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How to Play Senet

Senet was a popular game in ancient Egypt, as evidenced by the number of boards found in tombs. Everyone from commoners to pharaohs played the game. No rules have ever been found as to how to play the game, either written or carved. Historians have determined the rules of the game must have passed through word-of-mouth. Over time, a best-guess approximation of the original rules has been created. The Senet board is composed of 30 squares, with square 1 in the top left corner, and square 30 in the bottom right.

Things You'll Need

Senet board and pawns
4 Casting sticks
2 Players

Instructions

Rules of the Game
- 1
  Divide the game pieces so that each player is holding ten pawns. There should be no pawns on the board.
- 2
  Throw the four casting sticks up to determine what the first player's move will be. The first player is arbitrarily determined. Each casting stick that lands marked-side up is one point. If they all land blank-side up, that is five points.
- 3
  Place your pawns. The points earned from throwing the casting sticks correspond to the square on the board where you place your pawn. If you score one point, that goes in square 30. Two points means placing a pawn in square 29, and so on. Only one pawn may be place in any given square. If a pawn is already in the square, your turn is wasted.
- 4
  Once the first five spaces on the board are filled, the game begins. Throw the casting sticks up, and move your pawn that number of squares. You may also choose to place a new pawn on the board, if any of the five spaces are empty. If you place a pawn on the board, you may not move another one. Pawns are placed in the same way as before, with the casting sticks indicating which of the five squares to place your pawn on.
- 5
  Bump your opponent's pawn off the board, if you move to a square that is already occupied by one of their pawns. That pawn must go back to the very start of the board.
- 6
  Give an extra five bonus points to the player who first places a pawn on square 1. That player is now the odd squares, and the opponent is now the even squares. The player who is the odd squares must land all of his pawns on the odd squares of the first two rows. The even-squared opponent must land on the even squares. A pawn on one of these squares may not be bumped, but may be passed through by other pawns.
- 7
  The player who gets all his pawns to his squares first is the winner. That player receives an extra 10 points. The other player finishes off the game, and the winner is awarded one extra point for each move the loser takes to get his pawns in the right spot.

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