Renju or Lianzhu (Chinese/Japanese: 連珠) is the professional variant of Gomoku, a board game originated from China. It is played with black and white stones on a 15x15 intersection Go board. Renju eliminates the "Perfect Win"-situation in Gomoku by adding special conditions for the first player (Black). Gomoku, go-moku, or gobang (Japanese: 五目並べ, Gomoku Narabe, five points), or in English Connect Five (also spelled Connect 5 or Connect5) is an abstract strategy board game. ... A board game is a game played with counters or pieces that are placed on, removed from, or moved across a board (a premarked surface, usually specific to that game). ... Go is a strategic board game for two players. ...

Rules and Opening Sequence

Black can win the game only by placing five black stones in a row (vertically, horizontally or diagonally).

White can win by either:

• getting five (or more) white stones in a row
• forcing Black to make a forbidden move (see below).

The opening sequence differs from ordinary Gomoku:

1. The first player places 2 black stones and 1 white stone on the board.
2. The second player now chooses whether to play black or white.
3. White then places one more stone on the board.
4. Black places 2 stones on the board.
5. White removes one of the two black stones from the previous move.
6. White places a white stone.

After this sequence is complete, Black and White continue to take turns to place their stones.

There are certain moves that Black is not allowed to make:

• Double three - Black cannot place a stone that builds two separate lines with three black stones in unbroken rows (i.e. rows not blocked by white stones).
• Double four - Black cannot place a stone that builds two separate lines with four black stones in a row.
• Overline - six or more black stones in a row.

World Championships

World Championships in Renju have occurred every second year, since 1989.[1]

Previous World Championships have taken place in the following places:

• 1989: Kyoto, Japan
• 1991: Moscow, USSR
• 1993: Arjeplog, Sweden
• 1995: Tallinn, Estonia
• 1997: Saint Petersburg, Russia
• 1999: Beijing, China
• 2001: Kyoto, Japan
• 2003: Vadstena, Sweden
• 2005: Tallinn, Estonia

The next World Championship will take place:

• 2007: Tyumen, Russia

See also

• Game complexity
• Connect6
• Go (board game)
• Irensei

In combinatorial game theory, game complexity is a measure of the complexity of a game. ... Connect6 (Chinese: 六子棋; Pinyin: liùzǐqí; Japanese: 六目並べ; Korean: 육목) introduced by Professor I-Chen Wu at Department of Computer Science and Information Engineering, National Chiao Tung University, is a fair and highly complex game. ... Go is a strategic board game for two players. ... Irensei (Japanese: 囲連星) is an abstract strategy board game. ...

References

• Renju International Federation

External links

• Renju International Federation has complete rules and history of the game
• Nihon Renju Sha Japanese Renju Federation
• Korean Omok Association (omok is the Korean name of the game)
• China Renju federation (RIF China)
• Svenska Luffarschackförbundet
• Online Renjuclass You can learn renju and play online games there
• Renju Offline Site for playing renju
• LLIO Renju Globe can playing renju
• Russian Renju Association RIF Russia page
• Finnish Renju Federation (Suomen Renju ry)
• Renju.com (Renju.com)