Time War
OBJECTIVE: Played like the card game “War”, the goal is to ultimately collect all cards, by winning cards in matches. High value cards are those with longer musical time values. See below for more.
Time War, aka Keep the Beat — Game Rules
2-6 Players
Age 10+
15-∞ minutes.
We suggest a pre-determined time limit.
SETUP:
Remove Jokers, King of Spades, and 9 of Hearts, for balanced play.
Shuffle the deck, and deal evenly between players, face-down, in entirety. Each player has their own draw pile. This constitutes their ongoing winnings.
GAMEPLAY:
All players say “Keep The Beat” and on “Beat” the top card of every player’s pile is revealed. The player with the highest total musical time value on their card takes all cards played in that match. These cards are added to the bottom of the winner’s pile. Repeat until one winner has amassed all cards.
In case of a tie between cards, players take three cards face-down from their piles, and add them to the pot. Reveal a fourth card on last word of tiebreaker chant "Keep The Beat Now". Highest total musical time value card takes all ten cards. If totals are equal, repeat.
ALTERNATIVE GAMEPLAY:
This version adds an element of choice. Players draw four cards from the top of their pile to form a hand. Choose a card from your hand to play on the last word of the chant. Winner adds the won cards to the bottom of their pile, all players replenish hands from their own piles, and play continues. In case of a tie, players take three cards from their piles, placed face-down as before, and reveal a fourth card chosen from their hand. Winner takes the pot, players replenish their hands, and play continues.
SCORING AND GAME END:
Scoring is unnecessary. The winner is the player who ultimately amasses the entire deck.
It is possible for a game to never end, so setting a timer may be useful. When pausing or stopping a game before the entire deck is reunited, the winner of the moment is the player with the most cards.
OPTIONAL: Use a metronome to guide play.