Chameleon Solitaire
How to play Chameleon
Chameleon, also called Kansas, is a one-deck Canfield solitaire with a twelve-card reserve, three tableau piles built down regardless of suit, and a single pass through the stock.
A twelve-card reserve and three piles built down in any suit, with one pass through the stock a card at a time.
The goal of Chameleon
Move every card onto the four foundations, building each one up by suit from the rank the deal turns up, past the King to the Ace.
How to set up Chameleon
Twelve cards are dealt face down into the reserve, and its top card is turned face up. The next card starts its suit's foundation, and its rank is the one all four foundations start from. One card is dealt face up to each of the three tableau piles, and the other 36 cards form the stock.
Chameleon rules
Tableau piles build down one rank at a time regardless of suit, and a King may go on an Ace. Any card in a pile can be moved together with all the cards above it.
The top card of the reserve can go onto a foundation or a tableau pile. When a tableau pile is emptied, the reserve's top card fills it straight away. Once the reserve is used up, any card that can move may fill an empty pile, or the pile may stay empty.
Turn the stock one card at a time onto the waste. Only the top waste card is in play. There is no redeal, so you go through the stock once.
The foundations build up by suit from the starting rank to the King, then on through the Ace to the rank below it. A card on a foundation never comes back into play.
Click a card to play it: to its foundation if it fits, otherwise onto the first pile it builds on, and only then into an empty pile. A card clicked in a pile moves with every card above it. Drag a card or a run to choose where it goes yourself. With Autoplay off in Settings, only a drag moves a card.
How to win at Chameleon
You win when all 52 cards are on the foundations. Once the reserve, the stock and the waste are empty and every pile is in order, Auto complete, on by default in Settings, moves the remaining cards up for you. The game is stuck when no card can move and turning the stock, through the passes you have left, brings up nothing that can.
Chameleon strategy tips
Most games are won or lost in the reserve. Every card that leaves it brings the next one into play, so look for moves that empty a tableau pile: the reserve's top card fills it at once.
The stock is turned only once. A waste card you pass over is covered by the next one and comes back into play only when every card above it has been played.
With three piles instead of four, there is little room to build. Moving a run from any of its cards lets you shift part of a pile to reach the card beneath it.
Chameleon questions and answers
How do you play Chameleon solitaire?
Deal twelve cards to the reserve, one to start the foundations and one to each of three tableau piles, and keep the rest as the stock. Build the piles down regardless of suit, play the reserve's top card whenever you can, and turn the stock one card at a time, just once. The foundations build up by suit from the first foundation card's rank, and you win when all 52 cards are on them.
What is the difference between Chameleon and Canfield?
Chameleon has a twelve-card reserve and three tableau piles, where Canfield has thirteen and four. Its piles build down regardless of suit, any card in a pile can move with the cards above it, and once the reserve is used up any card that can move may fill an empty pile. The stock is turned one card at a time, with no redeal.
Is Chameleon the same as Kansas?
Yes. Kansas is another name for Chameleon, the same game with a twelve-card reserve, three piles built down regardless of suit and one pass through the stock.
What is the reserve in Chameleon?
A pile of twelve cards dealt face down beside the tableau, with only its top card turned up. That card can be played to a foundation or onto a tableau pile at any time, and it drops into an emptied pile at once. Each card that leaves the reserve turns the next one face up, and until the last of them is gone you cannot choose what goes into an empty pile.
What rank do the foundations start at in Chameleon?
At whatever rank the first foundation card has. It is dealt straight to its suit's foundation after the reserve, and each of the other suits waits for its card of that rank. If it is a Jack, every foundation runs Jack, Queen, King, Ace, Two and on up to the Ten, and in the tableau a King may go on an Ace.
How many times can you go through the stock in Chameleon?
Once. The stock is turned one card at a time, and there is no redeal when it runs out.
Can every Chameleon deal be won?
No. Tested on 100 shuffled Chameleon deals, the game's solver proved just 1 winnable at every search size it was given, and at most 5 lost; it could not settle the rest. Finding a proved deal took a median of 68 shuffles. That is far too slow to deal one on demand, so every deal is an ordinary shuffle and there is no Winnable switch. The Hint button still asks the solver for a winning line before it suggests a move.
Is there a daily Chameleon game?
Yes. Chameleon has a daily board, the same deal for everyone that day. You need to be logged in to play it.