Politrics

Politrics is a board game inspired by Chess.

Politrics rules

Politrics rules of play

You win the game by scoring 100 points which is the maximum score in one board. So you can win the game in one board or by accumulating scores of several boards.

The 3 primary ways to win a board:

1. get 5 figures in a line (horizontal, vertical, diagonal) declared safe. Safe means your opponent cannot beat one of these 5 figures or does not want to beat one.

2. beat your opponent’s President. Your opponent has no further move and you score your highest value combination of 1, 2, 3, or 4 or possibly 5 figures.

3. incapacitate your opponent. this means your opponent does not have enough figures left to create a row of 5. The President does not count. Scoring as for beaten President.

General: in a row of 6 or more figures only 5 count.

Further ways are theoretical and rarely occur in competitive play:

4. immobilizing your opponent. He cannot move any figure except the President or including the President, or if the President cannot be placed.

5. repetitive moves result in a void board.

Politrics Board has 81 squares arranged in a 9 x 9 pattern. The inner 7 x 7 squares are the playing field, the scoring squares are in shades of blue. The outer 9 x 9 squares are the retirement squares in shades of red. The line-up fields for the dark figures are near square 11, for the light figures near square 99.

the squares are addressed by their xy coordinates.

The scoring squares are:

6 points 45, 54, 56, 65. dark blue, horizontal and vertical.

5 points 44, 46, 64, 66. pale blue, diagonal.

4 points 35, 53, 57, 75. dark blue, horizontal and vertical.

3 points 33, 37, 73, 77. pale blue, diagonal.

2 points 25, 52, 58, 85. dark blue, horizontal and vertical.

1 point 22, 28, 82, 88. pale blue, diagonal.

The centre square 55 acts as multiplier (see below)

White squares and Retirement squares have no value.

Politrics Figures

There are two sets of 17 figures each, defined as dark and light.

President (1): the base is an eight-pointed star, on top is a Welsh dragon. He can be placed on any playing square (inner 7Å~7) but not on a retirement square (outer rim of red squares).

He can move one square in any direction.

He cannot beat any figure.

He cannot enter the ‘Aura’ of a Civil Servant.

He acts as multiplier in a line of 5 which does not include the centre square 55.

He is marked as P on the score sheet.

Voter (4): the base is a four-leaf clover, on top is a sheep.

He can be placed on any square, can move one square in any direction and beat any opponent figure by jumping over it on to a free square. He is marked as V on the score sheet.

Minister (4): the base is a triangle, on top is a vulture.

He can be placed on any square, can move one square diagonally and beat any opponent figure by jumping over it diagonally on to a free square. He is marked as M on the score sheet.

Delegate (4): the base is a circle, on top is a snail.

He can be placed on any square, can move one square horizontally or vertically and beat any opponent figure by jumping over it in the same directions. He is marked as D on the score sheet.

Civil Servant (4): the base is a square, on top is a pig.

He can be placed on any square. He cannot move and cannot beat figures. He has an ‘Aura’ radiating one square in all directions in which the President cannot be. The Aura is also maintained when placed on a retirement square. He cannot be placed so that the President is inside the Aura and the President can neither be placed inside the Aura nor enter it. He is marked as C on the score sheet.

How to play:

Figures are on their line-up fields. Dark moves the first figure from there on to a playing or retirement square. Light moves next.

Only when all figures of a player are placed can these be moved.

Beating a figure replaces the move of placing one. You can beat opponent figures only, but not one of your own.

e.g.: Dark V33, Light D34, M44, C43, M53. Dark V33 can beat D34 by moving to 35. This move is marked as V33-35 on the score sheet. V33 could also beat M44 by moving to 55. V33 cannot beat C43 as 53 is occupied.

A figure placed or moved to a retirement square cannot be moved but it still counts in a row of 5 or any other winning score configuration.

How scores are calculated:

Your row of 5 is declared safe: C35, D45, V55, V65, M75. The scoring square covered amount to 20 points (2Å6 + 2Å4). You declare 3 x 20 = 60, 2 Voters + Central square 55 makes it 3 multipliers, 55 counts as an additional figure, a Voter in this case.

The maximum score of 100 points is achieved by covering 20 points with 4 figures of one kind, any kind, and the Central square 55.

The President has the same function as 55 when 55 is not covered, e.g. D34, D44, D54, P64, D74 = 5 x 16 = 80 points. Replace any D with another figure and the score is 4 x 16 = 64.

Beaten President or incapacitated opponent: you score the highest combination of any amount of figures in a row. e.g. M54, M64, C74 = 11 x 2 = 22 points.