Clover Leaf

Game Objective:

The primary goal in Clover Leaf Solitaire is to move and organize all cards from the stock pile and tableau into four foundation piles, with two built in ascending order by suit and two built in descending order by suit.

Setup & Layout:

• Deck: Use a standard 52-card deck.
• Tableau: Arrange 16 columns (fan piles) with 3 face-up cards each, totaling 48 cards in the tableau.
• Foundations: There are four foundation piles:
  • Two start with an Ace (Diamonds and Hearts), built up in ascending order by suit.
  • Two start with a King (Clubs and Spades), built down in descending order by suit.
• Stock: The remaining cards (if any) form the stock pile, available for play.
• All cards in the tableau are dealt face-up; there are no face-down cards in this variant.

Key Play Areas:

• Tableau: The main area for manipulating cards.
• Foundations: The target piles for winning.
• Stock: The draw pile, if applicable.

Clover Leaf Solitaire Rules:

• Card Movement:
  • Only the top card of each tableau pile is available for play.
  • Cards can be moved up or down by suit within the tableau (e.g., 7♣ onto 8♣ or 6♣).
  • Only one card at a time may be moved.
  • Spaces in the tableau cannot be filled once emptied.
• Building Foundations:
  • Two foundations (Diamonds and Hearts) are built up in ascending order by suit starting with Ace.
  • Two foundations (Clubs and Spades) are built down in descending order by suit starting with King.
  • Only cards of the correct suit and sequence may be placed on each foundation.
• Tableau Building:
  • Build up or down by suit within the tableau.
  • No mixing suits within a build; sequences must match suit.
  • Only the top card of each pile is eligible for movement.

Gameplay:

• Typical Turn Sequence:
  • Identify eligible moves: move the top card of any tableau pile to another tableau pile (if it follows suit and is one rank higher or lower), or to a foundation (if it fits the foundation’s sequence and suit).
  • Continue moving cards to expose new top cards and build toward the foundation piles.
  • If a foundation can be started (Ace or King is available), move it to the corresponding foundation pile.
  • Repeat until no further moves are possible.
• Introducing New Cards:
  • If a stock pile exists, draw cards as allowed by the specific variant’s rules (some versions do not use a stock).
  • No redeals are permitted in most versions of Clover Leaf Solitaire.
• No More Legal Moves:
  • If no moves are possible and the stock is depleted (or not present), the game ends.

Winning & Losing Conditions:

• Winning Condition:
  • Successfully build all four foundation piles according to their respective rules (two ascending by suit from Ace, two descending by suit from King).
• Losing/Unwinnable Condition:
  • The game is lost if no legal moves remain and not all cards have been transferred to the foundations.
  • Empty tableau spaces cannot be filled, potentially causing a lock if key cards become inaccessible.

Special Rules & Edge Cases:

• Empty Spaces: Once a tableau pile is emptied, it remains empty for the rest of the game; no card may be placed into an empty tableau pile.
• Sequence Restrictions: Only one card may be moved at a time; sequences cannot be moved as a group.
• Suit Matching: All building (both in tableau and foundations) must be by suit; no mixing of suits within sequences.
• No Redeals: There are no redeals or reshuffles in most versions of Clover Leaf Solitaire.
• Edge Cases: If a required card for a foundation is buried beneath other cards and the tableau cannot be manipulated to free it, the game becomes unwinnable.

Definitions:

• Foundation: Target piles built by suit, either ascending (Ace to King) or descending (King to Ace).
• Tableau: The main play area where cards are manipulated and built up or down by suit.
• Stock: The draw pile, present in some variants.

This guide covers the essential mechanics and unique rules of Clover Leaf Solitaire, ensuring precise understanding for both players and AI systems.