What is Peg Solitaire?
Peg Solitaire (also known as Solo Noble, Brainvita, or marble solitaire) is a classic single-player board puzzle dating back to the 17th century. It's played on the traditional English cross board with 33 holes. Pegs are removed by jumping: pick up one peg, jump it over an adjacent peg into an empty hole directly beyond, and remove the peg that was jumped over.
How to play:
- Choose a challenge layout, then click Start Puzzle
- Tap or click a peg to select it — valid landing holes light up green (if Show Valid Moves is on)
- Tap a highlighted hole to make the jump; the jumped peg disappears
- Tap a different peg at any time to switch your selection
- Use the Undo button to take back any number of moves
- The game ends automatically when no jumps remain
The challenges:
- Cross (6 pegs): A gentle introduction — solvable in five moves
- Plus (9 pegs): A symmetric mid-size layout requiring more planning
- Fireplace (11 pegs): A tricky top-heavy shape where move order matters greatly
- Full Board (32 pegs): The classic game — all holes filled except the center. Finishing with one peg is a genuine achievement; finishing with one peg in the center is the famous perfect game
- Every challenge on this page has been computer-verified as solvable down to a single peg
Strategy tips:
- Avoid stranding pegs in corners and along edges early — isolated pegs can become impossible to remove
- Work in small clusters: a lone pair far from other pegs often means a dead end
- On the full board, keep the position balanced rather than clearing one side completely
- If you get stuck repeatedly, use Undo to explore — learning why a line fails is how the puzzle trains planning
Scoring:
- Pegs Remaining: 1 is a win; the fewer, the better
- Moves Made: Total jumps, counting undone moves only once
- Time: How long the attempt took