Scorpion Solitaire
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Strategy

Scorpion Solitaire Strategy & Tips

A practical strategy guide for Scorpion Solitaire: dig the hidden columns first, grab deep into a column on purpose, track your Kings, and treat the one-time reserve as a last resort.

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The core idea

Reveal fast, grab deep, spend the reserve last

Almost every strong Scorpion habit comes down to using the game's one unusual rule on purpose: you can pick up a card from the middle of a column, not just the top. Players who never do that are playing a much harder, more restrictive game than the one that is actually in front of them.

  • 01

    Dig into the hidden columns first

    The first four columns each bury three face-down cards under four face-up ones. Every move that flips one of those over is new information you did not have before — prioritise it over a move that only tidies a column you can already see.

  • 02

    Grab deeper than the top card, on purpose

    The whole point of Scorpion is that you are not limited to a column's top card. If the 9♣ you need is buried under three unrelated cards, grab it anyway — the group above it rides along regardless of whether it was in order.

  • 03

    Track every King before you build

    An empty column is only useful the instant you have a King ready to drop into it. Know where all four Kings are before you start stacking cards onto a column that might be hiding one.

  • 04

    Treat the reserve as a last resort

    Dealing the reserve permanently adds one card to each of the first three columns, with no way back except undo. Save it for the moment you have genuinely run out of tableau moves, not the moment it first becomes available.

  • 05

    Do not protect a tidy run

    Unlike some tableau games, Scorpion never penalises you for breaking a clean same-suit sequence apart. If tearing into an already-good run is the only way to reach a card you need underneath, do it without hesitation.

  • 06

    Plan two moves, not one

    Before you commit to a grab, check what it exposes and whether that new top card actually opens something else. A move that looks legal but leads nowhere is worse than pausing to find one that chains into a second move.

  • 07

    Use undo to test a line

    Undo here is unlimited and costs nothing. Try a deep grab, see what it opens up, and take it back if the board did not improve. Treat a risky move as an experiment rather than a commitment.

By stage of the game

How the priorities shift

The habits above apply throughout — what changes is which one matters most. See the full rules for exactly what a legal move allows.

  • Early game

    Spend your first moves clearing the twelve hidden cards in the first four columns. Every reveal gives you more legal options for the rest of the game.

  • Mid game

    Once the board is fully face up, the game becomes about sequencing: which column do you dig into next, and which King do you save an empty space for.

  • When you are stuck

    If no tableau move is legal and you have not used the reserve, deal it. If you have already used it and nothing is legal, undo a few moves to try a different order before giving up on the deal.

Ready to put it into practice? Read the full how-to-play guide or jump straight in.

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