Eight foundations going in two directions — synchronize them or one direction will starve the other.
Leoni's Own uses two decks and eight suit foundations: four building upward from Ace to King, four building downward from King to Ace. The thirteen loom piles supply cards; the weaving mechanic rotates an exile pile through the loom when direct plays are exhausted. Managing both foundation directions simultaneously, while rationing two redeals, is the game’s central challenge.
Last updated: June 2026
The layout: loom, exile, and foundations
Leoni's Own is played with two full decks (104 cards). The setup:
- Eight foundations — one Ace and one King of each suit are placed immediately as foundation starters. Ace foundations build upward by suit (A through K). King foundations build downward by suit (K through A). A complete game requires all eight foundations to reach their destination card.
- Thirteen loom piles— the remaining 96 cards are dealt into 13 piles. Piles 1 through 12 are standard: only the top card is available to move to a foundation. Pile 13 is the “flexible pile” — any of its cards can be accessed, not just the top.
- Exile pile (shuttle) — when no direct foundation play is available, the player uses the Weave action: a card from the exile pile is threaded through the loom piles in a specific pattern. This changes the top card of various piles and may expose new foundation opportunities.
- Two redeals — after the loom is exhausted, the game can be reset (redealt) up to twice. Redeals shuffle the remaining cards back into a new loom configuration.
Foundation reversal: the hidden tactical resource
A key feature of Leoni's Own that distinguishes it from simpler patience games: cards can move between same-suit foundations in the opposite direction. Specifically, if the hearts Ace foundation is at 6 and the hearts King foundation is at 8 (descending), it is legal to move the 6 from the Ace foundation back to the King foundation (which now accepts it because it is adjacent to 7 in descending order).
Foundation reversals are used to resolve congestion: if the loom has a surplus of mid-rank cards for one suit that cannot advance any foundation, reversing a foundation to create a new destination for those cards may be the only way to avoid a deadlock.
Use reversals sparingly. Each reversal undoes progress on one foundation while advancing the other. Net progress per reversal is zero — the same card is simply on a different foundation pile. The value is in creating a new legal destination for loom pile tops that have nowhere else to go.
Only reverse when the resulting destination opens at least two or three additional loom plays that were previously blocked. A reversal that enables one loom top to move is marginal — the opportunity cost (undone foundation progress) may exceed the gain. A reversal that opens a chain of three or four plays is worth it.
Synchronizing both foundation directions
The eight foundations advance in opposite directions: Ace foundations go up, King foundations go down. Both directions need cards from the same loom supply. A mid-rank card (say, a 7) may be needed by both the Ace-up hearts foundation (when it reaches 7) and the King-down hearts foundation (when it descends to 7). Two copies of each rank exist (two decks), so one copy goes to each direction.
Imbalance danger: if the Ace foundations advance rapidly through mid-ranks while the King foundations are stalled, the loom becomes full of high-rank cards (needed by King foundations that cannot use them yet) and low-rank cards (already past the Ace foundation needs). This creates a mid-rank vacuum: neither direction needs the current loom supply.
Preventive balance: aim to keep both the Ace foundations and King foundations within two to three ranks of their respective midpoints. When one direction pulls ahead, deliberately favor the lagging direction’s plays for a few turns.
Weave timing and redeal rationing
The Weave action (moving a card from the exile pile through the loom) is the tool for breaking deadlocks when no direct foundation plays exist. Use it when:
- No loom pile top can directly advance any foundation, and the exile pile contains a card that would advance a foundation if brought to a loom position.
- A specific loom pile top is blocking a needed card beneath it, and the weave can move that blocking card to a new position where it no longer blocks access.
Redeals are nuclear options: they work when the loom has degraded to a state where no combination of weaving and foundation reversals can make further progress. Save redeals for true deadlocks — two to three consecutive turns with no foundation plays and no productive weaves. Using a redeal with productive plays still available wastes a critical recovery resource.
Frequently asked questions
How is Leoni's Own different from Weavers?
Both are two-deck weaving games with loom piles and an exile mechanic. The key difference is foundation direction: Weavers uses eight King-based descending foundations (King down to Ace); Leoni's Own uses four ascending (Ace up) and four descending (King down) foundations simultaneously. This dual-direction requirement is the defining challenge of Leoni's Own. Read the Weavers strategy guide for the comparison.
Can I access any card in the loom, or only top cards?
Piles 1 through 12 allow access to top cards only. Pile 13 (the flexible pile) allows access to any card in the pile. This makes pile 13 a more versatile resource and it should be used strategically to retrieve specific needed cards rather than as overflow.
Do the two decks need to be sorted by suit before playing?
No. The two decks are shuffled together. With 104 cards in two decks, each suit appears in eight copies — two of each rank. The loom will contain duplicates of every rank and suit combination.
What win rate should I expect?
Leoni's Own is a difficult patience game. The dual-direction foundation requirement and limited redeals mean that bad loom configurations can be hard to recover from. Skilled players win roughly 25 to 40 percent of deals. The game rewards patience and careful redeal rationing over fast play.