Solitaire (Klondike)
Overview
Klondike Solitaire is the classic single-player card game where you build foundation piles from Ace to King by suit, using a tableau of seven columns.
Status: 🔜 Coming Soon
Players: 1
Difficulty: Easy
Deck: 1 standard 52-card deck
Objective
Move all 52 cards to the four foundation piles, building each suit from Ace to King.
Rules
Layout
Tableau: Seven columns of cards
- Column 1: 1 card (face up)
- Column 2: 2 cards (1 face down, 1 face up)
- Column 3: 3 cards (2 face down, 1 face up)
- Column 4: 4 cards (3 face down, 1 face up)
- Column 5: 5 cards (4 face down, 1 face up)
- Column 6: 6 cards (5 face down, 1 face up)
- Column 7: 7 cards (6 face down, 1 face up)
Stock: Remaining 24 cards face down
Waste: Cards drawn from stock
Foundation: Four empty piles (one for each suit)
Building Rules
Tableau:
- Build down in alternating colors
- Example: Red 7 on Black 8, Black 6 on Red 7
- Only Kings can be placed in empty columns
- Can move sequences of cards together
Foundation:
- Build up by suit from Ace to King
- Example: A♠, 2♠, 3♠, 4♠, etc.
- Must start with Ace
Moving Cards
- Tableau to Tableau: Build down, alternating colors
- Tableau to Foundation: Build up by suit
- Stock to Waste: Draw cards (1 or 3 at a time)
- Waste to Tableau: Top card only
- Waste to Foundation: Top card only
- Foundation to Tableau: Allowed but rarely useful
How to Play
Step 1: Setup
- Deal 28 cards into 7 tableau columns as described above
- Place remaining 24 cards face down as stock
- Leave space for 4 foundation piles
Step 2: Make Initial Moves
- Look for Aces to start foundation piles
- Build down on tableau in alternating colors
- Flip face-down cards when top card is moved
Step 3: Draw from Stock
- Click stock to draw cards to waste pile
- Draw 1 mode: Draw one card at a time
- Draw 3 mode: Draw three cards at a time (harder)
- Can cycle through stock unlimited times
Step 4: Build Foundations
- Move Aces to foundation piles immediately
- Build up each suit: A, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, J, Q, K
- Double-click cards to auto-move to foundation (if available)
Step 5: Manage Tableau
- Create empty columns by moving Kings
- Uncover face-down cards
- Build long sequences to free up cards
- Plan moves ahead
Step 6: Win Condition
- All 52 cards in foundation piles = You win!
- No more moves available = Game over
Strategy Tips
General Strategy
- Expose face-down cards first - Priority #1
- Don’t rush to foundation - Keep cards in tableau for building
- Empty columns are valuable - Use for Kings only
- Plan ahead - Think 2-3 moves ahead
- Aces and 2s to foundation - Safe to move immediately
Advanced Tips
- Keep color balance - Don’t block yourself with same colors
- Build evenly - Don’t build one suit too high
- Use undo wisely - Learn from mistakes
- Cycle stock carefully - Remember what’s coming
- Kings in empty columns - Choose wisely which King to place
Common Mistakes
- Moving cards to foundation too early - May need them for building
- Filling empty columns with wrong King - Blocks future moves
- Not planning ahead - Random moves lead to dead ends
- Ignoring face-down cards - Always prioritize uncovering
- Giving up too early - Many games are winnable with patience
Scoring (Optional)
Standard Scoring
- Waste to Tableau: 5 points
- Waste to Foundation: 10 points
- Tableau to Foundation: 10 points
- Turn over tableau card: 5 points
- Foundation to Tableau: -15 points (penalty)
- Recycle waste: -100 points (Draw 3 mode)
Time Bonus
- Timed mode: Bonus points for faster completion
- Standard time: 10 minutes
- Bonus: Points decrease over time
Vegas Scoring
- Buy-in: -52 points
- Each card to foundation: +5 points
- Win: +52 points (net 0)
- Goal: Maximize profit over multiple games
Implementation Details
Planned Features
- 🔜 Classic Klondike layout
- 🔜 Draw 1 and Draw 3 modes
- 🔜 Drag and drop interface
- 🔜 Auto-move to foundation (double-click)
- 🔜 Undo/Redo moves
- 🔜 Hint system
- 🔜 Timer and scoring
- 🔜 Statistics (games played, won, win rate)
- 🔜 Daily challenges
- 🔜 Themes and card backs
API Endpoints
GET https://deckofcardsapi.com/api/deck/new/shuffle/?deck_count=1
GET https://deckofcardsapi.com/api/deck/{deck_id}/draw/?count=28 # Tableau
GET https://deckofcardsapi.com/api/deck/{deck_id}/draw/?count=24 # Stock
Technical Implementation
class SolitaireGame {
final String deckId;
final List<List<CardModel>> tableau; // 7 columns
final List<List<CardModel>> foundation; // 4 piles
final List<CardModel> stock;
final List<CardModel> waste;
final int moves;
final int score;
final Duration elapsed;
final SolitaireDrawMode drawMode; // draw1 or draw3
}
class CardModel {
final String code;
final String suit;
final String value;
final bool isFaceUp;
final bool isInFoundation;
final int tableauColumn;
final int foundationPile;
}
enum SolitaireDrawMode { draw1, draw3 }
Algorithms Needed
- Valid Move Detection: Check if move is legal
- Auto-Complete: Detect when game is won
- Hint System: Suggest best next move
- Undo/Redo: Track move history
- Win Detection: Check if game is solvable
Variations
Draw 1 vs Draw 3
- Draw 1: Easier, draw one card at a time from stock
- Draw 3: Harder, draw three cards at a time, only top card playable
Thoughtful Solitaire
- All cards face up from the start
- Pure strategy, no luck
- Much harder to win
Vegas Solitaire
- Draw 3 mode only
- Limited stock cycles (usually 3)
- Scoring based on money won/lost
Statistics
Win Rate
- Draw 1: ~30% winnable with perfect play
- Draw 3: ~10% winnable with perfect play
- Average player: Much lower win rate
Average Game Time
- Quick game: 3-5 minutes
- Average game: 8-12 minutes
- Difficult game: 15-20 minutes
Glossary
- Tableau: Seven columns of cards in the main playing area
- Foundation: Four piles where you build suits from Ace to King
- Stock: Face-down pile of undealt cards
- Waste: Face-up pile of cards drawn from stock
- Build: Place cards in descending order
- Sequence: Multiple cards that can be moved together
- Face-down card: Card showing back design
- Face-up card: Card showing rank and suit
- Empty column: Tableau column with no cards (only Kings allowed)