Game18

Parchisi is one of the games resulting from the many variations of a game known as Pachisi. Pachisi originated in ancient times in the area of India. It was known throughout the Middle East during the Middle Ages, as well as the variant games of Chaput and Chausar. Centuries later during the British occupation of India, the game was taken back to England, and eventually evolved into the game known today as Parcheesi. The rules that follow are the modern interpretation of the ancient game.

Each player selects 4 counters of one color and stations them in the circle at his right. All players throw the dice. High throw wins first play. The players play in turn widdershins (counter-clockwise), each player throwing two dice. Each player first attempts to enter one or more of his counters on the blue star space to the left of his circle. A player enters one counter when the total sum of the spots uppermost on the dice equals five. If double five is thrown, two counters may be entered. If five and some other number is thrown, enter one counter for the five and move that counter, or any other already in play, as many spaces as the other die indicates. (SEE DIE-ROLL CHART) It is advisable to enter all the counters as soon as possible. When a player has entered a counter he move it around the board from space to space until it reaches the color path to the "HOME" space in the center of the board. (Each player's path to "HOME" is the one to the left of his starting star space.) The first player to succeed in landing all four of his counters in the "HOME" space wins the game. A player may move one counter the total number of spaces indicated on the dice; or he may move one counter the number of spaces indicated on one die, and another counter the number of spaces on the other die.

If doubles are thrown, the player moves, in addition to the number of spots uppermost on the dice, the numbers on the reverse side. He may move one, two, three or four counters; and is also entitled to another throw. If doubles are thrown a second time, repeat as before, but if doubles are thrown a third time, the player makes no move but must bring his counter nearest "HOME" back to his starting circle (to begin again from there) and his turn ends.

When a player's counter lands on one of the white spaces occupied by one counter of another player the latter is captured and sent back to his own starting circle to reenter the game as in the beginning. The captor is credited with twenty extra moves which he must take in his turn by moving one counter the whole twenty spaces. A player is not obliged to capture an opponent's man, but it is usually for his interest to capture as often as possible, in order to delay his opponents.

The star spaces are safety points and a counter on one of these stars cannot be captured. No player can move his counter onto a star space occupied by an opponent. A counter resting on an opponent's entering star space is not entirely safe though, as it is captured when if the opponent enters a man there.

When a player has two counters on the same space they form a blockade which cannot be passed by any counter (even those belonging to the player forming the blockade). Should one player form a blockade on another's starting space, the player blocked cannot enter a counter on the board until the blockade is broken. A blocking player, however, must break his blockade if he is unable to make another move.

A player must enter "HOME" by an exact throw of the dice, counting "HOME" as one space.

The numbers on the two dice constitute separate moves. For example, if a player rolls 4 and 3, he may move one man four spaces and another man three spaces, or he may move the one man a total of seven spaces (first 4, then 3 OR first 3, then 4).

Die	Die
#1	#2	Result

1	1	move a man on board 2 spaces, or two men 1 space each PLUS move a
		man on board 12 spaces, or two men 6 spaces each (unless this is your) third double in a row, then advance no man and move man nearest to "HOME" to starting star space

1	2	move a man on board 3 spaces, or one man 1 space and one man 2 spaces

1	3	move a man on board 4 spaces, or one man 1 space and one man 3 spaces

1	4	enter a man onto starting star space, or move a man on board 5 spaces, or
		one man 1 space and one man 4 spaces 1 5 enter a man onto starting star space and move it (or other man already on board) 1 space, or move a man on board 6 spaces, or move one man 1 space and one man 5 spaces

1	5	enter a man onto starting star space and move it (or other man already on
		board) 1 space, or move a man on board 6 spaces, or move one man 5 spaces and one man 1 space

1	6	move a man on board 7 spaces, or move one man 1 space and one man 6
		spaces

2	1	move a man on board 3 spaces, or one man 2 spaces and one man 1 space

2	2	move a man on board 4 spaces, or move two men 2 spaces each PLUS
		enter two men onto starting star space, or enter a man onto starting star space and move it (or other man already on board) 5 spaces, or move a man on board 10 spaces, or two men 5 spaces each (unless this is your third double in a row, then advance no man and move man nearest to "HOME" to starting star space)

2	3	enter a man onto starting star space, or move a man on board 5 spaces, or
		move one man 2 spaces and one man 3 spaces

2	4	move a man on board 6 spaces, or move one man 2 spaces and one man 4
		spaces

2	5	enter a man onto starting star space and move it (or other man already on
		board) 2 spaces, or move a man on board 7 spaces, or move one man 2 spaces and one man 5 spaces

2	6	move a man on board 8 spaces, or move one man 2 spaces and one man 6
		spaces

3	1	move a man on board 4 spaces, or move one man 3 spaces and one man 1
		space

3	2	enter a man onto starting star space, or move a man on board 5 spaces, or
		move one man 3 spaces and one man 2 spaces

3	3	move a man on board 6 spaces, or two men 3 space each PLUS move a
		move a man on board 6 spaces, or two men 3 space each PLUS move a man on board 8 spaces, or two men 4 spaces each (unless this is your third double in a row, then advance no man and move man nearest to "HOME" to starting star space)

3	4	move a man on board 7 spaces, or move one man 3 spaces and one man 4
		spaces

3	5	enter a man onto starting star space and move it (or other man already on
		board) 3 spaces, or move a man on board 8 spaces, or move one man 3 spaces and one man 5 spaces

3	6	move a man on board 9 spaces, or move one man 3 spaces and one man 6
		spaces

4	1	enter a man onto starting star space, or move a man on board 5 spaces, or
		one man 4 spaces and one man 1 space

4	2	move a man on board 6 spaces, or move one man 4 spaces and one man 2
		spaces

4	3	move a man on board 7 spaces, or move one man 4 spaces and one man 3
		spaces

4	4	move a man on board 8 spaces, or two men 4 space each PLUS move a
		man on board 6 spaces, or two men 3 spaces each (unless this is your third double in a row, then advance no man and move man nearest to "HOME" to starting star space)

4	5	enter a man onto starting star space and move it (or other man already on
		board) 4 spaces, or move a man on board 9 spaces, or move one man 4 spaces and one man 5 spaces

4	6	move a man on board 10 spaces, or move one man 4 spaces and one man
		6 spaces

5	1	enter a man onto starting star space and move it (or other man already on
		board) 1 space, or move a man on board 6 spaces, or move one man 5 spaces and one man 1 space

5	2	enter a man onto starting star space and move it (or other man already on
		board) 2 spaces, or move a man on board 7 spaces, or move one man 5 spaces and one man 2 spaces

5	3	enter a man onto starting star space and move it (or other man already on
		board) 3 spaces, or move a man on board 8 spaces, or move one man 5 spaces and one man 3 spaces

5	4	enter a man onto starting star space and move it (or other man already on
		board) 4 spaces, or move a man on board 9 spaces, or move one man 5 spaces and one man 4 spaces

5	5	enter two men onto starting star space, or enter a man onto starting star
		space and move it (or other man already on board) 5 spaces, or move a man on board 10 spaces, or two men 5 spaces each PLUS move a man on board 4 spaces, or move two men 2 spaces each (unless this is your third double in a row, then advance no man and move man nearest to "HOME" to starting star space)

5	6	enter a man onto starting star space and move it (or other man already on
		board) 6 spaces, or move a man on board 11 spaces, or move one man 5 spaces and one man 6 spaces

6	1	move a man on board 7 spaces, or move one man 6 spaces and one man 1
		space

6	2	move a man on board 8 spaces, or move one man 6 spaces and one man 2
		spaces

6	3	move a man on board 9 spaces, or move one man 6 spaces and one man 3
		spaces

6	4	move a man on board 10 spaces, or move one man 6 spaces and one man
		4 spaces

6	5	enter a man onto starting star space and move it (or other man already on
		board) 6 spaces, or move a man on board 11 spaces, or move one man 6 spaces and one man 5 spaces

6	6	move a man on board 12 spaces, or two men 6 spaces each PLUS move a
		man on board 2 spaces, or two men 1 space each (unless this is your third double in a row, then advance no man and move man nearest to "HOME" to starting star space)