Mancala

How to play Mancala

Mancala is a family of ancient counting games played with seeds or stones. This version uses the popular Kalah rules.

1. The board. Each player has six pits on their side, starting with four seeds each, and a store on their right.
2. Sow. Pick up all the seeds from one of your pits and drop them one at a time into the following pits, going anticlockwise. Drop one in your own store as you pass it, but skip your opponent’s store.
3. Extra turn. If your last seed lands in your store, go again.
4. Capture. If your last seed lands in an empty pit on your side, and the pit opposite has seeds, you take both the last seed and the seeds opposite into your store.
5. The end. When one side runs out of seeds, the other player puts all their remaining seeds into their store. Most seeds wins.

Quick tips for winning

• Count for extra turns. A pit with exactly enough seeds to reach your store gives you another move. The pit next to your store with one seed is a classic opener.
• Chain extra turns before making moves that end your go.
• Watch your empty pits. An empty pit across from a full one is a capture waiting to happen, for you or against you.
• Hoard on your right. Seeds near your store are easy to bank later.

Mancala FAQ