Jack of Clubs: all there is to know about this playing card
Learn the history of Lancelot, the famous Jack of Clubs from a deck of cards AND great incarnation of the AI of FunBelote, the official online belote app!
Where does the Jack of Clubs come from?
Jack of Hearts, Jack of Spades, Jack of Diamonds or Jack of Clubs: all are emblematic figures in traditional card decks. Before talking about belote, let’s start with a quick reminder of their history.
Jacks and their depictions
“Valet” in French, “Jack” in English or “Bube” in German: though the appellation varies according to the language, this card always depicts a man in a costume (squire or servant). Nevertheless, the “look” of the Jack card is specific to its country!
In France, the Jack of Clubs is a young, beardless man and, unlike the three other jacks in the deck, he holds an oval shield in his right hand (which, for the record, was formerly used to display the insignia of the master cardmaker who was exclusively charged with the manufacture of playing cards).
In the English cards (generally used for playing poker), the jacks are beardless, holding an object in their left hand which resembles something more like an arrow.
In Germany, the jacks wear beards and mustaches! They have a halberd in their left hand, while their right hand rests on their chest. This is, by the way, the same figure found in tarot cards in France; not to be confused with the cards from the tarot of Marseilles, a divinatory set used in cartomancy for pulling out cards and predicting the future according to the meaning of the selected cards!
Let’s stop there – but know that you can indeed find other illustrations on the cards dealt around tables all over the world!
Who is Lancelot, the French Jack of Clubs?
Our Jack of Clubs is a reference to a mythical character: Lancelot du Lac, Knight of the Round Table charged by the legendary King Arthur with the quest for the Holy Grail.
The story tells of Lancelot being abducted as a child by the Lady of the Lake, who educated him and taught him the principles that all knights should obey. Once he was a young man, Lancelot took himself to the court and put himself in the service of the King. Hence, his famous tales…
Lancelot, loyal and skilled knight, is one of the most popular characters in the legends of the Round Table!
What is the role of the Jack of Clubs in a deck of playing cards?
The order and value of the cards depend on the game you are playing.
The order and value of the cards: generalities
You will find the Jack playing card in decks of 32 and 52 cards, alongside the King and Queen of each suit.
In each of the four suits, its usual rank is situated after the Queen and before the 10. It is therefore the weakest of the picture cards. But the Jack is still important for playing cards! For example, in poker, a pair of jacks is often necessary for being in the game. As for blackjack, there is no hierarchy between the face cards: all of the figures in the deck of cards are worth the same number of points.
The order and value of the cards in belote
In the classic game of belote or in coinche, the Jack is no ordinary card! Its value is distinguished by whether there is a trump suit or not.
As a reminder, according to the variant of belote being played, the trump suit is fixed either by the card turned face up by the dealer or by the accepter in the bidding phase.
When the suit led is a trump, the Jack is the highest card: it is the first card, in front of the the Nine, the Ace, the 10, the King, the Queen and then the 7 and 8.
If Clubs have been designated Trumps, our dear Jack of Clubs will therefore be the master card… In other words, the strongest in the deck!
In No-Trumps, the Jack is in 5th position, behind the Ace, the Ten, the King and the Queen.
Note that in belote games with announcements, the Jack fits into several combinations which bring in extra points:
– The tierce: run of three cards in the same suit.
– The fifty: run of four cards in the same suit.
– The hundred (or quinte): run of five cards in the same suit.
– The square: four identical cards. The square of jacks is the strongest.
The Jack is therefore a major card in belote.
That is why we have chosen it to symbolize the AI of our FunBelote app!
Who is Lancelot, the Jack of Clubs of FunBelote?
If you are already a player of online bridge, thanks to the FunBridge app, Lancelot should remind you of his cousin… The Queen of Clubs, Argine!
Lancelot, avatar of the FunBelote AI
Lancelot is the artificial intelligence system of FunBelote, developed with the aim of being the closest possible to human behavior. Always available to play a game of belote online, Lancelot is the ideal partner and opponent!
Firstly, it knows absolutely all the rules of the game of classic belote, coinche belote.
In order to know whether it should take the face-up card or make a particular bid, Lancelot follows a certain number of very precise rules that we lay out for you on the page dedicated to it on our site.
Our Jack of Clubs can replace one to three players around the card table. As a teammate, it is always at its best! On your opponents’ side, it will naturally adjust to the level of the game.
In multiplayer mode, if there is a player missing, Lancelot will come as backup, whatever the chosen difficulty level (standard, difficult, expert or master).
FunBelote, the app for playing belote online
Are you wondering how to play online? Discover our FunBelote app and its different game modes:
– Multiplayer belote: an online game table where the four players are a mix of real players and AI.
– Belote tournaments (classic, contrée, coinche): join our daily belote tournaments and win chips by placing among the top 50 players in the rankings!
Are you ready to play the many variants of belote online, on your iOS or Android device? Download the FunBelote app for free from the Apple or Google Play app stores!
Create a player account and face the players of the FunBelote community! Batches of chips are offered for every new sign-up or for referring your friends!
Wait no longer: go to the FunBelote app, the mobile app for all games of online belote!