A new game of skill with probabilities

[Markgm]

Hi,
Or I should say "new software" for games of skill and probabilities.
I wrote the Java for a set of games with cards.

(In the 1970s) It started with "Clock", which deals stacks of 4 cards
down on 12 points of a clock, with a 13th in the center, and starts by
flipping the top in the center for play. That card stacks underneath
the appropriate point on the clock, or center for Kings, flipping up
where it happens and using that for the next play. It is literally
choiceless.

My older brother looked at this, and came up with a way to give the
player some kind of choice. He separated 4 stacks from the other 9,
and (with a new board arrangement) made the 4 like the Kings stack
above, as 4 feeder stacks, and assigned 2s through 10s to the other
9. Choice of face cards could stack where the four feeder stacks
were, once they were cleared. Cards would flip up on top of stacks
when played to. They would have to move or block their stacks from
further play. This was an interesting and unique game - it had
choices, too.

I think in something like today's solitaire there seem to be around 1
to 5 moves available at any one time, and then some degree of depth.

I took the above idea of my brothers, and separated the 4-card stacks
(each) into source stack and foundation, so they became vertical,
source-foundation columns, each. I made 5 "columns" as a top row, and
8 columns as a bottom row (of columns). I made the foundation
separate so the player could see which rank they were stacking
where. I gave the player the ability to declare which rank would
stack on which foundation - the choice became theirs! To keep up the
challenge, in ascending order, nothing would be allowed to stack
higher to the left of a lower, or lower to the right of a higher rank
(on the lower set of columns). The 5 columns on the top are the
feeder stacks that have to be cleared to stack the player's choice of
ranks on their foundations.

So that makes 40 options to the player on the deal at the start of the
game.

Then I added a 4-card hand, taking away one column from the lower
"walk" (columns). Cards in the hand could play to the walks, and
blocking cards from the top of source stacks could be returned to the
hand - with special power. Playing an unblocked lower walk column
from the hand meant being able to return any blocking card from that
walk to the hand. Playing to upper walk foundations from the hand
meant being able to return any card from the upper source stacks to
the hand. The hand, then, is to end at 4-of-a-kind in a "perfect
game".

Now with a hand to both walks using 52 cards, this game has 1 to 150
options at a time to the player. I also gave it a 100-card variation
with 1 to 300 options at a time during play. I have seen it go a
little higher, but rarely. In any event, the "numbers" as I call them
seem high enough to help these games take flight on their own.

These games - they are like sparring partners when you play. It is as
if there are enough "numbers" to make it seem like there's a player in
there - in those cards, and it bobs and weaves (and so do I). These
games are fun. There is I think a fun littler fast one called Hop 45,
a.k.a. Tic-Tac-Toe, with 3-of-a-kind,4 upper and 5 lower columns (27
cards) - a fast, fun little game.

I went with a "scaling deck of cards" - ranks Ace to 15 and J-Q-K and
3 wild ranks and 5 suits and you pick the rules and the layout. I
have a dozen pre-made games balanced in rules and layout from
experience playing. The Standard games I think are very much fun. I
think it can also be interesting to make other variations (which
anyone can do, in rules, deck, and board layout). Make your own
board.

You've pretty much got it right there. The software is free, and it
is at
http://bwsgames.org

Cheers,
Mark