How to Play Bavarian Solitaire

This two-deck tableau-building game lets you stack cards upward by rank in any suit, which is more forgiving than games that require matching suits or colors. There are no foundations—your only goal is to sort the whole layout into complete runs.

Setup

1. The tableau has 10 piles, each starting with one card face up.
2. A stock and waste pile hold the remaining cards—one card at a time, one pass only.
3. There are no separate foundation piles; completed runs in the tableau count as your progress toward winning.

How to play

• In the tableau, place a card one rank higher (any suit) on top of another card.
• Ranks wrap around: a King can be followed by an Ace.
• The stock deals one card at a time to the waste pile. You get only one pass.
• Only the top card of the waste pile or each tableau pile can be moved.
• When a tableau pile empties, any card can fill it.
• Your goal is to gather each tableau pile into one unbroken ascending run.

How to win

Objective: Arrange all cards in the tableau into complete ordered runs, one rank higher in any suit, wrapping from King around to Ace.

You win when all cards are arranged into complete ordered runs in the tableau (one rank higher, any suit), with ranks wrapping from King to Ace.

Tips

• Building up in any suit offers more flexibility than games requiring the same suit or specific colors.
• Plan your moves to create empty tableau spaces that give you room to maneuver.
• Prioritize exposing tableau spaces to access waste pile cards strategically.

Play Bavarian free on Windows

CardTray is a free solitaire app for Windows that includes Bavarian alongside 300+ other games. It saves every move as you play, so you can close the window and pick the game up later, replay any deal, and take on a new Daily Challenge deal every day. Browse every game in the Game Gallery.

Related games

More games from the Foundations family:

• Four Seasons — A straightforward single-deck game with a clever twist: each deal picks a random starting rank for the foundations.
• Acquaintance — A straightforward solitaire where you move cards from four reserve piles directly to four Ace foundations, working through the stock and redealing up to twice to uncover new plays.
• Auld Lang Syne — Move all cards to the foundations in ascending any-suit sequences, using four reserve piles where only the top card of each is playable.