How to play
2 players, White and Black. There is no board: the pieces you put down form the hive. Surround the opponent's queen on all six sides (with pieces of either colour) to win. If both queens are surrounded at once, it is a draw.
Your turn
Either put a new piece down, or move one of yours. If you can do neither, you pass.
- A new piece must touch your own pieces and never touch the opponent's (except for the very first piece of each player).
- Your queen must be down by your fourth turn. Your pieces cannot move before your queen is down.
- The hive must always stay in one piece, even during a move. Pieces slide around the hive: a piece cannot squeeze through a gap too narrow for it.
The pieces
- Queen (1): moves one space.
- Beetle (2): moves one space, and may climb on top of the hive. A piece with a beetle on it cannot move.
- Grasshopper (3): jumps in a straight line over pieces, to the first empty space.
- Spider (2): moves exactly three spaces around the hive.
- Ant (3): moves any number of spaces around the hive.
- Ladybug (1): two steps on top of the hive, then one step down.
- Mosquito (1): moves like any piece it touches.
Extra pieces
Only in games where the creator added them, one of each per player:
- Pillbug: Moves one space. Instead, it can carry a piece next to it over itself to an empty space next to it; that piece cannot act on its next turn.
- Magnet: Moves one space. Instead, it can pull an enemy piece in a straight line, across empty spaces, to the space next to it.
- Swapper: Moves one space. Instead, it can change places with one of your pieces anywhere on the board.
- Bishop: Jumps diagonally to a space two cells away, next to the hive.
- Knight: Jumps like a chess knight: two spaces, then one to the side, landing next to the hive.
- Sleeper: Moves like the ant, then rests: it cannot move on your next turn.
- Guard: Moves one space. Enemy pieces next to it cannot move.
- Digger: Digs underground to any empty space one or two cells away, next to the hive.
- Pusher: Moves one space. Instead, it can push a line of one to three pieces one space further and step into the gap.
- Echo: Moves like the piece your opponent just moved.
Clocks
A game may have a clock per player, or a time limit per move: a player whose time runs out loses.
