h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

This game is one of a family of games that start with an empty board, and players place a number of markers on the board, then after all markers are in place move them to create a winning position.

The oldest and most popular version of this type is called by several names. Nine Men's Morris is the most popular name, followed by Mill, Merrils, and a version for the Palm pocket computer called Tripples. There are probably other names as well. The game was popular in the 14th century and versions have been found with fewer than the nine men per side dating back to 1400 BC.

Morris is played on a board with three squares inside each other, having dots on each end and the middle of each line Additional lines are drawn joining the midpoints of the squares, giving a total of 16 lines overall and 24 dots overall. Each player has Nine markers of contrasting colors eg. White and Black. When a player succedes in getting one of his/her markers on each end and the middle of any line (called a mill), s/he may remove any opposing piece that is not in a mill. The game is lost by the player left with no legal move or only two remaining pieces.

Each player takes a turn at placing one marker on one of the unoccupied dots. If a mill is made durring this phase, the player who makes it removes his/her choice of opponent's marker not in a mill. After all markers are placed, a move consists of moving any piece of your color to an adjacent empty dot along the same line. Again, if a mill is made, the player making it removes an opposing marker.

Most rulesets allow a special variance when a player has only three remaining pieces. Under this varience, any one marker can be moved to any empty dot on the remaining moves in the game.

Another nearly forgotten game in this family was the TEEKO game invented by magician and lecturer John Scarne in 1945. Each player had 4 markers of contrasting colors and the board consisted of Five rows of Five dots joined by horizontal, vertical, and diagonal lines. The game was won when either player was able to get thier four markers in a straight line or a square.

As in the other games of this type, the board starts empty, each player places a piece on an empty dot and after all eithe pieces are placed (if there is not a winning position) players moves consist in moving pieces to adjacent empty dots trying to block or create winning positions.

In 1988, mathematician Guy Steele solved all game variations and determined the best outcomes. This rendered the game useless for true game fanatics, though still playable for ordinary people. The solution dashed the hopes of inventing (in Scarne's words from the rulebook I possess) "The first skill game in 6000 years, that equals, if not surpasses, checkers or chess in strategy."

On another page of the rulebook: "Teeko will undoubtedly go down in history as one of the great games of all time." Scarne billed himself as "The world's foremost game authority".