Play Imperial Guards Solitaire Online for Free (No Signup Required)

Any card, not just a King, fills an empty column here, so play loosens up fast in this two-deck Miss Milligan spin-off: 45% of deals are winnable.

Imperial Guards Solitaire takes Miss Milligan and drops its toughest rule: an empty column will take any card, not just a King. That also does away with Miss Milligan's reserve pocket, since there's no longer a need to park a card while you wait for a King to show up. With two full decks in play and every column willing to accept a filler card, empty spaces open up often, which is what keeps this variant a notch easier than its parent game. That extra forgiveness keeps difficulty at medium: about 45% of deals end in a win. Two decks are dealt out, and both skill and a little luck decide the outcome.

Solitaire is the root this whole family grew from, and a good place to start if you haven't played it. Miss Milligan Solitaire, the two-deck game this one is based on, sits right next door.

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

Have fun playing!

How to play Imperial Guards Solitaire

Layout:

8 foundation piles: Build up from Ace to King in the same suit.

8 tableau piles: Build down in alternating colors. A run already in sequence can be moved as a group. Any card, or a legal run of cards, can fill an empty pile. Each pile starts with one card, dealt face-up.

Stock: Click the stock to deal one card to each tableau pile. There are no redeals.

Foundation:

There are eight foundation piles.

Any ace can be placed on an empty foundation pile.

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

A card can be added to a foundation pile if it's one rank higher than the pile's top card and of the same suit. So the only card that can go on a 6 of clubs is the 7 of clubs. A pile holds at most 13 cards.

Tableau:

Eight tableau piles of one card each, all dealt face-up.

A card can be added to a tableau pile if it's one rank lower than the pile's top card and of the opposite color. So the 4 of hearts takes only a 3 of spades or a 3 of clubs.

Any card not covered by another is free to move to the foundation or another tableau pile.

Any card can fill an empty tableau pile.

A run in strict alternating colors can be moved together from one pile to another.

Stock:

The stock holds whatever cards are left after the deal.

Click it to deal one card to the top of every tableau pile. Once the stock runs out, there are no more deals.