Rules of MATTIS
Master the official rules of Mattis. Detailed guide on Phase 1 (Collection) and Phase 2 (Shedding), the War mechanic, and how to avoid being the Mattis.
Quick Reference
Phase 1: The Collection Phase
(Innsamlingsfasen)Build the hand you'll use to win in Phase 2.
Setup
- ✓ Each player is dealt 3 cards.
- ✓ The bottom card of the deck is turned face-up—its suit becomes the Trump Suit for Phase 2.
- ✓ During Phase 1, only card rank matters. Trumps are not active yet.
Gameplay & Turn Flow
- • Players lay one card at a time in the middle. No requirement to follow suit.
- • The player with the highest rank on the table "owns" the pile.
- • If no one challenges the owner, they automatically take the entire pile into their Collection Pile.
- • After a pile is taken, all players draw back up to 3 cards.
The War
(Støting / Krig)Triggered when a player matches the rank of any card already on the table.
War Triggered
- 1 All players with that matching rank on the table go to war.
- 2 Each participant plays exactly one "battle card."
- 3 If battle cards match, a nested war begins (War-ception!).
- 4 The winner takes the entire table pile plus all war cards.
Blodmattis (Blood Mattis)
Phase 1 ends when the deck is empty. Any player with zero cards in their Collection Pile is declared "Blodmattis" and loses immediately—a devastating early defeat.
Phase 2: The Shedding Phase
(Utspillingsfasen)Empty your hand before everyone else. The last player with cards loses.
Setup
- ✓ Players pick up their Collection Piles—this is their hand for Phase 2.
- ✓ The player who received the last card from the deck starts the first trick.
- ✓ The Trump Suit is now fully active and beats any non-trump card.
Following Suit & Rows
A "Row" of Clubs
- • You must follow suit and try to beat the cards played against you.
- • You can play multiple cards at once if they form a Row (same suit, consecutive ranks, e.g., 7-8-9 of Hearts).
- • To beat a card or row, play a higher card/row of the same suit, or a Trump.
The Pick-Up Mechanic
(Kastebunken / Bottom Index)If you cannot (or choose not to) beat the cards played against you:
- 1 You do NOT take the whole table.
- 2 You pick up only the oldest entry—the card or row furthest from you.
- 3 A round ends when the number of entries equals the number of active players.
Winning & "Going Out"
- ✓ A player is "Out" when they empty their hand and their last play isn't picked up.
- ✓ The first player to go out wins.
- ✓ The last player with cards is the Mattis and loses the game.
The Legend of the Mattis
(Mattishaetten)In Norwegian tradition, the loser—the Mattis—would wear the "Mattishaetten" (Fool's Hat), a playful mark of shame. The game's name itself comes from this tradition: "Mattis" is an old Norwegian word for a simpleton or fool. The social pressure of avoiding this title makes every round tense and strategic.
Glossary of Terms
- Mattis (Mattis)
- The loser of the game—the last player with cards in hand.
- War (Krig / Støting)
- Triggered when matching ranks appear on the table. Participants battle with one card each.
- Blodmattis (Blodmattis)
- Blood Mattis—instant loss for having zero cards after Phase 1.
- Trump (Trumf)
- The suit revealed at game start. Active in Phase 2, trumps beat all non-trump cards.
- Row (Rad)
- A sequence of consecutive cards in the same suit (e.g., 7-8-9 of Hearts).
- Collection Pile (Kastebunke)
- Cards won during Phase 1, which become your hand in Phase 2.
- Bottom Index (Bunnindeks)
- The pick-up rule: take only the oldest card/row on the table.
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