Mancala Simple Guide

Learn the world's oldest strategy game in two minutes.

Mancala is an ancient two-player game of counting and capturing stones. The goal is to collect the most stones in your store by the end of the game.

The Board Layout

• Your side: the row of 6 pits directly in front of you.
• Your store: the large scoring pit on your right-hand side.
• The stones: the game starts with 4 stones in each of the 12 small pits (48 total). Stores start empty.

How to Play (Sowing)

On your turn, pick up all the stones from any single pit on your side of the board. Moving counter-clockwise, drop exactly one stone into each pit you pass, going around the board:

• Drop a stone if you pass your own store.
• Drop a stone into your opponent's small pits.
• Skip your opponent's store — never drop a stone in it.

Special Rules

1. Free Extra Turn

If the very last stone you drop lands exactly in your own store, you instantly get to take another turn.

2. Capturing Stones

If the very last stone you drop lands in an empty pit on your side, and the opponent's pit directly across from it has stones in it, you capture them. Take your last stone and all the opponent's stones from the opposite pit and put them straight into your store.

Winning the Game

• The end: the game ends the exact moment one player completely runs out of stones on their side of the board.
• Clean-up: the other player takes all remaining stones on their side and puts them into their own store.
• The winner: both players count their stones. The player with the most stones in their store wins.

Ready to try it? Play against the Oracle or challenge a friend. For deeper tactics, browse the strategy FAQs.