How to Play War
Flip, battle, and collect every card.
Also known as Battle · Bataille (French)
Learn War for 2 players: 26 cards each, Aces high, what happens on a tie, how a war is staked and the battle limit that ends a long game. Work through a war, then play in your browser.
A battle, then a war
You flip the Q♠ and your opponent flips the 9♥: the Queen is higher, so you take both. Next you both flip an 8, the 8♣ and the 8♦. That is war: each of you stakes 3 cards face down and turns 1 more face up. Your K♥ beats their 4♠, and you take all 10 cards on the table.
| Cards flipped | Result |
|---|---|
| Q♠ against 9♥ | Q♠ wins: the higher rank takes both cards |
| A♦ against K♣ | A♦ wins: Aces are high |
| 7♥ against 7♣ | Tie: war, 3 cards down and 1 up each |
| 8♣ and 8♦, then K♥ against 4♠ | K♥ takes all 10 cards |
| A tie, and one player has no cards left | That player loses the game |
Suits never count. A game ends when one player holds all 52 cards, or at the battle limit (500 by default), where the bigger pile wins and equal piles are a draw.
Practise this game in your browser🎯 Objective
Win all 52 cards. If the battle limit comes first (500 battles unless you choose 50, 100 or 250 at setup), the player holding more cards wins.
🃏 War Setup & Rules
- Strictly 2 players with one standard 52-card deck. Aces are high, 2s are low, and suits never count.
- The deck is shuffled and dealt one card at a time from the dealer's left: 26 cards each, held face down as your pile.
▶ How to Play War
- Both players tap Flip to turn their top card face up. It does not matter who flips first; the battle settles once both have flipped.
- The higher rank takes both cards and puts them under its pile. Won cards go under in no fixed order, so the deck does not fall into a repeating cycle.
- A tie is a war: each player stakes 3 cards face down and turns 1 more face up. The higher face-up card takes everything on the table; if those tie too, another war starts on top.
- A player with fewer than 4 cards stakes all but their last card, which becomes their face-up card. A player with no card left to fight the war loses.
- The game ends when one player holds all 52 cards, or at the battle limit, where the player holding more cards wins and equal piles are a draw.
🎬 Watch: How to Play War
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📖 Detailed Guide
Setting up your table
- From the game menu choose War. It is strictly 2 seats: you and one AI player, or two people.
- Choose the battle limit: 500 by default, or 50, 100 or 250 for a shorter game.
- The deck is shuffled and dealt one card at a time from the dealer's left, 26 face down to each player.
- Aces are high and suits never count: 2 is the lowest card, then 3 up to 10, Jack, Queen, King and Ace.
Fighting a battle
- Tap Flip to turn your top card face up. Your opponent flips too, in either order.
- The higher rank takes both cards, and they go under the winner's pile in no fixed order.
- The cards stay on show until the next flip, so you can see who took the battle.
- Turn on Auto-flip to let the app flip for you: a game can run to hundreds of battles.
Going to war
- When the two face-up cards tie, it is war: each player stakes 3 cards face down and turns 1 more face up.
- The higher face-up card takes everything on the table: 10 cards for a single war.
- If the new face-up cards tie again, another war starts on top of the first, and the pile keeps growing.
- Short of cards? You stake all but your last card, and that last card is your face-up card. With no card left to fight, you lose.
Winning the game
- Capture all 52 cards and you win outright.
- At the battle limit the game stops and the player holding more cards wins; 26 cards each is a draw.
- A war counts as one battle toward the limit, however many ties it takes.
- If both players run out of cards in the same tied war, each takes back their own cards and the game is drawn.
📊 War Scoring
There are no points. Capture all 52 cards to win. A game is capped at 500 battles unless you choose 50, 100 or 250 at setup; at the cap the player holding more cards wins, and 26 cards each is a draw. A war, however many ties it takes, counts as one battle. The app plays strictly 2 seats: no three- or four-player War.
❓ War — Frequently Asked Questions
How many players do you need for War?
War is played with 2 players. On Vanikar, empty seats can be filled with AI opponents so you can always start a game.
What happens in War when the cards tie?
It is war: each player stakes 3 cards face down and turns 1 more face up. The higher face-up card takes all 10 cards on the table, and another tie starts a new war on top.
What if you do not have enough cards for a war?
You stake all but your last card face down, and that last card becomes your face-up card. A player with no card left to fight the war loses the game.
How long does a game of War last?
Until one player holds all 52 cards, or until the battle limit: 500 by default, or 50, 100 or 250 if you choose. At the limit the player holding more cards wins, and 26 each is a draw.
Do suits matter in War?
No. Only rank counts, with Aces high and 2 the lowest. A 9♠ against a 9♥ is a tie and starts a war.