German Solo

German solo
German form of English quadrille
The top trumps when bells are the trump suit
OriginGermany
Alternative namesDeutsches Solo
TypePlain-trick
Players4
Cards32 cards
DeckPiquet or German pack
PlayClockwise
Related games
Quadrille, Ombre, Spitzeln
Clubs may be preference suit

German solo or just solo is a German 8-card plain-trick game for 4 individual players using a 32-card, German- or French-suited skat pack. It is essentially a simplification of quadrille, itself a 4-player adaptation of ombre. As in quadrille, players bid for the privilege of declaring trumps and deciding whether to play alone or with a partner. Along with ombre, Tarock and Schafkopf, German solo influenced the development of skat. Parlett calls it a "neat little descendant of Quadrille" and "a pleasant introduction" to the ombre family of games.