Card Game 101 #2: Spider Solitaire

Spider Solitaire is a great card game for one, just like Solitaire. The game requires strategy, analysis, a huge pile of patience, and some luck to win. Read on to learn the basics of the card game Spider Solitaire.

✔ Two 52-card decks (you won't even be able to do the setup if you only have one deck)

✔ 1 player (that's you)

Set up the game by creating 10 piles of cards. First, deal five cards to each pile, for a total of 50 cards. Next, deal one more card to each of the four leftmost piles. Flip up the top card of each pile. Place the remaining deck (of 50 cards) to the side as a "stock" pile. All piles must be fanned down throughout the game.

The objective of Spider Solitaire is to remove all the cards from the tableau. Cards can be removed once they are arranged in descending order from king to ace. Depending on the difficulty level, these cards may also need to be of the same color or the same suit.

During gameplay, you move cards between tableau piles with the goal of creating sequences in descending order. A card can be moved from one pile to another if it is one rank lower than the card it is being moved onto, regardless of color or suit. For example, a 5 can be placed on top of a 6. You can also move a sequence of cards (called a "run") from one pile to another, as long as the highest ranking card of the run satisfies the aforementioned requirement. If a face-down card becomes open (no cards are on top of it), it can be flipped up. When no more moves can be made on the tableau, deal one card face-up to each pile from the stock, for a total of 10 cards. Play then continues.

Cards can be removed from the tableau once they are arranged in descending order from king to ace. In the medium difficulty version, the cards must also be in the same color (all red or all black) in order to be removed. In the hard difficulty version, the cards must also be in the same suit (all spades/hearts/clubs/diamonds) in order to be removed.

If you manage to remove all the cards from the tableau, the game is won.

If you get stuck with no more available moves, and there are no cards in the stock pile, the game is lost.

✔ You cannot deal new cards from the stock pile if any tableau pile is empty.

✔ If a tableau pile becomes empty, any card (or run of cards) can be moved to that pile.

✔ Once a sequence of cards is removed from the tableau, it cannot be brought back in.

✔ You can move a card onto another card that is one rank higher regardless of color or suit, even in the medium and hard versions.

✔ In the medium and hard versions of the game, you are allowed to move a run of cards only if all cards in the run are of the same color (medium) or the same suit (hard).

Not every game of Spider Solitaire can be won, but these tips will most likely increase your chances of winning:

✔ Before removing sequences of cards with very few cards on the tableau AND with cards still remaining in the stock pile, make sure there are enough (at least 10) cards left after the sequence is removed in order to be able to deal new cards.

✔ In the medium and hard versions of the game, cards of the same color (medium) or suit (hard) should always be prioritized when moving between piles. If you have a lot of different colored or suited cards in one pile, you will struggle to make moves and turn over face-down cards.

✔ This one is more like a piece of advice rather than a tip. Remember that if you play harder versions, the odds of getting a victory will decrease significantly. So if you lose multiple games in a row on medium or hard difficulty, do not rage or feel discouraged. This will only hurt you and will by no means help you win the next game. If you yearn for a victory after several losses on medium or hard, play the easy version.

The next blog in this series will be about the card game Crazy Eights. Expect it to come in a few days.