How to Connect Cards in the Fan Tan Option in Barbu

Video Transcript

"I mean, that's just a great hand. You're bottom card is a five, but it's in a suit that's ten, eight, six, five. You've got connecting cards in diamonds. You've got two cards closer together in hearts and if you were to call fan-tan. Remember the purpose of fan-tan is you're not going to be playing in the middle of the table, you're going to be leading, and then people have to make plays. What I would do, and you can start with any card that you want. What I would do with this particular one is that I would start with the ten of diamonds. Now, what plays are available to the opponents? Well, either the jack, or the nine. Nothing else, they can't play anything else and if they don't have that, then they're forced to play another ten. That's the beauty of the game. You're going to make them open up the ten of clubs because, you can see the ten of hearts in your hand, and the ten of spades. When you play the ten of diamonds, you've got both ends covered. That's the strongest play you can make in a fan-tan here, with this particular hand because, somebody out there has to play the ten of clubs. And that's going to be really nice because, now you've opened up another suit. That's the beauty of that play. So, in fan-tan you are trying to get rid of your hand. So, once they open up the ten of clubs, somebody is going to have to make a play here. By the way, if you have a play in fan-tan you absolutely have to make it. You cannot."