1. Fanorona is played on a 9-by-5 rectangular board with 45 points. Lines indicate permitted moves.

2. Each player selects 22 BEADs the colour of their choice.

3. BEADs are placed on the two rows of 9 closest to the player. The remaining 4 BEADs are placed on the middle row alternating with their opponent’s BEAD, starting on the player’s right and leaving the middle point empty.

4. The player with the lighter coloured BEADs starts.

1. In turns, each player moves 1 BEAD along the marked lines to an adjacent empty point, or they can capture an opponent’s BEAD

2. A player can capture either by Approach or by Withdrawal.

3. During an Approach capture, a player moves their BEAD to a point adjacent to their opponent’s BEAD. The BEAD is only captured if the BEAD is on the continuum of the capturing BEADs movement.

4. During a Withdrawal capture, a player will move their BEAD from a point adjacent to their opponent’s BEAD. The BEAD is only captured if the BEAD is on a continuum of the capturing BEADs movement.

5. When a player’s BEAD is captured, all their BEADS in an uninterrupted line beyond the capturing BEAD are also captured.

6. A player cannot make an Approach and Withdrawal capture at the same time – the player must choose one.

7. A player can make multiple captures during their turn, but their BEAD cannot land on the same intersection more than once each turn and must alternate between an Approach and a Withdrawal capture.

8. Making multiple captures in a single turn is optional.

9. On a player’s first move of the game, only one capture is allowed.

10. Captured BEADs are removed from the board.

To win the game, a player must capture all their opponent's BEADs.

1. Fanorona is a game that comes from the island of Madagascar. It is a strategy game based loosely on Alquerque.

2. The game dates to 1680. The Madagascans doubled the size of the alquerque board, along with the number of pieces, and altered the method of capture.

3. Fanorona was a popular way of spending free time, and was also used for divination purposes. When the French invaded the island in 1895, the reigning queen Ranavalona III is said to have put more faith in the outcome of a ritual game of fanorona than in the strength of her armed forces.

4. Knowledge of the game spread more widely in the middle of the 20th century, when it was featured in a number of popular books about games.