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How to Beat Chinese Checkers

Chinese checkers is a game played on a board with a six-pointed star. In spite of its name, the game was invented in Germany and is unrelated to checkers. It needs two, three, four, or six players, each of whom starts with 10 pieces (or marbles, in some versions) arranged in one of the triangles that form the star points. The goal is to move your pieces into the opposite triangle by jumping them over opponents' pieces. A winning strategy primarily requires you to move your pieces efficiently.

Things You'll Need

Chinese checkers board
Ten pieces per player

Instructions

- 1
  If you have an even number of players, they should be directly across from an opponent. If you have three players, each should be equidistant from each other.
- 2
  Each player should take 10 pieces of the same color and place them in the nearest triangle.
- 3
  Decide who will start. Play then proceeds clockwise.
- 4
  On your turn, move one of your pieces to an adjacent space or "jump" it in a straight line over any adjacent piece (your own or an opponent's) into a vacant space. Jumps must be made when possible.
  
  A piece may make multiple jumps in a single turn, provided a space is open on the opposite side of the piece that is jumped. Pieces that are jumped over remain on the board.
  
  The goal is to move all of your pieces into the opposite triangle on the opposite side of the board (or, in a three-player game, into the triangle where the player to your left started). Once a piece is in the opposite triangle, it may not be moved out of there, but it can be moved within that triangle.
- 5
  The first player to move all 10 pieces to the destination triangle wins the game.

Board Games