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Skip the tableau entirely: every card in Dorothy climbs straight onto one of twelve rank-locked foundations. Simple to learn, and the luck of the deal decides almost everything.

Dorothy Solitaire is a foundations-only patience from the same family as Quadrille and Captive Queens: there is no tableau at all, and every one of the fifty-two cards must find its place on one of twelve foundations. Four piles collect the odd ranks from Nine down to Ace, four collect the even ranks from Ten down to Two, and four gather the court cards from Jack up to King. The game is simple, played with a single deck, and your odds of victory are determined almost entirely by chance.

Because each foundation builds in a single suit, every card has exactly one home, and the whole game turns on the order in which cards leave the stock. A Seven of hearts that appears before the Nine of hearts must be passed to the waste, where it sits buried until the deck comes around again.

That second pass is your safety net. Cards skipped the first time through often resurface in a friendlier order on the second pass, and a deal that looked hopeless early on can still click neatly into place. There is little to decide, which makes Dorothy a pleasantly unhurried game — the fun lies in watching the three interlocking ladders fill in, rung by rung.

Captive Queens Solitaire is the other foundations-only game in this family, and it makes a natural next deal once Dorothy's ladders feel familiar.

Dorothy fans looking for the roots of the whole tableau-and-foundation idea should open original Solitaire.

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

Enjoy playing!

How to play Dorothy Solitaire

Layout:

4 odd foundation piles: Build down by twos in the same suit from Nine to Ace (9-7-5-3-A).

4 even foundation piles: Build down by twos in the same suit from Ten to Two (10-8-6-4-2).

4 court foundation piles: Build up in the same suit from Jack to King (J-Q-K).

Stock: Click to flip over one card to the waste. There is one redeal.

Waste: Top card is playable.

Foundation:

Foundation piles are classified into three types.

The Nines Foundations:

There are four piles in the nines foundation. Any Nine may be moved to any vacant pile there. A card can be added to a nines foundation pile only if it's two ranks lower and the same suit as the pile's current top card, so the only card that fits on a 9 of spades is a 7 of spades. Each pile runs 9-7-5-3-A and holds five cards. After that, no further cards may be played.

The Tens Foundations:

There are four piles in the tens foundation. Any Ten may be moved to any vacant pile there. A card can be added to a tens foundation pile only if it's two ranks lower and the same suit as the pile's current top card, so the only card that fits on a 10 of clubs is an 8 of clubs. Each pile runs 10-8-6-4-2 and holds five cards.

The Jacks Foundations:

There are four piles in the jacks foundation. Any Jack may be moved to any vacant pile there. A card can be added to a jacks 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 hearts is a Q of hearts. Each pile runs J-Q-K and holds three cards.

Cards cannot be removed from any foundation once they have been placed on it.

Stock and waste:

The stock is made up of the complete deck, and there is just one waste pile.

When you click on the stock, one card from the stock is dealt to the waste. You get two passes through the stock in all.

The top card of the waste is accessible for foundation play.