Zwickern or Zwicker, is a German fishing card game for two to eight players played in Schleswig-Holstein in North Germany.

[4] German author, Hans Fallada, who learned it in while in gaol at Neumünster,[5] called it "a rather cunning farmer's game from Holstein.

Zwickern is the primary or only name given in most book sources and rule sets by playing card manufacturers, with only Mensing calling it Zwickeln[7] and Grupp calling it Zwicker, while acknowledging Zwickern and Zwickeln as alternatives.

Zwicker's origins lie in the old English game of Cassino which is first recorded in a 1792 treatise, but spread rapidly to Germany and America.

Cassino faded into obscurity in Europe in the late 19th century, but experienced a brief renaissance in America as new variants appeared.

Zwicker probably emerged around the turn of the century, but is first recorded in Fritz Lau's 1918 work Elsbe where a character called Hans-Ohm loses 23 groschen playing "Zwickeln".

[11] Hans Fallada also recalls that, in 1928, he came across it as "a rather cunning farmer's game from Holstein played with 52 cards and a Joker".

[6] The earliest set of rules appeared in 1930 in Robert Hülsemann's Das Buch der Spiele where the game is much as described below in the variant without Jokers and looks very much like an elaboration of Royal Cassino.

[3][13] Bespoke 58-card packs have been in production since at least the 1950s,[14] but they now appear to be discontinued, the last manufacturer, NSV, no longer offering them in its range.

[7][a] Dithmarschen may be where the game originated, but it must have spread and become widely popular in the region in order for special packs to be made for it.

In recent times, it has been played in North Frisia – for example, in Neukirchen,[16] Leck[17] and on the island of Sylt[18] – as well as further east in the county of Schleswig-Flensburg at Sieverstedt[19] Sillerup,[9] Großenwiehe[9] and Schafflund.

From the 1950s, special Zwicker packs were manufactured for this purpose, initially by ASS Altenburger and, later, also by NSV.

According to Grupp (1975), the normal rule is that, whether on the table or played from the hand, they are wild and represent any card chosen by the player.

The aim is to capture Aces and Honours (Honneurs i.e. ♦7, ♠7, ♦10)[4] and to make 'sweeps'[3] usually known as zwicks[2][4][9] but occasionally as zwickers.

The dealer shuffles and deals four cards to each player, one by one and beginning with forehand to the left and then four face up to the layout or tableau (Bild) on the table.

However, this appears to be contradicted by the rule that a Zwick is achieved when a player sweeps the entire tableau "whether it consists of one or more cards".

[4] Accounts of people actually playing Zwicker, as opposed to rule books, invariably involve Jokers.

This feature is recorded as early as 1928 and distinguishes Zwicker from all other games of the fishing family.

Which pattern of Joker represents which level (large, medium or small) must be pre-agreed.

The first dealer, after being selected at random, shuffles and offers to the right for cutting, before dealing four cards each and three to the table, face up.

Forehand (left of dealer) opens by playing a card to the table, using it to build, capture or trail.

Builds need not be captured straight away and may be further built on as long as a card is held matching the new total.