Rimau-rimau is a two-player abstract strategy board game that belongs to the hunt game family. [1] This family includes games like bagh-chal, main tapal empat, aadu puli attam, catch the hare, sua ghin gnua, the fox games, buga-shadara, and many more. Rimau-rimau is the plural of rimau which is an abbreviation of the word harimau, meaning 'tiger' in the Malay language. Therefore, rimau-rimau means 'tigers'. The several hunters attempting to surround and immobilize the tigers are called orang-orang, which is the plural of orang, meaning 'man'. Therefore, orang-orang means 'men' and there are twenty-two or twenty-four of them, depending on which version of the game is played. The game originates from Malaysia.
Rimau-rimau is specifically part of the tiger hunt game family (or tiger game family) since its board consists in part of an alquerque board. In contrast, leopard games are also hunt games, but use a more triangular-patterned board and not an alquerque-based board. Fox games are also hunt games, but use a patterned board that resembles a cross.
Two versions of this game are described below: Version A and Version B. Both use two rimau-rimau (two tigers). The main difference is that Version A uses 24 orang-orang while Version B uses only 22 orang-orang.
There is also a single rimau version to this game, aptly called rimau, with very similar rules.
Stewart Culin in his book Chess and Playing Cards: Catalogue of Games and Implements for Divination Exhibited by the United States National Museum in Connection with the Department of Archaeology and Paleontology of the University of Pennsylvania at the Cotton States and International Exposition (1898) briefly describes the game with an illustration and refers to it as "Dam Hariman or tiger game, the Malayan game of fox and geese". [2] Culin does not actually describe the rules, but since he compares it to fox and geese, then it can be assumed to be a hunt game; moreover it is in the section of the book that deals with hunt games.
There are many names and variants of the game (see Variants section).
From here on, the rimau or rimau-rimau will be simply referred to as tiger and tigers respectively. The same also applies to the orang and orang-orang, and they will be referred to as man and men respectively.
The game consists of a standard alquerque board, but flanked on two of its opposite sides are triangular boards called gunung, which means 'mountain'. There are two black pieces called tigers, and 22 or 24 white pieces called men. Version A has 24 men, and version B has 22 men.
Two versions of this game are described.
If the man player has been reduced to 10 or 11 remaining orang pieces, the man player will usually resign as there is not enough orang pieces left to effectively immobilize the rimau pieces.
Version B has a slightly different opening phase. Otherwise, gameplay is exactly the same in both Version A and Version B for movement, capturing, and winning conditions.
A similar game to rimau-rimau, especially Version A, is played by the Iban tribe in Borneo, called main machan. [3] There are a few differences, however; one of which is that there are 28 anak ('children') in main machan as compared to 24 or 22 orang-orang ('men') in rimau-rimau. [3] Children are playing the role of the men in this case. Furthermore, instead of rimau-rimau ('tigers'), the two pieces are called endo ('women') in main machan. [3] Lastly, the anak can jump over an endo using the short leap method as in draughts, but the endo piece is not captured. [3] There may be more variations of the game with differences in rules, board design, and number of pieces. [3] An endo piece can capture an odd number of anak pieces as in rimau-rimau, and the board used is the same as in rimau-rimau.
Another account from the book "The Achehnese" (1906) states that these type of games were referred to as Machanan or the 'tiger game' in Java, but referred to as meurimueng-rimueng ('tiger game') among the Acehnese. [4] Meurimueng-rimueng is described slightly differently from both versions of Rimau-rimau. It consists of the usual two tigers, but with 23 sheep (as opposed to 22 or 24 men). It is most similar to Version B as the game begins with eight sheep on the eight intersection points surrounding the central point of the board. But instead of the central intersection point being left empty, the two tiger pieces are placed on it. It does not specifically mention if the two tigers are stacked on top of one another on the central point, or if the second tiger is entered separately and after the first tiger has moved away from the central point. Moreover, the remaining 15 sheep are only entered if a sheep on the board is captured. This means that only at most eight sheep are allowed on the board at any time, but can eight sheep effectively block the two tigers? Whether this is an accurate description of the game is questionable. The tigers are allowed to capture an odd number of sheep as in rimau-rimau, and the same board is used.
The Acehnese live in northern Sumatra, but on the island of Simeulue (or Simaloer or Simalur) which is just west of Sumatra, the inhabitants play a similar game and may fill in some of the rule deficiencies found for meurimueng-rimueng, the previous game described above. It is similar to Version B of rimau-rimau. Edw. Jacobson wrote in Tijdschrift Voor Indische Taal-, Land- En Volkenkunde (1919), a collection of articles written in Dutch, and spelled the name of the game as rimoe (which sounds like rimau), and Jacobson states that it is the Malay rimau or the tiger game. [5] The game was also described by H.J.R. Murray in A History of Board-Games Other Than Chess (1952), and references Edw. Jacobson's work as his source. [6] The game uses the same board. There are 24 pieces called ana (which means child in some Austronesian languages, which the inhabitants of Simuelue speak) played by one player. [7] There is also one or two rimoe or radjo (depending upon the version) played by the other player. In the beginning only eight ana are placed on the eight intersection points surrounding the central point of the board. If playing with the version with one rimoe, then that one rimoe is placed on the central intersection point. If playing with the version with two rimoe, then both rimoe are placed on the central intersection point, hence two pieces are occupying one intersection point. In both versions, the rimoe start first with each player alternating their turns. The rimoe, having been completely surrounded by ana pieces, jumps over one along a marked line and landing on a vacant intersection point immediately beyond as in rimau-rimau, and removes the ana from the board. In the version with two rimoe, the player may choose any one of the two rimoe to jump over an ana. Only one rimoe may be used in a turn throughout the game. In both versions, the person playing with the ana pieces must first enter the remaining 16 ana pieces (one piece per turn) before they can move any of the pieces on the board. After all 16 ana pieces have been dropped, the ana pieces may be moved to any adjacent vacant intersection point along a marked line. Only one ana piece may be moved in a turn. Ana pieces cannot capture or perform jumps. The person playing with the rimoe piece or pieces may move a rimoe piece following a marked line onto a vacant adjacent intersection point. In the single rimoe version, the rimoe may jump over an adjacent odd number of ana pieces as in rimau-rimau. If playing with the version with two rimoe, the rimoe may capture no more than one ana per turn. The person playing the rimoe pieces may only perform a move or a capture in a turn, but not both. The objective of the person playing the ana pieces is to hem in or trap the rimoe piece or pieces as in rimau-rimau. The objective of the person playing the rimoe piece or pieces is to capture all the ana pieces. Jacobson writes that rimoe is a favorite pastime among the inhabitants of Simuelue, and are found on the plank floors of many homes or suraës incised (a sura is a place where religious instruction is given, or serves as a lodge for foreigners, especially in Simeulue). Game boards (that are separate from the floor or wall) are never to be found. The two triangle board sections are called alas among the inhabitants of Simeulue, and it means 'beach', but among the Malay it is often referred to as a forest (or mountain).
Another variant which is briefly described in "The Achehnese" (1906) is the game Madranggam (or Mudranggam) which is called "four tigers and sixteen sheep". [4] The same board is used in Machanan/meurimueng-rimueng which is the rimau-rimau board, but it is not explicitly mentioned whether a tiger can capture an odd number of sheep. Perhaps a similar game is described by Walter William Skeat in his work Malay magic (1900) which he refers to as Main Rimau ("Tiger" Game) or Main Rimau Kambing ("Tiger and Goat" Game) as this game usually consists of four tigers and a dozen goats. [8] However, the design of the board is not described or referenced, nor whether or not the tiger is permitted to capture an odd number of goats.
Main rimau is also the name for a game played in the state of Kelantan in Malaysia, and it was described by A.H. Hill in the Journal of the Malayan Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society (1952) under the article "Some Kelantan Games and Entertainments". [9] But unlike Rimau-rimau and the other variants, the standard Alquerque board is only used; the two triangular boards that normally flank it on opposite sides are missing. There are two rimau and twenty lěmbu ('cattle'), and they are traditionally represented by fruits or pebbles. The game starts with some of the pieces on the board already. The two rimau are placed on two opposite outer rows (or columns) of the board, and specifically on the middle point of the row or column; this part of the setup is essentially the same as that of Rimau-rimau. Four lěmbu are placed on the four points diagonally adjacent to the central point of the board. Although not explicitly described in the article, the remaining lěmbu may be assumed to be entered one piece per turn as in Rimau-rimau and the other variants. But unlike Rimau-rimau and the other variants, the lěmbu may possibly be placed onto a point already occupied by one or more lěmbu. The rimau move and capture similarly as in Rimau-rimau except it can only capture one lěmbu in a turn; the rimau cannot capture a line of an odd number (greater than one) of lěmbu as in Rimau-rimau. The turn ends after the capture of the one lěmbu. As mentioned earlier, more than one lěmbu may occupy a point, and the rimau is allowed to leap over them, but only capture one of the lěmbu. The lěmbu move similarly as in the orang-orang of Rimau-rimau but it can also move onto a point already occupied by one or more lěmbu. The lěmbu are not allowed to move onto the same point occupied by a rimau. The lěmbu cannot capture. The objective for both parties is the same as in Rimau-rimau.
A Czech ethnographer, Dr. Karl Plischke (Czech: Karel Plischke), published an article in 1890 in German "Kurze Mittheilung Ueber Zwei Malayische Spiele" (English: Short Message About Two Malay Games) describing a slight variant of Version B. It was described to him by a 19 year old Malay man from Singapore of the name "Saman" in 1889. Plischke states that in the beginning of the game the 8 orang-orang are placed according to Version B, but that each of the 2 rimau are placed on any two vacant points on the board, or that possibly the 2 rimau can be both placed together on the central point of the board (as in the 2 rimau version of Rimoe). The only other difference from Version B is that a rimau can only capture one orang in a turn; it cannot capture a multiple number of orang-orang (not even an odd number except one). [10]
Rimau-rimau is an asymmetric game in that the pieces controlled by one player are different from the pieces controlled by the other player. Tiger pieces can capture, whereas men can only block the tigers. Furthermore, the number of pieces is different for each player. The tiger player controls the two tiger pieces, and the man player controls the 22 or 24 man pieces. Lastly, the goals of each player are different. The goal of the tigers is to eliminate as many men as possible which would prevent the men from blocking their movements. However, the goal of the men is to block the movements of the tigers.
Alquerque is a strategy board game that is thought to have originated in the Middle East. It is considered to be the parent of draughts and Fanorona and the diagonals of its grid are the predecessor of the checkering of the draughts board.
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Main tapal empat is a two-player abstract strategy board game from Malaysia. It is a hunt game, and specifically a tiger hunt game since it uses an Alquerque board. The tigers can move as many spaces in a straight line as a clear path allows. Most hunt games have tigers, leopards, or foxes moving only one space at a time. In effect, the tigers in this game have the movement capability of the queen in chess.
Adugo is a two-player abstract strategy game from the Bororo tribe in the Pantanal region of Brazil.
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Gol-skuish is a two-player abstract strategy game from India, specifically from Central Provinces, and it was described by H.J.R. Murray in A History of Board-Games Other Than Chess (1952). The game belongs to the draughts and Alquerque family as pieces are captured by leaping over them. The board is composed of seven concentric circles divided by three diameters. Gol-skuish belongs to a specific category of games called Indian War-games which include Lau kata kati, Dash-guti, Egara-guti, and Pretwa. At the beginning of every Indian War-game all the pieces are laid out on the board at every intersection point, with the exception of the central point. This forces the first move of the game to be played on the central point, and captured by the second player's piece.
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Rimau is a two-player abstract strategy board game from Malaysia. It is a hunt game, and specifically a tiger hunt game since it uses an expanded alquerque board. One tiger is being hunted by 24 men. The tiger attempts to eat the men, and the men attempt to trap the tiger. Unique to rimau, the tiger can capture a line of men in a single leap. There must be an odd number of men in the line, and they must be adjacent to one another. In most hunt games, the tiger, leopard, or fox is only able to capture one prey in a leap.
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Catch the hare is a two-player abstract strategy board game from Europe, and perhaps specifically from Spain. It is a hunt game, and since it uses a standard alquerque board from the game alquerque de doze, it is specifically a tiger hunt game. In some variants, some or all of the diagonal lines are missing which makes it difficult to classify as a tiger game in general. One hare is going up against ten to twelve opponents(hunters or hounds). The hare is the "tiger" in this hunt game which is prey and predator at the same time. The hare can capture the opponents by leaping over them. The opponents attempt to surround and trap the hare.
Kharbaga is a two-player abstract strategy game from North Africa. In a way, it is a miniature version of Zamma; however, there are more diagonal lines per square on the board as compared to Zamma. The game is considered part of the Zamma family. The game is also similar to Alquerque and draughts. The board is essentially an Alquerque board with twice the number of diagonal lines or segments allowing for greater freedom of movement. The initial setup is also similar to Alquerque, where every space on the board is filled with each player's pieces except for the middle point of the board. Moreover, each player's pieces are also set up on each player's half of the board. The game specifically resembles draughts in that pieces must move in the forward directions until they are crowned "Mullah" which is the equivalent of the King in draughts. The Mullah can move in any direction.
Tiger game played with forty, translation of meurimueng-rimueng peuet ploh, is a two-player abstract strategy board game from Sumatra, Indonesia. The last part of the name, ploh, is sometimes spelled "plo". It is specifically played by the Acehnese. The game was described in The Achehnese by Hurgronje, O'Sullivan, and Wilkinson in 1906 and described on page 204.
Meurimueng-rimueng-do is a two-player abstract strategy board game from Sumatra, Indonesia. It is played by the Acehnese. The game was published in the book entitled "The Achehnese" by Hurgronje, O'Sullivan, and Wilkinson in 1906 and described on page 204. The game is a hunt game similar to Pulijudam and Demala diviyan keliya. They use the same triangular board. Therefore, meurimueng-rimueng-do is specifically a leopard hunt game. In this game, 5 leopards are going up against 15 sheep. The sheep attempt to surround and trap the 5 leopards while the leopards attempt to avoid this fate by capturing enough of the sheep.
Kotu Ellima is a two-player abstract strategy board game from Sri Lanka played by the Sinhalese people. The game was documented by Henry Parker in Ancient Ceylon: An Account of the Aborigines and of Part of the Early Civilisation (1909); the game was printed as "Kotu Ellima" which is actually a misspelling because his source for the game was Leopold Ludovici's Journal of the Ceylon Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society (1873), and specifically in the chapter entitled "The Sports and Games of the Singhalese", and Ludovici wrote the name of the game as Kotu Ellime or Taking of the Castles. The game is similar to draughts (checkers) and Alquerque as players hop over one another's pieces to capture them; it is more similar to Alquerque between the two since it uses a standard Alquerque board. However, unlike draughts and standard Alquerque, the game is played on an expanded Alquerque board consisting of four triangular boards attached to the four sides of a standard Alquerque board. It closely resembles peralikatuma and sixteen soldiers which are also played in Sri Lanka and other parts of the Indian subcontinent with the only difference being the number of pieces. In sixteen soldiers, each player has 16 pieces hence the name of the game. In peralikatuma, each player has 23 pieces. In Kotu Ellima, each player has 24 pieces, and at the beginning of the game the whole board is covered with them except the central point reminiscent of standard alquerque.
Awithlaknannai Mosona is a two-player strategy board game from the Zuni Native American Indian tribe of New Mexico, United States. It is unknown how old the game is. The game was described by Stewart Culin in his book "Games of the North American Indians Volume 2: Games of Skill" (1907). In this book, it was named Awithlaknan Mosona. Awithlaknannai Mosona resembles another Zuni board game called Kolowis Awithlaknannai with few minor differences. The former having a smaller board, and depending upon the variant, it also has less lines joining the intersection points. The rules are the same. Awithlaknannai Mosona belongs to the draughts and alquerque family of games as pieces hop over one another when capturing. It is actually more related to Alquerque, since the board is made up of intersection points and lines connecting them. It is thought that the Spanish had brought Alquerque to the American Southwest, and Awithlaknannai Mosona may have been an evolution from Alquerque. However, in Stewart Culin's 1907 book, the Zunis claim that they had adopted a hunt game from Mexico similar to catch the hare and the fox games of Europe, and transformed it into Awithlaknannai Mosona. In these games, one player has more pieces over the other, however, the other player's piece has more powers. The Zuni's equalized the numbers of pieces and their powers, and also may have transformed the board making its length far exceed its width. Diagonal lines also replaced orthogonal lines altogether. However, the hunt game from Mexico may have used an alquerque board even though the game mechanics of their new game, Awithlaknannai Mosona, were completely different.
Indian and jackrabbits is a two-player abstract strategy board game from the Tiwa tribe of Taos, New Mexico. A similar game with a slightly different board is also played by the Tohono O'odham tribe of Arizona. From the outset, these games look like hunt games similar to catch the hare, the fox games of Europe, and the tiger and leopard games of Asia, because they use very similar boards, and the game mechanics are the same, and the number of pieces each player controls is different. However, they are not the same games, because the goals are completely different. The goal of the one Indian is to capture just one of the twelve jackrabbits. The goal of the jackrabbits is to move themselves safely onto the other side of the board mirroring their initial positions.
Tiger and buffaloes is a two-player abstract strategy board game from Myanmar. It belongs to the hunt game family. The board is a 4x4 square grid, where pieces are placed on the intersection points and move along the lines. It is one of the smallest hunt games. Three tigers are going up against eleven buffaloes. The tigers attempt to capture as many of the buffaloes by the short leap as in draughts or alquerque. The buffaloes attempt to hem in the tigers.
Sua ghin gnua is a two-player abstract strategy board game from Thailand, formerly known as Siam. Another name for the game is tigers and oxen. It is a hunt game played on a 5x5 square grid with only orthogonal lines. One player plays the three tigers, and the other player plays the twelve oxen. The board is empty in the beginning. Players first drop their pieces onto the board, and then are able to move them. The tigers can capture the oxen by the short leap as in draughts and alquerque, but the oxen attempt to elude and at the same time hem in the tiger. Sua Ghin Gnua most resembles the tiger hunt games such as bagh-chal, rimau-rimau, main tapal empat, catch the hare, and adugo since they all use a 5 x 5 square grid. But tiger games technically consist of a standard alquerque board which is a 5 x 5 square grid with several diagonal lines criss-crossing through it which are completely missing in sua ghin gnua. There are however some variants of catch the hare which have missing diagonal lines also. Another game that resembles sua ghin gnua is from Myanmar, called tiger and buffaloes, which is a hunt game consisting of a 4 x 4 square grid with no diagonal lines. Myanmar happens to border Thailand geographically so there might be a historical connection between the two games. Another game from Myanmar is lay gwet kyah that is presumed to be similar to sua ghin gnua. Sua ghin gnua was briefly described by Stewart Culin, in his book Chess and Playing Cards: Catalogue of Games and Implements for Divination Exhibited by the United States National Museum in Connection with the Department of Archaeology and Paleontology of the University of Pennsylvania at the Cotton States and International Exposition, Atlanta, Georgia 1895 (1898). It's also briefly mentioned by H.J.R. Murray in his book A History of Chess (1913). It was also described by R.C. Bell, in his book Board and Table Games from Many Civilizations (1969).