in which case the person with the most chips wins. Alternatively, play may continue, with the chip values of each bid level increased. The player who has run out must still play, and may or may not be able to win chips by helping to set the taker. Strategy Evaluating one's hand As a guide to bidding, a player can award points for various features of his hand, judging his bid according to the total number of points. Each range of point totals suggests a different bid: less than 40 points: Passe (no bid) 40 to 55 points: Prise 56 to 70 points: Garde 71 to 80 points: Garde Sans 80+ points: Garde Contre Getting the Petit It is essential to try to get the Petit if one can. In a 5-player game, if the taker has the 21 of trump, he shall always play it so his partner can secure the Petit if he's got it. If the taker has many trumps, he can perform a chasse au petit (Petit hunt), trying to play his trumps so that the Petit owner has no choice but to give it away. Observation Every player should know which suits have been played, and which are still to be played. It is useful to count how many trumps, and what kings, have been played. Statistics Distribution of suits The following table shows the maximum number of suits and trumps for a Defender for 4 players. Example: Suppose the taker has 8 hearts, thus the Defenders have 6 hearts. In 5.3% of the cases, one Defender has 5 or more hearts. Notice that the sum from any column is 100%. If the taker has 9 trumps, thus the Defense has 12 trumps. There is a 1.1% probability that one Defender has 9 or more trumps. Dog's cards This applies to 4 players and 6-card dog. Example: If the taker has no queen, he has a 30.5% chance of getting a queen in the dog, 4.4% of two queens. If the taker has 8 diamonds, thus there are 14-8=6 diamonds left, he has a 51.6% chance of not getting any diamond in the dog at all. If the taker has 7 trumps, thus there are 21-7=14 trumps left, he has a 43% chance of getting 2 or more trumps. Signals The Fédération Française de Tarot has developed a system of conventional leads that lets partners