Beleaguered Castle
All cards face up, Aces already home. Pure planning, no luck.
How to play Beleaguered Castle
Beleaguered Castle is a solitaire of pure skill. Nothing is hidden and nothing is left to chance once the cards are dealt. The four Aces are taken out first and placed on the foundations: they are the castle. The other 48 cards are dealt face up into eight columns of six. Traditionally the columns are laid out as rows on both sides of the Aces, but they work exactly the same way here.
Goal
Build every foundation up in its suit from Ace to King, until all 52 cards are home.
Turn by turn
- Only the top card of a column can move.
- Put it on a card that is one rank higher. Suit and colour do not matter: a 7 of any suit can go on any 8.
- Any card can go into an empty column.
- Move a card to its foundation when it is the next card for that suit. 2s go up by themselves, since nothing else is ever played on them.
There is no stock, no waste and no free cell. Every card you need is already on the table, so the whole game is about the order of your moves.
Moving several cards
The rules allow one card at a time. To save time, this site lets you move an ordered run together if you could do it card by card with the help of empty columns: one card with no empty column, two with one, four with two, and so on.
Playing on this site
Drag a card, or tap it and then tap where it should go. Double-tap sends a card home or to the best column. Hint suggests a move, Undo has no limit and an Auto-finish button appears when the rest can go home. Keyboard: arrows, Enter and H.
End of the game
You win when all four foundations reach the King. If no move is left, the status bar tells you. About a third of deals can be won, and the best players plan many moves ahead.
Strategy tips
- Look before you move. All cards are face up. Find where the low cards are hidden and which columns cover them before you make the first move.
- Empty one column. A free column is your only free cell. Getting one early, and keeping it as long as possible, is the key to most wins.
- Build long runs on Kings. A King can never move onto another card, so it is a safe base. Build ordered runs on Kings and they stay out of the way.
- Move low cards up evenly. Try to keep the four foundations at a similar height. One suit far behind often means its next card is stuck deep in a column.
- Don't bury the next card you need. Before placing a card, check that it does not cover the 3 or 4 that a foundation is waiting for.
Beleaguered Castle FAQ
Why are the Aces already on the foundations?
That is the rule of Beleaguered Castle: the Aces form the castle in the middle of the table. Every other card is dealt around them.
Does suit matter when building on the columns?
No. Any card can go on a card one rank higher, whatever the suit or colour. Only the foundations follow suit.
What is the difference with Streets and Alleys?
Streets and Alleys is the same game, but the Aces are shuffled in with the other cards instead of starting on the foundations, which makes it harder.
Can every deal be won?
No. Roughly a third of deals can be solved. Since every card is visible, Undo is the perfect tool to test a plan and try again.
