Choosing the first dealer
Before the first hand, spread the cards face down and let each player draw one. The lowest card chooses the dealer; trumps rank above the suits. The Excuse does not count for this purpose—draw again if you pick it. For equal suited cards, the tie-break order is spades, hearts, diamonds, clubs, making the Ace of Clubs the lowest suited card.
Deal rotates counter-clockwise in the direction of play.
Shuffle and cut
The player opposite the dealer shuffles, and the dealer’s left-hand neighbour cuts the pack into two portions, taking or leaving more than three cards before closing the pack. Keep the cards low on the table to avoid exposing them.
Packets and the dog
| Players | Packet size | Cards each | Dog |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | 4 | 24 | 6 |
| 4 | 3 | 18 | 6 |
| 5 | 3 | 15 | 3 |
The dealer places dog cards one at a time in the centre. The first and last cards of the pack must not be placed in the dog. Players should not pick up their hands until dealing is complete.
When a deal is cancelled
A dealing error normally requires a new deal by the same dealer. The “bare Petit” is a special case: a player whose only trump is the Petit, without the Excuse, must announce it before bidding and the deal is cancelled. If everyone passes, collect the cards and let the next player deal.
Five-player tournament variation
Some small five-table tournament formats use a non-playing dealer (the “dead” dealer) who deals to the other four players. Friendly five-player Tarot more commonly uses five hands and the called-King partnership.