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A well known Dutch drinking game, described by Nick Wedd, with additions by Jihn McLeod based on information from Paul Stuurop.

• Players and cards
• Deal
• Play of the cards
• Knocking
• Endgame
• Announcing tens and jacks
• Etiquette
• Advice on skilful play
• Variations
• Other Toepen WWW pages and software

Players and cards

Toepen is a very fast trick-taking game for three to eight players who are drinking. It is played with a 32-card pack, with the cards in each suit ranking 10 (highest), 9, 8, 7, A, K, Q, J (lowest). The basic object of each hand is to win the last trick.

Deal

The cards are dealt clockwise so that each player receives four cards.

After the deal, the undealt portion of the pack is left face-down in the middle of the table. Then any player whose hand consists entirely of As, Ks, Qs, and Js may discard her hand face downward and deal herself a new one. Indeed, any player may discard her hand face downward and deal herself a new one, but there is a risk. When a hand has been discarded in this way, it may be challenged by any other player, by turning it face upwards: if it is found to contain a 10,9,8 or 7 the discarder loses one life (but keeps her new hand) while if it really consists entirely of As,Ks,Qs and Js the challenger loses one life. Once all the cards in the pack have been dealt, it is impossible for any more hands to be dealt.

Play of the cards

The player on dealer's left leads to the first trick. Players must follow suit if possible, otherwise they may play any card. A trick is won by the highest card of the suit led. The winner of a trick leads to the next trick.

The winner of the fourth and last trick will deal the next hand. Each of the other players loses a life or lives as described below.

Knocking

At any time during a hand, once all the players have had an opportunity to pick up their cards, a player may knock by rapping the table sharply. This increases the value of the hand by one life. When a player knocks, the other players may stay in, risking losing an extra life; or may fold, losing the current stake and taking no further part in the hand. A player folds by discarding her hand immediately face down on the table.

It often happens that someone will knock during the last trick, after some players have already played their last card. A player who wishes to fold but has no cards left in her hand (having already played to the last trick) does so by calling out "fold" immediately. A player who hesitates has stayed in: it is too late for her to fold.

The last player to knock may not knock again on the same hand, until someone else has knocked.

Those who stay in to the end of the hand lose one more life than the total number of knocks. So for example if there are no knocks, everyone except the winner of the last trick loses one life; if there was one knock everyone who stayed in, except for the winner of the last trick, loses two lives, and so on.

Those who fold on the first knock immediately lose one life; those who fold on the second knock lose two lives and so on - that is, by folding you lose the same amount you would have lost if the game had gone to the end with no further knocks and you lost the last trick.

If a player knocks and everyone else folds, the player left in wins that hand (losing no life) and deals the next.

If the winner of a trick folds after playing the winning card to the trick, but before the following trick has begun, the turn to lead to the next trick passes to the next player to the left who has not yet folded.

If the winner of the last trick folds, everyone will lose lives: the winner of the last trick will lose because she folded and all the others still playing will lose because they did not win the last trick. (Example: on the last trick, with no previous knocks, A leads the 7. C knocks and A folds, believing C has a high diamond, but then B plays the 9 and C plays the 10. A loses one life for folding and B and C each lose two lives for staying in and not winning the last trick.)

A player may not knock and fold on her own knock.

Endgame

When a player has lost ten lives, she buys a round of drinks, the score is wiped clean and the next rubber starts. (In practice, this will cause drinks to arrive at an excessive rate. It might be more realistic if she just puts a dollar in the drinks kitty).

A player who has already lost nine lives may not knock. Similarly, a player who has already lost eight lives may not make the second knock, one who has already lost seven lives may not make the third knock, etc.

Announcing Tens and Jacks

A player who holds three tens must whistle. A player who holds three jacks may whistle. A player who holds four tens must stand up. A player who holds four jacks may stand up. If a player is obliged to whistle but cannot, she must sing loudly. Such behaviour may encourage other players to fold, if they notice it.

Etiquette

Players should avoid making sounds which might be mistaken for knocks: e.g. glasses should be put down gently. Players must not whistle, sing or stand up without the requirements described above.

Advice on Skilful Play

If you never knock, and fold whenever you hear a knock, you will never lose a rubber. If you are able to follow this advice, you have not been drinking enough to enjoy this game.

Note that a player who is allowed to knock may do so at any time. This includes knocking in the middle of a trick, or even at the end of the last trick. A player who hears a knock and fails to fold immediately has stayed in: so you should always be ready to fold unless you expect to win the last trick.

Conventions

There are two conventions which may be found useful, as they allow play to proceed without interruption while players are drinking. A player who is absent from the table attending to her own needs is dealt a hand in the usual way, but is deemed to have folded on the first knock. A player who is absent from the table so as to buy drinks for everyone loses no lives at all during her absence.

Variations

There are several local variations of the rules.

The number of lives varies. It is common to start at the target number (10 or 15) and count down, the loser being the first to reach zero.

One group of variations concern the case where a player who folds during a trick turns out to have played the card which would have won the trick. There are two alternative treatments of this position:

1. The player who has folded wins the trick, but loses the appropriate number of lives for folding. If it was not the last trick, the lead for the next trick passes to the left. If it was the last trick everyone loses lives (as in the rules above).
2. You cannot win a trick after you have folded. The winner of the trick is the player among those who have not folded who played the highest card of the suit led. If all the players who played the led suit have folded the winner of the trick is decided according to a ranking of suits: the player of the highest ranking suit wins the trick, and if several played that suit the winner is the player of the highest card in it. The suit ranking order varies. The Toep Club de Laaier (see below) uses hearts (high), spades, diamonds, clubs (low), but others in Waalwijk use hearts (high), diamonds, spades, clubs (low).

Some play special rules when a player has only one life left. This state is called "armoede" (poverty). Some play that in this case the stake for the game is immediately raised to two lives, as though the poor player had knocked, and the others must decide before the first lead whether to stay in or drop out for the loss of one life. After that, players are allowed to knock only if they have enough lives left to cover the raised stake, and the poor players are not allowed to knock.

Other Toepen pages and software

The "Not At Home Page" of the Toep Club de Laaier, with rules and tournament information (in Dutch)

Toepen can be played on line as GameSquare.