Expose the next foundation card before the stock covers it.

Trace the card under each move

If a 6 of Hearts covers an Ace in one column and an exposed 7 of Hearts is available elsewhere, moving the 6 onto the 7 exposes the Ace. That can start a Hearts foundation. A same-rank landing in another suit is not legal in Napoleon; this makes each usable tableau route scarce. A vacant column can hold any exposed card, but filling it removes that temporary route for the next blocker.

Before drawing, compare visible tableau and waste tops with the next card needed by each suit foundation. Drawing adds one card to the waste and covers its previous top. A card that currently advances a foundation or frees a useful tableau card can be harder to recover after the draw.

Check the variant movement rule first

These relatives change the number of decks and columns, visible opening cards, tableau color or suit rule, and whether a legal run can move as a unit. The family principle is access to foundation cards, but a move that works in one game may be illegal in another. Use the specific variant section below before applying Napoleon's single-card, same-suit advice.

Colonel uses a blocked grid rather than ordinary columns, and Octave adds grace piles and a forced drawn-card phase; each has a separate guide. Congress and Parliament, Diplomat, Emperor, Red and Black, and Persian Patience also need their own distinct instruction.

Canister

Play Canister. One deck is fully dealt across eight columns, with no stock. Descending alternating-color runs may move together. A vacancy can hold any exposed card or legal run; use it to separate a run that covers an Ace, then check that the parked run has a later landing.

Martha

Play Martha. One deck begins with its four Aces on foundations and 48 cards in twelve columns. Two of the four dealt rows begin face down. Alternating-color runs can move together, but an empty column accepts only a single card. A long run cannot be parked there intact, so plan how to reveal the hidden row first.

Deauville

Play Deauville. Two decks begin with forty tableau cards in ten columns; the first three rows are hidden. Build down in alternating colors, moving one exposed card at a time. A move that turns a hidden card face up can be worth more than a longer visible stack, because the next stock card will otherwise add another blocker.

Josephine

Play Josephine. Josephine keeps the two-deck ten-column, same-suit descent of Napoleon but permits correctly ordered same-suit runs to move as units. A 7–6 of Hearts can move together onto an 8 of Hearts, potentially emptying a source column and exposing a lower card in one move.

Lucas

Play Lucas. Eight Aces start on foundations before play. Thirteen columns receive three face-up cards each, and tableau builds down in suit one card at a time. With foundations already open, compare whether moving a 2 directly to its suit foundation exposes another low card before drawing.

Maria

Play Maria. Nine columns begin with four face-up cards each. Build down in alternating colors but move only one card at a time. The extra suit choice makes landings easier than in Napoleon, yet a useful run cannot be moved whole; free its exposed cards in stages.

Midshipman

Play Midshipman. Nine columns begin with four cards; the first two rows are hidden. Build down in a different suit, moving only the exposed top card. A red Heart may land on a red Diamond if the ranks fit, while a same-suit card cannot. Check the exact suit before using a move to turn a hidden card.

Dress Parade

Play Dress Parade. Ten columns begin with four cards each, the first three rows hidden. Descending alternating-color runs can move as units. Use that group mobility to expose a hidden card before another draw covers the column, then place the moved run where it retains an exit.

Streets

Play Streets. Ten columns start with forty face-up cards. Alternating-color tableau builds allow only single-card moves. Unlike Deauville, there are no hidden tableau cards to reveal; the main access choice is which top card to free before drawing from the remaining stock.

Sixty Thieves

Play Sixty Thieves. Three decks produce twelve columns with five face-up cards each and twelve suit foundations. Tableau builds down in suit, one card at a time. The duplicate ranks create more candidate landings but also more cards that can cover a needed low foundation rank.

Napoleon’s Square

Play Napoleon’s Square. Two decks start with four face-up cards in each of twelve columns. Same-suit descending runs can move together. A run that empties a column creates a temporary landing for another run, so compare the card it exposes with the destination it covers.

Napoleon’s Shoulder

Play Napoleon’s Shoulder. The twelve-column opening matches Napoleon’s Square, but descending tableau runs need only rank order; suit and color do not restrict them. This broadens possible landings. Foundations still require their own suit, so keep a route to separate mixed-suit runs into single exposed cards.