Dark to move on the 4 × 4 board. 20 of 40 lines are drawn, Dark has 0 boxes and Light 0.
16 boxes are still unclaimed. With best play you can take 10 of them, 4 more than the opponent gets, and exactly one line achieves that.
What the position is about
- double-dealing — The key line declines the last boxes of a chain so that the opponent has to open the next one.
- keep control — With best play you stay in control and collect more than half of what is left.
Finding the way in
Count the chains of three or more and the loops. If the count is wrong for you, look for a line that changes it, even at the cost of a box.
Play the position in your head from the opponent's side: what would you do against your favourite move? If there is a good answer, try the next candidate.
Show the first move
Start with a4-a5. Played out against the stiffest resistance, the whole line goes: a4-a5 b4-b5 b1-c1 c1-c2 c2-d2 d2-d3 e1-e2 d2-e2 a2-b2 a1-a2 b2-b3 b3-c3 d4-e4 e3-e4 e4-e5 c4-d4 c5-d5 c3-c4 b3-b4 a3-a4.
Solve it and the next puzzle of the same game is one tap away. Your solved puzzles are ticked in the list, in this browser only.