Wall Go rules

Objective

Move your stones and build walls to carve out territory — enclosed areas containing only your stones. The player with the most territory wins.

Setup

• The board is 7x7 with 2 to 4 players
• Each player starts with stones in fixed corner positions
• Additional stones are placed in a snake draft (1-2-2-1) to balance the advantage of placing first
• After placement, the player who did not place last moves first

Each turn

1. Select one of your stones
2. Move 0, 1, or 2 steps
   • Each step: up, down, left, or right
   • Cannot cross walls or pass through other stones
3. Build a wall on any open side of your stone's current cell

Walls

• Walls are permanent once placed
• Walls cannot be placed on the board's outer edge — the edge already acts as a natural wall
• You may wall in an opponent's stone — trapping is legal
• Walls appear as coloured borders matching the player who placed them

Match end

The match ends when every empty cell on the board belongs to a player's territory — all space is claimed.

Scoring

• Each territory cell = 1 point
• Highest total score wins
• If tied: player with the largest single territory wins
• If still tied: draw

Handicap

• A territory bonus can be given to any player to balance skill differences
• The bonus points are added to that player's final score
• All players still have the same stones, moves, and walls

Time limit

Configurable per match. If time runs out, a random move and wall placement are made automatically.

Bot opponent

Any player can be set to a bot in the new match dialog. The bot evaluates moves based on territory control, stone mobility, and board influence. The timer is paused during bot turns.