Double Aces and Kings

Game Objective:

The primary goal in Double Aces and Kings Solitaire is to build all eight foundation piles: four foundations must be built up from Ace to King, and four must be built down from King to Ace, regardless of suit, using all cards from the deck.

Setup & Layout:

• Decks Used: Four standard 52-card decks (totaling 208 cards) are used for Double Aces and Kings Solitaire, as it is the "double" variant of Aces and Kings.
• Foundations: There are eight foundation piles:
• Four start with an Ace and are built up in rank (A, 2, 3, …, K).
• Four start with a King and are built down in rank (K, Q, J, …, A).
• Tableau: There are eight tableau piles. Each pile is dealt one card, all face up.
• Reserve Piles: There are four reserve piles, each containing thirteen cards dealt face up.
• Stock and Waste: The remaining cards form the stock pile (face down). A waste pile is created as cards are drawn from the stock and cannot be played immediately.
• Play Area Summary:
• Foundations: 8 piles (4 Ace-up, 4 King-down)
• Tableau: 8 piles (1 face-up card each)
• Reserve: 4 piles (13 face-up cards each)
• Stock: Remaining cards, face down
• Waste: Discarded cards from stock, face up

Double Aces and Kings Solitaire Rules:

• Foundations:
• Ace Foundations: Build up in rank from Ace to King, regardless of suit.
• King Foundations: Build down in rank from King to Ace, regardless of suit.
• Tableau:
• Only the top card of each tableau pile is available for play.
• Cards in the tableau can only be moved to a foundation pile or to an empty tableau space.
• Tableau piles are not built upon; they only ever contain one card at a time.
• Reserve:
• Only the top card of each reserve pile is available for play.
• Reserve cards can be played only to the foundations.
• Stock and Waste:
• Cards are drawn one at a time from the stock to the waste.
• The top card of the waste pile is available for play to the foundations or tableau.
• Movement Restrictions:
• Only one card may be moved at a time.
• Cards can be moved from tableau, reserve, or waste to foundations, but not between tableau piles.
• Cards from the tableau may be moved to empty tableau spaces or to the foundations.

Gameplay:

• Turn Sequence:
• Play begins with the tableau and reserve cards available for moves to the foundations.
• If a tableau pile becomes empty, immediately fill it with the top card from the stock.
• Draw cards from the stock, placing each drawn card face up onto the waste pile.
• The top card of the waste pile is available for play to the foundations or tableau.
• Only the top card of each reserve pile, tableau pile, or waste pile may be played at any time.
• Introducing New Cards:
• When a tableau space is emptied, it must be filled immediately with the top card from the stock.
• If the stock is depleted, tableau spaces remain empty.
• No More Moves:
• If no further legal moves can be made and the stock is exhausted, the game ends.

Winning & Losing Conditions:

• Winning Condition: The game is won when all eight foundation piles are completed—four built up from Ace to King and four built down from King to Ace, using all cards from the tableau, reserve, and stock.
• Losing/Unwinnable Condition: The game is lost if the stock is exhausted and no further legal moves are available, with incomplete foundation piles.

Special Rules & Edge Cases:

• Filling Empty Tableau Spaces: Any empty tableau space must be filled immediately with the top card from the stock. If the stock is empty, tableau spaces remain empty for the rest of the game.
• Reserve Pile Restrictions: Only the top card of each reserve pile can be played, and only to the foundations.
• Foundation Transfers: The top card of one foundation pile may be moved to another foundation pile if it continues the sequence correctly (e.g., moving a 4 from one Ace foundation to another if needed).
• No Tableau Building: Tableau piles do not build up or down; they only ever contain a single card, which is replaced when moved.
• Stock Depletion: When the stock runs out, no further cards can be introduced into play. The game must be completed with the cards already in play.
• No Re-deal: There is no re-deal or recycling of the waste pile into the stock.

Definitions:

• Foundation: A pile where cards are built up or down in sequence, according to the rules.
• Tableau: The main play area where cards are temporarily placed and made available for play to the foundations.
• Reserve: A set of piles with cards only available for play to the foundations.
• Stock: The face-down pile from which cards are drawn.
• Waste: The face-up pile where cards from the stock are placed when not immediately playable.

This ruleset reflects the official structure and mechanics of Double Aces and Kings Solitaire as documented in authoritative sources.