Three Bears

Game Objective:

The primary goal in Three Bears Solitaire is to move all cards from the tableau, waste, and stock to the twelve foundation piles, building each foundation up by suit from Ace to King.

Setup & Layout:

• Deck: Three standard 52-card decks are used, totaling 156 cards.
• Foundations: Twelve foundation piles, one for each suit from each deck. All foundations start empty.
• Tableau: Thirteen tableau piles are created. The first pile receives one card, the second pile two cards, the third pile three cards, and so on up to the thirteenth pile, which receives thirteen cards. Only the top card of each tableau pile is dealt face up; the rest are face down.
• Stock: The remaining cards after the tableau setup form the stock pile, placed face down.
• Waste: There is a single waste pile, which begins empty.

Key Play Areas:

• Foundations: Where cards are built up by suit.
• Tableau: The main play area where cards are arranged and manipulated.
• Stock: The draw pile for additional cards.
• Waste: Where cards from the stock are temporarily placed.

Three Bears Solitaire Rules:

• Foundations:

• Only an Ace can be moved to an empty foundation pile.

• Foundations are built up by suit (e.g., 2♠ on Ace♠, 3♠ on 2♠, etc.), up to King.

• Tableau:

• Cards are built down by the same suit (e.g., 9♠ on 10♠).

• Only a King can be moved to an empty tableau pile; no other card can fill empty tableau spaces.

• Sequences of cards built down by the same suit may be moved together as a group.

• Only the top face-up card of each tableau pile is available for play, unless moving a valid sequence.

• Stock and Waste:

• When drawing from the stock, three cards are dealt face up to the waste pile at a time.

• Only the top card of the waste pile is available for play.

• There is no limit to the number of times the waste can be redealt into the stock; unlimited passes are permitted.

Gameplay:

• The player examines the tableau and moves any available Aces to empty foundation piles.
• Cards from the tableau may be moved to the foundations if they follow the ascending suit sequence.
• Cards or valid sequences from the tableau may be moved onto other tableau piles if they follow the descending suit sequence.
• If a tableau pile becomes empty, only a King (or a sequence starting with a King) may be moved to fill the space.
• When no more moves are available from the tableau or waste, the player draws three cards from the stock to the waste pile.
• The top card of the waste pile can be moved to the tableau or foundations as allowed.
• When the stock is depleted, the waste pile is turned over to form a new stock, and play continues (unlimited redeals).
• Play continues until either all cards are moved to the foundations or no further moves are possible.

Winning & Losing Conditions:

• Winning: The game is won when all 156 cards are successfully moved to the twelve foundation piles, each built up by suit from Ace to King.
• Losing: The game is lost (or considered unwinnable) if no legal moves remain and all possible redeals have been exhausted, leaving cards in the tableau, waste, or stock.

Special Rules & Edge Cases:

• Filling Empty Tableau Spaces: Only a King or a sequence starting with a King may be placed in an empty tableau pile; no other cards are permitted to fill empty spaces.
• Moving Sequences: Only sequences built down by the same suit may be moved as a group between tableau piles.
• Redealing Stock: There is no restriction on the number of times the waste pile may be redealt into the stock; players may cycle through the deck as often as needed.
• Card Availability: Only the top card of each tableau pile and the top card of the waste pile are available for play unless moving a valid sequence.
• No Other Reserve or Cells: The game does not use any additional reserve piles or free cells beyond the tableau, foundations, stock, and waste.

Note: All rules above are based on official and widely accepted sources for Three Bears Solitaire. If a specific rule is not covered in the official documentation, standard solitaire conventions for similar games (such as Triple Klondike) are applied.