Sometimes smaller boards are used. Often 13x13 or 9x9 boards are used for quicker games or for teaching. There should be nine marked points spread out evenly on the board (4rd, 10th, and 16th lines). They are called “star points” and serve as reference points or markers for handicap games.
Black plays with 181 stones and white with 180. This is because black makes the first move. Keep the stones next to the board, in bowls.
Stones can also be placed on the edge, where there is a T-intersection. Once a stone is placed, it cannot be moved (unless captured and removed).
Territory is empty intersections that are bordered or surrounded by stones of the same color. Each empty intersection that is completely surrounded is worth one point, or moku. The bigger the territory you surround, the more points you gain. Corners can be used as a border as well. You will lose a point if you place a stone inside your own territory.
Stones of the same color on immediately adjacent points are said to be connected, or joined. The connection can be horizontal or vertical, but not diagonal–the connection is along the lines. Fill all the adjacent points around your players pieces to capture them. Once captured, remove them from the board and keep them in a separate pile. No empty spaces can be within the border.
Place all captured stones in the opposing players territory. Thus, their score is reduced due to lost intersections. Therefore, a captured stone is worth two points. One point negated from your opponent’s score and one point for the new empty space surrounded upon removal. Capturing is what makes this game a battle of wits. While gaining territory is the main goal, one must think defensively at all times.
Liberty - an adjacent intersection Atari - a state in which a piece can be captured in the next move For example, “Your white stone over there is in Atari! Haha!” Eye - a single empty space inside a group If a single group has two eyes, capturing is not possible, as not all the empty space can be filled by the opponent. Suicide - placing a stone where it can be captured Ko - a situation in which a stone about to make a capture can be immediately recaptured, which would repeat the situation endlessly. Capturing cannot immediately take place after a ko. Sente - playing first, taking the advantage in a given position. Gote - playing second, responding to your opponent’s move, giving up an advantage in a position.
You can look for a game either face-to-face or on an online go-server. For face-to-face games, look for a local chapter of the AGA, BGA, or your national Go organization. You will likely find a list of Go clubs on their websites. For online games, some Go servers are listed below. IGS KGS OGS DGS Yahoo MSN Zone Go shrine 361points Break Base
For an even game, the colors are determined randomly. Since black has an advantage by playing first, white is compensated by taking komi, an amount of additional points added to white’s score at the end of the game. The amount of komi varies, but most tournaments use values between 5 and 8 points. Sometimes a fractional value like 6. 5 is used to avoid ties. Western go players most typically play by Japanese rules, where komi is set at 6. 5.
This initial move stakes out which side each player lays claim to. Handicap stones are considered the first move in a handicap game.
Either player may pass if they see no benefit to making a move. Passing signals a desire to end the game and count the score. If both players pass, the game is over.
If a player places a stone that removes the last liberty from a connected group of the opponent’s stones, then that group is dead and is removed from the board (captured). The exception to the above rule is that you cannot capture a single stone that just captured one of your stones without playing elsewhere first. This is called the rule of ko (“ko” means “eternity” in Japanese); it is needed to prevent games from never ending.
The player who has captured the most stones and territory wins. Captured pieces should be placed on the board in the opponent’s territory, decreasing their score.
For territory counting, most common in Japan and for most western go players, each color fills in their opponent’s territory with any prisoners of that color captured earlier in the game. Their score is then only the empty intersections in their territory. White then adds their komi. For area counting, each color scores a point for each living stone of that color and each empty intersection within their territory. White then adds their komi. Both methods of scoring usually end up with the same result, but they may sometimes vary by a point.
