Editing Lansquenet (section)

== Play ==

The dealer or banker stakes a certain sum, and this must be met by the nearest to the dealer first, and so on. When the stake is met, the dealer turns up one card and lays it to his right, for the table or the players, and another card in front of himself for the bank. He then keeps on turning up cards (while keeping the first two cards visible), until a card turns up with a value matching either of the first two cards. For instance, if the five of diamonds has been laid down for the bank, then any other five, regardless of suit, constitutes a win for the banker. If the table's card is matched first, he loses, and the next player on the left becomes banker and proceeds in the same way.

When the dealer's card turns up, he may take the stake and pass the bank; or he may allow the stake to remain, whereupon it becomes doubled if met. He can continue thus (doubling on each win) as long as the cards turn up in his favour (i.e., before the table's card appears, causing the banker to lose only his original stake) &ndash; having the option at any moment of giving up the bank and retiring for that time. If he does that, the player to whom he passes the bank has the option of continuing it at the same amount at which it was left. The pool may be re-made up by contributions of all the players in certain proportions (now including the previous bank player). The terms used respecting the standing of the stake are "I'll see" (''à moi le tout'') and ''Je tiens''.  When ''jumelle'' (twins), or the turning up of similar cards on both sides, occurs, then the dealer takes half the stake.

[[Jean Eugène Robert-Houdin|Robert-Houdin]] explained a mechanism by which a [[card sharp]] could cheat at lansquenet, by [[palming]] and then placing atop the deck a packet of cards in prepared order.<ref name="RobertHoudin">Jean Eugène Robert-Houdin. [https://books.google.com/books?id=LYVRAAAAcAAJ&pg=PA285 ''Les tricheries des Grecs dévoilées: l'art de gagner à tous les jeux.''] Librarie Nouvelle: Paris, 1861. Pages 285–287.</ref>