![]() But they might also shoot themselves in the foot if their planning doesn’t account for the changes they make this turn. They might need to take a less productive turn now to set themselves up for a big benefit next turn. The mancala mechanism also requires players to plan carefully. Mancala holes from the Late Antiquity or early Medieval period in Aksum, Ethiopia ![]() It can also create actions that become more or less powerful as the game develops. This often creates an action selection mechanic that is more complicated than simple worker placement. When we say that a modern board game uses a mancala mechanic, we are referring to this mechanism of removing all the pieces from one spot and distributing them consecutively to other spots. In most versions of Mancala, the final stone placed can be used to capture an opponent’s stones or score points. If the pit has six stones in it, for example, then each of the next six pits gets one stone. In the ancient world, the board could be carved out of stone or wood, or simply dug into the ground.Ī player takes a turn by removing all the stones from one pit on her side of the board and then depositing them one at a time in the pits counterclockwise from the starting pit. These could be seeds, small stones, or glass beads. In the versions of Mancala most familiar to North American gamers, the board consists of a double row of 12 pits-six on each side-and two larger scoring pits on either end. Game designers have adopted its basic mechanic and used it to give their games interesting and highly variable action selection mechanisms. Mancala influenced many modern board games. ![]() A game of Bao being played in Mji Mkongwe, Zanzibar Variations of it have been played throughout the Middle East, India, Eastern Europe, and Northern Africa. ![]() Mancala is a family of similar games rather than one game with a universally accepted rule set. One of the oldest ancient games still being played today, Mancala dates to at least the 7th century and may be even older than that. Humans have been playing board games for thousands of years. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |