Desert Pyramid

What is Pyramid solitaire?

Pyramid is a quick, simple solitaire with one idea at its heart: remove cards in pairs that add up to 13. The cards are laid out as a big triangle, and you clear it from the bottom row up. It's easy to learn in a minute and surprisingly tricky to clear every time.

Desert Pyramid keeps the traditional rules and adds two things: a Satchel that holds one card for later, and an Expedition mode where you clear pyramid after pyramid against a sunset clock. It's free and plays in your browser on phone, tablet or computer.

How to play Pyramid solitaire

The layout

28 cards are dealt face up in a pyramid of seven rows: one card at the top, two under it, all the way down to seven across the bottom. Each card is partly covered by the two cards in the row below it. The other 24 cards form the stock at the bottom of the screen.

Card values

The rules

• Pairs that make 13 come off. Pick two open cards whose values add up to 13 and both are removed. An Ace pairs with a Queen, a 2 with a Jack, a 3 with a 10, a 4 with a 9, a 5 with an 8, and a 6 with a 7.
• Kings go alone. A King is already worth 13, so you can remove it by itself.
• Only open cards count. A pyramid card is open once both cards covering it are gone. A card can't pair with a card that's sitting on top of it.
• The stock feeds you. Tap the stock to flip its top card face up. That card is open and can pair with any open pyramid card, or with your Satchel card.
• Two redeals. When the stock runs out, tap it again to turn the flipped cards back over. You can do this twice, so you get three passes through the stock in total.

Clear all 28 pyramid cards and you've won. The stock doesn't need to be empty.

The Satchel

The Satchel is our one extra rule. It holds a single card. Drag an open card into it, or select a card and tap the Satchel, and it waits there until you want it. The Satchel card can pair with any open pyramid card or the face-up stock card. It's a lifesaver when the card you just flipped matches something you can't reach yet.

Modes

Expedition

You start with four minutes of daylight on the clock. Clear a pyramid and you get bonus daylight (100 seconds after the first, a bit less after each one, never under 50) and a fresh pyramid. Run out of daylight and the trek ends. Each new pyramid also raises the stakes: pyramid 3 scores everything at three times the value of pyramid 1.

Daily

One pyramid, the same for everyone that day, with no sunset. Instead you get a time bonus for clearing it fast. Play it each day to keep your day streak going.

Controls

Tap one card, then its partner. If a card has only one possible partner on the table, tapping it makes the pair right away, and a King leaves with a single tap. You can also drag one card onto the other. If you tap a card with no partner, we'll tell you what it needs (a 4 needs a 9, for example).

Keyboard: Space flips the stock, Z undoes, H shows a hint, Enter plays the hinted move, S puts the selected card in the Satchel and Esc pauses. Hints come from a solver that looks for a real way to clear the pyramid, so when it says there's no way through from here, it's time to undo.

Scoring

Every removal is worth 10 points times your Chain. Your chain grows by one with each pair or King you remove in a row, and resets when you flip the stock or redeal. So the first pair is worth 10, the second 20, the third 30, up to a cap of 120 per pair at a chain of 12. Clearing a whole row of the pyramid adds 50.

In an Expedition, everything (pairs, rows and the clear bonus) is multiplied by the pyramid number you're on.

Relics and card backs

Every pyramid you clear counts toward the 12 relics in your collection: the Brass Compass (1 clear), Clay Jar (2), Falcon Feather (4), Old Key (6), Camel Bell (9), Hourglass (12), Bloom Cactus (16), Star Map (20), Glass Scorpion (25), Moon Charm (30), Oasis Gem (40) and Sun Crown (50).

Card backs unlock through milestones, including clearing a pyramid with no redeal, clearing 3, 5 and 8 pyramids in a single trek, building a chain of 8, and clearing 10, 25 and 50 pyramids overall. They're shared with every card game on the site.

Pyramid solitaire tips and strategy

• Make every pair before you flip. Flipping resets your chain. Clear all the pyramid pairs you can see, then flip. A chain of eight is worth 360 points before row bonuses, and every point gets multiplied in a deep Expedition.
• Watch for blocked partners. If a 6 sits directly on top of a 7 it's covering, those two can never pair with each other. You'll need a different 7 for the 6, and a different 6 for the 7. Spot these early.
• Count the partners. There are four of every rank. If three Jacks are already gone and you need the last one to free a 2, don't use that Jack on a stock 2.
• Prefer pyramid cards over stock cards. When a stock card and a pyramid card could both pair with the same thing, use the pyramid card. Stock cards come around again on the next pass. Pyramid cards are the ones you have to clear.
• Spread your work across the pyramid. Digging one side while the other side stays solid tends to leave you stuck at the top. Open the bottom row evenly.
• Use the Satchel for the card you'll want soon. If you flip a 9 and the 4 you need is two layers down, park the 9. Just remember it only holds one card, so don't fill it with something you may never use.
• Save your redeals. Each unused redeal is a bonus at the end, and in an Expedition that bonus is multiplied too. A clear with no redeal also unlocks a card back.
• Mind the clock, but don't panic. In an Expedition, the first pyramid buys you 100 extra seconds. A careful clear is worth more than a rushed failed one.

If you like adding up cards, Column 21 has you building columns to exactly 21 against the clock. For a calmer solitaire with no clock, try Star Solitaire.

Questions