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important ways. The object of a Solitaire is to build up the foundation; a tableau is just an
intermediary home for the cards as they make their way to the final destination: the foundation.
You use tableaus to get the cards in the right order to build on the foundation.
When you move a complete row or column, you create a space or gap into which you can often
move whatever card(s) you like.
Frequently, you don’t use all the cards in the initial layout; the remaining cards are called the
stock. You go through the stock to advance the Solitaire.
When working through the stock, you frequently have cards that you can’t legally put into the
layout. In such cases, the unused cards go to the waste-pile.
Redeals take place in the middle of a Solitaire when you’ve exhausted all legal moves. The
rules of the Solitaire may allow you to redeal by shuffling and redistributing the unused cards
in an attempt to advance the game.
Many Solitaires permit one cheat — you can move an obstructing card or otherwise advance
the game. This process is also known as a merci.
After you build your own foundation of Solitaire knowledge, you can begin to explore the many
variations of the game. The following sections detail some of the specific types of Solitaires.
Putting the Squeeze on Accordion
The game Accordion is also known as Methuselah, Tower of Babel, or Idle Year (presumably
because of the amount of time you need to keep playing the game to win it).
Accordion is a charmingly straightforward game that can easily seduce you into assuming that it
must be easy to solve. Be warned — we’ve never known anyone who has completed a game of
Accordion! This challenge makes success at the game doubly pleasurable.
Accordion also takes up very little space — a major benefit because you tend to play Solitaire in a
cramped space, such as while waiting in a bus station or an airport gate.
The objective of Accordion is to finish up with a single pile of 52 cards. Relative success is
reducing the number of piles to four or fewer. Your chances of complete victory may be less than 1
in 1,000, but don’t let that deter you from giving this game a try! The fact that it is a very fast game
to play means that you can abandon unpromising hands and move on to another without wasting
much time.
Looking at the layout
The layout for Accordion is simple. Follow these steps to begin your long journey:
1. Shuffle the deck well, and then turn over the top card in your deck and put it to your left
to start your layout.
2. Turn over the next card.
If the card is either the same suit (both clubs, for example) or the same rank (both jacks) as the