Why do the aces start on the foundations?

That is Lucas's defining rule. All eight aces are removed before the deal and placed on their foundations, so foundation building can begin with the first two you uncover.

No. The stock is dealt one card at a time to the waste, and once it is exhausted only the board and the waste top remain. The shallow three-card columns are the concession instead.

Is Lucas easier than Forty Thieves?

Considerably. The pre-founded aces and the three-deep columns give a careful player a win rate several times higher than the parent game.

Can I move more than one card at a time?

No — one card per move, as in the rest of the classic Forty Thieves line.

Thirteen columns seems like a lot. Does the board fit on a phone?

Yes. The board sizes itself to your screen, and on a narrow display the cards shrink and the columns tighten so all thirteen stay visible and tappable.

What is the best order to learn the Forty Thieves family?

Lucas first — the aces are given and the columns are shallow. Then Limited, then Forty and Eight for its redeal, and finally Forty Thieves itself once suit-only building feels natural.

Lucas Solitaire - Play Online & 100% Free

Play Lucas Solitaire Online — Forty Thieves With a Head Start

Lucas is the friendly door into the Forty Thieves family. Before a single card is dealt to the table, all eight aces are lifted out and placed on their foundations. The remaining ninety-six cards deal into thirteen face-up columns of three, over a stock of fifty-seven. Nothing about the building rules is relaxed — it still builds down by suit, still one card at a time — but a board only three cards deep with every ace already up is a different proposition from ten columns of four and nothing started.

Setup

Foundations: the eight aces, placed before play begins, two per suit.
Tableau: thirteen columns of three cards, all face up — thirty-nine cards visible.
Stock: the remaining 57 cards, dealt one at a time to the waste.

Rules

The tableau builds down by suit, one card at a time.
An empty column takes any single card.
The stock deals one card to the waste per click. There is no redeal — the shallow columns are the game's mercy, not a second pass.
Foundations build up in suit from the pre-placed aces to the kings.

Strategy

Do not bank a two just because you can. With the aces already up, the twos and threes are playable almost immediately, and that is the trap. Sending a two to the foundation when its three sits under an unmovable king strands the whole suit. Check what is above the next card before you play the current one.

Empty a column early — you have thirteen. Spaces are cheaper here than anywhere else in the family, and a space is the only way to re-home a blocker in a suit-only game. Clearing one three-card column costs little and pays for the rest of the deal.

Work the board fully before each stock click. There is no redeal, so the stock is a one-way street. Every card you pass is a card you will not see again.

Watch both copies of a rank. Two decks mean two of every card. If one nine of clubs is buried six deep and the other is on top of a column, the second one is your card — do not spend moves excavating the first.

Where It Sits in the Forty Thieves Family

The Forty Thieves group is one of the largest variant families in patience, and its members differ along a small set of dials: the deal shape, whether the tableau builds by suit or by colour, whether runs may travel, and whether the stock comes round again. Lucas turns a dial none of the others touch — it starts the foundations for you. Every other member makes you dig eight aces out of the pack before a foundation can begin, which is where most deals are lost. Removing that hurdle, and dealing only three cards deep, makes Lucas the family's gentlest introduction while leaving its strict suit-only building completely intact. Play it first, then Limited, then the parent, and you can feel each concession being taken away.

Other Games to Try

Forty and Eight — eight columns of five and one redeal
Busy Aces — twelve single cards and a very busy stock
Limited — twelve columns of three, no aces given
Forty Thieves — the strict parent of the whole family

About This Version

Lucas runs in your browser — free, no download, no sign-up. Install it as an app on your phone or computer and it works offline. You get unlimited undo, a hint button that names a legal move, statistics that track your wins and times, and seeded deals: every game has a seed you can replay, so a board you enjoyed (or lost) can be played again exactly.