S E R A T A - a board game with stones

Created with VisualAge for Java

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Instructions

Serata is an ancient game, it is also called Mancala.

The game is played on a wooden board with holes, and little colored stones in the holes.

There are two players, one on each side of the board. You are one player, sitting south (bottom of screen). The computer is your oponent, sitting north (top).

On each side of the board are 6 holes, initially filled with 6 stones each. On the left and right edges of the board is a big hole, called the pot; the one on the right is yours, the left one belongs to the computer; they are empty.

Initial board:

                        C o m p u t e r
 *----------13-----12-----11-----10------9------8-----------*
 |                                                          |
 | *----*  *---*  *---*  *---*  *---*  *---*  *---*  *----* |
 | |comp|  | 6 |  | 6 |  | 6 |  | 6 |  | 6 |  | 6 |  |    | |
 | |pot |  *---*  *---*  *---*  *---*  *---*  *---*  |    | |
 | |  0 |                                            |    | |
 | |    |                                            |  0 | |
 | |    |  *---*  *---*  *---*  *---*  *---*  *---*  |your| |
 | |    |  | 6 |  | 6 |  | 6 |  | 6 |  | 6 |  | 6 |  | pot| |
 | *----*  *---*  *---*  *---*  *---*  *---*  *---*  *----* |
 |                                                          |
 *-----------1------2------3------4------5------6-----------*
                             Y o u

A move consists of selecting a hole on your side, picking up all the stones in the hole, and distributing the stones against the clock around the board, one in each hole. Put a stone into your pot, but skip the oponents pot.

Suppose you choose hole 3, and distribute the 6 stones, the board looks like this:

After you play hole 3:

                        C o m p u t e r
 *----------13-----12-----11-----10------9------8-----------*
 |                                                          |
 | *----*  *---*  *---*  *---*  *---*  *---*  *---*  *----* |
 | |comp|  | 6 |  | 6 |  | 6 |  | 6 |  | 7 |  | 7 |  |    | |
 | |pot |  *---*  *---*  *---*  *---*  *---*  *---*  |    | |
 | |  0 |                                            |    | |
 | |    |                                            |  1 | |
 | |    |  *---*  *---*  *---*  *---*  *---*  *---*  |your| |
 | |    |  | 6 |  | 6 |  |   |  | 7 |  | 7 |  | 7 |  | pot| |
 | *----*  *---*  *---*  *---*  *---*  *---*  *---*  *----* |
 |                                                          |
 *-----------1------2------3------4------5------6-----------*
                             Y o u

Now the computer oponent will play, for example hole 9.

After the computer plays hole 9:

                        C o m p u t e r
 *----------13-----12-----11-----10------9------8-----------*
 |                                                          |
 | *----*  *---*  *---*  *---*  *---*  *---*  *---*  *----* |
 | |comp|  | 7 |  | 7 |  | 7 |  | 7 |  |   |  | 7 |  |    | |
 | |pot |  *---*  *---*  *---*  *---*  *---*  *---*  |    | |
 | |  1 |                                            |    | |
 | |    |                                            |  1 | |
 | |    |  *---*  *---*  *---*  *---*  *---*  *---*  |your| |
 | |    |  | 7 |  | 7 |  | 1 |  | 8 |  | 7 |  | 7 |  | pot| |
 | *----*  *---*  *---*  *---*  *---*  *---*  *---*  *----* |
 |                                                          |
 *-----------1------2------3------4------5------6-----------*
                             Y o u

The game is over when one player has more than 36 stones in the pot, or when the oponent runs out of stones to play, e.g. all holes on one side are empty and its the players turn.

Two special rules make the game interesting:

1. If the last stone distributed on a move falls into the own pot, the player can play again.
   Example:

                           C o m p u t e r
    *----------13-----12-----11-----10------9------8-----------*
    |                                                          |
    | *----*  *---*  *---*  *---*  *---*  *---*  *---*  *----* |
    | |comp|  | 7 |  | 3 |  | 3 |  |   |  | 4 |  | 5 |  |    | |
    | |pot |  *---*  *---*  *---*  *---*  *---*  *---*  |    | |
    | | 16 |                                            |    | |
    | |    |                                            | 11 | |
    | |    |  *---*  *---*  *---*  *---*  *---*  *---*  |your| |
    | |    |  |   |  | 4 |  | 6 |  | 3 |  | 9 |  | 1 |  | pot| |
    | *----*  *---*  *---*  *---*  *---*  *---*  *---*  *----* |
    |                                                          |
    *-----------1------2------3------4------5------6-----------*
                                Y o u
   

   In this situation you can play hole 6 or hole 4; the last stone goes into your pot, and you play again. Or you can play hole 6 first, then hole 4, then play again. (If you play hole 4 first, then you have only one more move)
   
   

2. If the last stone distributed on a move falls into an empty hole on your own side, you can steal the stones from the hole across the board of the last hole, and put them, plus the stone put into the last (empty) hole, and add them to your pot.

   In the example above, if you play hole 5 (9 stones), the last stone falls into your own hole 1, and you put the 8 stones from the hole across (7 plus 1 you distributed into that hole), plus the one in your hole 1, into your pot:

                           C o m p u t e r
    *----------13-----12-----11-----10------9------8-----------*
    |                                                          |
    | *----*  *---*  *---*  *---*  *---*  *---*  *---*  *----* |
    | |comp|  |(8)|  | 4 |  | 4 |  | 1 |  | 5 |  | 6 |  |    | |
    | |pot |  *---*  *---*  *---*  *---*  *---*  *---*  |    | |
    | | 16 |                                            |    | |
    | |    |                                            | 21 | |
    | |    |  *---*  *---*  *---*  *---*  *---*  *---*  |your| |
    | |    |  |(1)|  | 4 |  | 6 |  | 3 |  |   |  | 2 |  | pot| |
    | *----*  *---*  *---*  *---*  *---*  *---*  *---*  *----* |
    |                                                          |
    *-----------1------2------3------4------5------6-----------*
                                Y o u
   

• Keep stones on your side
• Investigate for multiple plays, be careful about the sequence
• Look out for steals, most steals happen in a multi-play move
  (it's easy to see them on the first move)
• Empty a hole in a first move, with the following move going into the empty hole
• Dry out the oponent (run out of stones)

H a v e - f u n !

Run the game