Guide
Nine Men's Morris is played on twenty-four points connected by lines. Each player has nine pieces.
The game has two main parts: first you place pieces, then you move them. A line of three pieces is called a mill, and making one lets you capture an opposing piece.
Rules
- Players take turns placing pieces on empty points until both sides have placed all nine.
- Three of your pieces in a straight board line form a mill.
- After making a mill, capture one opposing piece.
- If your opponent has any pieces outside mills, you must capture one of those first.
- After placement ends, move one piece along a connected line to an empty point.
- When a player has exactly three pieces left, this version allows that player to fly to any empty point.
- You win by leaving the opponent with fewer than three pieces or no legal move.
Strategy
Try not to place all your early pieces in one area. A piece on a busy connection point can help you block, move, and build mills later.
Block immediate mills before chasing a slower plan. One missed block can cost a piece and make the rest of the game much harder.
The strongest positions often create two mill threats at once. If your opponent can block only one of them, you get the capture on the next turn.
- Watch the connector points between squares.
- Do not close a mill if it traps your own pieces with no useful move afterward.
- When capturing, remove pieces that give your opponent movement or a near mill.
- In the flying phase, spread your three pieces so they threaten more than one line.
- If the opponent is down to three, guard the points that let them jump into an easy mill.