Play Limpopo Solitaire Online — Two Decks, Two Reserves of Four

Limpopo is a two-deck open-board game with a FreeCell heart. All 104 cards are dealt face up into eight columns of thirteen, which build down in alternating colours with packed runs travelling under the family's move limit. Two reserves stand beside the foundations, and each holds up to four cards, any card, with only the top one in play. Any card may fill a space. Eight foundations build up in suit from the ace, two per suit; bank all 104 to win.

Setup

Shuffle two decks together. Deal eight columns of thirteen cards each, all face up — every card of both decks is on the table. The two reserves and the eight foundations start empty.

Rules

• Foundations build up in suit from ace to king. Each suit has two, and either takes its next card.
• Tableau builds down in alternating colours. A packed run moves as a unit, within the move limit below.
• Reserves: each holds up to four cards. Any single card may be placed on one with room; only its top card may be taken.
• Move limit: a run may travel only if it could be moved one card at a time through the storage on the board — an empty reserve counts as one free cell, and each empty column doubles the count.
• Spaces take any card.
• Win when all eight foundations are complete.

Strategy

Thirteen-deep columns are the whole problem: the cards you need are under a dozen others, and the two reserves are the only storage until a column clears. Play for depth, and keep at least one reserve empty as long as you can.

• An empty reserve is worth more than a part-filled one. For the move limit only an empty reserve counts. One card in each reserve cuts your run limit to a single card; one empty reserve keeps runs of two moving.
• Stack the reserves in reverse. Each is last-in-first-out. Put the card you need first on top, and never bury a card that has a host waiting.
• Choose one column to empty. Thirteen cards is a long dig, so pick the column whose top cards all have hosts and work it down. The first space doubles every run you can move.
• Both twins are hosts. A red six has four black sevens to land on across two decks. When one is buried, find another before you spend a reserve slot.
• Bank the low cards at once. Everything is in view, so nothing is gained by holding an ace or a two.
• Balance the two foundations of a suit. Two foundations at the same rank compete for one card; two at different ranks take two.

Where It Sits in the FreeCell Family

Limpopo is the two-deck member of the family's capacity-cell line: Needle has one reserve of eighteen, Pitchfork closes it, and Limpopo has two of four with runs that travel. Its move limit is the family's supermove — an empty reserve counts as one free cell — and its eight separate foundations follow Repair and Triple FreeCell rather than Double FreeCell's four wrapping piles.

Other Games to Try

• Needle — one deck, one reserve of eighteen
• Repair — two decks, twelve cells, eight foundations
• Double FreeCell — two decks into four wrapping foundations
• FreeCell — the one-deck original

About This Version

Limpopo 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.