Apagos
Apagos Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Components
- 1 transparent plastic ramp
- 4 square wooden platforms, each with cells (holes) on both sides
- 10 white balls
- 10 black balls
- 1 ball tray
Start of the Game
Goal: At the end of the game, the player whose balls are most numerous on the top platform wins.
Setup: Each player chooses the colour of balls they will play, black or white. Place the ramp and the tray with all 20 balls so that both players can conveniently reach them. One of the players places the square platforms on the ramp, choosing their order and which side with holes faces up. The second player may then begin the game.
Players take turns. On each turn a player must do one of two things: add a ball or move a ball.
Adding a Ball
A player may take one of their own balls, or one of the balls the opponent is playing with, and place it into a free cell on any of the square platforms.
The platform on which the ball is placed moves up one position. To do this, lift that platform and gently push the platform above it, so that it moves down one position and the platform with the ball takes its place higher up.
If the platform on which the ball is placed is already at the very top, it stays in place.
Example (left side of the printed illustration): a black ball is placed on a platform. The player then moves that platform up one position, so that it effectively replaces the platform that was above it. All that remains is to push the top platform, and it will slide down by itself.
Moving a Ball
A player takes a ball of their own colour that is already on a platform and places it into an empty hole on one of the platforms located lower down. The platform onto which this ball is placed stays in place.
A player cannot move their own ball onto a higher platform, and cannot move the opponent's ball.
Example (right side of the printed illustration): the white balls move backward. This is a complete move, and the platforms remain in their places.
End of the Game
The game ends when all cells are filled with balls.
As usual, the platform onto which the last ball is placed moves up one position, if it was not already on the very top at the start.
The winner is the player with the greatest number of balls located on the top platform.
Example (left side of the printed illustration): the winner is the player who plays the white balls, since they have more balls on the top platform (3 to 2).
Tactics and Strategy
- At the start of the game, count the number of visible cells. If there are 16 or fewer, play with balls of your own colour. If there are more than 16 cells, begin by playing with the opponent's balls.
- The set of platforms includes one platform with 7 cells. Try to fill it, since this platform offers more possibilities for moving up.
- If most of the balls on the top platform belong to your opponent, place a new ball on a lower platform so that it moves up and takes the top position.
- If a platform is filled with a large number of balls of your colour, free up a cell by moving one of the balls onto a lower platform.