Description

Mancala is a game that dates back to the 6th century AD, and has many different names all over the world. In West Africa it is known as Oware, Warri, Awale, and Awele. In Angola it is called Kiela. Before wooden boards and marbles became more commonplace, Mancala was played using holes dug into the ground or beach, and anything from stones to seeds to sea shells were used as game pieces.

Though names and rules vary, the object of Mancala is that each player attempts to collect as many marbles as possible before the other player clears their pits of marbles.

This mancala board was crafted in India from mango wood. It comes with a cloth bag containing 50 glass marbles and an instruction sheet.

How To Play:

– The Mancala board is made up of two rows of six small holes, or pits, and two larger holes, or mancalas, one at each end of the board. The board is placed between two players with long sides facing each player. The row of six pits nearest each player belongs to him or her, as does the mancala pit to the player’s right.

– Three marbles are placed in each of the 12 small pits. Do not put any marbles in either of the larger mancala pits.

– The game begins by picking up all of the marbles in any one of the pits on your side. Moving counter-clockwise deposit one marble in each pit, including your opponent’s, until the marbles run out. Put a marble into your own mancala, if it is the sequence, but always skip your opponent’s mancala. If the last marble you drop is in your own mancala pit, you get another turn.

– If the last marble you drop is into one of your empty pits, you capture that marble and any marbles in your opponent’s pit directly opposite. All captured marbles are put into your mancala. It is now your opponent’s turn.

– If the last marble drops in a pit with other marbles your turn is over and your opponent chooses the marbles from any pit on their side of the board. This continues until all six spaces on one side of the mancala board are empty.

– The player who still has marbles on their side of the board when the game ends captures all of those marbles and adds them to their mancala.

– Count all the marbles in each mancala. The winner is the player with the most marbles.