Knotty Nines

Game Objective:

The primary goal in Knotty Nines Solitaire is to move all cards from the stock into play and arrange all cards in the tableau so that no further moves are possible, effectively emptying the stock pile.

Setup & Layout:

• Deck Used: One standard 52-card deck.
• Tableau: Arrange the top nine cards of the shuffled deck face-up in a 3x3 grid to form nine tableau piles. Each tableau pile starts with one card, face-up.
• Stock: Place the remaining 43 cards face-down to form the stock pile.
• Key Play Areas:
• Tableau: The main play area, consisting of nine piles.
• Stock: The draw pile for replenishing tableau spaces.
• Face Orientation: All tableau cards are face-up; all stock cards are face-down.

Knotty Nines Solitaire Rules:

• Card Movement: Only the top card of each tableau pile is available for play.
• Building Sequences: Build tableau piles down by rank, regardless of suit (e.g., a 7♣ may be placed on any 8, regardless of suit).
• Single Card Moves: Only one card may be moved at a time; sequences cannot be moved together.
• Empty Spaces: When a tableau pile becomes empty, immediately fill it with the top card from the stock.
• No Redeal: There is no redeal; once the stock is depleted, no new cards enter play.
• No Foundations: There are no foundation piles in this variant; all play occurs within the tableau and stock.

Gameplay:

• Turn Sequence:
• Move a top card from one tableau pile onto another tableau pile if it is exactly one rank lower, regardless of suit.
• When a tableau pile becomes empty, immediately fill the space with the top card from the stock.
• Continue making legal moves and filling empty spaces until no further moves are possible or the stock is empty.
• Introducing New Cards: New cards enter play only by filling empty tableau spaces from the stock.
• No Moves Available: If no legal moves remain and the stock is not empty, the game is lost.

Winning & Losing Conditions:

• Winning: The game is won if the player successfully plays all cards from the stock and no further moves are possible, meaning the tableau is fully built down and the stock is empty.
• Losing: The game is lost if the player cannot make any more legal moves and there are still cards remaining in the stock.

Special Rules & Edge Cases:

• Filling Empty Tableau Spaces: Every time a tableau pile becomes empty, it must be filled immediately with the top card from the stock. If the stock is empty, the space remains vacant.
• Building on Kings and Aces: Building is continuous and wraps from Ace to King, so a King may be placed on an Ace to continue descending sequences.
• No Multi-Card Moves: Only single cards may be moved at a time, even if a descending sequence is present.
• No Suit Restrictions: Building is always by rank only, with no regard to suit or color.
• No Redeal: Once the stock is depleted, no further cards can be introduced into play.

Definitions:

• Tableau: The main area where cards are played and built down.
• Stock: The pile of undealt cards, used to fill empty tableau spaces.

This ruleset reflects the unique mechanics and restrictions of Knotty Nines Solitaire, emphasizing its high difficulty and reliance on careful sequencing and luck.