Shuffle and deal.
Shuffle the 72-card deck. Deal face down: 36 cards each for two players, 24 each for three, or 18 each for four. For solo play, make two piles of 36.
Fiction / Card game in development
WAR: The Card Game™
See the illustrated battle cards, try the interactive draw, and read the current rules preview.
How the game works
Flip. Compare. Continue.
A historical reimagining of the familiar card game. Everyone reveals a card at once; the highest modified War Score wins the battle. The last player with cards wins the game.
Rules preview: Modern era editorial candidate v1.3. Physical playtesting and final print review remain.
Read how to playFrom the illustrated deck
Turn over a piece of history.
Draw two cards, compare their War Scores, and read the stories behind the battles.
Player account
Join to draw WAR cards.
Create a player profile once to try this interactive card preview and future games.
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WAR: The Card Game™
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Design preview · Not for salePreview only. This button does not place an order or collect payment.
How to play / Modern era rules preview
Flip. Compare. Continue.
One to four players, ages 10 and up. A solo player can run two opposing piles without making decisions for either side.
Compare the scores.
All active players flip their top cards simultaneously. Apply any pending MOMENTUM or FATIGUE change and relevant printed effects. The highest modified War Score wins the battle.
Only the leaders continue.
For a highest-score tie, check DOMINANT and VULNERABLE on the tied cards. If there is still no single winner, only the tied players reveal another card. Compare those new cards; continue until the tie breaks. Earlier revealed cards remain in the prize.
Keep the game moving.
The winner puts every revealed card into a face-down win pile, ordered by reveal round and then player seat clockwise from the dealer. Do not rearrange or inspect the piles. When your draw pile runs out, shuffle your win pile to make a new draw pile before your next reveal.
What the card effects mean
- DOMINANT / VULNERABLE
- Settle an otherwise tied highest score when their stated conditions apply.
- ESCALATE / GUARD
- ESCALATE adds 1 when that card is an extra reveal in a tie. GUARD blocks other cards’ effects that would change its score.
- MOMENTUM / FATIGUE
- After the printed win or loss trigger, add or subtract the stated value on that player’s next reveal. One pending change per player; it expires after that reveal.
Finish: A player with neither a draw pile nor a win pile is out. The last player with cards wins. If a tie cannot continue because no tied player has a card, that edge case ends in a draw between them.
On the workbench
The rules and deck are still under review. Other tabletop and interactive story ideas can join this shelf as they become concrete projects.