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Deal all 104 cards face up with no stock to hide behind, build toward two rows of foundations, and win roughly half your deals in this tense Caprice cousin.

Nationale Solitaire is an old two-deck patience that is best understood as Caprice with the safety net removed. Both games seed the eight foundations with an Ace and a King of every suit and deal twelve columns underneath, but where Caprice keeps a stock in hand, Nationale puts all 104 cards on the table before your first move. There is nothing left to draw and nothing to hope for — the whole battle is fought in the open.

The two rows of foundations work toward each other. The four ace piles climb in suit to the King while the four king piles descend in suit to the Ace, so every card has two possible homes, and deciding which pile gets it is half the game. The deal itself lends a hand: any card that fits a foundation while the columns are being dealt is played there immediately, leaving its column short.

On the tableau you may build both up and down in the same suit, and the ranking is continuous, so a King and an Ace count as neighbors. Only one card moves at a time. The game is moderately difficult; since every card is dealt face-up, your odds of victory are primarily determined by your skill, and patient players can win roughly half of their deals.

Tournament and Caprice Solitaire are two solitaire games that are comparable to this one.

Nationale fans looking for something calmer can start with the 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 Nationale Solitaire

Layout:

8 foundation piles: Two rows of four. An Ace of each suit and a King of each suit are dealt here at the start. Ace piles build up in suit to the King; King piles build down in suit to the Ace.

12 tableau piles: Build up or down in the same suit; the ranking wraps between King and Ace. Each pile is dealt eight cards face-up, but cards that fit a foundation are played there during the deal, so some piles start short. Any card may fill a space. There is no stock and no redeal.

Foundation:

There are eight foundation piles, dealt an Ace of each suit and a King of each suit before play begins. Cards that can legally continue a foundation are also played there automatically while the tableau is being dealt.

A card can be added to an ace pile only if it's the same suit and one rank higher than the pile's current top card, and to a king pile only if it's the same suit and one rank lower, so a 9 of hearts can go on the ace pile showing the 8 of hearts or on the king pile showing the 10 of hearts.

The top card of a foundation may be moved back to the tableau if you need it.

Tableau:

Twelve tableau piles of up to eight cards each, dealt in an overlapping cascade. Every card is dealt face-up.

A card can be added to a tableau pile only if it's the same suit and one rank higher or one rank lower than the pile's current top card, so the cards that fit on an 8 of spades are the 7 and 9 of spades. The ranking is continuous, so an Ace may be played on a King and a King on an Ace.

Cards on the tableau that are not covered by another card are free to be played onto the foundations 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.