Introduction:

Taugo (from Proto-Germanic: Taugô, meaning "string, rope") is a board game for two players: White and Black. It is played on the intersections (points) of an initially empty square board without the lines on the edges. The recommended board size is 16 points per side, but smaller boards can be used for shorter games. Each player has access to a sufficient supply of equal stones of two colors, the obverse of one color and the reverse of another color.

Definitions:

– A string is a set of orthogonally connected stones. A single stone is also a string.
– A knot is a 2x2 configuration of friendly stones. The formation of knots in the strings is prohibited.
– A cut is placing friendly stones through enemy stones to break through them and replace them with friendly stones.
– A cut point is a point orthogonally adjacent to an enemy stone, which point is located in a straight line to a friendly lateral stone on the opposite side of the enemy stone. To make the cut we must place a minimum amount of stones that reach the cutting point and we can continue placing more stones in that same direction optionally.
– An isolated stone is a stone not orthogonally adjacent to any string stone.
– A lateral stone is a stone orthogonally adjacent to a single string stone.
– A central stone is a stone orthogonally adjacent to two, three or four string stones.

Turns:

Black plays first, then turns alternate. On your turn, do one of the following actions:

– Place a stone on an empty point not orthogonally adjacent to friendly stones to form a new string.
– Place a stone on an empty point orthogonally adjacent to stones on one or more strings to make them grow or join them.
– Pass your turn.

When growing a string, you can keep placing more stones on any number of empty points in a straight line to the empty point of the perimeter line or to a friendly stone, you can also do it on any number of points occupied by enemy stones to cut them replacing them with friendly stones, unless they are lateral stones or isolated stones since they are immune.

Also, no player is allowed to place stones on the empty points on the edge, but they can be accessed by using them as cut points as we will define below.

End of the game:

The game ends when both players pass their turn consecutively and the player with the highest value strings wins.

The value of a string is determined by the number of stones found on the perimeter line. The value is calculated by adding the consecutive natural numbers from 1 to the number of stones on the string. For example, a string with 3 stones on the perimeter line has a value of 1 + 2 + 3 = 6. To avoid ties, the player with the fewest strings receives an extra half point.

Finally, additional points are awarded for each stone that was able to reach the edge of the board following the same scoring method described above, but without taking into account the strings to which they belong.

In order to make the game fair, before the game starts, the first player starting black stone and the second player chooses the sides. This balancing method is called the pie rule.

—description from the designer