The old game of Napoleon consists simply of five cards being dealt out
singly and in order to each of the party, and then the players declaring in
their turn how many tricks they think they can make. The eldest hand--that
is, the player to the dealer's left--has the first call, and every one
after him can declare by increasing his call, up to the limit, "Nap," which
is a declaration to take all the five tricks. Whoever makes the highest
call has all the other players pitted against him, and leads out--that is
to say, he puts a card face upwards on the table in front of him, the
playing of that card determining the trump suit, as whatever suit is first
led by the caller is trumps by virtue of the lead. The players then follow
in order, it being imperative to follow suit if possible, but, except for
this, any card may be played. There is no rule as to heading a trick or
playing a trump after a trick, or indeed any restriction {95} whatever
beyond following the led suit if you can, under penalty of a revoke for
trumping or discarding when holding a card of the suit called for. The
highest card of the led suit takes the first trick, and the winner leads a
card to the second trick, the cards played not being packed or gathered
together, but being left face upwards in front of their owners. The winning
card is alone turned down. The winner of the second trick leads to the
third, and so on, the declaration succeeding or failing according as the
caller makes or fails to make the number of tricks that he declared. It
matters nothing whether he makes two or even three tricks more than he
declared to make; he is only paid for the number that he originally
announced, and even if he does not take a trick, he simply pays for the
number he called.
It is a level-money transaction all round; that is to say, if a man calls
three at "penny Nap," he receives 3d. from every other player if he makes
the three tricks, and pays 3d. to every other player if he does not make
three tricks. But if he calls Napoleon (five tricks) he receives 10d. if he
wins, and only pays 5d. if he loses. We may say here that in most places
where penny Nap is played, the 10d. and 5d. are raised to 1s. to win and
6d. to lose, on the plea of making it even money. The round being over and
the stakes paid, the deal passes in the usual way to the person to the left
of the last dealer, and so on.
This is the old simple form of Napoleon, and it is what most people
understand by the game. It is without complication of any kind, and the
skill it requires is of two sorts--first, to judge the value of a hand with
due regard to the number of players {96} and any calls that may have been
made previously, and, next, how to play the hand--whether as caller or as
one of the combination against the call--to the best advantage.