Psellos
Life So Short, the Craft So Long to Learn

The Schnapsen Log

March 25, 2017

Thoughtful Actions

Martin Tompa

You have begun another game against Uncle Tibor. In the very first hand, you reach a point where some thought seems required.

Concealed cards:
AQ
Q
♣ TQ
T

Your cards:
K
AJ
♣ K
K

Trump: J
Stock: 1 face-down card
Game points: Tibor 7, You 7
Trick points: Tibor 33, You 20
On lead: Tibor

There have been no marriages declared and no trump exchange. Tibor does his fair share of thinking and then leads Q.

This will be a two-part puzzle. For now, just decide what card you will play on this trick. When you have an answer, you are welcome to read my analysis. Once we have finished this trick, I will give you a second puzzle to work on.

© 2017 Martin Tompa. All rights reserved.


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About the Author

Martin Tompa

Martin Tompa (tompa@psellos.com)

I am a Professor of Computer Science & Engineering at the University of Washington, where I teach discrete mathematics, probability and statistics, design and analysis of algorithms, and other related courses. I have always loved playing games. Games are great tools for learning to think logically and are a wonderful component of happy family or social life.

Read about Winning Schnapsen, the very first and definitive book on the winning strategy for this fascinating game.

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