Mancala/Kalaha

Mancala is a classic strategy board game played all over the world, especially in Africa and the Middle East. It involves a board with small pits (or cups) and a set of stones, seeds, or beads. Players take turns picking up all the pieces from one of their pits and “sowing” them one by one into the following pits in a loop around the board. The goal is to capture more pieces than your opponent by planning moves ahead and controlling how the pieces land. Simple to learn but surprisingly deep, Mancala is all about counting, timing, and anticipating your opponent’s strategy.