Dark to move. There are 33 dark and 23 light discs on the board and 8 empty squares.
You have 5 legal moves and only one of them keeps the ending won: with perfect play on both sides it finishes 33–31. Each of the 4 alternatives was searched to the last disc and draws or loses.
What the position is about
- edge square — The key move is on the edge of the board, where discs are harder to flip.
- only winning move — Every legal move was solved to the end: this one wins, all the others draw or lose.
Finding the way in
With eight empties left, count where the last move in each region will fall; the winning move often gives up discs now to keep the final say.
Take your time. There is no clock on the result, and a wrong move is simply taken back so you can look again.
Show the first move
Start with e1. Played out against the stiffest resistance, the whole line goes: e1 a2 a8 a3 d8 b5 a7 b8.
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.