How to Play Crescent Solitaire
Build up from aces and down from kings across 16 piles.
Also known as Crescent
Learn Crescent solitaire: 104 cards, 16 piles of 6 round 8 foundations, building up from the aces and down from the kings, and the 3 shifts. Work through one position, then play in your browser.
The 7♥ can go either way
The hearts ace foundation has reached the 6♥ and the hearts king foundation is down to the 8♥, so a 7♥ on top of a pile fits both. Tap it and it goes up on the 6♥: the ace foundation comes first. Now the 9♥ on another pile is stuck, because the king foundation still needs a 7♥ and the second 7♥ is buried. Move the 9♥ onto a pile ending in the 8♥ or the 10♥, or spend a shift to bring the buried 7♥ up.
| Card or event | Result |
|---|---|
| 7♥ with the ace foundation at 6♥ and the king foundation at 8♥ | Up on the 6♥: a tap sends it to the ace foundation first |
| 9♥ onto a pile ending in the 8♥ | Allowed: same suit, 1 rank up or down |
| A♣ onto a pile ending in the K♣ | Not allowed: an ace and a king are not neighbors |
| The last card leaves a pile | The space stays empty for the rest of the deal |
| Shift with 3 left | Every pile of 2 or more cards gets its bottom card on top; 2 shifts left |
You move 1 card at a time, and the deal is lost when no move is left and no shift remains. Foundation moves, off by default, let a foundation's top card cross to the other foundation of its suit when it fits.
Practise this game in your browser🎯 Objective
Move all 104 cards onto the eight foundations: four built up in suit from the ace to the king, four built down in suit from the king to the ace. If you don't finish, your score is the number of cards on the foundations.
🃏 Crescent Solitaire Setup & Rules
- Two standard 52-card decks, 104 cards. One ace and one king of each suit start the eight foundations: the aces in one row, the kings in another.
- The app deals the other 96 cards into 16 piles of 6, arranged around the foundations. Only the top card of each pile is in play; a pile shows its top card and how many cards it holds.
- The one setup option is Foundation moves, off by default: when on, a foundation's top card may move to the other foundation of its suit when it fits there.
▶ How to Play Crescent Solitaire
- Tap a card that fits a foundation and it goes there at once: the ace foundations build up in suit to the king, the king foundations down in suit to the ace.
- Between piles, place a top card on another pile's top card of the same suit and one rank higher or lower. Tap the card, then the pile it goes to.
- You may go up and down in the same pile, for example 7, 8, 7 of hearts, and you move one card at a time. An ace and a king are not neighbors: there is no going round the corner.
- An empty pile stays empty; nothing can be moved into it.
- Shift, up to 3 times a deal, moves the bottom card of every pile with 2 or more cards to its top. A shift counts as a move, and Undo can take it back.
- Auto plays one move of the app's own policy, Undo takes back the last move or shift, and Give up ends the deal as a loss.
🎬 Watch: How to Play Crescent Solitaire
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📖 Detailed Guide
Setting up your table
- From the game menu choose Crescent. It is a solitaire for one, so there are no other seats to fill and no app opponents.
- The one option on the setup screen is Foundation moves, off by default. Leave it off to play the common rules, where a card stays on the foundation it lands on.
- The app shuffles two 52-card decks, takes out one ace and one king of each suit as the eight bases, and deals the other 96 cards into 16 piles of 6.
- The ace foundations sit in one row and the king foundations in another, with the 16 piles around them. Each pile shows its top card and a count of the cards it holds.
The two sets of foundations
- Each ace foundation builds up in its suit: 2, 3, 4 and so on to the king.
- Each king foundation builds down in its suit: queen, jack, 10 and so on to the ace.
- Tap any available top card that fits a foundation and it goes there at once. When a card fits both foundations of its suit, the tap sends it to the ace foundation.
- With Foundation moves on, a foundation's top card, never its base ace or king, may move across to the other foundation of its suit when it fits there.
Building on the piles and shifting
- Place a top card on another pile's top card of the same suit and one rank higher or lower, one card at a time. Tap the card, then the pile.
- You can go up and down in the same pile, 7, 8, 7 of hearts, but never round the corner: an ace and a king are not neighbors.
- An empty pile stays empty for the rest of the deal; nothing can be moved into it.
- Shift moves the bottom card of every pile with 2 or more cards to its top. You have 3 shifts a deal; the button shows how many are left and is not offered once every pile is down to 1 card.
Ending the deal
- You win when all 104 cards are on the eight foundations; the summary shows how many moves it took.
- The deal is lost when no move is left and no shift remains. Your score is the number of cards on the foundations, 8 at the start.
- Auto plays one move of the app's own policy, shifting when that is the best it can do; if it finds no way on, it concedes the deal.
- Undo takes back the last move or shift, as many times as you like, and Give up ends the deal as a loss, scored where it stands.
📊 Crescent Solitaire Scoring
You win when all 104 cards are on the foundations, and the summary counts your moves. The deal is lost when no move is left and no shift remains, or when you give up. Either way your score is the number of cards on the foundations, 8 at the start for the eight bases.
❓ Crescent Solitaire — Frequently Asked Questions
How many players do you need for Crescent Solitaire?
Crescent Solitaire is a solitaire game for one player — just you and the deck.
How do shifts work in Crescent?
A shift moves the bottom card of every pile with 2 or more cards to its top, so the card you could see goes under and a buried one comes up. You get 3 shifts a deal; a shift counts as a move, and Undo can take it back.
Can you move a card between foundations in Crescent?
Only with the Foundation moves option, which is off by default. When it is on, a foundation's top card may move to the other foundation of its suit if it fits there; the ace or king a foundation starts from never moves.
What ends a Crescent deal?
Winning, when all 104 cards are on the 8 foundations, or losing, when no move is left and no shift remains. Give up ends it early. Your score is the number of cards on the foundations, 8 at the start for the bases.
Can you build round the corner or refill an empty pile in Crescent?
Neither. On the piles a card goes only on the same suit 1 rank higher or lower, and an ace and a king are not neighbors. An empty pile stays empty for the rest of the deal; nothing can be moved into it.