Rules for Aces High

Family: Aces High
Categories: Simple, Small, Short
Variants:
Also Known As: Aces Up, Firing Squad, Idiot's Delight

This is a very simple game, suitable for children or for those times when you need to turn your mind off and relax. Because of its tiny layout, it’s also a good game to play on your lap or on small trays during trips. Its name comes from the fact that Aces rank high, above Kings: this is normal in most card games but is unusual in solitaire, where Aces are usually the lowest rank. It is easy to learn and play, but there is not much room for strategy and wins are rare.

Layout

There are four tableaus and a discard pile, all of which start out empty. Keep the deck in your hand for dealing.

Play

Deal four cards, face up, one onto each tableau pile. If two or more of those cards have the same suit, move the lower-ranked ones onto the discard. When you can make no more moves, deal four more cards onto the tableaus, fanned down so that you can see the cards underneath.

Only the topmost card of each tableau is available. Continue to move cards to the discard if they match the suit of any higher-ranked available card. If a pile is emptied, you must fill it with an available card from another tableau before you can deal again.

Dealing

Click the deck to deal four cards onto the tableaus. You may not deal if any tableaus are empty that could be filled from other tableaus.

Goal

Because Aces are high, they cannot be discarded. The goal is to complete the game with all other cards discarded, and the Aces laid out neatly, one in each tableau.

Tips

No tips, sorry! This game doesn’t offer many options to choose from and, to be honest, we’ve never had a clue of how to play it intelligently.