Rules

Barbette

Credits

Short version devised by Warren Chang to finish a game in four rounds when full Barbu takes too long.

What changes

• 4 rounds, 16 deals. It stays a zero-sum game and 75% of the contracts called are still minus games.
• Two minus games are dropped: Nullo (the safety game, so the first to go) and No hearts.
• Each declarer calls four games: the three minus games — Barbu, Last Two, No queens — and one positive game of their choice, Trumps or Dominoes. Declarers need not all pick the same one.
• Each player must double each declarer at least once instead of twice.

Scoring

• No queens — −5 per queen, −20 in all.
• Barbu — −15.
• Last two tricks — −10 and −20, −30 in all.
• Trumps — +5 per trick, +65.
• Dominoes — +40 / +25 / +10 / −10, also +65, so both positive games are worth the same. 45/20/10/−10 rewards first place more; any split totalling +65 works.

A variant of the variant

Drop No queens instead of No hearts and restore the latter; Last Two then becomes −5 / −15 to keep the total at zero.

Everything else follows the classic Barbu rules.