Game Puzzles 187there are pretty 3ubtleties in it, and I will show how to win with certainty.
Place the five dominoes, 1,2,3,4,5, on the table. There are two players, who
play alternately. The first player places a coin on any domino, say the 5, which
scores 5; then the second player removes the coin to another domino, say to
the 3, and adds that domino, scoring 8; then the first player removes the coin
again, say to the 1, scoring 9; and so on. The player who scores 37, or forces
his opponent to score more than 37, wins. Remember, the coin must be
removed to a different domino at each play.
476. THE 22 GAME
Here is a variation of our little "Thirty-one Game" (Canterbury Puzzles:
No. 79). Layout the sixteen cards as shown. Two players alternately tum
down a card and add it to the common score, and the player who makes the
score of 22, or forces his opponent to go beyond that number, wins. For ex-
ample, A turns down a 4, B turns down a 3 (counting 7), A turns down a 4
(counting 11), B plays a 2 (counting
13), A plays 1 (14), B plays 3 (17),
and whatever A does, B scores the
winning 22 next play. Again, suppos-
ing the play was 3-1, 1-2, 3-3, 1-2,
1-4, scoring 21, the second player
would win again, because there is no
1 left and his opponent must go
beyond 22.
Which player should always win,
and how?
- THE NINE SQUARES GAME
Make the simple square diagram shown on page 188 and provide a box of
matches. The side of the large square is three matches in length. The game is,
playing one match at a time alternately, to enclose more of those small squares
than your opponent. For every small square that you enclose you not only score
one point, but you play again. The illustration shows an illustrative game in
progress. Twelve matches are placed, my opponent and myself having made
six plays each, and, as I had first play, it is now my turn to place a match.