How to Play Goats and Tigers

Adu Huli or Goats and Tigers was once a very popular game as we find this game pattern etched on stone floors of many old and ancient temples. The above game pattern is found on the parapet inside the mahadwara of the Chamundeshwari temple atop Chamundi Betta (hill) in Mysuru.
Following is the design given by the design team at Ramsons Kala Pratishtana for the game board of Adu Huli to be hand woven in Navalgund dhurry.

Adu Huli (Goats & Tigers) is a hunt game played by two players. One player gets three tigers while the other controls the flock of sixteen goats.

How to play:

Pawns (either tigers or goats) should be placed only on intersections of lines (shown by red dots in Fig. 1)

During a turn only one coin has to be played.At the beginning tigers are placed at three points as depicted by T in yellow circles in Fig. 2.

One goat is placed on any open point on the board such that it is safe from tiger’s attack.Next one of the tigers is moved to its adjacent open point. All goats are introduced one by one on the board one each during its turn. (i.e., one goat is placed on a point, next one tiger moves, next one more goat is placed on a point, next a tiger moves, next one more goat is placed on a point and so on).

All goats have to be introduced on the board before a goat starts moving.

If a tiger ‘T’ encounters a lone goat ‘G’ with a open point just behind it, then the tiger jumps over the goat to the open point and takes out the goat from the board as shown in Fig. 3 and Fig. 4 below.

Tiger cannot jump over a goat if there is no open point behind the goat as shown below in Fig. 5 and Fig. 6.

Tiger can jump only once during its turn and does not have multiple jumps during a turn.

A goat that has been taken out of the board by a tiger is permanently out of the game and cannot be reintroduced on the board during that game.

After all goats are introduced on the board, goats start moving.Only one goat can be moved to its adjacent open point during its turn.

Goats cannot jump over anything.

Tigers cannot jump over another tiger.Goats should avoid getting jumped over by tigers and try to surround tigers such that they cannot move as shown below in Fig. 7 and Fig. 8.

Tigers try to take out as many goats as possible and avoid getting tied down by goats.

Goats try to tie down all tigers rendering them immobile.

Lines denote the path of movement. Goats and tigers should always move along the lines. Movement of a pawn between adjacent points is possible only when the points are connected by a line. See Fig.9 and Fig. 10 given below for wrong and correct movements.

Game ends when either tiger takes out more than 6 goats or goats manage to immobilise all tigers.

Winner:

* Tigers win if they take out a minimum of 6 goats.

* Goats win if they immobilise all three tigers.

Benefits: This helps develop strategy and concept of team work by teaching that even though weak, if united, one can vanquish the stronger enemy as a team.