Chess Handbook

Chess (the "Game of Kings") is a board game for two players, which requires 32 chesspieces (or chessmen) and a board demarcated by 64 squares.

Gameplay does not involve random luck; consisting solely of strategy, (see also tactics, and theory). Chess is one of humanity's more popular games; it is has been described not only as a game, but also as both art and science. Chess is sometimes seen as an abstract wargame; as a "mental martial art".

Playing Cards

A playing card is a typically hand-sized rectangular piece of heavy paper or thin plastic used for playing card games.

Playing cards are often used as props in magic tricks, as well as occult practices such as cartomancy, and a number of card games involve (or can be used to support) gambling. As a result, their use sometimes meets with disapproval from some orthodox religious groups. They are also a popular collectible (as distinct from the cards made specifically for trading card games). Specialty and novelty decks are commonly produced for collectors, often with political, cultural, or educational themes.

Bridge Handbook

Contract bridge, more usually known as Bridge, is a trick-taking card game for four players who form two teams. The players of one team sit opposite one another. Game play is in two phases: bidding and playing.

A number of card games similar to whist can be traced all the way back to the early 16th century. They were all trick-taking games with a variety of minor variations. Whist became the dominant form, and enjoyed a loyal following for centuries.

In the 1890s, the innovation of allowing the dealer to choose a trump suit became popular in the United States and England, and the resultant game was called "bridge whist". In 1904, the concept of using an auction phase to determine which player got to designate the trump suit caught hold, and this variation was known as "auction bridge".