Scientific war
Scientific war tries to put chance, strategy and psychology together around a game whose fondamental principle is very simple: those of classic war, in particular open war, but with additionnal rules allowing some form of bluff and stragegy. The particularity of this game is in fact that rules have been invented by you know who...
Game rules
At the beginning of the game, the dealer sort the cards by color and each player takes all cards of a particular color. So, everyone starts with a hand having the same strength, perfectly identical except the color. This game is played with one or two 52 cards decks depending on the number of players, where some colors may be completely absent. For example, with two players , one play only with hearts and spades.
Once distribution is complete, each player chooses simultaneously the card he wants to play. When everybody has made his choice, all chosen cards are revealed. Except in special cases exposed below, the player who played the strongest card wins all the cards of the trick and puts them in front of him. Then, the next trick goes the same way.
The player who hasn't anymore card in his hand takes those he previously put in front of him and put them back in his hand. IF he still hasn't anymore cards, he is out of the game. The winner is the last player still having cards when all others have lost. The strongest card is ace and the weakest 2, color hasn't any importance
War
When the winner of the trick isn't unique, when two cards or more of the same strength are all equally winner of the trick, there is a war. In this case, nobody takes the cards of the trick. The winner of the next trick wins the cards of the trick plus those left in the previous trick when the war was.
Revolution
When a jack is revealed, it's a revolution and the card order is reversed. The 2 become the strongest card and ace the weakest. Card order comes back in the usual order at next revolution, meaning when the next jack is played. If two jacks are played in the same trick, their effect cancel eachother and the card order is thus unchanged.
Spy lady
The player who played a queen can, at next trick after the one where the queen ahs been played, look at which cards other players chose before choosing his own. HE has thus a big advantage to win this trick ! But this lasts only for a single turn, fortunately. If two or more queens are played in the same trick, their effect is cancelled.
See how many cards players have in hand
AFter having played a 3, the player who played it can see how many cards other players have currently in their hand (don't confuse with the number of cards owned in total, it's not the same and that later information is always available).
Pile switch
After having played an 8, the player who played it can take the pile of cards which is in front of him in his hand, and put his previous hand at that place (that's a swap).
Joker
Joker is the most interesting, but also the most fragile card of the game. Depending on when this card is played, the obtained effect isn't the same :
- When a war should have taken place, it is cancelled and the player who played the joker wins the trick
- If no war should have taken place, however, joker imposes a forced war. In other words, it's an unconditionnal war regardless of other cards played.
- If two or more jokers are played in the same trick, their effects are ignored; there is no forced war, neither cancelled one.
Keyboard shortcuts
- R: remind current rules
- T: tell who has already played and who didn't yet played in the current trick
- E: tell the number of cards owned by each player
- C: announce cards chosen by other players (valid only after having played a queen)