Movement - No Taking -  2 Players or More

Halma

2 player layout - 19 pieces each

4 player layout - 13 pieces each

Format - 2 or 4 players

Duration - 30 mins

The aim is to move all pieces to the diagonally opposite enclosure. The method is similar to 'chinese checkers' .

Pieces can be moved to any vacant adjacent square in any direction forwards, sideways or diagonally OR they can leapfrog pieces in any direction any number of times.

No pieces are ever taken.

Further Info - Wikipedia

Chinese Checkers

Format - 2, 3, 4, or 6 players

Duration - 30 mins

The aim is to move your 6 pieces from your start position to the opposite point of the star.

Movement is to the next adjacent flower or by leapfrogging other pieces onto empty flowers.

(Above) - the pink in the bottom left corner has leapfrogged from the top right - blue, blue, yellow and then red.

No pieces are ever taken.

Further Info - Wikipedia

Rules - www.centralconnector.com/GAMES/chinchec.html

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Movement - Taking - 2 Player Singles Only

All the King's Men

(Parker Brothers - 1979)

Classed as a chess variant (aka Take the Brain, Smess)

Duration - 15 mins

Each player has a king, 4 knights and 7 archers.

Each type of piece moves in its own way.

Their movement is also determined by the type of directional square they are moving from.

As in chess, and similar to the checkmate situation, the object is to capture the opposing king.

Rules - follow link

Jungle King

(Waddingtons)

Classed as a chess variant (aka the Jungle Game, Shou Dou Qi)

Duration - 20 mins

The aim is to get any of a player's 8 animals into their opponent's den.

Any animal can be moved one square forwards, backwards or sideways.

Pieces cannot enter their own den.

Pieces capture pieces of the same or lesser value. But the lower value rat can capture an elephant.

A piece occupying an enemy trap has no strength or value so can be captured by any other piece.

Taking is obligatory when possible.

Further Info - Wikipedia

Rules - follow link

Camelot

(Waddingtons)

Duration - 20 mins

Each player has 10 men and 4 knights.

Their aim is to move any two pieces into the opposing castle (2 starred squares).

OR reduce your opponent to just one piece or less while still possessing 2 pieces or more.

• There are 3 types of move - all to an unoccupied square. one square in any direction. 
• leapfrogging over an opposing piece in any direction (thereby capturing it) and continue to leapfrog in any direction (taking is obligatory).
• leapfrogging his own pieces in the same manner.
• the knight can combine the previous 2 moves - leapfrogging his own pieces first and then leapfrogging and capturing the enemy.

Further Info - Wikipedia

Rules -

Samurai

(Wiggins Teape)

Duration - 20 mins

The 4 samurai of each side start armed with swords.

The aim is to kill 3 of your opponent's samurai.

Each samurai is moved in a straight line in any direction, forwards, backwards, sideways or diagonally.

Movement cannot be across challenge squares or squares occupied by other samurai.

Challenges take place across the 7 red challenge squares.

The result depends on the relative strength of the samurai and who is the attacker.

Shing Shang

(Wiggins Teape)

Duration - 20 mins

There are 3 types of piece - in ranking order - dragon (highest), lion and then dog.

Pieces can take equal or lesser ranked pieces.

Pieces can leapfrog their own or opponent's (thereby taking) equal or lesser ranked pieces.

The aim is to remove the opponent's 2 dragons OR place one of your own dragons on an opponent's white gate circle.

Bladder

Duration - 20 mins

Moves are always one space forward, sideways or diagonally forward. Players take alternate moves.

The bladder is initially picked up from the centre diamond and placed upon a piece's head.

To do this, 3 of the 4 central squares must be occupied by pieces of the same colour.

Pieces are ' lamed' and removed from play by 3 opposing pieces occupying any of the 8 surrounding squares (this must be the opponent's move that creates this configuration).

If the lamed piece was carrying the bladder then possession goes to any of the 3 laming pieces.

Otherwise the bladder carrier can be 'tackled' by 2 opposing pieces on any of the 8 surrounding squares thereby taking possession.

Once in possession a player can move any piece one square (including the bladder carrier), or he can pass the bladder 3 squares in any direction

To win the game the bladder must be carried or passed into the opponent's goal.

Chinese Chess

Duration - 30 mins

• The board Intersecting lines along which pieces move from point to point.
• 2 fortresses (9 points of a square) in which only the respective generals and their 2 mandarins can move.
• A river which the other 5 types of piece can cross except for the elephant.

The pieces

• Western symbols represent the Chinese characters which are themselves on the reverse of each piece. 1 general (the bearded character) - moves 1 point vertically or horizontally
• 2 mandarins - move 1 point diagonally
• 2 chariots - any distance vertically or horizontally (exactly like the rook in chess)
• 2 cavalry (horses) - one point vertically or horizontally followed by one point diagonally. The intervening point must be empty.
• 2 elephants - 2 points diagonally in the same direction, again with the intervening point unoccupied.
• 2 cannons - any distance vertically or horizontally, but only when making a capture they can jump over one intervening piece of either side.
• 5 soldiers (pawns) - move 1 point vertically forwards and once they have crossed the river 1 point vertically forwards or sideways. Once they reach the back row they can move 1 point sideways.  There is no promotion to a higher ranked piece.

There are many sites explaining Chinese Chess but you will have to relate the Chinese characters to their Western representations.

MSO

Further Info - Wikipedia

Rules - www.chessvariants.org/xiangqi.html

Abalone

(Parker)

Duration - 10 mins

Each player has 14 marbles.

Black always starts from the set up position (above left).

The aim is to move your marbles in such a way as to set up positions to push your opponent's marbles into the gutter.

Up to 3 contiguous marbles can be moved one space in any of 6 directions at one time.

Games are either time restricted or the first to remove 6 opponent's marbles wins.

MSO

Further Info - Wikipedia

Rules -

Caesar’s Game

Duration - 15 mins

Both players have 4 columns and 6 coins (gold v silver) which they move around the board trying to create a square formed by 4 adjacent columns.  Columns can leapfrog coins horizontally and diagonally as far as is possible from one circle to the next. Coins can move diagonally one space onto adjacent diamonds.  Although there is no taking, coins can trap columns and strategically reposition them out on the board’s border.

Alquerque

Duration - 10 mins

From the opening position (above) pieces can move to an adjacent point forwards, sideways or diagonally forwards.

Pieces are taken by being leapfrogged. Taking is obligatory.

When no more moves are possible the winner is the player with the most pieces.

The winner scores 2 points plus the remaining piece difference.

Further Info - Wikipedia

Overlord

Duration - 30 mins

14 pieces of each side move from their back 2 rows one square at a time forwards, sideways or backwards.

Pieces piled on top of each other of either/both colours make columns up to 5 pieces high which move in the same way.

The top colour of a column controls it.

Pieces can move one square onto a piece/column or hop (leapfrog) over them any number of times.

An opposing piece /column on one level lower can be captured by the highest piece of the attacker.

Pieces can fly from the opponent's back row to anywhere on the board.

Columns can be rearranged.

The wall is both barrier and opportunity.

A player wins when the opponent has only one piece remaining. e.g. all bar one of the white pieces are contained in columns where red is the top colour.

Quantum

(Lazy Days 1975)

Duration - 20 mins

Played on the inner 6 x 10 grid, each player has 16 pieces of 3 different shapes.

Each type of piece has its own direction of movement but is limited in its range to one space. Only when it takes an opponent's piece, and by doing so begins to form a tower, can it increase its range.

The aim is to build 3 towers to a height of 6 pieces.

Further Info - Wikipedia

Queen's Guards (aka Agon)

Duration - approx 15 mins

With each side having a queen and 6 guards starting on the perimeter, the aim is to move a piece one space at a time to the winning position - a queen occupying the central space with its 6 guards occupying the surrounding spaces.  On the way opponent pieces are captured by sandwiching them between your own.  Captured guards are replaced on the outer circle. A captured queen is moved anywhere on the board.

Unequal Sides

Fox and Geese

Duration - 10 mins

The 13 geese are placed as above and the opposing fox is placed on any vacant point.

Each piece can move to an adjacent point.

The fox can leapfrog one or more geese thereby capturing them.

The geese win by hemming a fox in and making him unable to move.

The fox wins by capturing enough geese to prevent this.

Further Info - Wikipedia

The Viking Game

Traditionally known as Hnefatafl.

Duration - 20 mins

All pieces move like the rook in chess.

The 24 brown pieces try to capture the white king, which itself, has 12 other white pieces to protect it.

Only the king can occupy the central starting square and the 4 corner squares.

The aim of the white king is to reach a corner square.

A piece is captured and taken off the board by two opposing pieces, which by their own move, occupy the two spaces on either side of the captured piece (but not diagonally).

The king is captured by being surrounded by 4 opposing pieces or 3 pieces and the central king's square.

Further Info - Wikipedia

16 Bandits (aka 16 soldiers, Chinese Rebels)

Duration - approx 10 mins

From the starting set up the solo dark piece (the General) moves first. Moves by both sides are to an adjacent empty point along a line either vertically, horizontally or diagonally.  The general can capture opposing pieces by moving in between them, but cannot be caught in the same manner by the opponent.  The General wins by reducing the bandits to 4 or less in number, or by reaching the apex of the escape triangle before the exit points become occupied by bandits.  The bandits can hem the general into the escape triangle or stop his movement elsewhere on the board.  A successful bandit-enforced game end scores no points for the general otherwise the general scores 1 point for each captured bandit.  The winner is either the winner of most games (alternating between General and bandits) or the player who scored most points from his time as General.

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Movement - Taking - 2 Players - Draughts Variants

King's Court Supercheckers

Duration - 15 to 20 mins

A fascinating draughts variant. All pieces move and take diagonally on light squares (beige) only.  The first move of each side is a compulsory move to place a piece in the centre part of the board - the King's Court.  Pieces can either move to an adjacent space or leapfrog pieces of either colour in any direction to take opposition pieces. Taking is optional.  Thereafter the game is lost when a player has no  pieces remaining in the King's Court.

Marx Hexadraughts

Duration - approx 15 mins

A simple hexagonal variant with 9 pieces per side and using every hex space for movement.  Move one space per player, take by leapfrogging, reach back row for king promotion.  King moves and takes in any direction. Taking is compulsory - with huffing rule in effect.

Fierges

Duration - 10 mins

If you think this looks like draughts, it is very similar. In this early version it is not obligatory to take an opponent's piece (so there is no huffing rule). Also, the pieces are moved on the gold squares whereas in draughts they would be on the blue squares.

Continental Draughts (aka International Draughts, Polish Draughts)

Draughts on a 10 x 10 board

Duration - approx 20 mins

This variant is actually the most popular of the draughts variants, as played in most of continental Europe and around the world. It was probably invented in France as 'Jeu de Dames'. 20 men per side are placed on the first 4 rows.  The following assumes a familiarity with the rules of 8 by 8 draughts as played in the UK.

• Moving - 1 square diagonally forward.
• Taking (compulsory - no huffing rule. Pieces must be taken) - leapfrog as many adjacent opposing pieces as possible in both forwards and backwards directions.
• Promotion to King - only when a move finishes on the opposition back row
• King move - any amount of unobstructed diagonal squares in any one direction.
• King taking - Leapfrog to a vacant space diagonally in any one direction (per piece taken) over unobstructed enemy piece on the same diagonal. (Taking maximum amount of pieces)
• There are extra rules for the end game that result in a draw. These can vary.

MSO

Canadian Draughts

Draughts on a 12 x 12 board

Duration - approx 30 mins

This variant uses exactly the same rules as Continental Draughts on a 10 by 10 board. The only difference is the larger size 12 by 12 board where 30 pieces per side are placed on the first 5 rows.  As boards are so scarce this board has been custom-made as the top of a card table.

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Movement - Taking - 2 Players or More

Centrepoint

(Ennerdale Enterprises - 1987)

Format - 2, 3 or 4 players

Duration - 30 mins

Each player controls an army comprising of one general, one standard, 4 scouts (above), 4 lancers, 4 archers and 5 runners

The objective is to move their standard bearer to the centrepoint of the board.

Just as in chess, each type of piece can move in its own way.

Captured pieces of strategic value may be replaced by sacrificing a lower ranked runner.

Rules - These vary slightly dependent on the number of players - including bringing in a full additional army to supplement one's own. Basic moves and rules remain the same.

Cirondo

Format - 2 or 4 players (2 players gold v silver)

Duration - approx 90 mins

There are 3 types of piece corresponding to the queen, bishop and pawn in chess.  The planets (bishops) are set up on the outer row of a board of 8 concentric circles, moons (2nd row - towards centre) and the solar systems (queens) await in the board centre. Solar systems are brought into the game upon a moon reaching the centre and becoming promoted.  The pieces move as their chess counterparts and take in the same manner.  Pieces are taken until one or both players are down to one piece.

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