Rules & Setup
How a game of Josephine Solitaire is laid out before the first move: two decks, ten tableau piles, eight foundations and a 64-card stock.
What is on the table
Josephine Solitaire uses four areas. Knowing what each one accepts is most of the game.
| Decks | Two standard decks shuffled together |
|---|---|
| Cards | 104 |
| Tableau piles | 10, four cards each, all face up |
| Foundation piles | 8 — two for every suit |
| Stock | 64 cards, face down |
| Redeal | None. One pass through the stock |
| Tableau builds | Down in the same suit |
| Foundations build | Up in the same suit, Ace to King |
Dealing the game
- Shuffle two standard decks together. This gives you a total of 104 cards.
- Deal four cards facing up into each of the ten tableau piles. This uses 40 cards. The remaining 64 cards are placed facing down to form the stock pile.
- Leave space above the tableau for eight foundation piles. There are two foundation piles for each suit, since the game uses two decks.
The four areas explained
The tableau
Ten piles, four cards each, all face up. Only the card at the bottom of a pile is available, along with any correctly arranged same-suit sequence that ends at the bottom. Piles build downward in the same suit.
The foundations
Eight piles, empty at the start. Each one begins with an Ace and is built upward in a single suit through to the King. Two foundations per suit, because there are two of every card.
The stock
64 face-down cards. Turn them over one at a time, and only when the tableau has nothing left to offer. You get one pass and there is no redeal.
The waste
Where stock cards land face up. Only the top card is available, and it can go to a foundation or to a tableau pile if the move is legal.
How you win
The game is won when all 104 cards have been moved onto the eight foundation piles. Each foundation will contain thirteen cards of the same suit, arranged from Ace to King.
Ready to play?
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