Pyramid Solitaire: Ancient Egypt is a captivating solitaire card game that utilizes a standard 52-card deck. The core concept revolves around eliminating pairs of cards that sum up to 13, with the ultimate goal of clearing the pyramid-shaped layout. Millions of players consider this classic card game a test of mental agility.
Objective
The primary objective of the game is to remove all cards from the pyramid by pairing them to a total value of 13.
Card Values
In Pyramid Solitaire: Ancient Egypt, each card holds a specific value:
- Aces count as 1
- Jacks count as 11
- Queens count as 12
- Kings count as 13
- All other cards are at their face value.
How to Play
- Layout: First, 28 cards are dealt face-up in the shape of a pyramid, with the cards partially overlapping. The remaining cards are put face-down in the stock.
- Pairing: Pair cards that add up to 13. Pairing is done by first clicking on the first card and then on the second card. Only cards that are open, i.e. don’t have another card on top of them, can be paired. It doesn’t matter where the cards are, you can pair cards that are in the pyramid, in the waste or in the temporary card storage.
- Kings: Kings count as 13 and can be removed by simply clicking on them. Always remove the Kings immediately.
- Stock: Flip the stock to reveal three additional cards that will be added to the three waste piles. Note that resetting the stock is not possible. You can only loop through it once.
- Temporary Card Storage: Move an open card from the pyramid or the waste to the temporary card storage in the bottom left.Make sure to use the temporary card storage, as it will allow you to reach cards which can otherwise not be reached. The temporary card storage acts like a cell in FreeCell, so it can only hold one card at a time.
- Undo: Undo a move by clicking the undo button in the bottom right corner. Note that you can only go back one move.Feel free to use the undo button if you are not happy with your move or if you want to have a look at which cards will be dealt from the stock.
If you are still unsure about which moves are allowed, follow the in-game tutorial.
How to Play Pyramid Solitaire
Scoring
Pyramid Solitaire Ancient Egypt has several scoring rules which reward quick play and good strategy.
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- Removal of a pair of cards or a King: 500 points
- Completion of a round: 10,000 points
- (Bonus) Removal of all cards, so not only the pyramid but also the cards in the stock & waste: 15,000 points
- (Bonus) Time bonus shown in the top left corner: counts down from 20,000 points to 0 while playing
- (Bonus) Incremental round number bonus: round number * 1,000 points
Note that using the undo button does not impact your score.
Tips and Strategies to play Pyramid Solitaire well
Although not easy to win Pyramid Solitaire, but there are some tips you can use:
- Always remove Kings as soon as possible, they literally just get in the way.
- Try to plan your moves. Look at the board and see what cards are blocking other cards.
- You absolutely must use the temporary card store. Combine that with planning and you can win most deals. Often simply by moving one card from the pyramid down to the store you can instantly uncover another card that you can use immediately.
- This almost a bit of a cheat. You can use the undo card to look at the next 3 cards coming. This will allow you to plan your moves more effectively.
- At the bottom where the groups of three cards a dealt, if you have too many cards the game will hide them to save space.
Variants
There are many different versions of Pyramid Solitaire. Variations allow to reset the stock and/or they only have one waste pile.
History
There is no factual information about when Pyramid Solitaire was first invented, but it might have been as early as the 18th century. The game gained in popularity by being included in the Microsoft Entertainment Pack in 1990, although under a different name (Tut’s Tomb).
| Card | Value |
|---|---|
| Ace | 1 |
| Jack | 11 |
| Queen | 12 |
| King | 13 |
| Other Cards | Face Value |
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