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Beleaguered Castle, but kinder: any card that fits a foundation skips the deal and lands there first, handing you shorter columns and better odds.

Citadel Solitaire is Beleaguered Castle with a head start. The four Aces begin on the foundations, just as in the parent game, but Citadel adds a generous twist to the deal itself: as the eight tableau piles are dealt out, any card that can legally be played to a foundation flies straight there instead of landing on the table. The pile it would have joined simply stays short — no replacement card is dealt.

That single change can make a surprising difference. A lucky deal sends a handful of low cards straight home, leaving you shorter columns and a running start; an unlucky one plays exactly like Beleaguered Castle. Everything else is unchanged: you build down regardless of suit, move one card at a time, and may place any card in an empty column. The game is played with a single deck, and your odds of victory are mostly determined by your skill, with noticeably better chances than in the stricter parent game.

Beleaguered Castle Solitaire and Streets and Alleys Solitaire sit right alongside it in the same family of games.

Citadel Solitaire fans will likely enjoy the original, classic Solitaire too.

If you run into anything odd or have an idea that would make the game better, please contact me.

Enjoy playing!

How to play Citadel Solitaire

Layout:

4 foundation piles: Build up from Ace to King in the same suit. The Aces are dealt here at the start of the game, and cards that fit the foundations during the deal are played there immediately.

8 tableau piles: Build down in any suit. Only the top card of each pile is playable, and any card may fill an empty space. Each pile is dealt up to six cards face-up.

Foundation:

There are four foundation piles.

Each foundation pile is handed an Ace at the start. Then, while the tableau is being dealt, every card that can legally continue a foundation is played there at once instead of joining its tableau pile.

A card can be added to a foundation pile only if it's one rank higher and the same suit as the pile's current top card, so the only card that fits on a J of diamonds is a Q of diamonds. Once the deal is done, any tableau card that becomes eligible for a foundation is still moved there automatically as soon as it's uncovered.

The top card of each foundation can be moved back into play if another pile will accept it.

Tableau:

Eight tableau piles, each dealt up to six cards deep and every card face-up. Because cards that fit the foundations are skimmed off during the deal, some piles may start with fewer than six cards, and no replacements are dealt.

A card can be added to a tableau pile only if it's one rank lower than the pile's current top card and of any suit, so the only cards that fit on an 8 are the four 7s.

Cards on the tableau that are not covered by another card are free to be played onto the foundation or any other tableau pile.

Any card can fill an empty slot in the tableau.

Only one card may be moved at a time; sequences are not permitted.