Rules

Nine Men’s Morris

Nine men’s morris, also known as mill or merels, is an ancient two-player strategy board game that dates back at least to the Roman Empire, and some researchers note that a board carved at Kurna in Egypt may point to an even older history, although the exact date of that carving is uncertain. The game is played on a board of three concentric squares connected by lines, creating 24 points, and each player has nine counters. Players first place their men one by one, trying to form a “mill”, three pieces in a straight line, which allows them to remove one of the opponent’s pieces. After all the pieces are placed, players move them along the lines to adjacent points, continuing to make mills and capture counters, and in many versions a player reduced to three pieces may “fly” to any empty point. The aim is to leave the opponent with only two pieces or no legal move.

Rules

Players: 2 players

What you need for each player: 9 pieces (men) of one colour.

Setup: The game starts with an empty board. Players take turns placing one piece at a time on any empty point on the board.

How to Play

1. Placing Pieces
Players take turns placing one piece at a time on any empty point on the board. Whenever a player forms a mill, they may remove one of their opponent’s pieces. Pieces that are already part of a mill cannot be removed unless all of the opponent’s pieces are part of mills. This phase continues until all eighteen pieces have been placed on the board.

2. Moving Pieces
Once all the pieces have been placed, the movement phase begins. Players take turns moving one of their pieces to an adjacent point connected by a line. Whenever a new mill is formed, the player may remove one of the opponent’s pieces, following the same rules as in the previous phase.

3. Flying
When a player is reduced to three pieces, the flying rule comes into effect. In this situation, they may move one of their pieces to any empty point on the board, rather than being limited to adjacent points. This rule helps keep the game balanced and allows play to continue until the end.

4. End of the Game
The game ends as soon as one player is reduced to only two pieces or is no longer able to make a legal move.

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