Ultimate Book of Card Games: The Comprehensive Guide to More Than 350 Games (26 page)

When you’ve exhausted all moves, turn up the topmost stock card, and remove a pair, if possible. Otherwise, place the card face up in a waste pile (the topmost waste card may always be played). Once you exhaust the stock, pick up the waste pile and turn it over (do not shuffle) to form a new stock. You may redeal in this manner a total of two times.

1. DIFFICULTY
   :
   medium
   
2. TIME LENGTH
   :
   short
   
3. DECKS
   : 2
   

Queen of Italy is a member of Solitaire’s “variable foundations” family of games, in which the starting rank of the foundations varies from hand to hand. This makes it difficult to win. If you succeed more than once in every ten games you are doing very well.

HOW TO DEAL
Start with two fifty-two-card decks (104 cards total), and deal eleven cards face up, each card slightly overlapping the previous one. This is your reserve.

Next, deal four cards face up, and select one as your first foundation. The card you choose determines the rank for the other seven foundation cards in the game (the idea is to nominate a foundation card that works well with the eleven cards already in your reserve). Now deal six additional cards face up, for a total of nine tableau cards and one foundation. The remaining cards are your stock.

WINNING
Build eight foundations by alternating color in ascending rank so that each pile ends with thirteen cards total. This game allows
continuous ranking
.

HOW TO PLAY
The starting rank of your foundations will vary from game to game, based on the card you select at the start of the hand. Move the other seven cards of matching rank to the foundations as they become available.

Play the topmost tableau cards to the foundations, or use them to build on other tableau piles by alternating color in descending rank. Fill vacancies immediately with a card from the stock. You may move cards within the tableau one at a time only, not in groups. Use the topmost reserve card to build directly on a foundation pile (you may not use reserve cards to build on the tableau).

When all moves are exhausted, turn up a stock card and play it to a foundation or tableau pile, or leave it face up in a waste pile (the topmost waste card may always be played). There is no redeal—the game ends when the stock is exhausted.

1. DIFFICULTY
   :
   low
   
2. TIME LENGTH
   :
   short
   
3. DECKS
   : 2
   

There’s not much to this game—it’s a straightforward red-on-black building game, with decent odds of winning (roughly 1 in every 5 hands). It’s included here mainly because it was purportedly the favorite Solitaire game of Frank Sinatra.

HOW TO DEAL
Start with two fifty-two-card decks (104 cards total), place the eight aces face up as your foundations, then shuffle and deal eight cards face up in a row. This is your tableau.

WINNING
Build eight foundations in alternating color and ascending rank from ace to king.

HOW TO PLAY
Play only the topmost tableau cards to the foundations, or use them to build on another tableau pile in alternating color and descending rank. (To clarify, you build ascending to foundations, and descending to the tableau.) Immediately fill tableau vacancies with the topmost waste card or, if the waste pile is empty, the topmost stock card.

You may move cards as groups within the tableau as long as they’re grouped in proper sequence and color. When all moves are exhausted, turn up a stock card and play it to the foundations or tableau, or leave it face up in a waste pile (the topmost waste card may always be played). There is no redeal—the game ends when the stock is exhausted.

1. DIFFICULTY
   :
   medium
   
2. TIME LENGTH
   :
   short
   
3. DECKS
   : 2
   

If you’ve played Mount Olympus or Calculation, you will instantly recognize Royal Cotillion. The games share an “every second card” foundation-building scheme. This feature, plus the fact that you may not build on the Royal Cotillion tableau, gives the game an added layer of difficulty. The odds of winning are 1 in every 9 hands.

HOW TO DEAL
Start with two fifty-two-card decks (104 cards total), and deal four rows of four cards each, all face up, for a total of sixteen cards. This is your tableau. Next, deal four piles of three cards each, all face up and with the cards
fanned
. This is your reserve.

WINNING
Build eight foundations in total, four ascending by suit from ace to queen, skipping every second card (A, 3, 5, 7, 9, J, K, 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, Q), four ascending by suit from 2 to king, also skipping every second card (2, 4, 6, 8, 10, Q, A, 3, 5, 7, 9, J, K).

HOW TO PLAY
Move aces and 2s to the foundations as they become available. Use tableau cards only to build directly on the foundations. In Royal Cotillion, you may not build on the tableau, ever. Fill any tableau vacancies immediately with the topmost waste card or, if the waste pile is empty, with the topmost stock card.