Objective of the Game
Laskersche Mühle, also known as Nine Men's Morris, is a strategic board game for two players, played on a special mill board. The main objective is to remove more of the opponent's pieces until the opponent has fewer than three pieces or can no longer make legal moves.
Game Materials
- A Nine Men's Morris board with three concentric squares and eight connecting points.
- 18 playing pieces in two colors, 9 per player.
Game Setup
- Place the Nine Men's Morris board in the playing area.
- Each player chooses a color and takes 9 pieces of that color.
Game Play
The game consists of three phases: Placing Phase, Moving Phase, and Flying Phase.
Placing Phase
- In this phase, players take turns placing their pieces on the empty intersections of the board.
- The aim is to form mills, which are three in a row of a player's pieces in a straight line.
- When a player forms a mill, they may remove an opponent's piece. Pieces that are part of a mill can only be removed if no other pieces are available.
Moving Phase
- After all pieces are placed, the Moving Phase begins.
- Players take turns moving their pieces to adjacent free points.
- Forming a mill still allows a player to remove an opponent's piece, with the same rules as in the placing phase.
Flying Phase
- When a player is reduced to three pieces, they can "fly" their pieces to any free spot on the board.
- The game ends when a player has fewer than three pieces or can make no more legal moves.
Strategic Tips
- Block potential mills of the opponent by breaking their lines.
- Place pieces to create multiple mills with a single move.
- Maintain flexibility by controlling multiple connection points.
- Use the "flying" phase creatively to escape tricky positions or decisively block the opponent.
Enjoy the game!
