Questions tagged [game]
A puzzle that asks for determining the winner in a multi-player game.
213
questions
11
votes
1answer
301 views
+200
Topological Nim
You and your friend's new favorite game is "topological nim": You take your favorite compact metric space $X$ and a radius $r$. Each player removes an open disk of radius $r$ from the space ...
8
votes
2answers
454 views
Buzzword Bingo Boss Battle!
Two bosses of different companies take turns delivering long speeches. Every speech much “claim” at least one unused square by uttering the corresponding buzzword(s) in the table below. Victory is ...
18
votes
1answer
515 views
Noughts and Crosses puzzle
Eques and Knott are playing a game of standard 3x3 Noughts and Crosses. At no stage of the game has Eques threatened to complete a row of three on his very next turn.
Suddenly Knott realises he must ...
5
votes
2answers
205 views
Simple game of dice - what is the optimal strategy?
The game is pretty simple, whoever reaches 50 first wins, but there are a few important details:
2 players, one die. Players take turns.
Rolled values are simply added up
If you roll a 6, however, ...
5
votes
2answers
244 views
Achieve the best outcome by a tactical statement
This puzzle is taken from Schelling's Game Theory: How to Make Decisions by R.V. Dodge, in which bargaining power is gained, paradoxically, by burning bridges and removing options for oneself. Here it ...
7
votes
1answer
188 views
The sadistic chieftain and the lethal truel game
In an adventure to a remote island, you get caught by the xenophobic locals and are about to be executed. But the tribe chieftain, known for his sadistic taste, suddenly changes his mind.
"I'll ...
8
votes
1answer
240 views
Ways to destroy a Square Matrix [closed]
Sherlock is solving a case where he came across a puzzle. Suppose you are given a square matrix of size $N$, and a gun with Power $F$. Every cell in the matrix is filled with some number, $x$ (...
8
votes
4answers
439 views
Which gun is Alice's best choice?
Alice, Bob and Charles are involved in a deadly three way duel game.
Before the game starts, the referee prepares three guns for the players to choose from. She randomly picks three guns from a very ...
12
votes
2answers
1k views
Who would be the first to defeat an abundant number?
Rupert and Jenny are playing a game. Each player's score starts out as the number $94083986096100$, which is the square of the product of the first 8 primes and therefore has a lot of divisors. We'll ...
1
vote
3answers
133 views
playing “Coins on a table” against a distracted friend [duplicate]
This puzzle is a follow-up of Coins on a table (warning: the link contains the answer to the original question).
You are playing a game against your friend Alice:
first Alice places one coin on a ...
12
votes
3answers
342 views
Equal distribution of coins to pirates
Ten pirates are sitting around a table. Each of them has an even number of coins.
At order of the captain, each pirate passes half of his coins to the neighbor to the right. After that round, each ...
9
votes
1answer
417 views
99 numbers on the blackboard
The numbers 1,2,3, ..., 99 are written on the blackboard. Alice and Bob play the following game, taking turns. Alice starts.
At every turn, each player removes one number until two numbers are ...
0
votes
0answers
236 views
A Logician's Game of UNO Flip
Two players are in the middle of an ongoing one-on-one game of UNO Flip, with all its standard rules in effect.
Play is currently Light Side Up. It is Player B's turn. Player A has 3 cards remaining, ...
8
votes
2answers
551 views
How many people are there?
This is a variation of an old puzzle.
The game starts with several people sitting in a circle, everyone facing the back of another person. They are all wearing blind folds, so nobody can see anyone ...
23
votes
11answers
10k views
The 100 soldier problem
I saw this problem many years ago. I am sure many puzzlers will know its original name. I was reminded of it when reading about Conquering of Regions problem. A Strategy Game Involving Conquering of ...
7
votes
2answers
369 views
Marbles on a Mancala Board
I would like to introduce an ancient African board game I've just invented.
Until someone comes up with a better name, it's called Marble Mancala.
The rules are pretty simple:
There are two ...
7
votes
2answers
513 views
Alice and Bob play at cards
To pass the time Alice and Bob play a simple game of chance where cards are drawn in pairs from a shuffled standard 52-card deck. If two red cards are drawn Alice wins the round. If two black cards ...
6
votes
2answers
152 views
Positioning cards labeled with numbers from 0-9
Ann and Bob play a game. On a table there are 10 cards which are labeled with number from 0 to 9 each. Bob is allowed to change the position of the cards with a sequence of his preference. When he is ...
5
votes
2answers
133 views
A pile of chips involving powers of 2
Ann and Bob play alternately on a pile of chips. On each play, any number of chips, which is a power of 2 (including 1=$2^0$), can be removed from the pile.
Obviously the number of chips to be removed ...
6
votes
1answer
180 views
A pile of chips involving primes
Ann and Bob play alternately on a pile of chips. On each play, either 1, 2 or 3 chips can be removed except if the number of chips is a prime number. In that case either 1, 2, 3, 4 or 5 chips can be ...
17
votes
1answer
368 views
Masyu-making game
Two players are playing a game on a $4\times4$ board. The players take turns adding either a white circle or a black circle into any empty square, so that the board makes a solvable masyu puzzle (with ...
7
votes
1answer
261 views
Game Night at the Binomial Elks Club
The Binomial Elks Club, being predominantly composed of ambitious and competitive personalities, often held game nights in which members enjoyed battling each other for high stakes and bragging rights....
10
votes
1answer
322 views
Reverse dots and boxes – Guess the last move
Alice and Bob are playing a game of reverse dots and boxes.
The players take turns adding one horizontal or vertical line of size 1 in one free spot on the grid (marked with light gray lines ...
3
votes
1answer
382 views
Need help with an online puzzle / riddle
I found this online riddle at m4tr1x.ws, but now I am stuck. It seems you need to gain deeper and deeper access to this virtual Matrix-style computer system. First you need to create an account via ...
12
votes
1answer
675 views
Reverse dots and… cubes? - Snowflake edition
A Reverse dots-and-boxes puzzle inspired by @jafe
Albert and Robinson are playing a game of reverse dots and boxes.
The players take turns adding one plane in one free spot on the grid (...
8
votes
2answers
742 views
Reverse dots and boxes, swastika edition
Alistair and Roberta are playing a game of reverse dots and boxes.
The players take turns adding one horizontal or vertical line in one free spot on the grid (marked with light gray lines in ...
14
votes
2answers
735 views
Reverse dots and boxes
Alice and Bob are playing a game of reverse dots and boxes. The rules are simple:
The players take turns adding one horizontal or vertical line in one free spot on the grid (marked with light ...
4
votes
1answer
254 views
Tactical Domino Placement Game
Alice and Bob take turns to place regular dominoes into a $7\times8$ board. The first player who cannot go loses.
Is there a winning strategy for either player?
Note that in this version the pips on ...
6
votes
1answer
226 views
I'm a Proper Divisor
Ann and Bob are playing a number game. Ann starts with the number 60. Then she subtracts a proper divisor of 60 from it. Bob then takes the number Ann made and subtracts one of its proper divisors ...
8
votes
1answer
310 views
No point shuffling, just pick your cards
Alice and Bob are playing a card game with the following rules:
Alice selects two piles of 3 cards from a standard 52-card deck and places the piles in front of her, face up. Bob can see these ...
10
votes
1answer
321 views
Birthday girl's casino game
My daughter's birthday is coming up. Here's a fun party game we can play to celebrate. (Bring your wallet!)
I have a pair of 6-sided dice, and a standard deck of 52 cards.
You place your ...
8
votes
3answers
382 views
Four-in-a-line Puzzle
Disclaimer: This is an open-problem, I don't have a complete solution for this puzzle yet.
We are playing a $2$-player game: you as a challenger and me as a judge. Initially, there is an empty ...
3
votes
1answer
676 views
The Sphinx puzzle - Heroes of might and magic II
What is the answer?
The Sphinx asks you the following riddle:
I'm a brook that continues, an old woman or two, when misspelled
I'm a trinket, do I confuse you?
I'm inane at each moment, never used by ...
8
votes
3answers
658 views
Double or Take game
Double or Take is a two-player number game. Alice starts by selecting any positive integer. Bob's options are to:
subtract a positive perfect square
subtract a positive perfect cube, or
double the ...
7
votes
3answers
448 views
Writing differences on a blackboard
The numbers 25 and 36 are written on a blackboard. At each turn,
a player writes on the blackboard the (positive) difference between two numbers
already on the blackboard, if this number does not ...
4
votes
1answer
449 views
Is it Basic Physics?
Which number is next in the sequence?
1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 9, 10 ,11 ,12 ,13 ,14 ,15 ...
Describe why and how your answer applies to the given problem.
9
votes
5answers
1k views
How long will my money last at roulette?
I'm at the casino, standing next to a roulette table with a \$10 minimum bet. I want to stay here as long as possible, so I'm going to repeatedly make the minimum bet until I run out of money.
I'm ...
0
votes
1answer
93 views
A short nim game [duplicate]
There are 50 lucifers on the table.
The rules are:
-You must take 1, 2, 3, 4, or 5 lucifers each turn.
-After player 1 has taken some amount of lucifers, it is player 2's turn, and vice versa.
-...
4
votes
3answers
261 views
Praser 5 - Help
What is the answer to the Griffon's riddle? So tired of beating my head against this one. I've solved the Sphinx, Unicorn, and Pegasus, but this one is killing me.
...
13
votes
3answers
1k views
Spider and fly on a cube
A spider and a fly play a game with a cube of side length $s=1$ and with a positive real number $d$.
First, the spider picks its starting point $S$ somewhere on the surface of the cube.
Then the fly ...
3
votes
1answer
311 views
Another variation of the game of Nim
Two players set several piles of chips. The piles are arranged in a row from left to right. By turns each player takes one chip from one of the piles and adds at will as many chips as he/she wishes (...
4
votes
3answers
227 views
Drawing loops on a sheet of paper
Two people are playing a game, in which each player takes turns drawing closed loops on a sheet of paper. Each new loop must intersect each of the other loops exactly twice. When one player has no ...
10
votes
3answers
658 views
Fight Battle 21
Based off a very, very well-known puzzle
The new RPG, Fight Battle 21, is now here! Now with the same three characters as the previous 20 editions!
Knight: 6 HP, 60% chance to deal 3 damage
Archer: ...
5
votes
1answer
157 views
The Faerie Army is coming!
Well, we're all in trouble, yet again. The fabled Faerie Army has come to take over our dimension.
This is the battlefield:
However, their soldiers don't work quite like ours...
Their pawns move as ...
5
votes
3answers
627 views
Conway's Game of Life… Chess Edition
Here's a new interesting game.
Here's the starting position:
and here's how it works.
Before I even start explaining this, adjacent includes diagonally adjacent. Thank you.
White goes first, as in ...
14
votes
2answers
1k views
The Number Guessing Game
Two people are playing an interesting form of a number guessing game, with the following rules:
One person is the guesser, and one person is the thinker.
The thinker thinks of a number from 1 ...
2
votes
1answer
220 views
Master and Slave versus Bob: easy version
Continuation of: "Sub-puzzle: Master and Slave versus Bob the Violent but Honest Psychopath"
Continued in: "Master and Slave versus Bob: hard version"
Previously I described a game that is played ...
2
votes
1answer
337 views
Master and Slave versus Bob: hard version
Continuation of: "Sub-puzzle: Master and Slave versus Bob the Violent but Honest Psychopath" and "Master and Slave versus Bob: easy version"
The hard version is identical to the easy version (see ...
0
votes
3answers
384 views
Sub-puzzle: Master and Slave versus Bob the Violent but Honest Psychopath
[I created this as a sub-puzzle to "Strategy to beat the Casino reversed", that has been sitting unsolved for months. You may wish to read that puzzle first, but this is self-contained. My answer to ...
0
votes
3answers
119 views
It's a serious game when six-packs are at stake
I'm playing a small-stakes game of a casino poker variant called Okay You Can Stop Holding 'Em. The rules are simple: the player and the house are both dealt two cards face down, there is a round of ...
