Flip, compare, take
Two players flip a card at the same time. The higher card wins both. Equal cards start a . You win by collecting the whole deck.
There are no decisions to make, which makes it a great first game for young kids.
At a glance
Setup
Two players, one deck
Use a standard 52-card deck without jokers. Cards rank from 2 (lowest) up to ace (highest). Suits don’t matter.
The deal
Split the deck
Deal the whole deck one card at a time, face down, so each player gets 26. Keep your cards in a face-down stack. Nobody looks at them.
A turn
Flip at the same time
Both players turn over the top card of their stack together. The higher card takes both cards, which go face down on the bottom of the winner’s stack.
Your king beats the 9 of clubs: both cards are yours.
And again
Keep flipping. This time your 4 of hearts loses to the jack of clubs, so your opponent takes both.
Special cards
Same rank? War!
Both players turn up an 8. That means : each player puts one card face down and one card face up.
The best moment in the game.
The winner takes all
The higher of the two new face-up cards takes all six cards. Your ace beats the 10: all six are yours.
If the new cards tie again, repeat the war until someone wins.
Scoring
Your stack is your score
War has no points. The number of cards in your stack shows who is ahead: right now you have 29 and your opponent 23.
Short on time? Agree on a finish time and whoever holds the most cards then wins.
Nobody has ever finished before dinner.
Winning
Win every card
The game ends when one player has all 52 cards. That player wins.
Point at a dot to see why it matters
Variants and house rules
- Three or four players
- Deal 17 cards each for three players (one card left over) or 13 for four. The highest card takes all. If two or more tie for highest, everyone plays the war, not just them. Anyone who runs out drops out.
- Out of cards in a war
- Tables differ: either the player who can’t finish a war loses, or their last card is turned face up and used for the whole war.
- Steal War
- Won cards go on a face-up pile. If your card matches the top of an opponent’s pile, you steal that pile.
Tips from the table
- There are no choices in War, so the fun is in the flip: turn your card with some drama.
- Short on time? Agree on a finish time and whoever holds the most cards then wins.
- Great for counting practice: let young players say out loud which card is higher.
Print and play
War: quick answers
How many cards does each player get in War?
26 each: the whole deck is dealt out between the two players.
What happens when there is a tie in War?
That is a war: each player adds one card face down and one face up, and the higher face-up card takes all the cards. If they tie again, repeat.
Is the ace high or low in War?
High. Cards rank from 2, the lowest, up to the ace.
Decks we like
Easy to read
Bicycle Jumbo Index
Extra-large numbers and suits. Readable across the table, for kids learning their first game and grandparents alike.
KidsOlder playersBuy now ↗on Amazon
The classic
Bicycle Standard
The deck most people picture. Poker size, standard faces, shuffles well. If you buy one deck, make it this.
Every game hereFamiliesBuy now ↗on Amazon
Lasts for years
Copag 1546 plastic, double deck
Two 100% plastic decks in a hard case. Washable and hard to bend, and a double deck is what Canasta and Spider need.
CanastaRummyGame nightsBuy now ↗on Amazon
The British classic
Waddingtons No. 1
The pack found in British homes for generations. Paper cards with a linen finish that fan and shuffle smoothly.
WhistCribbageFamiliesBuy now ↗on Amazon
The gift
theory11 Monarchs
A luxury deck with a navy and gold tuck box. The one to give, or to bring out when the good whisky is poured.
GiftsCollectorsBuy now ↗on Amazon
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