Play Easy Scorpion Solitaire
All of Scorpion's rules, with fewer cards hidden at the start. Deal a free game of Easy Scorpion below.
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Easy Scorpion is a gentler version of Scorpion Solitaire. It uses one deck and seven columns, and you build down in suit while moving any face-up card with everything on top of it. The rules match Scorpion. The difference is the deal: fewer cards start face down, so you can see more of the game.
How the Easy Scorpion deal is laid out
You get one deck of 52 cards in 7 columns of seven, plus a three-card reserve. The first three columns each have three face-down cards under four face-up ones. The other four columns are face up from top to bottom.
In regular Scorpion, four columns start with hidden cards. Here only three do, so nine cards are face down instead of twelve. That’s one less column to dig out, and more of the deal you can plan around from the first move.
Easy Scorpion rules
Easy Scorpion on this site uses the deal Pretty Good Solitaire calls Scorpion II. These rules follow Pretty Good Solitaire’s Scorpion II page, which says the game varies from Scorpion only in how the cards are dealt. Wikipedia’s Scorpion article also calls this deal easier than regular Scorpion. For a full walkthrough, see the Scorpion Solitaire rules guide.
- Build down in suit only. The Jack of clubs goes on the Queen of clubs.
- Move any face-up card, wherever it is, together with every card on top of it.
- Fill an empty column only with a King, or a group headed by a King.
- A face-down card turns face up once nothing covers it.
- Deal the three-card reserve onto the first three columns, one card each. You get this once.
- Win by building four runs, King to Ace, each in one suit.
How it differs from Scorpion and Spider
Against regular Scorpion Solitaire, only the deal changes: three columns start with hidden cards instead of four. Every move you learn here carries straight over.
Against Spider, the differences are bigger. Spider uses two decks and ten columns, lets you build in any suit, and only lets you move same-suit runs. Easy Scorpion builds in suit only but lets you move any face-up card, sorted or not.
Easy Scorpion strategy
Learn Scorpion’s habits here. Easy Scorpion is a good place to practise the moves that matter in the harder game: freeing face-down cards first, watching where Kings sit and timing the reserve.
Spot the trapped cards. A card can’t be placed on its own next-higher card if that card sits above it in the same column. Find these knots at the start and plan how to move the higher card away, usually onto the next-higher card of the same suit.
Don’t clear a column you can’t use. Only Kings fill empty columns. Empty one when you have a King, with its cards, ready to move in.
Deal the reserve late. The three reserve cards cover the tops of the first three columns. Move anything you need off those columns first.
Ready for more? Wasp Solitaire keeps Scorpion’s deal but lets any card fill an empty column. The board above is free, with unlimited undo, hints and numbered deals you can share.
Rules source: Pretty Good Solitaire (Goodsol)
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between Easy Scorpion and Scorpion?
The rules are the same: build down in suit, move any face-up card with the cards on top of it, and fill empty columns only with Kings. Easy Scorpion changes the deal: only three columns start with face-down cards, not four. Seeing more of the deck from the first move makes it easier to plan, and easier to win.
Is Easy Scorpion a good way to learn Scorpion Solitaire?
Yes. Every rule carries over, so the habits you build here work in the full game. You practise freeing face-down cards, moving Kings into empty columns and timing the three-card reserve, with fewer hidden cards to worry about. When Easy Scorpion feels comfortable, move up to regular Scorpion.
How do you win Easy Scorpion?
Build four runs in the tableau, one per suit, each going King, Queen, Jack and down to Ace. You can move any face-up card, with everything on top of it, onto the next-higher card of the same suit. Once all the cards sit in those four runs, the game is won.
Can you play Easy Scorpion for free?
Yes. Easy Scorpion is free on this site, in your browser, with no sign-up and no download. It works on phones, tablets and desktops. You get unlimited undo, hints, big-cards mode and numbered deals that you can replay or share with a friend.