Crescendo

Deal 52 cards (or 36 if three play. For 2 players, see below) ranking AKQJT9876(5432). Deal them all out in ones. If five play, discard the odd two. The objective is to win tricks of higher rather than lower value. The player with the highest number of points, wins. Dealer's left-hand neighbour leads to the first trick. You must follow suit if you can, but may otherwise play any card. The trick is taken by the highest card of the suit led and the winner of each trick leads to the next. Each trick is worth a different value, with values ascending, then dropping in value, then ascending again over the course of 10-13 tricks (depending on player count).

Players: 2–5 best 3
Playing time: 15–45 min
Age: 8+
Complexity: 2 / 5