War rules

The simplest card game there is. There are no decisions at all — the deal decides the winner, and the game just takes a while to admit it.

The deck

A 52-card deck split evenly, 26 cards each, face down. Aces are high.

The play

Both players turn their top card face up at the same time. The higher card takes both, and they go to the bottom of the winner's pile. Suits are ignored.

War

If the two cards are the same rank, it is war. Each player puts three cards face down on top of their card, then turns up a fourth. The higher fourth card takes the whole pile — ten cards at once.

If those cards tie as well, the war repeats.

Running out mid-war

A player with too few cards to complete a war puts down whatever they have and turns up their last card. Losing it loses the game.

Winning

The game ends when one player holds all 52 cards. This can take a very long time — some deals never resolve at all, because the pile keeps circulating in the same order.

For a game that finishes, agree a time limit or a number of rounds in advance and count cards at the end.

With three players

Deal seventeen cards each, discard the last one, and the highest of three cards takes the trick. Two-way ties go to war between the tied players only.

War: an example game

One game of War followed from the deal to the finish, move by move, with the reason for each choice.

The deal

You and Ada play War over 50 battles. The pack is dealt out between you, twenty-six cards each, face down, and neither of you knows what is in your own pile.

Battle 1: you turn K♠ and Ada turns 9♥. Your king takes both cards, and they go under your pile. Battle 2: your 4♦ loses to Ada's J♣. After two battles you hold 26 cards each, as you started.

The first war

Battle 3: 7♣ against 7♥. Two cards of the same rank are war. You each put three cards face down — yours are 9♦, 2♠ and 6♥, Ada's 3♦, K♣ and 10♥ — and turn up a fourth. Your Q♦ beats her 10♠.

You take all ten cards on the table, including the king Ada put face down without knowing it. You now hold 31 cards and Ada 21.

A double war

Battle 4: A♥ against A♣, another war. Three cards down each, and the fourth cards are 6♣ and 6♠ — a tie again. So three more cards go down each, and one more is turned up: your 8♥ against Ada's J♦.

Ada takes eighteen cards in one battle. The score swings from 31–21 in your favour to 22–30 in hers.

The pile comes round

Battle 5 goes to Ada, 8♣ over 4♣. Battle 6 is a war, 7♠ against 7♦, and your A♠ beats her 2♦ for ten cards: 26 each. Battle 7 is another war, 5♣ against 5♥, and the three cards you put face down are the last three of the pile you were dealt.

That does not mean you are out. The cards you have won are turned over to become your pile, and the first one on it is K♠, won in battle 1. It beats Ada's 4♦, and you lead 31–21.

The long middle

After that the lead changes hands again and again. By battle 30 Ada is ahead 28–24. Battle 43 is a war, Q♦ against Q♠, and your 7♦ beats her 2♦ for ten cards, which puts you back in front at 29–23.

Nothing either of you did made any difference. Every one of those battles was decided by the order the cards were in.

The count

Battle 50 goes to Ada, A♥ over 7♣, and that is the last one. The cards are counted: you hold 28 and Ada 24, so you win.

Six of the fifty battles were wars, and the double war alone moved eighteen cards. That is War in short: most battles move two cards, and the ties decide the game.