Antares

1 Deck. Easy (95%). Mostly Skill.

Object

To move all the cards to the foundations.

Layout

•	4 foundation piles (top right) - build up in suit from Ace to King.

•	4 cells (top left) - storage locations for cards. Only 1 card allowed in each cell.

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8 tableau piles (below foundations and cells) - on the left most 4 piles (called the Scorpion piles), build down in suit. Groups of cards (regardless of any sequence) can be moved. Fill spaces with Kings or groups of cards headed by a King. On the rightmost 4 piles (called the FreeCell piles), build down by alternate color. Move groups of cards if they are in sequence down by alternate color and if there are enough free cells that the cards could be moved individually. Spaces can be filled by any card or legal group of cards. At the start of the game 6 cards are dealt face up to the Scorpion piles, 7 cards are dealt face up to the FreeCell piles.

Options

AutoPlay

Notes

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The tableau piles are divided into two parts: the Scorpion piles (left) and the FreeCell piles (right), divided by a line. The Scorpion piles are built down in suit while the FreeCell piles are built down by alternate color. Groups of cards may be moved from one tableau pile to another, if they form a legal sequence in their current pile. For example, a sequence down by alternate color (if there are a sufficient number of empty cells available to store the cards individually) may be moved from the FreeCell piles to the Scorpion piles, since that is the legal sequence for the FreeCell piles. Also, any group of cards may be moved from the Scorpion piles to the FreeCell piles (assuming the head card of the group can be moved there). These kinds of groups transfers are called "shifts". Shifts of groups down by alternate color are allowed from FreeCell piles to Scorpion piles, while shifts of any group of cards are allowed from Scorpion piles to FreeCell piles. Once a shift has been made from Scorpion piles to FreeCell piles, the cards in the groups cannot again be moved as a group unless they are of sequence down by alternate color. In short, the Scorpion piles have the same building rules as in the game Scorpion, and the FreeCell piles have the same building rules as in the game FreeCell.

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Groups of cards in the FreeCell piles of the tableau can only be moved as a group if there are a sufficient number of empty cells available to store the cards individually. The ability to move cards as a group is only a shortcut to moving the group one card at a time. In the Scorpion piles, groups of cards may be moved regardless of any sequence.

Tips

•	Try to keep as many cells empty as possible.

History

Antares is a combination of the games Scorpion and FreeCell. The tableau is divided into two parts as in the game Demons and Thieves. Antares was invented by Thomas Warfield. It is named after the brightest star in the constellation Scorpius.

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