Article: Mancala is designed for 2 players. Each player controls the 6 cups on their side of board. The oval-shaped Mancala to the player’s right is a storage space for scored points. During your turn, you pick up all the stones in 1 of the smaller cups and move them along the board. Most ordinary games of Mancala begin with 24 stones per player. Some versions start with 3 or 5 stones in each cup. The Mancala cup to your right is your scoring cup. If you forget how to move your stones, remember your Mancala. You always move towards it. Think of the board as a racetrack where the Mancala is the finish line. When you pass stones onto your opponent’s side of the board, continue moving them counterclockwise. This is called sowing, an important part of strategizing to win. Select a cup on your side of the board, then pick up all the stones in it. Move counterclockwise around the board, dropping a stone into each of your cups you pass, including your Mancala.  For example, if you have 3 stones in a cup, drop a stone in the 3 cups ahead of it. The final stone will end up 3 cups ahead of your starting point. Don’t put a stone in your opponent’s Mancala if you reach it. You only reach your opponent’s Mancala when you have a lot of stones in a cup on your side, enough to move around the entire board. Pass over the Mancala without putting a stone in it. Some rulesets forgo using the Mancalas. Instead, you score only by capturing your opponent’s stones. In order to capture your opponent’s pieces, the last stone you move needs to end up in an empty cup on your side of the board. Take the stones in the opposing cup on your opponent’s side of the board , along with your stone, and put them in your Mancala. To capture stones on the far right side of the board, for example, you have to move to the cup right before your Mancala. If you have only 1 stone in the cup next to it, move it forward to capture the space. The last stone needs to end up in the Mancala. You don’t get a free turn if you pass over to your opponent’s side of the board. Count your stones carefully to ensure you have the exact number needed to get the free turn.  Getting a free turn is an effective way to score lots of points. It gives you a chance to score again or move your stones out of harm’s way. The use of free turns depends on the rule set you use. For a standard game with 24 stones, plan on using the free turns as a point of strategy. Each stone counts as 1 point. The player that tallies the most scores wins the game. The other player gets to capture any stones left on their side of the board, so anticipate how this affects the score before you end the game. The game ends when a player can no longer move any stones. This happens when their side of the board is empty.
What is a summary of what this article is about?
Place 4 stones in each of the 6 small cups. Move your stones counterclockwise during your turn. Drop a stone into each cup you move past on your turn. Capture stones by placing your last stone in an empty cup. Take another turn if the last stone you move ends up in your Mancala. Win the game by having the most stones in your Mancala.