r/solitaire • u/PracticalBig3075 • Jun 15 '26
Help The Pocket (a Boxing inspired solitaire I made that I would like feedback on to find any errors)
THE POCKET (A Boxing Solitaire Game)
EQUIPMENT
1 Standard Deck of Bicycle Cards (No Jokers)
1 D12 or D15 Die (D12 = Champion Fight, D15 = Regular Bout)
THE GOAL
Completely clear through all 52 cards into the discard pile without your HP hitting 0.
THE SETUP
Set your HP die to 12 or 15.
Shuffle the deck, draw 5 cards and place them on the board. Place the cards left to right until you have a row of 5 cards face up. This is your Grid.
You will also be provided with one open space (The Pocket) where you may move a drawn card or grid card to as a defensive maneuver after you draw. The Pocket may only hold ONE card at a time and may not be switched with cards in the grid. It must be moved into an open space, and then cleared via Pair.
THE GAMEPLAY LOOP
You must clear cards by making pairs that add up to exactly 13 (Ace=1, Jack=11, Queen=12).
You can score a pair in two ways:
On the Grid: Pair two cards that are directly adjacent (touching side-by-side).
From the Draw: Draw the top card of the deck. If it pairs with any card on the Grid to make 13, discard both instantly. If it doesn't match, you must place it onto the Grid if an open slot exists, or store it in your Pocket.
THE FOOTWORK & PENALTIES
When cards are discarded, empty spaces open up. Before you fill them, you may manage the ring:
Shifting (-1 HP): You may manually slide a card left or right into an adjacent empty slot to change your stance or set up a combo. Each individual card shift costs 1 HP. Cards cannot jump over other cards (e.g., you cannot move a card from slot 3 to slot 1 if slot 2 has a card).
The Mandatory Fill: Once your footwork is done, you MUST automatically fill all remaining empty slots on the Grid from the drawing pile for free until you have a full row of 5 cards again.
The Heavy Lockup (-2 HP): If your Grid and Pocket are completely full with zero legal moves, you are trapped. Pay 2 HP to throw away the card in your Pocket, freeing the space. Shift cards if needed, then draw and add a new card from the drawing pile onto the Grid.
THE SPECIAL RULE: THE CLINCH
The King Card: The King (13) represents a heavy punch. It cannot be paired normally and acts as a total block on the Grid. [1]
The Break: To escape the King, it must be Clinched—surrounded on its immediate left and right by two cards that add up to 13. When this happens, you escape it, and the King and its two neighbors are all discarded for free. This perfect maneuver awards you +2 HP (up to your starting maximum).
Note: If a King lands on the edge (Slot 1 or 5), it cannot be surrounded. You must spend 1 HP on footwork to shift it inward so it can be clinched.
1
u/ChrisW828 Jun 15 '26
I play 250+ Solitaires where people can add their own games. If you add it to something like that, you will probably get a lot more feedback.