Mancala

Six sow-and-capture variants on the pit topology, with bonus turns, relay sowing, and the same embed and SDK every family uses.

Embed via iframe

Every game family shares one embed surface. Select the family and variant through the URL.

<iframe
  src="https://engine.moddable.games/play/?embed=1&family=mancala&variant=kalah"
  style="width:100%;max-width:560px;aspect-ratio:2/1;border:none"
  title="Play Mancala"
></iframe>

URL parameters

Param	Values	Default
`embed`	`1`	Required for embed mode
`family`	`mancala`	`chess`
`variant`	Any variant key below	`kalah`
`opponent`	`ai` \| `human`	`ai`
`difficulty`	`beginner` \| `easy` \| `medium` \| `hard` \| `expert`	`medium`
`theme`	Board theme id	`classic`

postMessage control

Commands accept either the generic game: prefix or the family prefix, so game:undo and mancala:undo both work.

iframe.contentWindow.postMessage({ type: 'game:setVariant', variant: 'oware' }, '*')
iframe.contentWindow.postMessage({ type: 'game:setDifficulty', difficulty: 'hard' }, '*')
iframe.contentWindow.postMessage({ type: 'game:newGame' }, '*')
iframe.contentWindow.postMessage({ type: 'game:undo' }, '*')
iframe.contentWindow.postMessage({ type: 'game:resign' }, '*')
iframe.contentWindow.postMessage({ type: 'game:requestState' }, '*')

Events from embed

window.addEventListener('message', (e) => {
  switch (e.data.type) {
    case 'game:ready':  break  // { family, variant, state }
    case 'game:move':   break  // { move, state }
    case 'game:status': break  // { text, gameOver, family, variant }
    case 'game:state':  break  // { state } in reply to requestState
  }
})

Variants

All six variants from the moddable-rules Mancala hub are playable. Each is fully declared in frontmatter; the plugin holds no variant-specific code.

Key	Pits	Distinguishing rule
`kalah`	6 per side	Capture opposite pit; bonus turn when last seed lands in own store
`oware`	6 per side	Capture from opponent's row when last seed makes 2 or 3; grand-slam protection
`congkak`	7 per side	Bonus turn on store landing; Malaysian variant
`sungka`	7 per side	Filipino variant; simultaneous first sow
`ayo`	6 per side	Relay sowing (continue from the pit the last seed lands in)
`toguz-korgool`	9 per side	Tuz capture (claim an opponent pit permanently)

Mechanics

The plugin handles sowing, capture, and store logic. All configuration arrives via frontmatter:

Config key	Effect
`pitsPerSide`	Number of pits each player owns (6, 7, or 9)
`seedsPerPit`	Starting seeds in each pit
`captureRule`	When and how seeds are captured (opposite, count-based, relay)
`bonusTurnOnStore`	Last seed in own store earns another turn
`relaySowing`	Continue sowing from the pit where the last seed landed

The game ends when one side is empty. Remaining seeds go to their owner's store. Most seeds wins.

SDK

import { createGame, createAI, listVariants } from 'moddable-engine/play'

listVariants('mancala')                       // [{ key, label, group, board }]
const game = createGame('mancala', 'kalah')
game.applyMove({ action: 'sow', pit: 2, to: 'pit-2' })

const ai = createAI('mancala', 'kalah', { difficulty: 'hard' })
ai.pickMove(game.getState().slice, 0)         // minimax with pit evaluation