Pyramid Thirteen, deal #1

About this deal

This is one of the harder deals of Pyramid Thirteen: only 1% of the quick simulated games won it, and the solver had to search for a while before finding the way.

The bottom row starts with Ace of Clubs, 9 of Clubs, 7 of Spades, Queen of Clubs, Queen of Spades, 2 of Clubs and Queen of Diamonds, and the 10 of Spades sits at the very top.

3 pairs are ready straight away among the bottom cards – choose the order with care, since some of them compete for the same card.

2 Kings lie in the pyramid; each one leaves on its own as soon as nothing rests on it.

11 times a card lies across one of its own partners, so those two cards can never leave together and need other partners.

The solver's winning line has 74 moves.

Deal facts

Difficulty

Hard

Solver's winning line

74 moves, 50 of them stock turns

Quick simulated games won

2 of 200 (1%)

Card at the top

10 of Spades

Cards in the layout

28

Cards in the stock

24

Pairs ready at the start

3

Locked pairs

11

How to approach it

• With several pairs on offer, take first the one that frees cards in the row above; keep the others for when the waste needs a partner.
• This is a hard deal: use undo to test an idea, and the hint button if you are completely stuck.

A winning start

These are the first moves of the solver's winning line. Open them only if you want a nudge.