If you like card games that are quick to learn but still let you outsmart your friends, Bridge War is going to be right up your alley. It’s a mix of two classics: the brainy teamwork of Bridge and the quick play of War, all in one easy game. You can play it around a table with a deck of cards or online with just a few clicks.
Bridge War takes the teamwork and strategy of Bridge and makes it super simple to pick up. You do not need to know how to bid or memorize complicated rules. Instead, you jump right into the action and you will know how to play in about a minute.
It is perfect for when you want a game that is quick but still lets you think ahead and plan sneaky moves.
You need four players, one standard deck of 52 cards (no jokers). Split into two teams of two. The person sitting across from you is your partner. Shuffle the cards well before you start.
The youngest player is the first Dealer. Or, you can “cut for deal” by shuffling the deck and having everyone pick a card. The highest card deals first.
The Dealer deals out one card at a time, face down, to each player, going clockwise, until everyone has 13 cards. If it is hard to hold all the cards, there are some great card holders you can use. Click here for an Amazon Affiliate Link.
For the next hand, the player to the left of the Dealer becomes the new Dealer. This is important because the person to the Dealer’s left always gets to Lead..
The player to the left of the Dealer plays the first card. This is called the LEAD and that person is the LEADER. Everyone has to play the same suit if they can. If you do not have that suit, you can play anything else, but it will not win the trick unless your group decides to use a “trump suit” rule. See more on Trump Suit later.
Here is the twist: after the first card is played, the Dealer’s partner, called the “dummy,” puts all their cards face-up on the table. The Dealer now plays both their own cards and the dummy’s cards for the rest of the hand. Crazy, huh?
The Leader leads a card, Dummy is placed face up on the table, the Dealer now calls a card from the Dummy. Something like this: “Play the 3 of spades please.” then the person your Dealer’s right plays a card, and then Dealer plays a card – the highest card wins the ‘trick’.
The person who won the trick gets to make the next lead. If the Dummy won the trick, the next lead needs to come from the Dummy.
Play always moves left or clockwise.
A “trick” is when all four players have put down one card. The highest card in the suit that was led wins the trick. Aces are the best, then Kings, Queens, Jacks, and so on.
The first team to win seven tricks wins that duel. The cards are gathered up, shuffled, and the next Dealer deals the cards for a new duel.
One battle is made up of four duels, and if your team wins three duels, you win the battle.
In bridge war, players must follow suit, and the highest card wins the trick. But you can choose to add Trump suits to the game which will make it a bit more interesting.
Choose the Trump Suit Before Play Starts
The easiest way is to agree on a trump suit for the whole duel before the first card is played.
You could pick it randomly by flipping over the top card of the deck after dealing — whatever suit is shown becomes trump for that duel. What I suggest would be to call Clubs as the first trump, Diamonds as trump in the next hand, Hearts as trump in the third hand, and Spades as trump in the 4th hand. Then you could play a 5th hand without trumps called NoTrump.
How Trump Works
If you cannot follow the suit that was led, you may play a trump card instead. Any trump card beats any card of another suit, no matter the rank. The only card that can beat a trump card in a trick is a higher trump card.
If more than one trump card is played in a trick, the highest trump card wins.
Example
Hearts are trump. Someone leads with the King of Clubs.
You do not have any clubs, so you play the 2 of Hearts.
Even though it is a low card, your 2 of Hearts wins the trick unless someone plays a higher heart.
Why Use Trump?
It adds more chances to win tricks even when you don’t have the lead suit.
If you do not have a full group of friends nearby, you can play Bridge War online at BridgeWar.com for FREE
The online game has the same rules but lets you play against bots or challenge your friends. There is even a built-in guide that explains everything as you play, so you can learn while having fun.
No shuffling, no dealing, and no cleaning up — just click “start” and get playing.
It works for total beginners and for players who already know card games well.
Bridge War is fast, fun, and has just the right amount of thinking involved. You can play it at the table with friends or hop online for a quick match.
So grab a deck or open your browser, your next battle for seven tricks is about to begin. Are you ready to win the Bridge War?
BridgeWar is played FREE on the RealBridge platform, and promoted by the American Contract Bridge League (ACBL).
How to Play Bridge War online – PDF
How to Play Bridge War at home with a deck of cards – PDF
