Sunday, January 1, 2023

The Tower and the Oracle



In the Tower and the Oracle, players race to create a connection between two arcane pieces.  You will need an 8x8 board to play, eight stones of one color along with a taller piece of the same color (the tower), and eight stones of another color along with a matching oracle piece.

In the diagram below white is playing the oracle and black is playing the tower.  The game begins with the tower and the oracle in opposite corners and one stone of each color placed near the center of the board.  The remaining stones begin the game off the board.










































 






















On your turn, you can place a stone of either color from the reserved pieces, or move a piece of your own color that is already on the board (including the tower or oracle).  Stones, towers, and oracles move one space diagonally or orthologically.  They can jump over pieces of either color, and can change direction as they jump.  Pieces are not removed after jumps. 


The first player to create a continuous path of stones between the tower and the oracle wins.  The path can include stones of both colors.