Chequers

Game Objective:

The primary objective in Chequers Solitaire is to move all 104 cards (using two standard 52-card decks) to the eight foundation piles—four built up from Ace to King by suit, and four built down from King to Ace by suit. The game is won when all cards are correctly placed in these foundations.

Setup & Layout:

• Deck: Two standard 52-card decks (total 104 cards).
• Tableau: 25 tableau piles, each initially containing four cards dealt face up.
• Reserve: One reserve pile, containing the last four cards dealt face down.
• Foundations: Eight foundation piles, initially empty:
• Four Ace foundations (one per suit), to be built up by suit from Ace to King.
• Four King foundations (one per suit), to be built down by suit from King to Ace.
• Play Area Summary:
• Tableau: 25 piles, each with four face-up cards.
• Reserve: One pile with four face-down cards, only the top card accessible.
• Foundations: Eight piles (four for Aces, four for Kings), all empty at start.

Chequers Solitaire Rules:

• Card Movement:
• Only the top card of each tableau pile or the reserve is available for play.
• Only one card may be moved at a time.
• Building Foundations:
• Ace Foundations: Build up by suit from Ace to King (e.g., Ace♠, 2♠, …, King♠).
• King Foundations: Build down by suit from King to Ace (e.g., King♥, Q♥, …, Ace♥).
• Each foundation must be started with a unique suit; only one foundation per suit in each direction.
• Tableau Building:
• Build up or down by suit (e.g., 9♣ onto 8♣ or 10♣).
• Wrap-around is allowed: Ace may be placed on King, and King on Ace, when building in the tableau.
• Only the top card of a tableau pile is available to move.
• Reserve:
• Only the top card is available for play.
• Once emptied, the reserve remains empty.

Gameplay:

• On each turn, the player may:
• Move the top card of any tableau pile or the reserve to a foundation, if legal.
• Move the top card of a tableau pile to another tableau pile, if legal.
• Move the top card of the reserve to a tableau pile, if legal.
• Filling Empty Tableau Piles:
• When a tableau pile becomes empty, immediately fill it with the top card from the reserve.
• If the reserve is empty, any single card may be moved to fill an empty tableau pile.
• No Further Moves:
• If no legal moves remain and not all cards are in the foundations, the game is lost.

Winning & Losing Conditions:

• Winning Condition: All 104 cards are successfully moved to the eight foundation piles (four built up from Ace to King by suit, four built down from King to Ace by suit).
• Losing/Unwinnable Condition: No legal moves remain and not all cards are in the foundations.

Special Rules & Edge Cases:

• Filling Empty Tableau Piles:
• Always refill an empty tableau pile immediately with the top card of the reserve, if available.
• After the reserve is depleted, any single card (from tableau or reserve) may fill an empty tableau pile.
• Wrap-around Building in Tableau:
• Building can "wrap around" in the tableau: Ace may be placed on King, and King on Ace, as long as the suit matches.
• Foundation Suit Restriction:
• Only one foundation per suit in each direction (Ace-up and King-down).
• No Redeal:
• There is no redeal or recycling of cards; play continues until no moves remain or all cards are in the foundations.
• Single Card Movement:
• Only one card may be moved at a time; sequences cannot be moved together.

Definitions of Key Terms:

• Tableau: The main play area with 25 piles, each holding four face-up cards at the start.
• Foundations: Eight piles where cards are built up or down by suit (four Ace-up, four King-down).
• Reserve: A single pile of four face-down cards, only the top card accessible for play.

This ruleset provides a comprehensive and semantically precise guide for playing Chequers Solitaire according to the most authoritative available sources.