Terms.Law · TrialCraft

TrialCraft

Solo courtroom strategy card game. Draft evidence, examine witnesses, persuade the jury.

Original game by Terms.Law. Pick a case. Build a deck. Out-argue an AI opponent across six witness rounds. Win the jury before the opponent controls the narrative.

One game runs roughly 8-15 minutes. Works on phone and desktop.
Phase 1 · Case Intake
Case
Read the brief, then start discovery

Case File

Case Title

Sides

  • You (Player):
  • Opponent (AI):

Legal Themes

Win Condition

Sway the jury. Final juror lean of +8 is a strong win, +3 to +7 a narrow win, -2 to +2 a settlement, and -3 or lower is a loss.

Opponent Style

AI

How a round works

In Phase 2 (Discovery) you draft a deck from 24 cards. In Phase 3 (Trial) six witnesses appear. For each witness, you and the AI play chained cards into examination lines. Total influence wins the round and moves jurors. Strongest jury lean at the end wins.

Phase 2 · Discovery Draft
Keep one. Give one to the opponent. Bury one out of the case.
Draft 1 / 8
Progress
0 / 8
Tip: Keep cards that match your case themes. Bury cards that would help the opponent more than they help you. Give your opponent low-value cards or cards that conflict with their style.
Phase 3 · Trial
Witness round
Witness 1 / 6
👤
Witness
Credibility: 7 / 10
Opponent Line0 inf
No cards played yet.
Your Line0 inf
Play a card from your hand below.
Energy: 5 / 5 Hand: 0 Deck: 0 Jury Lean: 0
Your Hand · Tap a card to inspect
Verdict
Final juror lean: 0
Verdict

Final Jury Position

Game Stats

    Legal Takeaway

    This game is educational and fictional. It is not legal advice. Real deadlines, claims, defenses, and remedies depend on facts and jurisdiction. I'm Sergei Tokmakov, a California attorney, CA Bar #279869.
    About TrialCraft, Solo Courtroom Strategy Game

    What this game teaches

    TrialCraft is a free solo courtroom strategy card game I built for Terms.Law. It is not a simulator of any specific case, court, or rule of evidence. It is an exercise in the same instinct a litigator uses every day: take a stack of raw facts, decide which ones to lean on, decide which ones to set aside, and build them into a coherent line of argument that a juror can actually follow.

    The five tag system, FACT, LAW, EQUITY, MONEY, and CREDIBILITY, is a simplified mirror of how I sort evidence in a real demand letter or arbitration brief. Documents and timeline records carry FACT. Statutes and contract language carry LAW. Equitable arguments like estoppel, unjust enrichment, and bad faith carry EQUITY. Dollar figures and damages carry MONEY. And anything that boosts or attacks a witness, signed statements, photos, video, an attorney letterhead, carries CREDIBILITY. When you draft, you are sorting cards into themes. When you play, you are chaining them so the next card builds on the one before it. That is exactly what closing argument looks like when it works.

    Why discovery matters more than the trial

    The discovery phase is the most important part of TrialCraft, and that mirrors real life. The strongest closing argument cannot save a case where the underlying record is thin. If you give your opponent the wrong card during the draft, or bury a fact you actually needed, you will feel it later. Pick one keep, give one to the opponent, bury one. Eight rounds. That is the choice that decides most real disputes long before anyone files anything.

    Three real-world dispute archetypes

    I picked three case types because they are the most common matters that walk through my door at Terms.Law: a security deposit dispute, a startup founder equity dispute, and a breach of contract or unpaid invoice. Each one has a different evidence profile and a different opponent personality. The Landlord AI fights with MONEY and CREDIBILITY. The Founder AI weaponizes LAW and contract language. The Vendor or Client AI attacks documentation gaps with FACT and MONEY.

    What to do after you play

    If your case loses because you did not have enough FACT cards, that is the game telling you to go organize documents before doing anything else. If your case backfires because you played pressure cards with no foundation, that is the game telling you a real demand letter has to be backed by proof, not threats. If you win cleanly, you have already done the hard part. The rest is letterhead.

    Disclaimer

    TrialCraft is informational and educational. It is not legal advice and does not create an attorney-client relationship. Real cases turn on facts, jurisdiction, deadlines, and procedural posture, none of which a card game can capture. If your situation is real and current, I would be glad to look at the documents.