Play Duchess Solitaire Online - You Choose the Base Rank

Duchess belongs to the Canfield family. It has one rule that no relative shares. You pick the rank the foundations start from. Four small fans sit across the top of the board, and your first move is to choose one of their top cards. That single decision shapes the whole deal.

How to Play Duchess Solitaire

Goal: move all 52 cards to the four foundations.

The Deal

• Reserve: four fans of three cards, all face up. That is 12 cards. The outer card of each fan is playable.
• Tableau: four piles of one face-up card.
• Foundations: four piles, empty at the start.
• Stock: the last 36 cards, face down.

Your First Move: The Base Rank

Nothing else can happen until you choose. Look at the top card of each of the four fans. Click the one you want. That card goes to the first foundation, and its rank becomes the base for all four.

The board marks the four choosable cards for you, so the choice is hard to miss. Once you pick, the marks disappear and play begins.

Say you choose a 7. Then every foundation runs 7, 8, 9, 10, J, Q, K, A, 2 and on to 6. The count wraps from King to Ace.

Rules of Play

• Foundations build up in suit from the base rank. The count wraps.
• The tableau builds down in alternating colours. Red goes on black, black goes on red.
• Tableau building also wraps. A King can sit on an Ace.
• A tableau pile moves as one whole unit. You cannot split it.
• Only the top card of a pile can go to a foundation.
• An empty tableau pile is filled from a reserve fan of your choice, while any fan still holds cards.
• Once every fan is empty, spaces are filled from the waste.
• A tableau pile never fills another pile's space.
• The stock deals one card at a time to the waste.
• You get one redeal. After that the stock is spent.

Strategy Tips

Choosing the base well

This is the most important decision in the game. Do not click the first card you see. Compare all four, then look at what else is on the board.

• Pick a rank you can follow up on. Check the tableau and the other fan tops for the next card in that suit.
• Watch what the choice buries. The card you take exposes the one beneath it in that fan.
• A rank that already appears twice on the board is often a good pick. You will start two foundations quickly.

Clearing the fans

Twelve reserve cards must all be played. Only four are reachable at any moment. Work across all four fans rather than emptying one and forgetting the rest.

Using spaces

Spaces are filled from the fans, and you choose which fan. That is a real advantage over Demon, where the reserve decides for you. Use a space to pull out a fan card you actually want.

Spending the redeal

You only get one. Play the first pass slowly and take everything you can. Once you turn the waste over, the second pass is the last.

How Duchess Differs From Demon

• The base: you choose it in Duchess. Demon deals it at random.
• The reserve: four fans with four live cards, against one pile with a single live card.
• Spaces: you pick the filling card in Duchess. Demon fills them for you.
• Drawing: one card here, three in Demon.
• Redeals: one here, unlimited in Demon.

The extra control makes Duchess the gentler of the two. The single redeal keeps it from being easy.

Common Mistakes

• Picking the base without looking. Spend a moment on it. It is the only free choice you get.
• Working one fan only. All four must clear before the waste can fill a space.
• Burning the redeal early. Finish the first pass properly.
• Forgetting the wrap. Both foundations and tableau run past the King.
• Splitting a tableau pile. You cannot. The pile travels whole.

Questions Players Ask

Which card should I choose as the base?

Look for a rank you can build on straight away. Check the tableau piles and the other three fan tops for the next card in the same suit.

Can I change the base later?

No. The choice is made once per deal. You can undo it, and you can restart the same deal to try another card.

Can I play a card from the middle of a fan?

No. Only the outer card of each fan is live. Clear it and the next card becomes available.

Do I build the tableau by suit?

No. Build down in alternating colours. Any red card goes on any black card of the next rank up.

Can I move a run of cards?

A tableau pile moves as one whole unit. You cannot take part of it. Each pile is already a single run, so this rarely gets in the way.

How many redeals do I get?

One. When the stock empties, click it once to turn the waste back over.

What fills an empty tableau pile?

A card from any reserve fan you choose, while the fans still hold cards. After that, the top card of the waste.

Pick your base rank and see where the deal takes you.