KubiTarock is a card game for four players. It is based on the popular Austrian Tarock - also known as "Königsrufen (King Calling)".

The complete deck contains 54 cards, 32 color suit cards and 22 tarock cards. The color suits are: Clubs, Diamonds, Hearts, and Spades. The tarock cards are labeled by roman numerals from I, II, III, ... to XXII and function in the game as a permanent suit of trumps. The playing order is counter-clockwise. The game starts with an auction process: The player with the highest bidding becomes the game declarer. There are positive games and negative games: In a positive game, the declarer must achieve a minimum number of points to win. In a negative game, the declarer must achieve the announced number of tricks (0 to 2) exactly. Basically, in all games, players have to follow suit. In negative games additionally, each player must overtrump if possible. Because there are special games for the forehand player, it never happens that all players pass and no game comes out. See Game Rules for the details.

The current version supports 4 playing modes:

• Offline mode
  In this mode, the user controls at least¹⁾one player. All other players will be controlled by the simulator "Tarobot". The simulator by the way sees only those cards the human player would also see. But you, too, can let the "Tarobot" support you in playing. If you select the appropriate setting, it marks the action on the user interface that it would perform in your place. You can also undo and redo all actions of the game.
   
• Learning mode
  In the learning mode you can question any action that the "Tarobot" simulator proposes for you. He will then tell you the reasons why he thinks the action makes sense. Of course, the Tarobot is not a person who takes into account the psychology of other players. He is a pure numeric, who expresses everything in numbers to evaluate them with his algorithms. But he knows all the rules and can give the beginner important hints when practicing the game.
   
• Quiz mode
  This mode is a variant of the offline mode. In addition to the fun of playing, you can train your memory and thus your playing skills improve. Randomly selected questions about the current playing cards state are presented to you during the game. After you have selected the supposedly correct answer, the solution will be presented to you immediately. Depending on the question you will get different numbers of points for the correct or also for an almost correct solution. In the quiz statistics you can read the development of your success in a calendar. If you have reached a minimum number of points and a minimum success rate, you will also receive symbolic awards such as flower pot, medal, and cup.
   
• Online mode
  In this mode, a maximum of 4 KubiTarock users can play against each other online. They must be members of an online group. Additionally, a maximum of 3 members can participate as bystanders. Bystanders and players can swap roles during the game. If less than 4 players are participating in an online session, the remaining players are simulated. In parallel to the playing session, a Skype audio conference should be held, enabling the same conversation between the players as in a real card round. Before starting the first session, one of the online users must create an online user group²⁾. To do so, he must purchase a corresponding add-on, which is valid for 1 year. This player acts as group administrator and is responsible for the administration of the group.
   

Multiple settings options allow you to change game parameters and appearance. You may select another color theme or another card face or card back design for example. You even may insert your favorite photo in one of the card backs containing a special photo frame. You can also activate speech output. Then, for example, you will hear the announcements of the simulated players and you do not have to pay so much attention to the screen display.

From version 2023.01 on KubiTarock can be used with two different licenses:

• Offline license
  • Offline games are free of charge.
  • The period of use is unlimited on the operating system versions for which KubiTarock is released.
  • You do not need to register with an e-mail address.
  • The game success and game statistics are stored only locally.
  • Online games are not possible. However, you can switch to the online version at any time, if you create a corresponding account.

• Online license
  • Offline games are free of charge.
  • The duration of use and the number of online games are limited. New customers get 7 days of usage and 50 online games. By purchasing a playtime add-on the period of use can be extended by 3 or 12 months. Thereby, the number of online games is also increased by 500 or 2000 respectively.
  • You need to create an account with your email address. The license is usable on all devices regardless of the operating system, if you use the same account on all devices.
  • The game success and the game statistics are stored centrally in the KubiTarock server and are synchronized to all devices used.
  • You can play online together with other KubiTarock users. To do this, a fellow player acting as administrator must purchase a group lifetime add-on and set up an online group. The group lifetime is limited to 12 months. By repeated purchase of the add-on it can be extended for another 12 months each time.
  • You can also switch to the offline version later, simply by deleting your account.

• New customers automatically receive the offline license.
• If you have installed an earlier version of KubiTarock, you are still using an older variant of the online license. When installing a newer version, you will be presented with all license information and given the option to switch to the offline license:
  • If you keep the online version, all online games already played will be counted as paid. For the remaining term of your account, you will receive 166 online games per month or part thereof and an additional bonus of 500 online games credited.
  • If you switch to the free offline version, the existing online account with all data will be deleted.
  • Online accounts of users with expired license will be automatically deleted.

KubiTarock runs on Windows from version 10 and on Android from version 7.0. A version for iOS is in preparation.

This document describes the game rules, the user operations, and the structure of the user interface. It can be used as general introduction for playing Tarock and for finding how to use this application as well.

Happy playing from KubiConsult!

If you want to download this document as PDF, click here.

Do not hesitate to send your comments or questions about your KubiTarock experiences using the "Send feedback" links.