Play Vincent Solitaire Online — Bristol Built by Suit

Vincent takes Bristol's board and tightens the build. One deck is dealt into eight columns of three, and any king dealt to a column goes to its bottom. Columns build down in suit, and a packed run moves as a unit. An empty column takes a king. The stock deals three at a time, one to each of three waste piles, and the top card of every waste is in play. Foundations build up in suit from the ace. No redeal. Bank all 52 to win.

Setup

Deal three cards face up to each of eight columns. If a king lands in a column, slide it under the other cards of that column. The remaining twenty-eight cards form the stock, above which sit four foundations and three waste piles.

Rules

• Foundations build up in suit from the ace to the king.
• Columns build down in suit: the seven of clubs on the eight of clubs.
• Runs travel. A packed sequence in suit moves as one.
• Kings fill spaces. An empty column takes a king and nothing else.
• The stock deals three at a time, one card to each of three waste piles. The top card of every waste is in play. When fewer than three cards remain, the first wastes get them.
• No redeal. Twenty-eight stock cards deal in ten clicks.
• Win when all four foundations are complete.

Strategy

With one deck and a suit build, every card has exactly one host, and the kings sit at the bottoms of their columns from the start. The game is a race to open a column, seat a king in it, and give the suit a home before the stock runs dry.

• Find the aces. Any ace under two cards is worth digging for at once; a foundation that has opened turns every low card of its suit from a burden into a play.
• Runs are free moves. A packed run lifts as one, so keep sequences packed and move them whole to uncover the card beneath.
• Empty a column for a king. A space that has no king to take it is wasted; a king in a space is a whole suit's shelf.
• Deal only when stuck. Each click covers all three waste tops. Play every waste card that can go first.
• Read the deal order. The first stock card goes to the first waste, the second to the second. A card you need in the stock will arrive on a known pile.
• Watch the buried kings. A king at the bottom of a column blocks nothing until the column is nearly clear; a column with a king and two useful cards on top is a good early target.

Where It Sits in the Forty Thieves Family

Vincent is the one-deck member of the Bristol line on the Forty Thieves engine: Bristol's eight piles and three wastes with a suit build and runs. Dover is the two-deck cousin with a rank build; New York and Gotham play their stock by hand.

Other Games to Try

• Dover — two decks, down by rank, spaces filled from a waste
• New York — an open stock played to three wastes
• Gotham — New York with three cards a column and runs
• Ali Baba — one deck on the Forty Thieves board with a single waste

About This Online Version

Vincent 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.