Strands

About this board game

Strands is a hard-to-master two-player puzzle game that plays in around 30 minutes. Released in 2022, it challenges opponents to build the largest contiguous group of their stones while carefully managing where and how many pieces they place.

The rules are compact, but the decisions are far from simple. Black begins by covering any space marked “2.” White then takes the first regular turn, and the players alternate thereafter. On each turn, a player covers up to X empty spaces marked “X”; for example, a turn could cover up to three empty spaces marked “3.”

• Black starts on a space marked “2.”
• White takes the first regular turn.
• Players cover up to X empty spaces marked “X” on their turns.
• The game ends when the board is full.

When the board is full, the player with the largest contiguous group of stones wins. If the largest groups are tied, compare the players’ second-largest groups, then their third-largest groups and so on, stopping at the first pair of different sizes. The player with the larger group at that comparison wins.

The numbers printed on the board make Strands’ interface clear and intuitive while balancing the value of its spaces. The center offers the most powerful places to put pieces, but spaces near the edge allow more pieces to be placed in a single turn.

That tension defines the game’s strategy: pursue valuable central territory, take advantage of the edge’s greater placement flexibility, and keep your connected groups growing. Every move asks you to weigh immediate opportunities against the final group comparison, making the simple ruleset deceptively deep.