Amoriax

Amoriax is a tactical game based on Roman board games. The objective is to seize the crown in the middle of the board by tactical maneuvers. Classical board games of the ancient Roman type are based on the principle of simplicity. They are usually played with simple stones, have a minimum of rules and are easy to learn. Behind this apparent simplicity, however, there is usually a sophisticated and complex logic.

Since there is no material disproportion in the game, as players have the same number of stones at all times, Amoriax is exclusively a positional game.

The objective of the game

The purpose of the game is to capture the center square with the crown.

Rules of the game

The game is based on only 4 rules:

• the playing stone can only be moved to the last possible square in the chosen direction.
• outside the marked centre square, the stone can be moved in an L-shape (like a knight in chess)
• the playing stone can be dragged from the full corner to the opposite corner diagonally
• the red stone is shared by both players and can be dragged by anyone

Stones are not discarded, they are only moved to where there is an empty space. Each player has 12 stones that start in their starting position arranged on the corners of a 9x9 board. There is a common red stone in the middle. The player with the white stones starts. A tie occurs when the position is repeated 3 times.

Starting position:

Tactics

The player will intuitively aim to have as many stones as possible in the marked central square. However, in approaching the centre, he must also take care not to create an ideal end situation for an opponent who is seeking the same.

The game gains momentum as the game progresses, as the area around the centre square tightens. In a way, this is the opposite of traditional board games in which there is a discarding process, and in which the game usually tends to lose momentum the moment most of the stones or pieces are discarded.

An original element is the common red stone, which adds another dimension to the game. The red stone has to be placed in the best possible way for its own benefit, while both players are competing for its optimal placement at the same time, and their interests are logically opposed.

Attractions

The game is designed to be easy to physically produce and basically play anywhere. There is no need to sculpt figures or create other more complicated elements. All you need are stones of two colours and a flat surface. Similar to how African mankala games with balls or beans and pits, for example, are simply invented.

As far as combinatorics are concerned, in a way Amoriax may resemble the old board game of "match taking" in its final stages. It is basically a question of who will make the last fatal move. Or rather, who will create a combination for the final move that the opponent has no chance of reversing. Unlike matchmaking, however, the Amoriax system is more sophisticated, because it is spatial and the move can be finished from all sides, on which different situations are combined, and the opponent can create more complicated plots with his placement of stones.

The more advanced the game is, the more dynamic the situation becomes. The tactical plot narrows the room for manoeuvre and tightens around the midfield. It's actually the opposite of those classic board games in which there is discarding, and in which the game usually tends to lose momentum the moment most of the stones or pieces are discarded.

Since a stone can only ever be moved to the last free square in the chosen direction, the number of draw games is minimised, as this prevents most moves from being repeated.

Number of possible combinations in the game is 3.55361255095E+27.