Play Double Canfield Solitaire Online — Canfield With Two Decks

Double Canfield is Canfield with a second deck shuffled in. Thirteen cards go into a reserve with only the top one in play; one card is turned to start the foundations, and its rank is the base for all eight of them; five columns of a single card build down in alternating colours; and the stock turns three at a time with unlimited redeals. Two decks mean two foundations per suit, and 104 cards to bank before you win.

Setup

Shuffle two decks together. Deal thirteen cards face down into a reserve and turn the top one. Turn one card to the first foundation — whatever rank it shows is the base rank for every foundation. Deal five columns of one card each. The remaining eighty-five cards form the stock.

Rules

• Foundations build up in suit from the base rank, wrapping past the king to the ace: a base of 9 runs 9, 10, J, Q, K, A, 2 … 8. Each suit has two foundations; either takes the next card of its suit.
• Tableau builds down in alternating colours, wrapping the same way — a black king may go on a red ace.
• Runs travel. A packed sequence moves as a unit.
• Spaces refill. When a column empties, the reserve's top card fills it at once. Only when the reserve is spent does a space become yours.
• Stock: three cards a turn to the waste; the top waste card is in play.
• Redeals: unlimited. When the stock is empty, turn the waste over and go again.
• Win when all eight foundations hold thirteen cards.

Strategy

Canfield is a game about the reserve, and Double Canfield doubles what is around it without touching it: thirteen cards still block the board, but there are now two of every host and two homes for every card. Play for the reserve first and let the second deck do the rest.

• The reserve is the game. Every card you play from it uncovers the next. Prefer any move that plays the reserve's top card over a move that merely tidies a column.
• Learn the base rank's neighbours. If the base is 7, the sevens are aces in disguise and the sixes are kings — they can only ever be banked last. Do not bury a seven, and do not build a long run under a six.
• Twins double your hosts. A red six has two black sevens to land on in each deck — four in all. When one is buried, look for another before you use a space.
• Feed both foundations of a suit. Two foundations at the same rank compete for the same card; two at different ranks take two different cards. Keep them apart.
• Read the stock in threes. Only every third card surfaces on a pass. Play one card from the waste to shift which cards come to the top next time round; with unlimited redeals you can do it until the order suits you.
• Empty a column only when the reserve is low. While the reserve holds cards, a space is not yours to use — it takes the reserve's next card whether you like it or not.

Where It Sits in the Canfield Family

Double Canfield is the two-deck member of the Canfield line: everything else — the thirteen-card reserve, the turned base card, the wrap, the three-card draw with unlimited passes — is Canfield's own. Triple Canfield goes on to three decks and a 26-card reserve. Deuces, Pluto and Quadrangle share the two-deck board and the wrapping foundations but drop the reserve.

Other Games to Try

• Canfield — the one-deck original
• Superior Canfield — the reserve face up and the spaces yours
• Quadrangle — a turned base on twelve columns, suit build, no reserve
• Storehouse — the base fixed at the twos

About This Version

Double Canfield runs in your browser — free, no download, no sign-up. Install it as an app on your phone or computer and it works offline. You get unlimited undo, a hint button that names a legal move, statistics that track your wins and times, and seeded deals: every game has a seed you can replay, so a board you enjoyed (or lost) can be played again exactly.