The game of Kala is played on a rectangular board:

In front of each player are six pits numbered 1 to 6 (called the 'side pits'). To the right of a player's side pits is a special pit, called the player's 'kala'. Initially, all the side pits contain an equal number of stones. A 'move' consists of taking the stones from one of one's own side pits and distributing them anti-clockwise one-by-one in the other pits, including one's own kala, but not the opponent's kala. There are two rules:

• Players make moves alternately except when the last stone of a heap being distributed lands in the current player's kala, and the current player is rewarded with another go.
• If the last stone of a heap moved by a player lands in an empty side pit on the player's own side, that stone together with any stones in the opposite side pit belonging to the player's opponent are won and transferred to the current player's kala. This is referred to as a 'capture'.

The game ends when the player whose turn it is cannot make a move (i.e., all of that player's side pits are empty). Each player's ?nal score is the number of stones in the player's kala plus the number (if any) in their side pits. The player with the higher score is the winner. For a good beginner's game, start with two or three stones in each side pit. Starting with six stones or more in each pit results in quite a diffcult game.