How to Play Towers

In the dramatic tale of Aennin Moonstep, you might have seen mention of a popular card game the elves like to play called Towers. In it, players use cards drawn from a deck to build "towers" of a specific height, the idea being that towers that are less than 21 stones tall is incomplete, where a tower that is more than 21 stones tall is top-heavy and doomed to "busting." While Tanisians are used to face cards such as the Goldsmith, Elder, and Foreman, the game is designed to be playable with an ordinary set of playing cards and can seat up to four players.

Getting Started

To begin, each player is dealt seven cards from the deck (or two if you prefer a longer game; jokers optional!). Then, three cards are drawn and played face up on the table. These three cards are called the Foundation Cards, and will form the base of your tower. Then, each player takes turns playing cards onto the Foundation Cards to build a tower. The height of each tower is represented by the total value of the Foundation Card and the cards played onto it. For example, a tower consisting of a seven and a six played onto a three drawn as a foundation card would be worth 16 points.

Each turn begins with the drawing of a new card to add to your hand before making any other move. Each player can play up to two cards per turn and must play at least one as long as their hand consists of at least four cards.

Scoring and Winning

When a tower's value becomes equal to 21, the last player to play a card onto it is considered to have taken the tower for their own. When this happens, the player chooses one card to take as a Flag card, and adds it to a pile in front of them while adding the remaining cards in the tower to a discard pile next to the deck. After the player claims their flag card, a new card is drawn from the deck to replace the Foundation Card. When the game ends, the player with the most Flag cards in their pile is the winner. In the case of a tie, both players reveal the highest value card in their flag pile. If this fails to break the tie, the victory goes to the player who started later in turn order to compensate for the advantage that comes with playing first.

Legal Moves: When it is Okay to Bust a Tower

While the goal is to build each tower up to 21, there are some important things to remember about moves. In most circumstances, it is illegal to play a card that busts a tower (brings its total point value above 21). However, if you have at least four cards in your hand, you are required to play at least one card before passing your turn. But if you have no cards in your hand that can be legally played, what do you do? Well, you have to bust the tower. Doing so causes all of the cards in the tower, excluding the original foundation card, to be discarded. Busting a tower carries a penalty of one flag card, which you must remove from your flag pile and place into the discard pile.

Special Cards

If--like most people--you have ever looked at a deck of playing cards, you would notice that not every card has a number on it. While most people who've played Blackjack will recognize the role of face cards, I'm going to end this tutorial by explaining them for those who haven't. All Kings, Queens, and Jacks are the equivalent of a 10. Aces, on the other hand, can be used to equal either 1 OR 11. Meanwhile, if you decide to use them, Jokers are wild and can be substituted for a card of any value up to 11.

I hope I've made the rules clear for everyone, but if there's anything that needs clarification, feel free to leave a comment below!