Abstract Strategy

TZAAR is a game about making choices. Both players have 30 pieces, divided in three types: 6 Tzaars, 9 Tzarras and 15 Totts. The 3 types of pieces form a trinity: They cannot exist without each other. The aim is either to make the opponent run out of one of the three types of pieces or to put him in a position in which he cannot capture anymore. The tricky question the players will have to ask themselves on each of their turns is: “Shall I make myself stronger or my opponent weaker?” Meaning: Will you capture an opponent’s piece and make him weaker, or will you jump on top of one of your own pieces and make yourself stronger? If you choose to jump on top of your own pieces too often, you will probably leave your opponent with too many pieces on the board. On the other hand, if you capture too often, you may end up with pieces that are not strong enough at the end of the game. What to do? Up to you to decide!

TZAAR is the most recent game in project GIPF, replacing TAMSK which was felt to not quite fit in with the others due to its use of sand timers.

Online Play

Boardspace.net (real time, against human or robot opponents)
Gamerz (turn-based, play by email or play by web)
Boîte_à_jeux (turn-based, play by web, robot opponents also available)

Local Computer Play

HTZAAR (made from Haskell, OpenGL, and SDL; can be compiled for Windows or Linux) (NOTE: this is no longer maintained)
http://www.dcc.fc.up.pt/~pbv/stuff/hstzaar HsTZAAR: improved version of HTZAAR with better AI and better graphical interface. Source code in Haskell; can be compiled for Linux, Mac OS and Windows.
http://www.johannes-schwagereit.de/tz1 TZ1: A program to play TZAAR, developed in Java.

The basic game play of Tsuro of the Seas resembles that of Tom McMurchie's Tsuro: Players each have a ship that they want to sail — that is, keep on the game board — as long as possible. Whoever stays on the board the longest wins the game.

Each turn players add "wake" tiles to the 7×7 game board; each tile has two "wake connections" on each edge, and as the tiles are placed on the board, they create a connected network of paths. If a wake is placed in front of a ship, that ship then sails to the end of the wake. If the ship goes off the board, that player is out of the game.

What's new in Tsuro of the Seas are daikaiju tiles, representing sea monsters and other creatures of the deep. Notably, daikaiju can move: each tile has five arrows, four for moving in each of the cardinal directions and another one for rotation. On the active player's turn, he rolls two six-sided dice; on a sum of 6, 7, or 8, the daikaiju will move, while on any other sum they'll stay in place. To determine which direction the daikaiju tiles move, the player then makes a second roll, this time with a single die. On 1-5 in the second roll, each daikaiju moves according to its matching arrow. On a 6 in the second roll, a new daikaiju tile is added to the board.

If a daikaiju tile hits a wake tile, a ship, or another daikaiju tile, the object hit is removed from the game. Another way to be ousted! The more daikaiju tiles on the game board, the faster players will find themselves trying to breathe water...

Torres is an abstract game of resource management and tactical pawn movement. Players are attempting to build up castles and position their knights to score the most points each turn. Players have a limited supply of knights and action cards that allow special actions to be taken. Efficient use of pieces and cards, along with a thoughtful awareness of future possibilities, is the heart of this game.

Torres is considered by many to be an informal member of what is referred to as the Mask Trilogy.

In Taluva, players place tiles consisting of volcanoes and other terrain. Tiles can be placed adjacent to other tiles or on top of other tiles. Thus, the island expands outward and upward during the course of the game. At the same time, the players are trying to settle their peoples on the island by building huts, temples and towers. Each building type has a different restriction regarding placement. The game ends when all the land tiles have been played or when a player builds all of his buildings in two of the three types.

Soli2 is a new twist on and old classic - it's Solitaire for Two. As in Peg Solitaire, you jump a marble over another, removing the marble that was jumped over. In Soli2, what you want to jump over and remove is your opponent's marble. However, if there is no opponent's marble available, you must jump over - and remove - one of your own. Last player standing wins.

You can also play Solitaire, using this new 49-hole design, with either the traditional or the new Soli2 rules.

Soli2 is part of Enginuity's Signature Collection of solid wood and glass board games that look good enough to keep on display. The collection also includes 3 Stones and Doubles Wild.