DOUBLE PYRAMID

Pyramid is an arithmetic solitaire game. Although a deep knowledge of mathematics is not required, but for those who have everything in order with the oral account, it will be much easier to understand solitaire. However, if you are not trained in elementary addition of numbers, and this will not cause you any discomfort. To successfully dismantle Pyramid Solitaire, you will need the following memo.

Cards are removed in pairs with the sum of ranks equal to 13. These are the following pairs:

• 2 + jack
• 3 + 10
• 4 + 9
• 5 + 8
• 6 + 7
• queen + ace
• king.

But the king, as you can see, has a rank of 13 in this game, which allows this card to be removed from the layout alone. Click on it — there is no king!

Such simple rules are compensated for by a positional constraint. Look at the layout. The cards are laid out on the table in the form of a pyramid (on the plane it looks like a triangle). Since the layout starts from the top, and each tier is superimposed on the previous one, only the base is free after the layout. Freedom in this case means that cards can be taken. Remember, you can only get out of the pyramid those cards that do not cover others, that is, they are completely open.

In this version of solitaire, two decks of 52 cards are used in the layout, which is why the game is called a double pyramid. The layout design has 10 tiers (floors) and 10 maps at the base. Such an equilateral triangle. So, the difficulty is related precisely to the inaccessibility of the maps that make up the pyramid. And the reason for the discrepancy in solitaire is often precisely this factor. Often, the removed pair gets stuck under two unpaired cards, and the ability to use the deck is exhausted.

By the way, about the deck. It stores the rest of the cards that were not distributed during the pyramid layout. This deck can be sorted (flipped) during the disassembly of solitaire, taking out the necessary cards from it. Well, for example, on the table in the pyramid you see an open four, but there are no pairs (nines) for it. Flip through the cards in the deck until you find a nine. So, the deck can only be flipped three times per game. And this, believe me, is a serious relaxation in the rules. In many versions of Pyramid Solitaire, the deck can only be scrolled once.

We advise you to be careful and do not miss pairs, otherwise you may not notice how the deck will end, and there will be closed cards on the table. Good luck and enjoy your stay!