Mancala games

Mancala: A Two-Player Board Game

Mancala encompasses a family of two-player, turn-based strategy board games. These games utilize small stones, beans, or seeds, and are played on boards featuring rows of pits or holes. The primary objective is generally to capture a specific number or all of the opponent's pieces. (Source: Wikipedia)

Numerous variations exist within the Mancala family, including Oware, Bao, and Omweso, among others. This particular implementation includes Kalah, Oware, and Congkak.

Gameplay involves a board with six smaller pits (houses) on each side, and a larger pit (store or end zone) at each end. The goal is to accumulate more seeds than your opponent.

Kalah Rules:

1. Initially, four (or five to six) seeds are placed in each house.
2. Each player manages the six houses and seeds on their side. The score is the number of seeds in their respective store.
3. Players take turns sowing seeds. On a turn, a player empties one of their houses. Moving counter-clockwise, they drop one seed into each house, including their own store but excluding their opponent's.
4. If the last seed lands in an empty house owned by the player, and the opposite house contains seeds, both are captured and added to the player's store.
5. Landing the last seed in the player's store grants an extra turn. There's no limit on turns per player.
6. The game concludes when one player has no seeds in their houses. The remaining seeds are added to the opponent's store, and the player with the most seeds wins.

Oware Rules:

1. Begin with four (or five to six) seeds in each house. Each player controls six houses on their side; the score is the seeds in their store.
2. On their turn, a player empties a house and sows the seeds counter-clockwise, skipping the starting house and the opponent's store. If the starting house initially held 12 or more seeds, the 12th seed is placed in the next house.
3. Capture occurs when the last sown seed brings an opponent's house count to exactly two or three. This captures those seeds, and potentially more, continuing until a house with a count other than two or three, or one belonging to the player, is reached. Captured seeds go to the player's store.
4. If an opponent's houses are empty, the current player must make a move providing the opponent with seeds. If impossible, the player captures all their seeds, ending the game.
5. The game ends when one player captures over half the seeds, or both players have an equal amount (a draw).

Version 1.4.1 Update (August 6, 2024):

Bug fixes implemented.

Screenshot