RegionMiddle Africa, Northern Africa, Western Africa
CategoryBoard, War, Leaping, Lines
Description
Zamma is a leaping capture game played in North Africa. It has been documented since at least the twentieth century, but is probably much older. It is related to other similar games from the area such as Draughts and Alquerque.
Rules
Played on a square Alquerque board with 9x9 intersecting lines with diagonals. Each player has 40 pieces. Pieces are placed on the intersections of the lines, and move forward along the lines to an adjacent unoccupied intersection. Once pieces reach the opposite side of the board from their starting position at the end of their turn, they are promoted and can move in any direction and over any distance. Opponent's pieces are captured by jumping them. Captures are obligatory if possible. If a player does not capture when they are supposed to, the opponent may remove that piece immediately and then play as normal. The player who captures all of their opponent's pieces or blocks them from being able to move wins.
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