Play Canister Solitaire Online — Runs by Rank on the Open Castle

Canister is the loosest of the three Canister games. Eight columns of six and seven cards are dealt face up with no stock; columns build down by rank in any suit; a packed run of descending ranks moves as a unit; and any card or run may fill an empty column. Four foundations build up in suit from the ace; bank all 52 to win.

Setup

Shuffle one deck. Deal eight columns face up: six cards in the first two and last two, seven in the middle four. There is no stock. The four foundations start empty.

Rules

• Foundations build up in suit from ace to king.
• Tableau builds down by one rank, any suit: any seven on any eight.
• Runs travel: a packed run of descending ranks moves as a unit, whatever its suits.
• Spaces take any card or any packed run.
• Win when all four foundations are complete.

Strategy

A rank build gives every card four hosts, and runs that travel make columns easy to reorder — so Canister rarely locks. What it does instead is bury: a run built carelessly can trap the one ace or two you need under ten cards that all have to move together.

• Bank low cards at once. Aces and twos are never hosts you need; send them up as they surface.
• Prefer the host that keeps suits together. Any suit will do for the build, but a run of one suit banks in order later without being taken apart.
• Make a space early and keep it. A space takes any run, so it is the tool for splitting a column at any point. The two six-card end columns are the quickest to clear.
• Do not bury the low cards. A two under a long run needs the whole run moved before it banks. Read each column from the base before building on it.
• Kings to spaces. A king has no host; a king in a space is the base of a run that can grow to thirteen.
• Long runs, few moves. One packed run is one move; keep building onto the same run rather than starting new ones.

Where It Sits in the Castle Family

Canister is American Canister with the alternating-colour build relaxed to a rank build — Streets and Alleys' rule with runs and open spaces on the Canister deal. British Canister is the strict sibling with kings-only spaces and single cards. The run-move axis is shared with Lasker.

Other Games to Try

• American Canister — the same board in alternating colours
• British Canister — kings only, one card at a time
• Streets and Alleys — the rank build on the Beleaguered Castle wings
• Lasker — runs on Chessboard's chosen-base board

About This Version

Canister 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.