Play Scorpion Solitaire Online for Free
Scorpion Solitaire is Spider's harder, single-deck cousin. Seven columns of seven, twelve hidden cards, and a three-card reserve you may spend exactly once. You can lift any face-up card with everything stacked on top of it, but the tableau only builds by the same suit - and only complete King-to-Ace runs ever leave the board.
How to Play Scorpion Solitaire
- Forty-nine cards are dealt into seven columns of seven. The bottom three cards of columns 1 to 4 start face down (12 hidden cards); columns 5 to 7 are dealt fully face up.
- Build the tableau down by the same suit - the 9 of hearts goes on the 10 of hearts and nowhere else.
- Like Yukon, you may pick up any face-up card and move it with everything stacked on top of it, in any order. Only the card you grab has to land legally.
- When the face-up cards above a face-down card are moved away, that card flips face up automatically.
- When a column holds a complete thirteen-card King-to-Ace run of one suit, the whole run clears off the board automatically.
- Only a King - or a group whose bottom card is a King - may fill an empty column.
- The three leftover cards form a one-time reserve: deal them once, one onto each of the first three columns, at whatever moment you choose.
- Clear all four King-to-Ace runs to win.
Scorpion Solitaire Rules
Objective
Complete four full King-to-Ace runs, one per suit, clearing them from the tableau.
Setup
Seven columns of seven cards (49). The bottom three cards of columns 1 to 4 are face down, the other 40 cards are face up. Three cards are held aside as a one-time reserve.
Tableau
Build down by the same suit. Any face-up card may move with everything stacked on top of it, sequenced or not; only the bottom card of the group has to fit.
Completed Runs
A full thirteen-card King-to-Ace run of a single suit clears automatically from the column.
Reserve
Three cards, dealable once onto the first three columns at a moment of your choosing - timing this deal is a strategic decision, not a reflex.
Scoring
This version scores 100 points for each completed run; the real goal is clearing all four.
Strategy
Scorpion gives you all 52 cards at the start and only one small extra resource, so the order you do things in decides the game. Begin by working out which four King-to-Ace runs the deal is offering - with one deck and four suits, every suit has to be built in order from King down to Ace, and the three reserve cards are usually the difference between a run that completes and one that does not. Build down by suit at every opportunity, because a mixed-suit stack is illegal here. Take advantage of the generous movement rule: any face-up card carries everything stacked on top of it, in order or not, which lets you shift a whole mess onto a King and sort it out later. Use the reserve late, when you can see exactly which column needs which card.
Common Mistakes
Spending the reserve early is the mistake that ends most games. Those three cards go onto the first three columns once and only once, and using them to plug a gap in the first minute almost always means discovering later that a column needed a specific rank to finish a run. Players also forget that an empty column takes a King and nothing else, so clearing a column and then parking a nine there is a wasted resource. Finally, Scorpion is genuinely brutal - with careful play only about one deal in eight comes out - so treat a completed run as a win in itself rather than expecting to finish every game.
Winning
All four suits built King to Ace and cleared from the tableau.
Tips & Strategy
- Expose the twelve face-down cards early - they are the only hidden information on the board.
- Delay the reserve deal until you are genuinely stuck; dealt early it buries the top of your first three columns.
- Build same-suit runs downward from Kings - every mixed-suit card sitting on a run is future work.
- Only Kings fill empty columns, so clear a column only when you have a King ready to drop in.
- When two moves look equally good, choose the one that increases same-suit contact points.
- Hold the reserve until you can name the card each column needs; three cards spent late beat three spent early.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why is it called Scorpion Solitaire?
The name evokes the game's sting: one careless move can poison the whole board, and the three-card reserve is your single antidote - use it wisely.
How is Scorpion different from Yukon?
Both let you lift any face-up card with everything on top of it. Scorpion builds by the same suit and clears King-to-Ace runs straight off the board, while Yukon builds in alternating colors and sends cards to four foundations.
When should I deal the reserve cards?
As late as possible. The three-card reserve is a one-time lifeline - dealt early it buries useful cards and wastes the rescue.
What can fill an empty column?
Only a King, or a group whose bottom card is a King. This is stricter than Spider, where any card may park in an empty column.
How is Scorpion different from Spider Solitaire?
Scorpion uses one deck instead of two, seven columns instead of ten, and requires piles to be built down in the same suit rather than any suit. Groups of face-up cards move together freely, empty columns take Kings only, and three reserve cards may be dealt exactly once.
When should I use the reserve cards?
The reserve deals one card onto each of the first three columns, once per game, and cannot be used again. Save it until a deal genuinely helps - ideally to complete or unblock a same-suit run - rather than spending it in the first minute.
How do you win Scorpion Solitaire?
Build four King-to-Ace runs of a single suit. Each completed run leaves the board and scores 100 points. Solver studies put the winnable rate at roughly one deal in eight, so expect plenty of defeats and enjoy the wins.
What percentage of scorpion solitaire games are winnable?
Roughly one deal in eight even for a player who knows the game well - Scorpion is one of the hardest widely-played variants. The single deck and the same-suit building rule mean a run breaks the moment the card you need is buried under a different suit, and the three reserve cards are nowhere near enough to fix that. Treat clearing two or three of the four runs as a good result.
Is scorpion solitaire always winnable?
No. Many deals are impossible from the start, and unlike FreeCell - where more than 99.9% of deals can be solved - Scorpion does not pretend otherwise. Some shuffles put a card where no legal sequence can ever reach it, and the game ends with runs unfinished. Undo and a fresh deal are the honest answers.
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