Solitaire is not just a game for the head, but also has an emotional component. Many people enjoy playing the game for hours as it brings back fond memories. Nowadays, Solitaire is even more enjoyable, as it is available to play online with the possibility of winning cash and prizes. If you are familiar with the classic card game, Solitaire, or if you are new to it, read on for a refresher or to learn how to play.
Goal of Solitaire
The objective of Solitaire is to move all cards from the tableau columns to the foundations, in ascending order from ace to king, according to suit, in the shortest amount of time and within the set duration.
Deck
Typically, one or more standard 52-card decks are used in Solitaire. In the classic version of Solitaire, only one 52-card deck is used.
Card Rankings
In Solitaire, the following are the highest ranked cards: King (high), Queen, Jack, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, Ace (low).
Stacks of Cards
Foundation piles
There are four foundations, one for each suit. The four foundation piles are placed above seven empty tableau columns, which must be filled with cards. Aces are placed on the foundations first, followed by cards in ascending order, to create the foundation piles.
Tableau columns
Below the foundations, there are seven tableau columns. The tableau columns become bigger from left to right, and each pile has the same number of cards as the corresponding column number from left to right. For example, the first column has one card, the second column has two cards, and so on, with the seventh column having seven cards.
Stockpile
Once the tableau is set up, the remaining cards are gathered into a stockpile. The stockpile of cards can be drawn from and used during the game.
Waste pile
The waste pile is where cards from the stockpile are placed face up after they have been used in the tableau columns or foundations.
The player who moves all cards to the foundations in the shortest amount of time wins the game.
The Rules of Solitaire
In Solitaire, there are four different types of piles:
- Tableau: This is made up of seven piles and is the main playing area in the game.
- Foundations: The goal is to build up four piles of cards in sequence, from Ace to King, in the same suit. The four suits (Hearts, Diamonds, Spades, and Clubs) are used to build these piles.
- Stock Pile: This is a pile of cards that is used to draw new cards into play. If the entire deck is not laid out in the tableau at the beginning of the game, the remaining cards form the Stock Pile.
- Waste Pile: This is a pile where cards that are not part of the tableau or the foundations are placed face-down.
To set up the tableau, deal one card face-up on the first pile, one card face-down on the next six piles, then one card face-up on the second pile, one card face-down on the next five piles, and so on until the seventh pile has one card face-up on top of a pile of six cards face-down.
Gameplay:
- In Solitaire, cards can be moved from one tableau column to another if the card being moved is of a different color and is one rank higher than the card it is being placed on. For example, a 3 of Hearts or a 3 of Diamonds can only be placed on a 4 of Spades or a 4 of Clubs.
- A king can be moved to an open position in a tableau column to start a new pile, as the face-down cards in tableau columns must be in decreasing order, from kings to aces.
- If there are no more moves possible in the tableau, cards from the Stock Pile can be moved into the tableau. However, moving the Stock Pile more than three times results in a penalty.
- An Ace can only be moved to an empty foundation pile, as the goal is to build up the foundations in ascending order.
- The game is over when there are no more moves to be made or the timer expires. Even if you haven’t moved all the cards to the foundations, you can still win the game if you have scored more points than your opponent.
- The objective of the game is to build sequences in the foundations by moving cards around in the tableau. Certain cards can be played immediately, while others may be blocked by other cards and need to be cleared first.
- When an Ace is discovered in the tableau, it must be moved to a foundation pile. The foundations are built up by suit, from Ace to King.
- Cards in the tableau should be added in sequence, with the Stock Pile used when there are no more moves possible in the tableau. If a card from the Stock Pile cannot be used in the tableau or foundations, it is moved to the Waste Pile and a new card is drawn from the Stock Pile.
- An empty space in the tableau can only be filled by a king, which can be used to unblock other face-down cards in the tableau.
- The game is won by arranging all the cards in the foundations in winning sequences, by moving cards around in the tableau and adding cards from the Stock Pile.
These are the basic rules and strategies of Solitaire. If you have any further questions, feel free to ask.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
The objective of Solitaire is to move all the cards to the foundation piles, where each pile is built up by suit from Ace to King.
In Solitaire, you can only start a foundation pile with an Ace. Once an Ace is placed in a foundation pile, it must be built up by suit from Ace to King.
Solitaire consists of seven tableau piles, also known as the main table. The objective of the game is to move cards from the tableau to the foundation piles.
