Spider Solitaire

The layout

Use two decks, 104 cards. Deal ten columns: the first four get six cards, the rest get five. Only the bottom card of each column is face up.

The remaining 50 cards are the stock, dealt out later in rows of ten.

Goal

Build eight complete sequences running king down to ace in a single suit. Each one you finish is removed from the table. Clear all eight and you have won.

What you can move

• A single card goes onto any card one higher, regardless of suit. A red nine may sit on a black ten.
• A run only moves as a block if it is in sequence and all one suit.
• An empty column takes any card or any movable run.
• Turning over a face-down card is free.

Mixing suits is legal and often necessary, but it builds a pile you cannot move later. Every off-suit placement is a debt.

Dealing from the stock

When you are stuck, deal one card face up onto every column at once. There are five such deals in the stock.

The rule that catches people: you cannot deal while any column is empty. You must fill it first, even with a card you would rather not move.

One suit, two suits, four suits

One suit uses eight copies of a single suit. Every run moves as a block, so it is a gentle introduction and usually winnable.

Two suits is the sensible middle. Four suits is the real game and is lost far more often than won.

What to do first

• Build in suit whenever you have the choice, even if an off-suit move looks tidier now.
• Emptying a column is worth more than almost anything else. Go for the shortest one.
• Turn face-down cards over early, while you still have room to work.
• Before dealing a new row, use the moves you have. A deal on a messy board usually ends the game.

Questions