MALAYSIA OTHELLO ASSOCIATION Since 25th January 2005 A minute to learn, A lifetime to master       The objective of this game is to have the most discs at the end of the game. Each player starts with 32 discs at hand and playing with Black (1st player) & White (2nd player). Black always plays first. The 3 basic rules of this game are play small, play grouped & play inside. Play small meaning that you must not take too many pieces during the opening phase, best is 1 or 2 pieces during this phase of the game. Play grouped meaning that you have to try your best to keep all your pieces close together to each other during the opening till the mid-game phases. Play inside meaning that once you fulfill the first 2 basic rules, the chances of your opponent's pieces covering your pieces will be greater, hence giving you a chance to control where your opponent can play & if well-played, you can even force your opponent to your winning game. However, there's no guarantee that you will win a game, even though you followed the rules closely, especially against other players whom already knew about the rules because as you play along, you'll noticed that there's always some other things to consider in order to lead you to a winning game. Once you can play with the rules well enough, it is time for you to break it. Here, I would also like to share with you the terms used in this game. They're as follows:- Small Taking 1 or 2 pieces appropriately during the opening in order to force your opponent out of mobility. Grouped Moving and keeping all your pieces together during the game in order to force your opponent to run out of good moves. Inside By following the above 2 rules, there would be a situation where your opponent's pieces is covering all your pieces which gives you a big advantage of controlling your opponent's moves. Sweet Sixteen The central 16 grids on the board. Poison Setting a move that causes your opponent to lose a one-point move & turn it into a three-points move or more. Prevent Same as above, this is a move that can force your opponent out of good moves. Tempos A future move which can be delayed & by keeping 1 or 2 tempo moves, you can then turn your opponent's important move into your advantage. Parity Three types of parity - Openboard, Edgegame & Endgame that gives an advantage to the player who made the last move on the board. Force A Move that gives your opponent only one possible move which most of the time, would turn into an advantage for you. Stable Pieces on boards that consist of strong corner(s) that can't be flipped back to your opponent's pieces. Sacrifices Normally, this situation has a very high risk, but if planned correctly, you could gained at least a big advantage later in the game. Tricks Often used in a blitz game, where your opponent is confused because of your move. Not useful against experienced players because they usually don't fall into tricks. Traps Similar to tricks, but more solid. Often if forces your opponent to make an important choice that can turn the game to your advantage. Diagonals Very important type of controls, especially when by flipping diagonally, you could accidentally flipped unwanted disc(s). Borders A single line of pieces either vertical or horizontal on the board. Walls A double-line of pieces either vertical or horizontal on the board, often used to prevent your opponent's attack if assembled on the edge. Wedges A move on the board that your opponent can't respond to, often giving you an advantage. Edges Side-line of the board. Corners The four grids of the board that once controlled, will turn into a stable discs. Mobility More is better, as the one with least mobility will tend to lose early. Quiet Similar to wedges, but this move doesn't open any new moves for your opponent. Attack Often referred as Black Player's game style. Defense Often referred as White Player's game style. Killer Sequences of moves that forced your opponent out of mobility & would only have the choice to give you free corner(s). * Credit has to be given to Joseph Chen for "Basics" on this page.     Copyright © MOA 2006. All Rights Reserved.