hop to playPlay Bao

How to play
Bao.

Find the rhythm.
See the possibilities.

A handful of seeds. A beautifully clever game. Learn Bao la Kiswahili, one satisfying move at a time.

Follow the seeds Quick rules
Pick up a handful.
Watch where it takes you.

A visual beginner’s guide to Bao la Kiswahili

Two rows belong to you.

Four rows. Eight pits in each. You play in your own two rows; the two front rows meet in the middle.

This is Bao la Kiswahili. Each player begins with ten seeds on the board and 22 in reserve: 64 seeds altogether. Here South is you: the bottom two rows. North plays the top two.

The standard opening position.
Your two rowsThe other two

The standard opening position.

One seed. Then another.

Begin with one seed from your reserve. Pick up the chosen pit and sow its seeds, one per pit, around your own two rows.

Here A6 holds two seeds. Add one, lift all three, then drop them into A7, A8 and B8. B8 was empty before the last seed, so the turn stops.

The position after this example move.

This first move has no capture. The next examples show what changes.

One legal first move from the standard opening.

The last seed can start something.

Here the last seed reaches a pit that already holds a seed. Gather both and keep sowing. It is still your turn.

In this new example, B8 already has one seed. Your last seed makes two: lift both and continue to B7, then B6. B6 was empty, so you stop. Houses, captures and takasia create special cases.

The position after this example move.
In this exampleOccupied? Pick up. Keep going.Empty? Leave the last seed. Stop.

A different early position, reached after two legal moves.

Meet across the middle.

In the opening phase, add a reserve seed to an occupied front pit facing enemy seeds. Capture those seeds, then sow them back into your own side.

A3 faces North’s a6. Take its two seeds and re-enter through A1, then A2. Captures are compulsory when available. This central pit permits either entry end; pits near an end force the nearby entry.

The position after this example move.

Seeds stay in the game. There is no score pot.

A separate capture example, also reached after two legal moves.

A little house. A deeper game.

The square pit is the nyumba: your house. It begins with six seeds and has special rules during the opening phase.

When an owned house holds at least six seeds, it can stop a turn. During a capturing turn the game may offer Keep or Use. Using all its seeds ends ownership. The game shows these choices only when they matter.

Back at the opening: six seeds in each house.
Read the house details

Back at the opening: six seeds in each house.

When your hand is empty.

After both reserves run out, mtaji begins. Start with a legal pit holding at least two seeds. There is no reserve seed to add.

Here lift three seeds from A7 and sow towards A6, A5 and A4. The last pit was empty, so stop. Captures still come first. On a non-capturing turn, a legal front-row start takes priority over the back row.

The position after this example move.

A later position, reached after 48 legal moves. Both reserves are empty.

The front row decides it.

Empty the other player’s front row, or leave them without a legal move. That is how you win Bao.

In this separate later example, North captures South’s final front seed. South still has seeds in the back row, but the game ends immediately. Captured seeds are not score points or an off-board bank.

The position after this example move.
Let me try a move

A separate ending, reached after 89 legal moves. North plays this turn.

Your turn.
Feel the rhythm.

Three little moves. No opponent, no timer.
Try an idea and see exactly what happens.

South to playOpening · namua

Practice starts from a fresh opening.

Make the seeds turn the corner.

A6 holds two seeds. Add one from reserve. Which direction carries your three seeds into the back row?

Choose a move. There is time to think.

Read the answer

Exactly. One in A7, one in A8, then one in B8. That back pit was empty, so your turn ends.

South to playOpening · namua

A new early position, reached after two legal moves.

There is a capture waiting.

Your occupied A3 faces two seeds in North’s a6. What must you do?

Choose a move. There is time to think.

Read the answer

Yes. A capture is compulsory. Take the two facing seeds and sow them back into your side, here through A1 and A2.

South to playBoard phase · mtaji

A new later position, reached after 48 legal moves.

The reserve is gone. You are ready.

Both hands are empty. In this mtaji position, how does the shown move from A7 begin?

Choose a move. There is time to think.

Read the answer

You have it. Lift three and sow one into A6, A5 and A4. You are using seeds already on the board. Ready for your first game?

A handful of seeds.
A whole new game.

Follow the loop. Look across the middle.
Keep your front row alive.

Play Bao for free

No download. No account. Just one more turn.

Bao rules,
in your pocket.

This guide teaches the Bao la Kiswahili rules used by Hop to Play. Bao is part of the wider family of sowing games often called mancala.

Watch the rules unfold
  1. Play your own two rows. Four rows of eight pits. The inner rows face each other. Sow around your own sixteen pits.
  2. Begin with the reserve. Each player starts with ten seeds on the board and 22 in hand. In namua, add one reserve seed to an eligible occupied front pit. A capture takes priority.
  3. Follow the final seed. A normal sowing move relays from a pit that was already occupied and ends at one that was empty. House and takasia rules can create stops.
  4. Take a capture when you can. Captured seeds come from a facing front pit and re-enter through a permitted end of your own front row. A turn that starts without capture cannot turn into a capture mid-relay.
  5. When both reserves empty, change the start. In mtaji, lift at least two seeds from a legal pit. Captures still take priority; for a quiet move, use a legal front-row start whenever one is available.
  6. Keep your front row alive. Empty the other front row or leave your opponent without a legal move to win. Having more seeds alone does not win the game.

A few seeds
of understanding.

Is this the same as other mancala games?

Mancala names a family of sowing games, not one universal ruleset. Bao la Kiswahili has four rows, opening reserves, relays, compulsory captures and house rules. In particular, captured seeds return to play; they do not go into a scoring store. Bao la Kujifunza is a simpler variant with a different opening.

How does a capture work in mtaji?

A capturing start uses 2–15 seeds from one of your pits. Its first sowing must end in an already occupied front pit facing enemy seeds. If any such capture exists, you must choose one. Captured seeds enter through a permitted end of your front row; further captures may follow. The game shows legal starting pits and directions.

What are the special house rules?

The square front pit is the nyumba. It begins with six seeds. During namua, when a sowing sequence ends in an owned house with at least six seeds, the house can stop the turn. A capturing turn may offer Keep to stop or Use to lift the house and continue. Use ends ownership. Any compulsory facing capture at that landing comes first. A special two-seed start can apply when the house is the only occupied front pit. These choices are part of the full rules; the regular game offers them only when legal.

The site's rules follow the linked reference implementation. Some traditional and regional details differ between rules descriptions.

What is the T on a pit in the full game?

It marks takasia, a special one-turn restriction that can arise during mtaji. It changes some legal starts and where a non-capturing relay must stop. The regular game calculates the restriction for you; use its highlighted legal choices. You do not need to memorise it to try the three examples above.

Why can the board look different in the full game?

This guide keeps the board horizontal so that the board and explanation fit together. The full game may turn it upright on a phone to give the pits more room. South’s two rows then become the left two columns; North’s become the right two. Labels such as A6 and B8 stay attached to the same pits. The rules stay the same.

Can I replay or turn off the motion?

Scroll slowly in either direction to control the demonstrations. Use Watch the move to play one again, or Back and Next to move between explanations. Reading view presents the diagrams beside the text and turns off scroll motion. Your device’s reduced-motion setting is respected.

Where does Bao fit in Zanzibar?

Bao has a strong place in the Swahili coast’s game culture. The Smithsonian’s Zanzibar gameboard collection connects its carved wooden boards with the geometric carving of traditional doors. This guide’s wood and inlaid geometry take inspiration from that craftsmanship.