About Fanorona
Fanorona is the national board game of Madagascar and one of the most distinctive capture games ever devised. If you want to play Fanorona online, the board is a 45 point lattice of 5 rows and 9 columns laced with diagonals, and each side lines up 22 stones with only the centre point left empty.
What makes it special is the capture. Step toward an enemy line and you sweep it away, step away from one and you sweep that away instead, and every stone that follows in the same direction goes with it. Captures are compulsory and can be chained, so one clever turn can strip an entire wing off the board. Play Fanorona online against the computer and learn to see those chains before your opponent does.
Play Fanorona vs AI
Play Fanorona online against the computer and practise at your own pace. Pick a difficulty that matches your level, then work on spotting approach and withdrawal captures and reading how far down a line a sweep will reach.
The computer will punish loose formations, so use your games to learn how to stagger your stones, hold the strong intersections, and set up the forced captures that pull your opponent apart.
How to play Fanorona
The goal of Fanorona is to capture all 22 of your opponent's stones on the 9 by 5 point board.
Move one step along a line to an empty point. Moving toward an enemy stone straight ahead captures it and everything behind it; moving directly away from an adjacent enemy stone captures that line instead. Captures are compulsory and may be chained, but a stone may never repeat a direction or revisit a point within one sequence.
Improve by learning strategy
Fanorona strategy is about lines and timing. Strong players count the full length of every capture before committing and think about which capture their move forces on the opponent.
Hold the strong intersections where all eight lines meet, break up your own long rows so a single enemy move cannot sweep them, and chain your captures by alternating directions. Learn practical Fanorona strategy tips you can use straight away and watch your results improve.
Frequently Asked Questions
Fanorona is a two player abstract strategy game from Madagascar, where it is regarded as the national game. The most popular version, Fanoron-Tsivy, is played on a 45 point board of 5 rows and 9 columns with 22 stones per side, and the goal is to capture all of the opponent's stones.
Similar games you might like
If you enjoy Fanorona, you will probably like these other abstract strategy board games.
Learn, Play, and Have Fun!
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