[pbmserv] New game: Blobs

[Cameron Browne <cameron.browne@btinternet.com>]

Dear Gamerz,

A new game Blobs has been added to the server.

Players place square dice and try to either surround a group of their
colour or surround another group with their colour. Blobs is like the
bastard offspring that Trax and Mambo might have, if those two games
ever sat down to a candlelit dinner with romantic music one night.

Official rules: http://www.cameronius.com/games/blobs/
PBeM help page: http://www.gamerz.net/pbmserv/blobs.html

Blobs is best played using the graphical web interface:
http://www.gamerz.net/pbmserv/List.php?Blobs

Challenges please:

  blobs challenge <you> camb
  blobs challenge camb <you>

Cameron

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Help for the Game of Blobs

    Welcome to the network Blobs server. The challenge command is described
    here. Other commands are the same as for all pbmserv games.

      blobs challenge [-num_dice=n] [-max_grid=n]
            [-win_either|-win_white|-win_own|-win_enemy] userid1 userid2

    Starts a new game for two players.

    The -num_dice option specifies the number of dice to play with
(default 48).
    The -max_grid option specifies the maximum grid size (default 8x8).
    The -win_either option specifies that players win by either surrounding
    white or being surrounded by white (default).
    The -win_white option specifies that players win by surrounding a white
    group with their colour.
    The -win_own option specifies that players win by surrounding a group of
    their own colour with white.
    The -win_enemy option specifies that players win by surrounding an enemy
    group with white.

   Introduction

    Blobs is a boardless strategy game in which two players strive to surround
    shapes.

    Note: The game is much easier to play using the graphical web
interface than
    the ASCII email version!

   Rules

    Pieces: Two players, O and X, share a common pool of 48 dice 
with an O neck
    on the top an X neck on the bottom. The six faces of each dice are of the
    following colours: O (x 1) , X (x 1) and Mixed (x 4).

     +oo---+    +xx---+    +--xxx+
     oooo..|    xxxx..|    |...xxx
     |.ooo.|    |.xxx.|    oo...xx
     |..oooo    |..xxxx    ooo...|
     +---oo+    +---xx+    +ooo--+
     O side     X side      Mixed

    Start: O starts by placing a die in the middle of playing area 
with a Mixed
    face uppermost.

    Play: Players then take turns adding a die adjacent to at least
one existing
    die such that edge colours match all neighbouring edges and corners. Only
    the uppermost faces need match.

    Dice cannot exceed an 8x8 grid.

    Auto Moves: If a placement creates a concave corner that matches only one
    dice face in one rotation, then that dice face is also played as
part of the
    move. Each move may trigger one or two auto moves.

    Aim: A player wins by either surrounding a white shape with 
their colour or
    being surrounded by a white. For example, a game won by X is shown below.

            +---oo+ooo--+---xx+xx---+
            |..oooooo......xxxxxxx..|
            |.ooo.oo...xx.xxx...xxx.|
            oooo......xxxxxx.....xxxx
      +---oo+oo...+..xxx+xx...+...xx+
      |..ooooooo......xxxxxx.....xxxx
      |.ooo...ooo.oo...xx.xxx...xxx.|
      oooo.....oooooo......xxxxxxx..|
      +oo---+---oo+ooo--+---xx+xx---+

    A player loses if they achieve a win for the opponent on their move.

    The game is drawn if the tiles run out before either player wins.

Notes

    A winning or losing shape may be of any size or shape, as long as it is
    surrounded. Note, however, that any shape more complex than a circle will
    require the player to enclose a white shape that encloses at
least one enemy
    shape (as shown in Figure 4, right)! This is because any white 
shape with a
    neck must border both Red and Blue regions, as only the Mixed dice face
    features a white neck.

    White semicircles and semicircles are the key to the game. White
semicircles
    embedded in your colour may be completed to a winning circle with a single
    move that triggers an auto move, while semicircles of your colour may be
    used as threats to direct play. Two such disjoint semicircles constitute a
    winning fork.

    The rule that dice cannot exceed an 8x8 grid prevents ladders ruining the
    game. Thanks to Stephen Tavener for finding this problem.

Syntax

    The following command plays tile rotation 'd' at position 3, in 
addition to
    any resulting auto moves:

      blobs move <game#> <userid> <passwd> d3

   History

    Blobs piece design and rules by Cameron Browne and copyright (c) Cyberite
    Ltd 2009.

    Blobs may be described as a square version of Mambo in which 
three types of
    tile (each one a Truchet-like tile) are wrapped into a single cube. Blobs
    features auto moves as per Mambo but not the null points.

    More details are available at the official Blobs page:
    http://www.cameronius.com/games/blobs/

    Blobs   is   best   played   using   the   graphical   web  interface:
    http://www.gamerz.net/pbmserv/List.php?Blobs.

    Implementation and Help file by Cameron Browne, July 2009.