Signora

Game Objective:

The primary goal in Signora Solitaire is to move all cards from the tableau, reserve, and stock onto the foundation piles, building each foundation up in alternating colors starting from a chosen base card, until all foundations are complete.

Setup & Layout:

• Deck: Two standard 52-card decks (104 cards total).
• Foundations: 8 piles, initially empty. The first card moved to a foundation determines the base rank for all foundations (e.g., if a 7 is chosen, all foundations start with 7s).
• Tableau: 9 piles. Deal 1 card face-up to each pile.
• Reserve (Terrace): 11 cards dealt face-up in a single row. Only the topmost card is accessible and can only be played to the foundations.
• Stock: The remaining cards form the stock, face-down.
• Waste: One pile, initially empty. Cards from the stock are dealt here one at a time, face-up.

Key Play Areas:

• Foundations: Where you build sequences to win.
• Tableau: The main play area for manipulating cards.
• Reserve: A holding area; only the top card is accessible and only to the foundations.
• Stock: Supplies new cards to the waste.
• Waste: Holds cards from the stock; top card is available for play.

Signora Solitaire Rules:

1. Foundations

• Build up in alternating colors (e.g., black-red-black), starting from the chosen base card and continuing up to the card just below the base card in rank, wrapping from King to Ace as needed (continuous ranking).
• Only cards matching the base rank may start a new foundation pile.
• Once a card is placed on a foundation, it cannot be removed.

2. Tableau

• Build down in alternating colors (e.g., red-black-red), wrapping from Ace to King if necessary.
• Only the top card of each tableau pile is available for play.
• Only one card may be moved at a time; sequences cannot be moved.
• Tableau spaces are automatically filled (see Special Rules).

3. Reserve

• Only the top card is available, and it can only be played to the foundations.
• Cards cannot be moved into the reserve, nor can reserve cards be played to the tableau.

4. Stock & Waste

• Turn over one card at a time from the stock to the waste.
• No redeals; only one pass through the stock is allowed.
• The top card of the waste can be played to the tableau or foundations.

Gameplay:

1. Foundation Selection: At the start, choose any exposed card (from tableau or reserve) to become the base card for all foundations.
2. Building Foundations: Move eligible cards to the foundations, building up in alternating colors from the base rank.
3. Tableau Moves: Move the top card of any tableau pile onto another tableau pile (if it is one rank lower and of the opposite color) or to the foundations.
4. Reserve Play: Only the top card of the reserve can be moved, and only to the foundations.
5. Stock/Waste: When no moves are available, deal one card from the stock to the waste. Play the top card of the waste to the tableau or foundations when possible.
6. Automatic Filling: When a tableau pile becomes empty, it is automatically filled from the waste; if the waste is empty, from the stock; if both are empty, the space remains empty until a card becomes available.
7. Continue Play: Repeat the process of moving cards and dealing from the stock until all cards are moved to the foundations or no more legal moves are possible.

Winning & Losing Conditions:

• Win: All cards are successfully moved to the foundations, completing each pile in sequence from the base card, in alternating colors, for a total of 13 cards per foundation.
• Loss: The game is lost if no more legal moves are possible and not all cards have been placed on the foundations (e.g., stock and waste are empty, and no further moves can be made from tableau or reserve).

Special Rules & Edge Cases:

• Filling Empty Tableau Spaces: Empty tableau spaces are automatically filled from the waste pile. If the waste is empty, the space is filled from the stock. If both are empty, the space remains empty.
• Reserve Restrictions: Only the top card of the reserve is playable, and only to the foundations. Reserve cards can never be played to the tableau or waste.
• No Redeals: Once the stock is exhausted, no redeal is permitted.
• Continuous Ranking: Both building up on foundations and down on tableau wraps around (e.g., King to Ace and Ace to King).
• Base Card Selection: The choice of the base card at the start is critical and can significantly affect the game's difficulty.
• One Card Moves: Only single cards may be moved at a time; sequences cannot be moved as a group.
• Foundation Start: Only cards matching the chosen base rank may be placed to start a new foundation pile.

Definitions of Key Terms:

• Foundation: A pile where cards are built up in sequence to achieve the win condition.
• Tableau: The main area where cards are arranged and manipulated during play.
• Reserve: A special holding area; only the top card is accessible, and only for play to the foundations.
• Stock: The face-down pile from which new cards are drawn.
• Waste: The face-up pile where cards from the stock are placed, with only the top card available for play.

This guide provides a comprehensive, semantically precise explanation of Signora Solitaire gameplay and rules, strictly based on the most authoritative and official sources available.