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If you like short and fun solo card games, then Portraits game is perfect for you. This is a single-player card game that you can play offline or online (Glastyn Games) for free. It takes just 15 minutes to play. And only a standard 52-card deck is required.
Game Setup – How to start
- Shuffle the deck – First shuffle the 52-card deck properly.
- Build a Stockpile – Keep all cards face-down – this will be your draw pile (stockpile).
- Public Sales Row – Keep 5 cards face-up – this is the market where you will buy cards.
- Your Asset Cards – Draw 5 cards for yourself as well. But remember – face cards (J, Q, K) are not allowed. If a face card comes up, send it to Private Collector Sales.
- Private Collector Sales – Only a maximum of 5 face cards are allowed in this. If this is full and you draw another portrait – you lose immediately.
How to play – Flow of the game
Every turn you can do these actions:
- Buy an asset – take a number card from the public sales market with your asset.
- Swap – take another asset card of the same value from the card market with one of your asset cards.
- Buy a portrait – take a portrait (face card) from the public or private collector market.
- Filling – After every move the empty space has to be filled from the stockpile.
- Assets Refill – If the asset card is used up, take a new card from the stockpile.
Purchase Rules – How to buy a card?
When you buy a card (asset or portrait), you will have to discard 1 or more of your asset cards.
- All cards must be of the same suit.
- Their total value should be more than the card to be bought.
- Number cards = their face value
- Aces = 1 or 11 (as the case may be)
- Jack = 11, Queen = 12, King = 13
- Bought Asset → goes in your asset row.
- Bought Portrait → goes in your personal vault.
Swap Rule – Card Swap
By discarding one of your assets, you can buy any card of the same number value from the public sales market. The suit must not match.
Filling Holes – From Draw Pile
- Whenever you buy or swap a card, a new card from the draw pile takes its place.
- But if you draw a portrait and Private Collector Sales are full, game over.
- If the draw pile is finished, the empty space is left there, nothing is filled.
End of the Game – Way to Win
If you collect all 12 portraits, you win.
If there is no transaction left and you do not have 12 portraits – you lose.
Also Read: How To Play Pyramid Solitaire: A Simple Guide
