Play Four Seasons Solitaire Online for Free (No Signup Required)
Chase one random starting rank around a cross-shaped board of four foundations, a game some call Vanishing Cross. It's a 45%-win game where luck outweighs skill.
Four Seasons Solitaire deals a single card to each of five tiny tableau piles, plus one card to the first foundation pile, all face up, then leaves you to work through the rest one card at a time. That single foundation card sets a random starting rank for the whole game: you'll need to start each of the other three foundation piles with a card of that same rank as you turn them up. Foundations build up in suit and wrap from king back around to ace; tableau piles build down regardless of suit and wrap the same way, from ace back around to king.
The five piles sit in a cross around the four foundations, which is why you'll also see this one called "Corner Card" or "Vanishing Cross." I've also seen it called "Royal East." It's a medium game, with a 45% chance of winning, and luck plays a bigger part in your result than skill does.
Related games worth a look are Czarina Solitaire and Corners Solitaire, both built on the same cross-shaped layout with a random starting rank.
If you run into anything odd or have an idea that would make the game better, please contact me.
Enjoy yourself!
How to play Four Seasons Solitaire
Layout:
4 foundation piles: Build up in suit from the rank of the first card dealt to the first pile, wrapping from King to Ace as needed, until each pile holds 13 cards.
5 tableau piles: Build down regardless of suit, wrapping from Ace to King as needed. Any card can fill a space. At the start of the game, each pile is dealt one card.
Stock: Click to flip over 1 card at a time to the waste pile. There are no redeals.
Waste: The top card can be played on the foundations or tableau.
Foundation:
There are four foundation piles.
Only the first foundation pile is dealt a card at the start, and its rank is random. That rank becomes the starting rank for the whole game, so you'll need to begin each of the other three foundation piles with a card of that same rank as you turn one up.
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, wrapping from king back around to ace, so the only card that fits on a J of spades is a Q of spades.
The top card of each foundation can be moved back into play if another pile will accept it.
Tableau:
Five tableau piles of one card each, all dealt face-up.
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, wrapping from ace back around to king, so the only cards that fit on a four are the threes, and the only card that fits on an ace is a king.
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.
Stock and waste:
There is one waste pile and the remaining cards comprise the stock.
When you click on the stock, one card from the stock is dealt to the waste. You only get one pass through the stock.
The top card of the waste can be played to the tableau or foundation.
