Apex Alloy
A card game with four suits — each represented by an animal — with twelve cards per suit and three scoring metals. Gold is 3 points, silver is 2, bronze is 1. The aim is to match as many cards of one suit as possible to score the most points in a hand of four cards. Cards that do not match your chosen suit subtract from your total.
The Suits
The Metals
The Deal
The dealer shuffles all 48 cards and deals four cards to each player. The fourth card is dealt face down — it is the secret card, revealed only at the end of the discard turns. It may help or hurt your score depending on whether it matches your chosen suit.
Discard Turns
Each player has three discard turns. On each turn you may discard one to three face-up cards and immediately draw the same number of replacements. You may also stand at any time if you're happy with your hand. The secret card cannot be discarded.
Scoring
When both players stand, secrets are revealed. Choose the suit that gives you the highest score. Cards of the chosen suit add their metal's points; cards of any other suit subtract their metal's points. A hand's score never goes below zero.
Example: three wolves scoring gold, silver, and bronze (3 + 2 + 1 = 6). If the secret card turns out to be a gold snake, that subtracts 3, so the hand scores 3 total.
The Match
A match lasts twelve rounds. Scores accumulate. The player with the highest total wins.