Shady Lanes

Game Objective:

The primary goal in Shady Lanes Solitaire is to move all cards from the tableau and reserve to the foundation piles, building each foundation up in suit from Ace to King.

Setup & Layout:

• Deck: Uses two standard 52-card decks (104 cards total).
• Foundations: 8 foundation piles, one for each suit, start empty.
• Tableau: 4 tableau piles, each dealt a specific number of cards face up (typically 1 card per pile, but some digital implementations may vary slightly).
• Reserve: 4 reserve piles, each with 1 card dealt face up.
• Stock: The remaining cards form the stock pile, placed face down.
• Waste: A single waste pile, which receives cards from the stock as they are drawn.

Key Play Areas:

• Foundations: Where you build up each suit from Ace to King.
• Tableau: The main play area where cards are built down in alternating colors.
• Reserve: Temporary holding areas; cards can be played from here to the tableau.
• Stock: The draw pile.
• Waste: Discards from the stock; only the top card is available for play.

All tableau and reserve cards are dealt face up. The stock is face down; cards are turned face up to the waste as they are drawn.

Shady Lanes Solitaire Rules:

• Foundations: Build up by suit from Ace to King (e.g., Ace, 2, 3, …, King of Hearts).
• Tableau: Build down in alternating colors (e.g., a red 9 on a black 10).
• Reserve: No building; each pile holds only one card at a time. Cards can be played from the reserve to the tableau but not directly to the foundations.
• Stock/Waste: Draw one card at a time from the stock to the waste. Only the top card of the waste is available for play.
• Card Movement:
• Only one card may be moved at a time, whether from tableau, reserve, or waste.
• Cards can be moved from tableau or waste to the tableau or to the foundations, following building rules.
• Cards from the reserve can only be played to the tableau, not directly to the foundations.

Gameplay:

• On your turn, you may:
• Move cards from the tableau or waste to the foundations if they follow the suit sequence.
• Move cards from the tableau, reserve, or waste to the tableau, following the alternating color, descending sequence rule.
• Move a card from the reserve to the tableau (never directly to the foundation).
• When no moves are available, draw a card from the stock to the waste pile.
• Only the top card of the waste is available for play.
• When a tableau pile or reserve pile becomes empty, it may be filled according to the special rules below.
• Play continues until all cards are moved to the foundations or no more legal moves are possible.

Winning & Losing Conditions:

• Win: The game is won when all 104 cards are moved to the foundations in the correct sequence.
• Lose: The game is lost (unwinnable) if no legal moves remain and the stock is exhausted, leaving cards stranded in the tableau, reserve, or waste.

Special Rules & Edge Cases:

• Filling Empty Spaces:
• Tableau: Empty tableau piles may only be filled with a King or a sequence starting with a King, following the alternating color rule.
• Reserve: Empty reserve spaces are immediately filled from the stock if available. If the stock is depleted, the space remains empty.
• Stock Depletion: There is no redeal; once the stock is exhausted, you cannot reshuffle or reuse the waste pile.
• Sequence Movement: Only single cards may be moved at a time; you cannot move a sequence or group of cards together.
• No Building on Reserve: You cannot build or move cards onto a reserve pile; it only holds one card at a time.

Definitions:

• Foundation: A pile where cards are built up by suit from Ace to King.
• Tableau: The main area where cards are built down in alternating colors.
• Reserve: A holding area for single cards that can be played to the tableau.
• Stock: The face-down draw pile.
• Waste: The face-up pile where cards from the stock are placed and from which the top card may be played.

This guide reflects the rules and mechanics as documented in official and authoritative solitaire rules indexes.