See board for basic description and rules.

Detail description:

Overview:

The game seven is a pure strategy game. The goal of the game is to get to 23 territories before you opponent does and be in a position to hold these territories.

Start:

Each player starts the game with 30 units to be placed via fortification on the board one at a time. The game board is a 7 by 7 grid comprising of 49 territories. At the start of the game, there are 17 abandoned territories on the board owned by white and there are 16 abandoned territories on the board owned by black. Black begins the game.

Borders:

Each player starts with a territory connected to opposite corners of the game board containing 30 units. These territories connect to the corner as denoted on the board. All other territories border the territories up, down, left, and right (no diagonal attacks or fortifies).

First turn:

Each player is guaranteed to own the territory next to their starting pot containing 30 units. This means that a player must fortify onto the board before being able to attack. Since return to attack from fortify is on, once you fortify your unit into position, you are then allowed to attack any bordering territory not already of your color.

End:

Once a player has 23 territories at the beginning of their turn, they will be given a unit to place anywhere on the map. This unit should be placed in their swordsman territory and used to capture their opponents swordsman. The swordsman are both capitals. If a player captures their opponents swordsman, then they capture all of their opponents territories and thus the game ends.

Basic strategies:

On every turn, each player should use both their attack and fortify in which ever order suits the player best.

Attacking:

Since all of the attacks on this board use zero sided attack dice and one sided defense dice, it is impossible to kill an opponent?s unit. Therefore, a player should never try to attack an occupied territory (any territory with more than one unit). All attacks should be against abandoned territories (territories with zero units).

Fortifying:

Always fortify a unit from your beginning store of units. A player only needs to gain 23 territories to win the game so there is no fear on running out of units before the game ends since units cannot be killed defending.

Blocking:

Since it is impossible for either player to kill a unit once it is place on the board, each player wants to use their units to block their opponents advance. That is, any territory which has a unit in it is safe from being taken and the opponent's advance must go around.

Protect the pot:

Always make sure that your opponent does not have the ability to take the square next to your pot as this would prevent you from being able to fortify more units onto the board and effectively end the game.

Keep fortification routes open:

In most cases it is good strategy to prevent the opponent from breaking your connected components so that you may fortify to reach more places.

Cut off opponents units:

In most cases it is good strategy to separate an opponent?s unit from their connected component so that this isolated unit is less of a threat.

That?s all for now.

As always, good luck and enjoy,

-Alpha