The 10 Mighty Men

(Mancala Variants) By Ken Maher, 2007

Standard Mancala Rules:

What follows is actually a variation of Mancala known as

Ayoayo, but it is the version I first learned and would be a good way to introduce you to the main
concepts of the game. The Mighty Men Variations will work equally well with nearly any other
derivation of Mancala you like.
The game is set up with 4 pieces in each of the six bins in front of each player. Each player in turn
will lift all the pieces from any one of the bins on his side of the board and sows them in a counterclockwise direction (to the right), depositing one piece in each successive bin. Upon reaching the
end of his or her row, the player continues sowing pieces into the bins on their opponent's side of the
board. If sowing more than 12 pieces (enough to go all the way back to the starting bin) the lift bin is
skipped, thus leaving it open. If the last piece is played into a bin already containing pieces, these
are all lifted (including the one just dropped) and the sowing continues until such time as the final
piece is played into an empty bin.
If that empty bin is on the opponent's side of the board the turn is over and play goes to the next
person. If the empty bin is on the sower's side they win the contents of the bin directly across from it
(on their opponent's side) and these are placed in the player's storage bin (the big bin to the right). If
the bin opposite the last played piece is empty the turn simply proceeds to the opponent.
If a player cannot move because they have no pieces left on their side of the board the game is over
and their opponent may claim any pieces left on their side. The player with the most pieces in their
storage bin at the end of the game wins. A player may not intentionally play to empty their
opponent's side, unless they have no other move.
If using these rules as a basis for the Mighty Men Variants, Do Not continue sowing if your last piece
lands in an occupied bin.

The 10 Mighty Men:

What follows are 10 special pieces that can be added to any

standard Mancala game to give it some new twists and opportunites for strategy. The regular
pieces should be a neutral (and uniform) colour, while each of these special pieces will be a
distinct colour. These pieces may be used one at a time (especially advisable as you learn the
potential of what each new piece can do) or several may be used together in a game to make
things even more interesting. Unless otherwise stated, the powers of each piece will be
resolved AFTER the piece, and all others from its lift bin, have been moved, but BEFORE a
player may collect any pieces from the board.

The Farmer (Green

Green)

When placed into a bin with pre-existing pieces, the farmer

gets to sow them across the board. He does so by beginning with the bin just beyond
his, then moving to the opponents side of the board he continues in an arc sowing
three bins in an anticlockwise direction, before coming back to his side of the board and
sowing one last piece in the bin just prior to the one he is in. (See Figure 1, below) If he
has any pieces left over they go back in his own bin. If he runs out of pieces before the
full arc is sown, so be it!

The Shepherd (White

White)

The Hunter (Brown

Brown)

The Warrior (Red

Red)

The Chieftan (Gold

Gold)

The Wise Mother (Silver

Silver)

The Witch Doctor (Blue

Blue)

The Trickster (Purple

Purple)

The Assasin (Black)

The Spy (Orange

Orange)

After
being placed, this piece, may
rearrange the pieces in the three bins
made up of his own and the two
adjoining bins (post and prior). He
may do so in any way he sees fit.
The
Figure 1. The arc of the Farmer Sowing.
hunter may move up to X bins
beyond his normal limit, where X
equals the number of other pieces lifted with it. For example, a player lifting the hunter
with two other pieces may drop the hunter in any of the three bins he would normally
sow and then move the hunter either one or two bins further forward.
The bin in which a warrior resides may not be captured,
unless it is by another Mighty Man (special piece) that the capture is made.
Upon being placed the Chieftan may use the ability of any
Mighty Man in an adjoining bin as if it were his own. For example, if a player sows the
Chieftan in a bin beside the farmer, he may treat the chieftan as a farmer for that play.
The wise woman cancels any action by a Mighty Man,
if it would change the piece count in her bin. This does not apply to regular sowing, just
the special powers another piece might enact after being placed.
If placed into an empty bin the Witch Doctor may call
back three normal pieces from the opponent's storage bin. These pieces are placed into
the bin with the Witch Doctor.
This piece only moves backward. A player lifting it may
move it up to X bins in a clockwise direction. X equals the number of other pieces
lifted with it. For example if a player lifts the Trickster from a bin with three other pieces
those three pieces would be sown normally, but the Trickster may move one, two or
three bins (player's discretion) in the opposite direction.
If this piece is captured the bin from which it was taken is now
poisoned and cannot be used for the remainder of the game. Mark it with a small stick
or other such token. From that point on any seeding that would normally go into that bin
simply skips over and continues on in usual fashion.
If this piece is played to a bin with another Mighty Man already in
it, that piece is reverted back to a regular piece and loses any special abilities. This
does not work on the Wise Mother.

Suggested Use:

At the beginning of the game decide how many of the Mighty Men you will
include. Choose the ones you like, or draw them randomly. Substitute each of these pieces for
one of the regular pieces. Set up the board normally, with the exception that one player (A)
gets to decide where the Mighty Men will be placed, while the second player (B) then decides
which side of the board they will take. Player (A) moves first.
Try mixing and matching a number of the different Mighty Men in a single game (like the
Farmer, Warrior, Trickster and Wise Mother), or use several of the same one (like three
shepherds).