Egyptian Games to Play

Supplies and Setup

• Senet is a two-player game that requires a playing board made up of three rows of 10 squares. You may create such a board simply by drawing 1-inch squares on a grid. Leave the last square on the bottom row far right blank. Draw pictures in the previous four squares. The pictures (in this order) should be:
  - The House of Happiness: three tiny circles, each with a cross protruding upward out of it.
  - The House of Water: three wavy horizontal lines.
  - The House of Three Truths: three birds.
  - The House of Re-Atoum: two dancing figures.
  Each player needs five matching-colored game pieces (checkers work). You also need four sticks of the same weight (try craft sticks). All four sticks should be painted on one side, blank on the other. Line up the pieces across the top row, alternating colors.

Basic Rules

• To see how many spaces to move, players toss the sticks lightly in the air, then count the number of sticks with the blank side facing up. If the painted side of all four sticks is facing up, you get two bonus moves (four painted sides = six spaces). Move pieces across and down rows in a reverse S-pattern (right, down, left, down, right). Players may choose to move any available piece on any turn, observing these rules:
  - Players may only move one game piece per turn.
  - Two or more pieces may not occupy the same square at one time.
  - Players may not land on their own pieces.
  - Players landing on their opponent's piece may switch places on the board, except when the opponent has two pieces next to one another.
  - Players may not pass opponent pieces that occupy three squares in a row.
  - Any player throwing a one, four or six receives an extra turn.

Winning the Game

• All picture squares in the last row are "safe zones," meaning that your opponent may not swap places with you while you occupy any of those squares. Players may not "jump" the House of Happiness but must land on it by an exact throw of the sticks before moving on. Players who land on the House of Water must go back to the middle-row square directly above the House of Happiness. In the last three squares, players must toss the exact number to exit the board. The first player who moves all of her game pieces off the board wins.