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India
5 traditional games
The Indian subcontinent is the ancestral home of several of the world’s major game families. Cross-and-circle race games, early chess-family games and sowing games played on ornate wooden boards are woven into festivals and family life.
Playable now
Pallanguzhiபல்லாங்குழி
Fourteen pits, tamarind seeds, and the hunt for cows.
2 players10–20 min●●●○○Aadu Puli Attamஆடு புலி ஆட்டம்
Three tigers, fifteen goats, one very pointy board.
2 players8–15 min●●●○○Chaturangaचतुरङ्ग
The ancestor of chess, with a short-stepping counsellor.
2 players15–30 min●●●●○Pachisiपचीसी
The royal cross-and-circle game, thrown with cowrie shells.
2–4 players20–40 min●●●○○provably fair