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How to play Mancala (Kalah)
Mancala is a family of sowing games; this version is Kalah. Each side begins with six pits holding four seeds each. You play the bottom row, and your store is on the right. The larger store wins after the remaining seeds are collected.
- Kalah: six pits per side, four seeds per pit. You play the bottom row first. Your store is on the right; the computer’s is on the left.
- Select a nonempty pit on your side. Sow counterclockwise, including your store but skipping the computer’s store.
- Finish in your store for another turn. Finish in your previously empty pit with seeds opposite to capture both that last seed and the opposite seeds.
- When either side is empty, the other side collects its remaining seeds. The larger store wins; equal stores draw.
Tips for your next round
- Count ahead before choosing a pit. Landing your last seed in your own store earns another turn.
- An empty pit on your side can become a capture opportunity. Check where the final seed will land and what is in the opposite pit.
You skip the computer’s store while sowing. A capture requires landing in your own previously empty pit with seeds in the opposite pit.
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