Unteransetzen


Unteransetzen, Unteranlegen or Unterauflegen is an Austrian card game of the Domino family for 2-6 players that is played exclusively with German playing cards. The name means refers to the building of cards onto an Unter. It is a classic children's game.

Overview

Although Domino-style games are common in Europe, the game known as Unteransetzen is only recorded in Austria where it is very popular in Salzburg and Upper Austria, but also played in every other state bar Tyrol. It has many variants: those in which the Unter of Hearts is the starting card, those in which the Unter of Leaves is the leading card and those in which any Unter may start.
Unteransetzen is also a component of compendium games such as Rosbiratschka Kein Stich or Herzeln.

Cards

The game is usually played with a William Tell pack. In a 2-player game, a third of the pack is placed, face down, as a talon from which to draw. Otherwise all cards are dealt. Cards rank in their natural order – Sow, King, Ober, Unter, Ten, Nine, Eight, Seven – and there are no trumps.

Playing

Usually the player with the Unter of Hearts leads; sometimes the Unter of Leaves is used. In clockwise order, players then attempt to 'build' onto the first card by laying next to it the next higher or lower card in suit sequence i.e. the second player would play either the Ober of Hearts or the Ten of Hearts. If a player cannot build in the same suit, they may lay another Unter, above or below the first, in suit order i.e. the U above the U or the U below the U. If they cannot build on an existing suit sequence or on the existing Unters, they must pass and, in a 2-hand game, draw another card from the talon.
The player who is first to shed all their cards is the winner.

Literature