Equipment
The Board: Unlike a standard board, a Hedge Checkers board requires a 12x12 board. Also required are objects to serve as the hedge. (Pens work well and well as Scrabble(R) trays.) The green shaded area in the picture represents the hedge.
All play is done on dark squares. The correct orientation for each player will show a dark square to the player's bottom-left corner.
Checker Pieces: These are the same shape and size, usually round. Each player is given 12 of the same color. Usually checkers are black and red, but can be any color. It is suggested to avoid green chekers if the graphic above is used.
Players
The players sit on opposite sides of the board. Each player is called by the color of their checkers. Black moves first, but if black is not used, flip a coin to determine who moves first.
The Play
Each player places 8 of their 12 checkers on the board outside the hedge. Six are placed on the dark squares of the row closest to the player, and one each is placed on both sides on dark squares above the first row. Click on the diagram above for a larger picture - checkers are initally places on the squares marked with an X.
Each turn, a player may "jump the hedge" to put one of their checkers into play, move diagonally forward one square, or jump an opponent. If a player jumps the hedge, he must place a checker outside the hedge, if he has any left over. When jumping over an opponent, you must take all jumps available.
Crowning: If a piece reaches the far edge of the board, he is crowned and called a King. Kings can move and jump backwards, in addition to being able to move and jump forwards.
Object of Play
Deprive the opponent of the ability to move. This happens if all 12 pieces are taken, but can also occur if remaining pieces are blocked.
Notation
Notation is based on the graphic below. X's mark the initial position of checkers at the beginning of the game. *'s mark the Pits (explained later). The numbers mark squares either player can use in legal moves. When writing a game, it is common to write the number the pice moved from and the number where the piece moved to separated by a hypen. In the case of initial moves, X is used.
Special Rules
Hiding: It is possible to hide a piece by jumping back over the hedge. However, the player's next move must be to jump over the hedge and return to play. If the piece is blocked from returning to play, the piece is forfeited. For example, a player may move a piece 5-14. On his next move, he must move 14-25 or forfeit his piece.
The Pits: A move into the squares marked with a star *, are considered sacrifices. Moving into the * squares provide no means for a piece to return. For strategic reasons, a player may opt to sacrifice a piece. Such moves are notated number-*., namely 15-* and 22-*.
Strategy
There is no rule that you must move all 12 pieces into play as soon as possible. However, it is generally considered more beneficial to play aggresively. Not placing pieces on the board can potentially trap several pieces behind the hedge, as well as leave a player greatly outnumbered.
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