Rules for Klondike Strict

Family: Klondike
Categories: Popular
Variants: Klondike Familiar, Klondike Easy, Double Klondike,Gargantua,Thumb and Pouch
Also Known As: Chinaman, Demon Patience, Fascination, Triangle, incorrectly called Canfield

If you only know one solitaire game, Klondike is probably the one. Many people are unaware of its name and simply call it “Solitaire.” There are several variants of this popular game; this is the strict or “casino” version. It’s quite difficult and you can expect to lose at least $5 per game on average. If you develop a strategy that lets you win money over the course of a couple of hundred games, please let us know how you did it!

Layout

There are four foundations, which are initially empty. There are seven tableau piles, fanned down. The first tableau starts with one card, the second with two cards, and so on to the seventh, which starts with seven cards. The top card of each tableau is face up and the rest are face down. The remaining cards are kept face down in the hand.

Play

Tableaus build down, alternating red and black. The top card of the wastepile and full builds from the tableaus may be built onto the tableaus. Only Kings or builds whose bottom card is a King may be played to an empty tableau pile.

Foundations build up in suit. Top cards of tableaus and wastepile are available for building onto the foundations. Only an Ace may be played to an empty foundation.

Dealing

You may deal at any time by taking one card from the hand and turning it face up onto the wastepile. There are no redeals: when the hand is empty, dealing is no longer allowed.

Goal

The goal is to move all the cards onto the foundations. Solitaire Till Dawn uses casino scoring by charging $52 a game, and paying back $5 for every card played to the foundations. (It’s not real money, so don’t worry!)

Tips

Build the foundations evenly: don’t play up a black 8 until you’re sure you won’t need to put a red 7 on it to make progress in the tableaus.
Play cards from the hand before playing from the tableau.
Try to place Kings in empty tableau piles; an unplaced King in the discard pile can block everything below it.
Try hard to expose face down cards.