Battle of the Viruses
Fight of the Viruses is a two-person strategy game in which the growth of two virus colonies and their fight for resources are reproduced in a limited space. The exact origin of the game is unclear. According to the description published in 1990, the game was created in the 1980s in the University of Leningrad (St. Petersburg).
Course of the game and rules
Several variations of the game are known. The game can be played against a fellow player on paper or against a computer as a computer game. The rules of the game are explained using the online version published by Meta-Schule.
The game is played on a checkered playing field with 10 × 10 boxes.
Player 1 places crosses on the playing field, player 2 places circles. It's your turn to take turns. During a move, three crosses or three circles are placed in the available boxes (see below).
The rules are explained using the example of player 1.
A cross can be placed in an empty box, which creates a "living" cross. A cross can also be placed in a box with a "living" circle. The circle is "killed", the box counts as "conquered" by the cross and can no longer be used. A captured box is marked accordingly (e.g. by color).
Adjacent boxes that have been captured by a cross form chains that belong to player 1. (Two boxes are adjacent if they have a common side or a common corner). The chains can be "alive" or "dead". A chain captured by player 1 is considered "alive" if it is adjacent to a box with a "living" cross. A chain that belongs to player 1 is dead if it is not adjacent to a living cross.
Available boxes. A cross can only be placed in a box if it is adjacent to a box with a "living" cross or to a "living chain" belonging to player 1.
- Player 1 starts, the first cross is placed in the top left corner. The first circle must be placed at the bottom right.
- Player 1 wins when player 2 can no longer make his move. This is the case when all circles are killed or when there are no boxes available for the circles.
First move
A box captured by player 2 ("circle") - below, (red); a box captured by player 1 ("cross") - above, (blue)
A living chain of circles (red) and a dead chain of crosses (blue)
Elements of the strategy
Player 1 should try to limit the area available to player 2 by continuous "walls" of "killed" circles. If boxes of such a wall are side by side, it is impossible for the circles to penetrate the wall. If the limited area is small enough, the boxes available for the circles are quickly used up and player 1 wins.
Correspondingly, it can be dangerous for the player 1 if he prefers to place crosses in laterally adjoining boxes because, if they are conquered by the player 2, they can form impenetrable walls for the player 1.
Furthermore, the player 1 should try to keep his chains (as long as possible) alive by placing one or more crosses adjacent to a chain in "remote" areas, i.e. H. to where it is not possible for player 2 to kill all crosses that border a chain and keep it alive in one go.
Individual evidence
- ↑ "Мусихин, А. К. Логика или фортуна? Игры для всех. Pages 99-109; Человек, 1990., ISBN 5-289-01197-8 , in Russian.
- ↑ a b Meta-Schule ( Memento of the original from October 14, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. © 2009-2013 Meta-School, www.metaschool.ru
