Pente is an abstract strategy board game for two or more players, created in 1977 by Gary Gabrel. A member of the m,n,k game family, Pente stands out for its custodial capture mechanic, which allows players to "sandwich" pairs of stones and capture them by flanking them on either side. This changes the overall tactical assessments players face when compared to pure placement m,n,k games such as Gomoku.
A sample Pente game
Swap2 Pente: Tentative White has offered an opening. Tentative Black may now choose to play white, choose to play black and place another stone, or place one more stone of each color and pass the choice back to tentative White. Tentative Black chooses option three placing two more stones on the board, one white and one black, and passes the choice of color back to tentative White.
Pro Pente: White places their first stone in the center of the board. Black can place anywhere but decides to place on White’s lower right flank. White’s second stone must be at least three intersections away from their first stone. White has chosen to place 3 intersections North.
Swap Pente: Tentative White has proposed an opening by placing two white stones and two black stones on the board. Tentative Black may now choose which color to play as. White moves next.
Gomoku, also called Five in a Row, is an abstract strategy board game. It is traditionally played with Go pieces on a 15×15 Go board while in the past a 19×19 board was standard. Because pieces are typically not moved or removed from the board, gomoku may also be played as a paper-and-pencil game. The game is known in several countries under different names.
Gomoku
Pro Opening Rule: Black places first stone in the center of board. White can place anywhere, but places to the South-East. Black places their second stone three spaces away.
Swap Opening Rule: Tentative Black places two black stones and one white stone anywhere on the board. Tentative white chooses which color to play as.
Swap2 Opening Rule: Tentative Black places two black stones and one white stone anywhere on the board. Tentative White responds by picking option number three and placing two more stones, one of each color, on the board and passes the choice of which color to play as to tentative Black.
