"It's a strategy game," Yuugi said, "Where two or more players face off against each other in order to capture territory from their opponents. They summon monsters which can be used as troops, and each troop type has their distinct advantages and disadvantages."

He arranged the cards in four piles.

"Eventually each nation will have an ace, but I'm still fine-tuning the base rules."

He pointed to each pile in turn.

"Dragons, Tree Folk, Fiends, and Humans. I'm adding more as I go."

He went over the more intricate rules, next: how attacks worked, how to find weapons on the battlefield and use them to your advantage, how to conquer territory. How to form (and break) alliances with other players.

This was a game of wits rather than of brute strength: a game against strategists rather than warriors.

"Mokuba tends to play as the humans, and I usually use the Fiends. We can deal you in as the Dragons."