Objective
Move all 52 cards to four foundation piles, one per suit, each built up in order from ace to king. With every card face up from the start, there is no luck after the shuffle. Each deal is a puzzle you can study before making a single move.
Setup
Leave a column down the middle of the table for the four foundations. They start empty, and each ace goes there when it comes free.
Deal the cards face up in rows, four rows to the left of the center column and four to the right. Deal across, one card to each row in turn, left side then right side, until the deck is gone. The four left rows end up with seven cards each and the four right rows with six. Overlap the cards in each row so you can see every one, with the outer end of each row (the end farthest from the center) on top.
How to play
Only the outermost card of each row is available. You can move it to a foundation, if it is the ace or the next card up in that suit. You can move it onto the outer card of another row, if that card is exactly one rank higher; suit and color do not matter, so a six of hearts can go on any seven. Or you can move it into an empty row.
Any available card can fill an empty row. Empty rows are your most valuable tool, since they give you somewhere to park a card while you dig out the one beneath it.
Cards move one at a time. There is no stock and no redeal; everything you need is already on the table. The game ends when every card is home or no useful moves remain.
- 1Look at the outer card of each row
- 2Move it to a foundation if it fits
- 3Or place it on a card one rank higher, any suit
- 4Use empty rows as parking spaces
- 5Repeat until all cards are home or you are stuck
Winning
You win when all four foundations run from ace to king. There is no point score. If you get stuck, count the cards on the foundations and try to beat that number next time.
Not every deal can be solved, even with every card visible. Getting most of the deck home is a solid result.
Variations
Beleaguered Castle: take out the four aces before dealing and start the foundations with them, then deal the other 48 cards into eight rows of six. With the aces already home, it is the easier of the two games.
Citadel: deal as for Beleaguered Castle, but any card that could go to a foundation during the deal goes there straight away, instead of into its row.
For a harder test, try deciding your whole game in your head before you move a card, since nothing in the layout is hidden.
Tips from the table
Before you move anything, find the four aces and the twos. The game turns on how fast you can free them.
Treat empty rows as precious. Fill one only when the move clearly gets you closer to an ace or a foundation card, and try to clear another soon after.
Avoid burying low cards. Every card you add to a row makes the cards beneath it harder to reach, so think twice before building on a row that hides an ace or a two.
Since building ignores suit, you often have several places to put a card. Choose the one that keeps the most rows short.
Video Guides Are on the Way
We’re filming Game Guides that walk through full hands at the table, from the deal to the score.
Frequently asked
Which cards can I move?
Only the card at the outer end of each row, the one farthest from the foundations in the middle.
Does suit matter when building on the rows?
No. Any card can go on a card one rank higher, whatever the suit or color. Suit only matters on the foundations.
Can I move several cards at once?
No. Cards move one at a time. Empty rows let you move a run in steps.
How is it different from Beleaguered Castle?
In Beleaguered Castle the aces are placed as foundations before the deal. In Streets and Alleys they are dealt into the rows with everything else and must be dug out.
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