 10 points
- King → 4 points
- Jack → 3 points
- Queen → 2 points
- 6, 5, 4, 3, 2 → 0 points
Getting started
The first player to shuffle is chosen at random. Each player receives 3, 5, 7 or 11 cards, depending on the variant.
After the deal, the last card (the bottom card) determines trump.
Undealt cards form a face-down pile, to be dealt during play.
Playing the game
The dealer plays first. The opponent may play any card and need not follow suit while cards remain to be dealt.
Once the face-down pile is empty, players must follow the suit led.
Scoring
The aim is to win more cards worth points. The player with more than half the total points (over 60) at the end wins 1 RISCO.
If a player scores 91 points or more, the game is worth 2 RISCOS.
If a player wins every trick, the game ends automatically and awards 4 RISCOS. Losing even one trick, with or without points, reduces the award to 2 RISCOS.
In a draw, both players score 60 points and neither gains RISCOS.
- Win with 120 (opponent takes no tricks): +4 RISCOS for the winner (the loser loses the same number of RISCOS)
- Win with 91 or more: +2 RISCOS
- Win with 61 or more: +1 RISCO
- Leaving a game in progress: -10 ranking marks