Vietnam

Cờ gánh

Also called the carrying game

Cờ gánh is a Vietnamese strategy game played on a small grid of lines with diagonals, often scratched into the ground.

Its name comes from the shoulder pole used to carry two loads at once, which is how its capture works.

The rules, briefly

The board is a five-by-five grid of points with diagonal lines. Each player has eight pieces.
Move a piece one step along a line to an empty point.
Pieces are never removed. If you step between two enemy pieces in a line, you carry them: both become yours. A group with no way to move also changes sides.

Try this: Step into the gap

Look for two enemy pieces with an empty point between them on one line. Stepping into that gap turns both. Then look for the same gap in your own position before your opponent does.

Play on AtlasTales (two players, one screen)

Read more: Cờ gánh on Wikipedia. Written from published sources; if your family plays it differently, write your rules down in Heirloom Rules, and if something here is wrong, tell us: hello@sparkanvil.org.